Wolfsbane Review

Author: Andrea Cremer
Release Date: July 26, 2011
Pages: 390 (ARC)
Publisher: Philomel
Most Appropriate For Ages: 14+
Where I Got It: For review through tour site
Other titles in series: Nightshade

This thrilling sequel to the much-talked-about Nightshade begins just where it ended-Calla Tor wakes up in the lair of the Searchers, her sworn enemy, and she's certain her days are numbered. But then the Searchers make her an offer-one that gives her the chance to destroy her former masters and save the pack-and the man-she left behind. Is Ren worth the price of her freedom? And will Shay stand by her side no matter what? Now in control of her own destiny, Calla must decide which battles are worth fighting and how many trials true love can endure and still survive.

I had such high hopes for Wolfsbane, since I absolutely loved Nightshade. Unfortunately, I ended up very disappointed with pissed at Wolfsbane.

I knew something was off in the first chapter. I don't know about you guys, but I am a forgetful person, especially when it's been a couple of months since I've read a sequel's predecessor. So I like to have a bit of a recap. Well there is none of that in Wolfsbane. I felt so confused for the first fifty pages just trying to remember what happened.

"But Jessica," you say, "at least the fabulous characters from Nightshade are still there!" Um, NO, Voice. No, they're not. We spend a good 75% of the book with Searchers, trying to keep up with their different connections and personalities, when really I just wanted the pack back, who didn't make an appearance in the novel until the last 90 pages.

And that wasn't my only annoyance with the characters. Shay and Calla seem to be completely different from how I remember them. (Whether this is because of me or Wolfsbane I'm not sure, honestly.) Shay seems to be evolving from the boy Calla first met in the woods. I remember him as this sweet, slightly rebellious boy. Well, he is gone, folks. He was replaced by some annoyingly possessive and horny boy that I spent half of the book wanting to slap.

But he's not the only one! Nope, I wanted to slap Calla as well. Not only did she follow the Searchers--who have been her enemy for her whole life--without an ounce of skepticism, but she was stupid too! ("Why would he call himself a fool?" OMG I almost threw the book at the wall. Seriously? How blind can you--UGH.)

My problems with Calla don't end there, though. What I don't get is why this love triangle is continuing. In Nightshade, the love triangle made sense; she's supposed to be with Ren and has almost gotten used to it, when this new guy comes along and their love is forbidden. But in Wolfsbane, Calla is free to be with whomever she chooses. So you'd think she would actually choose then, right? Especially since she's this strong, powerful, alpha, she should be able to pick between two guys, right? Um, WRONG. Calla is as annoyingly indecisive as ever. She would be heavily making out with Shay, then think about Ren, then decide she needed to be alone. I can almost excuse Shay's butt-cheese-iness (sure, it's a word) cause the poor guy has to put up with the Calla's constant mood swings.

Just, GAH! WOMAN. MAKE UP YOUR FREAKING. MIND.

As if that wasn't enough to turn me off of Wolfsbane, the pacing seemed so slow. Wolfsbane is a 400-page book that takes place in two days. Two incredibly long, boring days. There was an action scene or two thrown in just to appease the reader, but the build-up to them seemed way longer than it had to be.

This feels like the worst review I've ever written. It might've been because I know that Wolfsbane could've been stellar, and because I expected it to be stellar, and it was just so far from that.

Having said all of this, it might've been me, too. I have grown much pickier since I read Nightshade, so I guess things I didn't notice while reading Nightshade I noticed when reading Wolfsbane. Though luckily, not everything was wrong with Wolfsbane. I still love the unique world Cremer has created and what she's added to it, and her writing is still pretty impressive. I know that I'll be reading book 3, Bloodrose, because I need to know how this story ends. But hopefully it's as good as Nightshade.

Plot: The world is good, but the pacing was off.

Characters: The ones I loved weren't there, and the main characters were annoying. Some of the Searchers were pretty cool, though.

Writing: Good.

Ending:  Open-ended, but not a huge nail biter.

Kind Friendly? There was some heavy making out, violence, death, and swearing.

Overall:

Reviewers who liked this book more than I did:

A Story Untold

Gone With The Words

Magical Urban Fantasy Reads

A Cupcake and a Latte

Interview with Andrea Cremer, Author of Nightshade

I loved Nightshade, so when Andrea Cremer agreed to do an interview I was really excited! I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.


Pick six words to describe Nightshade. (Spoler-free, of course.)

