Silver Nilsdottir, with her bum leg, is still considered a
runt: her future is bleak, her romantic prospects nil; it
would be no great loss is anything harmful happened to her.
That's why her Alpha sent her to inquire about the armed and
wounded man who had just stepped into the Pack's Clearing.
Tiberius Leveraux is an enemy, a wolf shifter, but more than
that: he is also half-wolf, a lone wolf. If Silver is
willing to accept him into the pack, and they make a good
impression, together they can claim their rightful place in
the Great North Pack; if not, Silver is exiled forever.
A word of caution to begin with: THE LAST WOLF is far from
your standard paranormal romance with sexy shifters. It is
violent, gory, bloody, and to be honest, in some places, I
found it downright gross. If you don't mind your heroine
happily crunching away on the bones of the bunny she just
killed, you won't have a problem. The prologue was full of
promise: in 1668, the Alpha Ælfrida opted to sail to the
Colonies with her Pack when humans started to take over and
deplete the British wilderness. The tone was lyrical, the
author's knowledge of Norse and Old English myths and
language evident, and I was ready for an inspiring read.
Alas, it was very short-lived, as chapter 1 is set in
today's world in Upstate New York, and the tone shifted (no
pun intended) to cold, dry, and impersonal; further poetic
musings were almost reserved exclusively for the sex scenes,
which were particularly lovely, by the way. While I admit
being sensitive to certain writing styles, I couldn't
comprehend where the elegance of the prologue had gone. On
the other hand, maybe the author felt it didn't suit the
modern Pack's gruesome feeding habits: the wolves must eat
what -- and who -- they kill. Otherwise they're meatless
omnivores; still, Michel Tournier can do it.
THE LAST WOLF is more like "Three months with the Great
North Pack" than anything else. We are treated to lengthy
descriptions of the contents of various buildings; the
mating and breeding habits of the wolves; in short, the
Pack's daily life. I would have preferred to follow
Ælfrida's voyage to America and how the Pack settled in
America. Also, I wonder if there is a certain unspoken rule
or stigma attached to shifters coupling when in animal form
-- or if it is merely a pretext to steamy sex scenes as we
expect them -- but given the fearless worldbuilding of THE
LAST WOLF, the sex between humans seemed a bit odd. In spite
of all my misgivings, character development was stellar,
especially for Silver. Maybe those wolves were just too
realistic for me, and I better stick with my usual charming
and more politically correct shifters. While I, personally,
did not find the world of THE LAST WOLF appealing in the
least, Maria Vale presents a decidedly different view on
wolf packs and shifters.
Debut author Maria Vale’s extraordinary writing and
world-building combine to create a spectacular fantasy
paranormal romance
PARANORMAL FANTASY ROMANCE
It is under the Iron Moon and the watchful eye of her
Alpha
that Silver Nilsdottir takes her first unpromising steps
into adulthood. But as a lone runt with a crippled leg in
her wolf form, Silver is facing a life of endless
submission.
Then Tiberius Leveraux stumbles wounded into their
territory
with a plea for protection. If Silver is to make a real
place for herself, she must fight for Tiberius—her only
chance at ever having a mate. And in the end, she is
forced
to shield all of them, the Pack, the land, and the man
she
loves, from ancient enemies.
Gritty which I personally enjoyed. :-) (Sara Reyes 12:59pm February 16, 2018)
Well, I don't watch National Geographic because I can't stand to see lions killing and eating their prey,even though I know it's a fact. I am a little flower, I can't help it. ;-). (Monique Daoust 7:34pm February 16, 2018)
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