Wolfsong (Green Creek, #1)

by T.J. Klune

Ox was twelve when his daddy taught him a very valuable lesson. He said that Ox wasn’t worth anything and people would never understand him. Then he left.

Ox was sixteen when he met the boy on the road, the boy who talked and talked and talked. Ox found out later the boy hadn’t spoken in almost two years before that day, and that the boy belonged to a family who had moved into the house at the end of the lane.

Ox was seventeen when he found out the boy’s secret, and it painted the world around him in colors of red and orange and violet, of Alpha and Beta and Omega.

Ox was twenty-three when murder came to town and tore a hole in his head and heart. The boy chased after the monster with revenge in his bloodred eyes, leaving Ox behind to pick up the pieces.

It’s been three years since that fateful day—and the boy is back. Except now he’s a man, and Ox can no longer ignore the song that howls between them.

• ISBN10: 1634771648
• ISBN13: 9781634771641
• Publish Date: 20 June 2016
• Publish Status: Out of Print
• Out of Print: 15 June 2021
• Imprint: Dreamspinner Press
• Format: Paperback
• Pages: 400
• Language: English

Reviews

[annieb123]

Originally posted on my blog Nonstop Reader.

Wolfsong is a series starter and paranormal coming of age romance by TJ Klune. Originally released in 2016, this reformat and re-release from Macmillan on their Tor imprint was released 4th July 2023. It's 528 pages and is available in hardcover, paperback, and ebook format. It's worth noting that the ebook format has a handy interactive table of contents as well as interactive links and references throughout. I've really become enamored of ebooks with interactive formats lately.

This is a well written queer romance and coming of age fantasy. TJ Klune is very well known for non-CIS romance, and YA fantasy, and this is another in a genre not overcrowded with relatable young queer protagonists. That being said, it's not problem free. A central plot element is the romance between Ox and Joe. The other main fabric of the tale is built around found family and acceptance, "othering" and feelings of inadequacy. When Ox and Joe meet, Ox is 10 and Joe is 16. Their relationship is foreshadowed (heavily) at that point. When they meet up again, Ox is 17, and they get romantic. The fact that they were more or less children together felt very borderline unacceptable to me.

There are numerous very possessive passages which made me literally cringe. Here's one (there are several): 

 

He sighed. “I don’t know if I can explain it, really. That feeling inside. The Alpha. I’m not one yet, but it’s close. It bubbles just below the surface. There are times when all I can think of is marking you so everyone knows who you belong to. To carve my name into your skin so you never forget me. 

It's undeniably well written in general, and the plot development is well constructed. With all the current challenges and bannings, especially in the USA, this would be a brave/foolhardy choice for acquisitions personnel, and especially for school library situations (too spicy). 

Three and a half stars. For extreme fans of Twilight, this could be a winner (and it's better written). 

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes. 

[lessthelonely]

3/5 stars.

I feel like it’s sort of tradition for me to just start each and every Book Review with a statement of how it’s been hard to read, but I would like to say that no book was read in such a fragmented way as this one. I’m in the last year of my Bachelor’s Degree and now in the last semester so you best believe I have a lot of projects and stuff to do. In fact, I should probably already started studying for a test that’s coming up.

Either way, Wolfsong. This is the second book I’ve read by T. J. Klune and I must say that it took me a while to read, even if I started with a huge headstart on it, as I started to read this book before the semester’s whole shenanigans kicked in and stole all my free time. I read this book mostly on weekends (on train rides home, specifically) but I brought it one too many times to my apartment during the week and I finished the final 50 pages that way.

This is only the second or third time I actually took notes as I was reading, usually after each reading session, and I made sure to take a lot of notes. I really liked The House in The Cerulean Sea, actually, it’s recently been slated for a May release in Portugal, if that interests you, but this book is from a different time and a different point in the author's writing journey.

What is Wolfsong about? Well, I’ve been saying it’s an omegaverse book and I don’t think that’s a bad assumption, because Alphas, Betas and Omegas are all here; however, this is in a weird spot in terms of marketing and I can see why this book was released as a self-published title: it’s definitely coming of age-y, but it’s also got explicit sexual content.

