Touch of the Wolf

by Vella Munn

[Angie]

Touch of the Wolf had me a bit nervous in the beginning because I wasn't sure if what I was reading was stereotypes or realities. So I did some research. The author is, in fact, a white woman who has a passion for Native American history due to her love of nature. Okay then. That caused me to lean more toward the uncomfortable end of the spectrum, even though it sounds like she probably had done some research. I don't know though. I just know that Jay's brother is an alcoholic and his uncle wears feathers in his hair and communes with eagles. And there's this overarching theme of the "uncooperative Native" since none of the Hoh people wanted anthropologists stomping all over their land. I'm not Native American, so I can't actually speak on any of this, but it all seemed questionable.

What I can comment on is that Jay's brother's alcoholism did wind up being used a plot devise. Winter's professor who was murdered while studying the land admits to hoping to find a Native with a weakness he could exploit. Well, that was Floyd, who he bribed with alcohol to get information and ancient relics. That is disgusting. It's certainly portrayed as being an awful thing to do, but I could have done without that part entirely.

Also, Touch of the Wolf is not the Paranormal Romance that it's marketed to me. There was a brief moment that was reminiscent of The Mask. Winter receives the illegal, ancient artifact, which is a wolf mask. She promptly puts it on, and whoa. Visions and she hears a wolf cry (to the blue corn moon), and then Jay tells her about Wolf. Wolf is totally real and a spirit in the forest. That is not paranormal. Kissing in the forest where a spirit wolf lives does not equal Paranormal Romance. It's just a poorly done Contemporary Romance that attempts to use Native American culture.

Clearly, I did not enjoy Touch of the Wolf at all. Even the big reveal at the end irritated me. The villain spent three chapters monologuing a non-explanation for the murders, which gave the rescue party plenty of time to arrive. On top of what I already discussed, the romance was boring and the sex was cringe-worthy. I don't think "her sex juices bathed his penis" is sexy in the slightest. It sounds messy. Like the rest of this book.