Reviews with content warning for Violence - Wolfsong

Reviews tagging 'Violence'

Wolfsong by TJ Klune

132 reviews

eikaia's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional funny lighthearted fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.25

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kathrynhoss's review against another edition

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dark emotional hopeful mysterious slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? N/A
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

3.0

After loving House on the Cerulean Sea I was disappointed in this seemingly messy and repetitive brick. Maybe paranormal romance fans are more used to this style? A lot of the angst felt like filler to me and if I were the editor, it would be 1/3 shorter. I did become invested in the Bennet pack, hence why I didn't DNF, but I won't be continuing the series. Also, the age difference between the main characters with one of them starting the story as a child was... gross.

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kimschouwenaar's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging emotional funny hopeful sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

I devoured this book, finished it within 48 hours. And I am a slow reader.

Oh my god. Oh my god, y'all.

You gotta smell him and then tell me why it’s all candy canes and pinecones and epic and awesome.

I never thought TJ Klune would succeed in ripping out my heart and shredding it entirely. Alas, here we are. As a slow reader, I usually take my time to get through books, especially when they're a little chunky (yes, this is 'only' about 450 pages long, but it's longer than books I normally read). However, that wasn't the case with this book. I sprinted through this, couldn't put it down, didn't WANT to put it down (because 'you always have a choice'). It has been a long time since I stayed up until 3 am to read. I think the last book that kept me up all night was The Foxhole Court, which is now one of the books I reread every year. Because, fuck. This book doesn't consist of words, it's predominantly made up of characters, pain, and a rollercoaster of emotions.

People could be cruel. They could be beautiful, but they could be cruel too.

At least the first half of the book is what you read in the synopsis: we briefly follow Ox through his childhood when his father leaves, but it quickly moves on to his teenage years and his first meeting with Joe. Joe, the little tornado. Joe. Ox meets the rest of the Bennett family, befriends them, becomes their family, becomes part of their pack, becomes their pack. Until murder comes to town and three remain.

Sometimes I walked in the woods. Things were clearer there. The trees swayed in the breeze. Birds told me stories. They didn’t judge me.

Klune doesn't take the time to wholly explain the setting, making this a timeless book. He glosses over descriptions of buildings, surroundings, characters. And yet, I saw Greek Creek, Oregon as if I've lived there my entire life. I'm not going to lie, his writing style took some time to get used to. It's a lot of dialogue, and you need to stay focused or risk losing track of who's saying what. But it works because that's who the narrator is. That's who Ox is. He sees the world through his own unique lense, and Klune is a master at depicting that lense through his writing.

On top of that, Ox is hilarious. I had to stop reading the book several times, because I was on public transport and I could not risk bursting out laughing. And then I was reading at night and had to stop reading to I didn't wake up the rest of my family. I was dying. And it's not just Ox. It's Carter, Kelly, Joe, Elizabeth, Thomas, Mark, Gordo, Ox's mum, and everyone at the garage Ox works at.

But hearts are a funny thing; they beat strongly in our chests, even though they can shatter at the slightest pressure.

And then comes the heartbreak. The waiting, and the pining, and the years of trying to work your way through loss. It took me out. I was sobbing.

I think the only criticism I have is the use of the word 'retard'; although it was used in a memory Ox has of when his father calls him that. Kind of. And it took some time getting used to the age gap, but it's only 5/6 years and nothing explicit happens until both of them are adults.

So, yeah. This is easily one of my favourite reads of 2023, and it has been added to my all-time-favourites shelf. It's a romance, yes, but it's also so much more. It's grief, it's family, it's loyalty, it's friendship, and it's love that transcends that on the romantic plain.

That was fine. That was okay. Because we were the goddamn Bennett pack. And our song would always be heard.

If you have come this far, I am very much looking for more book friends! You can find me on:
IG: kimschouwenaar
TT: _kimschouwenaar
Goodreads: Kim Schouwenaar

I am also in the midst of creating an IG account specifically for my reading, writing and art journey, which you will be able to find under the username @shelvesofsanity! And I'm obviously on here, so feel free to send me a friend request! (:

- kim <3

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roseangel2's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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thoseoldcrows23's review against another edition

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adventurous funny medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I have never in my life read a book that feels so much like fanfiction. There's a certain type of ridiculousness that is usually reserved for AO3 that I found in abundance her, and I think for many that may be a deal breaker; however, with that absurdity comes the readability also typical of that platform, which for me sort of balanced things out. There is definitely some problematic stuff here (particularly regarding the age gap in the romance), but if you're able to get past that and turn your brain off a little, this is a really fun time.

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bucklace27's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

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kal517's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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amyalwaysbooked's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional funny hopeful tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I feel like this is a huge "your mileage may vary" sort of book. For some, like myself, it's a story that is easy to lose yourself in. The Bennett pack welcomes you into their found family and doesn't let go. But I can see how the story and its writing wouldn't vibe with other readers. I say vibe because this book is very much a vibe. It's, much like Ox, "candy canes and pinecones and epic and awesome". But all of that comes with a narration that is very steam-of-consciousness. Ox tells the story as if he were sitting down with a stranger and telling them everything about himself and Joe and the whole Bennett pack as he remembers it. There's repetition and clunky sentences, especially in terms of back-and-forth dialogue. It isn't refined. It's personal. I can see how this could be annoying for some readers and charming for others. Honestly, at times it felt tedious, which is why I went with four stars instead of five. Overall though, I found the narrative choices compelling.

Another hangup I imagine readers might have with this book is the age gap between Joe and Ox. Joe is 10 and Ox is 16 when they first meet and while there is an obviously special connection between them from the start nothing romantic or sexual occurs between the two of them until much later. Klune does a good job of clearly showing Ox interested in other people for romantic/sexual relationships while Joe is still a kid. Granted, Joe is still a teenager when they go on their first date but the plot interrupts everything and nothing substantial happens between them until Joe is firmly an adult. Plus all of this is handwaved under the fated mates trope. Personally, I think that Klune established the relationship over the course of the novel well enough that I was invested in them. However, I can see how it would be a sticking point for other readers.

Above the romance though, the found family is really the heart of the story. Ox and his mother were abused and abandoned by Ox's father, leaving them a bit broken and a bit empty. The arrival of the Bennett back signals a new beginning for them and they are enveloped into a brand new family that only grows over the course of the novel. I found every member of the pack to be endearing in their own way, and look forward to seeing more of them in the books that follow.

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bookheathens's review against another edition

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4.0

I loved most of this story. The things that weirded me out or almost made me dnf was how much Ox thought of Joe always as a little boy or a young teen, usually in sentimental and intimate moments. I know what Klune was going for, but it didn’t quite land right with me.

Nor did the way Ox’s dad spoke to him. There’s zero mention that I could find that the R-word would be used so heavily in the first 60 pages. Again, I get that his dad was trash, but could he have used another method to describe that he viewed Ox as “simple and dumb.” hell, I just did 😒

Also, Ox is anything but simple and dumb 😡

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kelsokake's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional funny inspiring sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

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