But back to the writing itself: by page 100, I noted that this book had a little bit of a problem. It used the same tactic way too much. You know when books basically summarize what’s about to happen in this one, usually electrifying, sentence? Yeah, this book does it a lot, both as a cliffhanger and a chapter opener. Phrases started by I should’ve known or even This is why.

This book has moments of quick, sharp and very funny dialogue, but it also has moments that seem to drag on and on. Sometimes there’s a lot of description, maybe a bit much, but sometimes there’s none. I mean, in average it’d be the right amount, but you get my gripe with this, right?

The werewolves in this book are said to experience emotions differently when they’re in wolf form and I guess that means they feel colors. That was the description for emotions most of the time: blue was sad, green was used for relief, red was anger (I’m not sure of this one, but I’m pretty sure that’s it).

It made a lot of moments incredibly distracting because all I could think about was how these characters were saying colors and you just had to shoe in the way they were feeling. On the other hand, I feel like the way the communication between wolves was simplified was very well done.

Describing emotion with colors is definitely something you can do... it’s just... A choice. Ya know?

By the time the main romance started, I was bored with the plot, not going to lie. And then, the romance was also incredibly underwhelming; not because it was angsty, which it was, but because the angst didn’t resonate with me at all. At least, the protagonist keeps mentioning how it could’ve been avoided and is allowed to keep bitching about that - because he’s fucking right.

I liked Ox, though I feel like his way of talking went from noticeably forced to prove a point to the reader, to him talking more inline with every character and then his initial, characteristic, way of speaking just appeared when the scene demanded him to shut up. That’s how it felt, because this boy-turned-man knew how to pack a fucking punch in his words and I definitely had moments where I was like: DAMN, THAT WAS MEAN.

DO IT AGAIN.

I feel like this book wasn’t outlined at all, which is fine, but it shows. There’s this big moment in the book where, as a last ditch resort, something is brought up as a possibility, but then it doesn’t happen, which just leads you to think about how intriguing it would’ve been if it had happened. Only for 100 more pages to pass and it happening, though in a different way, of course. It felt retconned, I guess.

But my biggest gripes with this book are how repetitive it is and the antagonist. The same situations keep happening, usually only the final outcome changes and even that isn’t that significant since only 2 of those times feel significant. In between this, this book reads like a slice of life, not going to lie.

This isn’t to say the writing is poor. Because I wouldn't say that. But the plot could’ve used some major editing and tightening, but since I’m talking about writing again, there were some passages that just kept being repeated, word for word, again and again, and I’m sorry, but it was simply annoying at some point. Because most of the times, no new meaning was added to them.

As for the antagonist, here’s my thoughts, directly from the notes I took as I was reading:

Richard doesn’t sound like that big of a villain and I don’t really like him or find him captivating. I feel like it’s very hard to write a proper antagonist, right now. In fact, not an antagonist, because an antagonist is easier, but a villain. A straight-up villain. Someone who from the first mention of their name you know they’re a bad guy. Modern television and animation movies have sort of really affected how villains are perceived because most of the time, now? We get surprise villains. Hell, my first book had a surprise villain in the first draft - that’s going to change -, but that’s a very easy way to get a good gasp out of the audience, provided it makes sense and it isn’t pulled out of your ass. But Richard is just said to be bad and OK, he [SPOILER], but who does that affect outside of [SPOILER]?

So yeah, all in all, I’m saying this is a coinflip. You might like it, yo

[alindstadtcorbeax]

Star Rating: —> 5 BRILLIANT, AMAZING Stars

[Bookbee]

The. Best. Paranormal. EVER!!!

Narrator Kirt Graves did a phenomenal job with the multitude of voices!

[bestmessever]

This book hits me so deep in the soul. I felt as though it was written just for me. It felt like someone really saw me for the first time. Its like all my broken pieces were gathered and stitched back together in this book. I want to scream with happiness and break down in sobs all at the same time. This book is the same color as my soul.

[moraa]

12/16/18: I was screaming and biting my nails the entire time!!
A well-deserved 5/5

4/1/20: I stand by my previous words! What a rollercoaster of emotions.

[nitzan_schwarz]

Well, if I wasn't just an emotional mess the whole way through.

A few things you need to know: Ox is wholesome and a precious cinnamon roll and bless everyone in this book for seeing it and refusing to let him think otherwise.

