Rate this book

Shifter's Wolf (2012)

by Patricia Briggs(Favorite Author)

4.13 of 5 Votes: 5

ISBN

0425264211 (ISBN13: 9780425264218)

languge

English

genre

Romance

publisher

Ace Trade

review 1: This is a great anthology of two of Patricia Brigg's earliest works, Masques and Wolfsbane. Before each novel there is a letter from the author describing the process and events that led and delayed each one to publication. She seems a little apologetic in presenting her first work but I'm so glad she decided to re-publish them!Aralorn is the eldest, illegitimate daughter of a Lord and one of the mysterious shape shifters. she inherited the talent to shift into select animals and change her human appearance, skills she uses as a spy and mercenary. Early in the first book,she discovers a wounded wolf that she takes care of and that continues to follow her after that. He's there when she realizes that the current ae'Magi, the head of Mages, is corrupted and is spreading his... more influence, killing any one who stands in his way. Some of the plot points are a bit cliche and you can see where the first novel is going completely, but I was okay with that. Its exactly the sort of classic fantasy-adventure that makes you root for the characters, even if you can guess whats coming. The second novel was a bit more complex and I liked it even more than the first one. Wolfsbane takes place ten years after Masques, and while I was hooked on the story, and the twists and turns, I was a little surprised at a few things. Ten years have past but Aralorn and Wolf's relationship is at a standpoint and seems to have even digressed from the first novel (though thats not the case for the whole novel). This is probably because there were so many characters in the second novel but it seemed like there was so much potential for growth in a few characters if only they had more time in the novel. I know there are more novels set in the same world but it seemed like she could have written more just about Aralorn's family. Case in point, she seems to set this novel up for another sequel, but she says in the prefix that she doesn't have any plans for more right now. I really liked this novel and following Aralorn's adventures. Patricia Brigg's says in one of the prefixes that some of her early ideas from these two books leaked into the Mercy Thompson series. I've definitely enjoyed speculating what exactly has shown up and is going to continue to show up in that series!
review 2: Masques (four stars):I ended up really enjoying this book. The characters were really interesting and although the plot occasionally felt a little patchy, it overall produced a fairly gripping read. Briggs' note at the start of the omnibus is true though - don't read this novel expecting her usual finesse. You can tell that it is her first novel, but only if you've read the rest of her work. If it's your first Briggs novel, I'd say it's on par with other books I've read by best-selling authors! I'm actually looking forward to reading Wolfsbane.Wolfsbane (four stars):Having finished both books, I feel like both lacked something in comparison to her other series, but that the novel itself was pretty decent. Again it was a little patchy at times and I would like to know what happens in the future with the Dreamer. The twists of the plot were very good and I did find that I didn't want to put the book down quite a few times. Wolf and Aralon both seemed more geniune in this book and I grew to love Wolf despite his moods. The only reason it hasn't got five stars is I'm not sure if I could reread this novel. Other than that, it's a brilliant magical novel that I would recommend to any lover of the genre. less

Download links for: Shifter's Wolf

Advertising