Thrilling, seductive, mysterious, steamy, twist-laden, and addictive.

Where did you get the idea for Nightshade?

Nightshade is Calla's story and she was the inspiration for the book. I tend to write from characters and Calla was floating around in my head for a week or two before I started putting her story onto the page. I knew she was a girl who was also a wolf. I knew she was strong, but also in serious trouble. I couldn't figure out how someone so powerful could be in that sort of a fix. That's where Nightshade's world emerged it was all about building a history and society that explained Calla's predicament.

Do you listen to music while you write? Do you have a playlist for Nightshade?

Yes! I create soundtracks for all my books. For Bloodrose (Nightshade #3) I've been listening to a lot of Florence and the Machine. You can see songs from the Nightshade playlist here: http://www.andreacremer.com/soundscripts.html

On your way overseas, your boat crashes. You see a small island, but before swimming to it, you decide to take four books along to accompany you for who knows how long. Luckily, this boat has just about every book. Which four books would you choose?

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, Watership Down, The Mists of Avalon, and a Botany Guide so I don't eat poisonous plants.

Team Zombie or Team Unicorn?

Team Unicorn

Aside from reading and writing, do you have any other hobbies?

Yoga, playing World of Warcraft, and cooking

Which one of your characters would you say is most like you?

Probably Ansel, Calla's younger brother, because he's loosely modeled on my younger brother and my brother and I are a lot alike.

Do you plan to write more YA books after you've finished the Nightshade series?

Definitely! I have lots of ideas, but the project I'd like to work on first is a steampunk series set in an alternate 19th century U.S. where the American Revolution failed and the world is ruled by the British Empire; I'd actually describe it as historical dystopian.

Thanks again Andrea! I hope you all go pick up a copy of Nightshade ASAP.

Nightshade Review

Author: Andrea Cremer

Release Date: October 19, 2010

Pages: 452 (ARC)

Publisher: Philomel

Most Appropriate For Ages: 12+
Where I Got It: Around The World Tours

Calla Tor has always known her destiny: After graduating from the Mountain School, she;ll be the mate of sexy alpha wolf Ren Laroche and fight with him, side by side, ruling their pack and guarding sacred sites for the Keepers. But when she violates her masters' laws by saving a beautiful human boy out for a hike, Calla begins to question her fate, her existence, and the very essence of the world she has known. By following her heart, she might lose everything including her own life. Is forbidden love worth the ultimate sacrifice?
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As I'm sure you know, there is a lot of hype surrounding Nightshade. A lot of undeserved hype, if you ask me, since this "novel" is completely atrocious.

...I would slap anyone who said that. Hard. The hype for Nightshade is very well deserved!

(Let me apologize in advance for using a lot of synonyms for "REALLY FRICKING AWESOME".)

The plot, you know, werewolves. Sure, it's been done before, but not like this. Andrea Cremer completely dived into the normal werewolf story, twisted it, added some more magical elements and Keepers, whose rules must be followed at costs, and came out shaking her fists triumphantly. It also did something that very few paranormal books have done: it made me think. The plot was fast-paced, with twists and turns at every corner that I didn't even anticipate since I was still absorbing the last twist!

Calla was just so awesome. Seriously. I want her as my best friend (not to replace my best friends, just as one of them ((yeah, I know my friends read this blog, so I need to make sure I do not offend them). She had every quality you want in a protagonist: strength, humor, logic, independence...I cold go on. Point is that she rocked. She has two love interests, Shay and Ren. Ren; the sexy, arrogant guy that Calla has been matched up with since birth. Then there's Shay; the rebellious, amazing new guy that makes Callla question everything she's ever known. I am definitely Team Shay. I won't say anything more about the love triangle though, cause I don't want to ruin it for anyone. Each member of the pack--meaning Calla and Ren's combined pack--had their own personality. Sometimes, when reading a group conversation, it's hard to keep track of who's saying what, but you could tell just who was speaking just by what they said in Nightshade. The characterization was brilliant!

Andrea Cremer is an author to watch. And stalk. Her writing was fresh, descriptive, and addictive. She really made Nightshade all it could be and then some.

The ending. I...I...NO. It was SUCH a cliffhanger! It made me question everything I'd thought true! I have no idea if it is physically possible to wait for Wolfsbane, book two. Overall, this is one to pre-order. Like, NOW. It was sexy, addictive, fast-paced... I loved it even more than I'd expected to!

How kid friendly was it? There were mentions of drugs and sex as well as swearing.