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stang_gt3's review
2.0
2.5 Stars
The problem with the story strangely enough isn't the quality of the writing. The descriptive qualities are actually very good, but unfortunately I HATED both the main characters. And really there were only a few of the secondary characters that I liked even a little This was a slog for me because I just couldn't get behind the actions of these characters. Cassidy had a little more appeal than Braden but it's really not be much. Her nature is often at odds and doesn't seem to fit within itself. Either she's the brazen independent who can cross the desert of barely settled America on her own and have no fear running through London on her own, or she's the naive innocent who has no awareness of what reality should be and is willing to do anything to be liked. And Braden, well Braden made me want to punch him throughout the entire story. Really there was nothing redeemable about him and gave no one any reason to forgive him his high handed, narrow minded, bigoted antics. If it had eased at all during the story, if Cassidy had seem to affect him at all as things went along I would have tolerated the story better. But really it's only the last 5-10% of the book where the reversal happens and so it doesn't even feel natural or that it will hold.
Braden's obsession with "the Cause" was really just annoying not in any way something you could understand. His way or all else was just obnoxious. I felt for his siblings. Rowena especially as she is given no choice and no freedom really to be who she wants. I sort of want to see her story, but I don' know how quickly if ever I'll get around to reading the next in the series to find out about her adventures.
The problem with the story strangely enough isn't the quality of the writing. The descriptive qualities are actually very good, but unfortunately I HATED both the main characters. And really there were only a few of the secondary characters that I liked even a little This was a slog for me because I just couldn't get behind the actions of these characters. Cassidy had a little more appeal than Braden but it's really not be much. Her nature is often at odds and doesn't seem to fit within itself. Either she's the brazen independent who can cross the desert of barely settled America on her own and have no fear running through London on her own, or she's the naive innocent who has no awareness of what reality should be and is willing to do anything to be liked. And Braden, well Braden made me want to punch him throughout the entire story. Really there was nothing redeemable about him and gave no one any reason to forgive him his high handed, narrow minded, bigoted antics. If it had eased at all during the story, if Cassidy had seem to affect him at all as things went along I would have tolerated the story better. But really it's only the last 5-10% of the book where the reversal happens and so it doesn't even feel natural or that it will hold.
Braden's obsession with "the Cause" was really just annoying not in any way something you could understand. His way or all else was just obnoxious. I felt for his siblings. Rowena especially as she is given no choice and no freedom really to be who she wants. I sort of want to see her story, but I don' know how quickly if ever I'll get around to reading the next in the series to find out about her adventures.
the_queen_katz's review
DNF @ 19%
This has been on my TBR for over a year, and I really wanted to like it - but at 19% I could not stand the MC or his demeanour, and the FMC is young and naive which is not something that interests me in my heroines.
This has been on my TBR for over a year, and I really wanted to like it - but at 19% I could not stand the MC or his demeanour, and the FMC is young and naive which is not something that interests me in my heroines.
tessisreading2's review
2.0
Cassidy, the heroine, is (a) extremely stupid and (b) named Cassidy. Braden, the hero, is (a) named Braden and (b) a huge jackass. This is one of those old school romances where the heroine transforms the hero and the world around them by virtue of her simple good nature. Krinard is a good writer so the book was absorbing, but pretty much every element of the story was a cliche, and she never really overcame them. Additionally
Spoiler
this is the second book I've read by her which relies on mind control combined with the unreliability of memory: a main character realizes that a formative event did not happen the way they remember it happening because someone messed with their mind, and they were so traumatized by the betrayal involved that they misremembered it. This is just an oddly specific problem to have, and it's weird to see it used so often.lauriereadslohf's review
4.0
Susan Krinard has a beautiful writing style. Her books are meaty and always contain complicated characters who really draw you in. Touch of the Wolf, the beginning of her new historical werewolf trilogy, is no exception. For me, this book weighed in a little too heavily on the angst side but still comes recommended to those of you who prefer a dark, brooding and outwardly cold hero (until the heroine breaks down his barriers, of course). It's rich with description and is a book that you can easily lose yourself in.