Book Review: To Catch a Wolf & SMPH

Author: Susan Krinard

Title: To Catch a Wolf (Historical Wolf #4) 
Genre: Historical Romance, Fantasy, paranormal
Pages: 369

First Published: September 2nd, 2003
Where I Got It: Borrowed from library



"When crippled Denver socialite Athena Munroe sees werewolf Morgan Holt in a traveling circus, she will have to fight tooth and nail to keep her passion for him at bay-or discover her own extraordinary destiny.."





This is the fourth book in the Historical Wolf series by Susan Krinard. However, you can read this as solo book, because it has nothing to do with past books. I personally haven't read #2 and #3 yet, so worry not.

Well, I'm going to divide and conquer this review:

The Good

• I simply love that Susan Krinard likes to use handicapped heroes and heroines  I especially loved this one, because Athena was bound to a chair.
• I loved all the side stories, they didn't overwhelm the main story, but it added to it.
• I loved how there wasn't really a "bad guy" in this one. Everyone has done good things and bad things. Neill, Athena's brother, may have been a jerk in a lot of instances, but it didn't make him a baddie.
• The whole circus thing was pretty cool. I've never read a book where the majority of the cast was from the circus.

The Bad and the Ugly

• Mmmmm, I hate to say this, but it was rather boring. Yes, there was a lot of drama going on, but it was just.....gah.
• The ending was SO unrealistic  and I couldn't help but roll my eyes at it. Yes, it was suppose to be the big reveal and everything was suppose to come together and shock the reader, buuuuutttt.....mmm.
• Athena annoyed me. Yes, she was stuck in a chair but her self-pity really grated my nerves.
• Morgan....mmmm......that is all.

my face when Morgan opened his mouth

The Conclusion

All in all, this book was okay. It fed my werewolf need, so I'm content. It wasn't as good as the first book, but it was entertaining. I defiantly want to read the other books in this series. Susan Krinard is a good author and I enjoy how well she blends fantasy and historical together. I would recommend this to those that love werewolfs, historical romances, and circus people. Out of five stars I stamp this novel with 3 stars. It is more like 2.5 but I don't give decimals so I round.

Favorite Character(s): Caitilin, Ulysses, Athena (at the end), and Harry.

Not-so Favorite Character(s): Athena (at the beginning), Morgan, Neill, Cecily (stupid girl), and Tamar

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======================================= <3CaroleRae

Book Review: Touch of the Wolf

(I actually finished this a couple days ago, but I was having a hard time finding time this weekend to type this up. Well, now that my hectic weekend is over, I have found the time! Woot woot!)


BOOK:
Author: Susan Krinard
Title: Touch of the Wolf (Historical Werewolf #1)
Genre: Fantasy, Historical Romance, Werewolves, Paranormal
Pages: 416
First Published: 1999
Where I Got It: Borrowed it from Library


"Braden Forster, Earl of Greyburn, has devoted his life to restoring the purity of his clan's werewolf blood. He spent years searching in vain for a distant American cousin, a woman whose pure wolf bloodline is a vital link in his family's heritage. Braden had thought Cassidy Holt was lost forever--until she appeared one rainy night on the steps of his London mansion...her raven hair in disarray, her skin scented with sunlight and sagebrush. As Braden whisks young Cassidy to his family's secluded country estate, both can sense their undeniable attraction. 


But Cassidy soon learns that they can never satisfy their mutual passion; Braden has already betrothed her to another. Her only hope of claiming the one man she'll always love is to unravel the dark and lustful secrets of his past--"


Alright. I had a reaaaaaallllly hard time getting through the first few chapters, because 1) I was very confused and 2) it seemed to drag on and on, even though it was quick paced. The reason why I was confused was because I skipped the prologue (which I always do), but then I realized I actually have to read it this time and I did and it cleared EVERYTHING up. Thank goodness. Perhaps I would've been more into the first few chapters if I had read the prologue first. I guess there is a good message for all of us prologue-skippers....


Anyways, once I got past the prologue and the first few chapters, I was sitting pretty. I could hardly put the book down! The characters and the plot were intriguing and interesting. I wanted to know what was going to happen next and what the character's futures were. Each character felt real and had real human/werewolfy flaws. I may not have liked every character, but by the end of the novel I understood why they were the way they were.  I also loved the fact that the author had Braden (the main dude) be blind. I'm not saying that being blind is a good thing, but I do get really tired of perfect characters and having a blind hero is a risky step to take and I applaud Susan Krinard! 


The Cause caused a lot of pain and hurt to all the characters, especially Braden. The Cause was Braden's whole life and he was addicted to being the leader of this movement to preserve the werewolf bloodlines. I loved how Susan Krinard created this "Cause" and intertwined it into the story. It created a lot of hurdles for our two lovebirds and even for the other characters. The Cause, in my mind, was a double-edged sword, because it was saving the werewolf bloodlines, but it was also forcing people into marriages and tearing the Forster family apart. 


Besides for the beginning, there was one more thing I didn't like: Throughout the book I felt....confused and baffled. I can't really say why, because I don't want to spoil the book, but there were many rumors flying around about Braden and his late wife...I know that Susan Krinard wanted the reader to feel unsure of the truth and whether or not Braden was a bad guy or good guy. However, the truth flipped flopped so much that by the end I wasn't even sure if the "final" truth WOULD be the FINAL truth. It's really hard to explain, but I tried.


All-in-all, I really liked this book. It was a fun read and it featured my favorite paranormal being: the werewolf. I guess you can call me a werewolf gal. It is the first of the series and I do plan to read the others sometime in the future. I recommend this to those who love a good Historical Romance and Paranormal mix. Out of five stars, I grant this one 4 stars. In all reality it would be 3.6, but I don't give decimals so I rounded. 


Favorite Character(s): Is it bad that I didn't have any real favorite characters? I mean I didn't hate everyone, but I didn't really LOVE anyone. Huh...I was neutral to many of them.
Not-so Favorite Character(s): Rowena, she (along with many of the others) was very selfish. Yes, I know she wanted to be free to make her own decisions and blahblahblah, but really? If she had just stuck it out....*sighs* oh well. 

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<3CaroleRae