Tuesday, October 16, 2012

Raised by Wolves (Raised by Wolves #1) by Jennifer Lynn Barnes


Raised by Wolves (Raised by Wolves #1) by Jennifer Lynn Barnes
 
This is a young adult parnanormal fantasy novel (Rated PG)
 
♥♥1/2
(Two and a Half Stars)
 
Book Summary
 
Adopted by the Alpha of a werewolf pack after a rogue wolf brutally killed her parents right before her eyes, fifteen-year-old Bryn knows only pack life, and the rigid social hierarchy that controls it. That doesn't mean that she's averse to breaking a rule or two.

But when her curiosity gets the better of her and she discovers Chase, a new teen locked in a cage in her guardian's basement, and witnesses him turn into a wolf before her eyes, the horrific memories of her parents' murders return. Bryn becomes obsessed with getting her questions answered, and Chase is the only one who can provide the information she needs.

But in her drive to find the truth, will Bryn push too far beyond the constraints of the pack, forcing her to leave behind her friends, her family, and the identity that she's shaped?
 
My Review
 
This WILL NOT be a SPOILER FREE review.
Quick and spoiler free review….
 
I wanted to like this book.  I hadn’t read the summary, I went in blind.  If you ignore all the glaring plot holes, there is an undertow of potential that keeps you sucked in when you’re reaching for perches to get yourself out.  Too bad the plot holes are many.
 
Now Full Review that includes SPOILERS (ALERT)
 
 
The good thing about this story is the premise.  It was idea that kept me reading and not giving up.  Then for once, the insta love is handled well in the world building to explain it away. Woohoo!
 
 
However, the promise of the story hit a stumbling block or rather fell into pot holes a plenty along the way.
 
 
Where to even begin, I guess I just enumerate the many transgressions of the story.
 
 
  • First, Bryn was four when her parents are brutally killed by a savage wolf.  Okay, not a bad start.  But she’s four and although that event will forever plague her memory, she is raised by wolves for the next eleven year.  Therefore, why, if they are good to her Callum and Devon, is she resistant to the wolf way of life?  How would she know that accepting into pack life is bad, when nothing they did or the killing of her parents make her think that acting the pack way is bad.  Sorry, I just wasn’t given a reason to accept this.
  • She meets a boy, and if we accept above, she is all of a sudden willing to give into pack mentality just to meet him.  Yet, she’d rather die before than to submit????  What is she going to learn from him?  She has no idea if he will talk to her or have answers for her questions. 
  • At this point in the story, it seems her question is about getting bite and changing into a werewolf.  Why didn’t she ask Callum this question?  Supposedly, she is a go against the grain type of girl who doesn’t hold her tongue.  Why didn’t she ask him first?  Then if he refused, I could see more reason to talk to the boy.
  • She’s human, yet she has a psychic bond to the wolves?  We weren’t given any reason that all human would have this bond.  Thus wouldn’t she suspect something or ask about it????
  • She talks to the boy and they can talk in each others head, but stop midway through.  They seem to be able to do it even despite the orders.  Yet, she doesn’t ask him the tough questions.  Then of course, they are interrupted. 
  • Okay, we get this answer in the end, but before this, why didn’t Callum stay with her when talking to Chase.  Why did he send her in with three wolves when he was powerful enough to handle the situation on his own?  And she never really questions it?  And with everything else, it’s just another annoying nail in the coffin of this story that stops my enjoyment.
Beside this, the story is a little flat for the first 45%.  When it starts to get interesting, we are pulled off the metaphorical reservation and plopped some place new.  We meet characters who don’t really add to the story and it’s boring again.  About the 75% mark, things pick up.  We are finally given answers we’ve been frustrated about for the majority of the book. I’m okay with having information with held.  I should be curious though to find out, not frustrated. 
 
 
Still, there is that undertow that kept me reading.  So I’ll read the next one because all of this won’t be apart of the story. I’ll just have to swallow what I’ve been fed and hope the next book is a whole lot better.
 
 
Audio Review
 
 
Eileen Stevens did a decent job of narrating.  The acting was good.  The voices were okay.  All her male voices sounded pretty much the same.  Thankfully, her male voice is pretty good.  Other than that, I was able to follow along well enough.
 
 
Overall, would I recommend?  The jury is still out.  I’ll see from the next book.
 
 
My book boyfriends are Callum and Chase. (I listen via audio and I can't find their appearence.  So I'm going off a a feeling I got while listening that they looked like.)
 
Callum
 
 
Chase
 
 
View all my reviews

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