Second; hurt my son and I will hurt you.

Third, I don't think my eyes were dry for a single moment after the 50% mark or so. I didn't sob but they were wet and on occasion, a single tear rolled, like in the movies. I'm sure I didn't look half as good and put together as they do but meh

Fourth, I want a pack now. Like, the constant touching and comfort and bickering and banter and I'm not a touchy-feely person at all so I don't even know who I am anymore.

Fifth, I kind of low-key want a short story from some unsuspecting bystander witnessing some Pack Moment and being all like ???????? because all the forhead touching and neck bearing and sliding along each other is probably so confusing to anyone who isn't In The Know.

Sixth, I literally kind of broke my finger yesterday (I am a genius) and my hand hurts and typing one handed is annoying so I keep slipping and accidentally using both hands and then yelp painpainpain yet here I am typing on and yelping onward to tell you how I read about sweet boys who deserve better and how you to read about them to.

THE END. Until my fingers hurt a little less and I can write properly *shrug*

Aug 14 2018:

SO EXCITED!!!

Want to read this because of this tumblr photo : http://aymmidumps.tumblr.com/post/172973990862/i-never-saw-the-man-with-gordo-ever-again-and-i

I'm weak....

[stacey_is_sassy]

If I could convince you to try, Wolfsong would be the one.

My hubby hates coffee and salad. Now, to me, this is WEIRD. How can he survive without coffee? What could he find fault within a nice fresh crisp salad? Every time I have an extraordinary coffee or salad, I say the same thing to him - If I could convert you, THIS will be the one… My poor darling hubby then shakes his head at me, girds his loins and takes a sip or a bite. Now, even weirder…he hates the smell of coffee. So the first problem is that he’s already scrunching his face up bringing the cup to his mouth. Then, he takes a sip and proceeds to shudder shake and groan. When it comes to the salad, he always says (without fail) - Rabbits food… and grimaces as he swallows. Not once has he said –Baby, that’s not too bad.

Of course, I’m off track AGAIN!! But, I honestly believe that this is a story that if I could convince you to try paranormal or M/M, Wolfsong would be the one.

What an adventure. I have experienced every single emotion in Wolfsong. This is the sort of story where you need to find a quiet little corner, shut out your world and escape to another. When I went to this world, I didn’t expect to have my eyes leak for the first 10%. I hardly thought that I would want to jump into the pages to protect a little boy from hurtful words. I never expected to feel jealous of these characters that freely touched, held and cuddled with each other. There was no shame in affection shown in a way that has become foreign to a lot of people, including me. Wouldn’t it be wonderful to, without hesitation, hug someone who needs a hug? Or reach out to someone when you need affection?

I was truly gobsmacked that for the FIRST TIME EVER, I felt that the sexy scenes weren’t needed to see the connection between the two main characters. I have NEVER felt that way. There was nothing wrong with these scenes. They still made my heart beat faster and my skin flush, but I skimmed over it dying to get to the rest of the story. Wow!! Will wonders never cease?

There is something awesome about Wolfsong that makes you feel the thread connecting you to the other members in the pack. You feel the tug of the line calling you to be in touching distance with your fellow pack members. You’re ready to stand by your Alpha when the baddies come to attack. I became Bennett Pack and my home was Green Creek.

It’s not often that I come across a story that grips me as well as Wolfsong did. The characters, the emotions and the storyline were so consuming that I felt moved. I was fortunate enough that a very good book friend of mine pressured me with side-eye glares to just do it. I was tempted to take a chance, step into an unfamiliar world and experience the magic of Wolfsong.

I haven’t gone into as much detail in this review as I normally would. If you are willing to take a chance, you need to meet the Bennett’s, the townsfolk of Green Creek and the other characters for yourself. If you’re uncertain about reading a paranormal but you love adventure and excitement then this will be a good one to, (maybe) convert you. Uncertain how you would feel about reading an M/M, then this might be the one for you. The intimate scenes are not fleshed out until near the end of the book.

I loved Wolfsong.

I was extremely moved by the emotions.

I have never felt so connected to a story that I felt like I was part of the pack, a member, one of the team.

I'm convinced that 2016 is the year of The Book Buzz.

Look, if I could convince you to try, Wolfsong would be the one.