A review by nickoliver
Wolfsong, by TJ Klune
adventurous
emotional
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
I'm not gonna rate this, possibly ever. Absolutely everything about this book worked for me - I loved the characters, the writing (despite its kind of simplicity and the hacked way everyone spoke at times), and the pages flew and flew and wouldn't stop. Honestly, I probably could've finished this book in a couple days if I'd had the time to sit down for long enough this week. After only 34 pages, I could already tell that this book was gonna scrub me raw and leave me feeling emotionally drained and vulnerable.
So I am really mad I can't give it 5 stars, but I just ... I need to sit Klune down and ask him if the kind of age gap he created between main character and love interest was necessary. Because it was extremely uncomfortable and very much not needed. Ox and his love interest were six years apart - which would be fine if they were older, but when they first met, they were sixteen and ten respectively. And Ox developed romantic and sexual feelings for Joe when the latter was seventeen, and everyone acted like it was normal because don't worry! They didn't plan on acting on their feelings until Joe was eighteen! Because it's not like that's literally grooming or anything!
The dynamic between Ox and Joe could've been just the same if their age gap had been, say, two years. And yes, by the time they actually got together, both of them were very clearly not minors anymore, but that still didn't make this okay. In any way.
Overall, this book would've been a resounding 5 star-read for me, but I don't want to praise it all too highly because that age gap was the worst thing I've ever laid eyes on.
So I am really mad I can't give it 5 stars, but I just ... I need to sit Klune down and ask him if the kind of age gap he created between main character and love interest was necessary. Because it was extremely uncomfortable and very much not needed. Ox and his love interest were six years apart - which would be fine if they were older, but when they first met, they were sixteen and ten respectively. And Ox developed romantic and sexual feelings for Joe when the latter was seventeen, and everyone acted like it was normal because don't worry! They didn't plan on acting on their feelings until Joe was eighteen! Because it's not like that's literally grooming or anything!
The dynamic between Ox and Joe could've been just the same if their age gap had been, say, two years. And yes, by the time they actually got together, both of them were very clearly not minors anymore, but that still didn't make this okay. In any way.
Overall, this book would've been a resounding 5 star-read for me, but I don't want to praise it all too highly because that age gap was the worst thing I've ever laid eyes on.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Violence, Grief, Death, Death of parent, Abandonment, Adult/minor relationship, Sexual content, Blood, Murder, and Physical abuse
Minor: Genocide