Reporter, Reuben Golding, is sent to a mysterious mansion
named Nideck Point in order to write an article about its
sale. Reuben never expects to be the greeted a beautiful
woman who instantly captivates him. Marchent Nideck's great-
uncle, Felix, disappeared twenty years ago, after years of
searching for him with no results, Marchent decides to part
with the sprawling mansion. But while Marchent displays the
treasures hidden behind the walls of Nideck Point, Reuben
begins to fall in love with the seaside mansion and plans to
convince his family to allow him to buy Nideck mansion.
Reuben and Marchent share one night together, but soon after
their passionate night, Marchent is brutally attacked by two
intruders and Reuben is seriously wounded. Marchent Nideck
does not survive the attack, and Reuben's recollection of
the night defies logic. While being stabbed by the intruder,
Reuben recalls the sound of a growling animal tearing flesh
apart. Before Reuben succumbs to a deep sleep, he realizes
that Marchent and the two intruders are dead.
When Reuben awakens in the hospital, the staff is astounded
that Reuben's wounds are miraculously healed. Not only are
Reuben wounds healing of their own accord, but at twenty-
three, Reuben is experiencing a strange growth spurt.
Reuben's bizarre body changes coincide with the appearance
of a mysterious wolf man who becomes a superhero sensation
overnight. When a school bus full of children are abducted
and held for ransom, the famous wolf man ravages the
abductors. The wolf man soon becomes strangely drawn to evil
intentions and becomes labeled a savior, as those in need
call for his help.
But Reuben Golding's wolf gift comes at a price. In order to
understand what he has become, he must discover the secrets
of Nideck Point where he came in contact with the strange
animal which killed his attackers. When Reuben begins
researching the Nideck family, he discovers the family
appeared out of nowhere and each ancestor has been named
after characters in historical werewolf novels. Reuben's
only hope is to find out what really happened to Marchent's
mysterious great uncle and why Felix Nideck's most prized
possessions, including priceless ancient artifacts, vanished
the night Marchent was murdered.
Anne Rice takes the legend of the werewolf where it has
never gone before. The Wolf Gift's allure far surpasses
Reuben Golding's immortal gift. Readers will be mesmerized
by Anne Rice's inclusion of ancient history and Felix
Nideck's mysterious disappearance. The author wraps up THE
WOLF GIFT with a spectacular revelation about the origins of
the werewolf. This is an addictive werewolf tale which only
Anne Rice could deliver.
The time is the present.
The place, the rugged coast of northern California. A bluff
high above the Pacific. A grand mansion full of beauty and
tantalizing history set against a towering redwood forest.
A young reporter on assignment from the San Francisco
Observer. . . an older woman, welcoming him into her
magnificent, historic family home that he has been sent to
write about and that she must sell with some urgency . . . A
chance encounter between two unlikely people . . . an
idyllic night-shattered by horrific unimaginable violence. .
.The young man inexplicably attacked-bitten-by a beast he
cannot see in the rural darkness . . . A violent episode
that sets in motion a terrifying yet seductive
transformation as the young man, caught between ecstasy and
horror, between embracing who he is evolving into and
fearing who-what-he will become, soon experiences the thrill
of the wolf gift.
As he resists the paradoxical pleasure and enthrallment of
his wolfen savagery and delights in the power and
(surprising) capacity for good, he is caught up in a strange
and dangerous rescue and is desperately hunted as "the Man
Wolf," by authorities, the media and scientists (evidence of
DNA threaten to reveal his dual existence). . . As a new and
profound love enfolds him, questions emerge that propel him
deeper into his mysterious new world: questions of why and
how he has been given this gift; of its true nature and the
curious but satisfying pull towards goodness; of the
profound realization that there are others like him who may
be watching-guardian creatures who have existed throughout
time and may possess ancient secrets and alchemical
knowledge and throughout it all, the search for salvation
for a soul tormented by a new realm of temptations, and the
fraught, exhilarating journey, still to come, of being and
becoming, fully, both wolf and man.