Cry Wolf Volume 2

Alpha and Omega: Cry Wolf Graphic Novel #5-8

by Patricia Briggs, David Lawrence (Adapter), Todd Herman (Illustrator)

A world of shapeshifting wolves comes vividly to life in this collection of four comics based on Cry Wolf, the first book in Patricia Briggs’s #1 New York Times bestselling Alpha and Omega series.

Charles and Anna are on the hunt for a rogue werewolf in the Montana mountains. The creature has morphed into something so dark that it kills everything in its path: deer, elk, grizzlies…humans.

But the wolf is the creature of something far more powerful. One of Charles and Anna’s own pack harbors a centuries-old secret that has come back to haunt him—and wreak vengeance on those around him.

Charles and Anna—unaware of the truth—are two innocents who stand in the way. But even as members of their pack rally around them, Anna’s rare power comes into its own—and is unleashed…

Genres: Graphic Novels, Urban Fantasy, Fantasy, Comics, Werewolves, Adult, Paranormal

112 pages, Hardcover

First published May 7, 2013

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.

Patricia Briggs was born in Butte, Montana, to a children’s librarian who passed on to her kids a love of reading and books. Patricia grew up reading fairy tales and books about horses, and later developed an interest in folklore and history. When she decided to write a book of her own, a fantasy book seemed a natural choice. Patricia graduated from Montana State University with degrees in history and German and she worked for a while as a substitute teacher. Currently, she lives in Montana with her husband, children, and six horses and writes full time, much to the delight of her fans.

Reviews

[Jessica {Litnoob} · Rating 4 out of 5]

Again we are faced with the same issue as before. The story is a loved one and it’s cool to get it in this new form. But the art style is nothing in the book as it is on the cover and that bugs me because I love love the cover art.

[Amy · Rating 2 out of 5]

1.5 stars
I know I keep harping on how ugly the artwork is, but the proportions are so off it no longer feels like an artistic choice and instead just looks ugly.
This volume is particularly disjointed. I understand cutting stuff out for length but if I hadn't already read the novel, I would have no idea what was happening.

[Francesca the Fierce (Under the Covers Book Blog) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well, what can I say….I love Patricia Briggs. Lets start out with the fact that her worlds are amazing to begin with so as fans, these graphic novels are pure enjoyment. That being said, I’m a big fan of Dan Dos Santos, whose covers symbolize Patricia Briggs.

So to go from that awesome representation to the graphics found in this and the previous volume, yes the fangirl in me isn’t as happy. There were a few pages that captured emotions really well, but in the back of my mind they felt a bit lacking.

That being said, the storyline in this one was great, condensed and action packed. Awesome job! We get more of Asil in this one, which was nice to see especially after recently reading FROST BURNED and seeing his cameo appearance in that series.

Anna was the big game changer in this episode as she is starting to find her strength.

These are great for both long time fans of the series, but also for newbies to get a real taste of Ms. Briggs world and characters. You won’t be sorry you pick them up either way!

*ARC provided by publisher

[Lucy · Rating 2 out of 5]

The novel from which this graphic novel was taken is Cry Wolf; the novel is far superior both in storyline and in visual imagery (my imagination). The characters are not as handsome as they're meant to be. Plus, Anna is blonde instead of brown-haired. Bran is ugly and not nearly young-looking enough, and his hair looks like plastic. The only character I liked was Walter Rice with the lovely beard. Several things are different from the book, especially whether the werewolves are in human or wolf form, and the changes don't always make sense. Very choppy.

[Lisa Wolf · Rating 2 out of 5]

This set of graphic novels just isn't working for me. I love the Alpha & Omega books by Patricia Briggs, but the translation into graphic novel format is problematic. The narrative is very choppy, and there's not enough explanation of the very involved plotlines to have them all make sense. My main complaint, however, is with the illustrations. The style chosen is so cartoon-like that the characters are practically lost. I'm all for artistic expression, but Anna in the graphic novels is just big hair and big boobs, with weird facial expressions and none of the charm of Anna from the books. Charles seems to change from page to page, and certainly doesn't have the stature or presence I'd expect. Some of the characters are rather indistinguishable, and I really didn't like the portrayals of Bran and Samuel. I read the two Alpha & Omega graphic novels out of curiosity, to see how they'd work in this format. The short answer is, not very well.

[Storm · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is Volume 2 (Issues 5-8) of the graphic novel adaptation of Cry Wolf, the first book in Patricia Briggs' Alpha and Omega Series. There has been a slight appreciable improvement in the quality of the graphics, which is still 4⭐ at the best, so I can't rate this series higher because I've always believed art matters for half the grade especially with graphic novels. They still could have done so much better even with the covers, this is not awesome as far as covers (the first impression) goes.


I am happy to report that they put a bit more effort into the drawings with Asil, one of my favorite tortured wolf, whose story is pivotal. There were a few pages of him puttering around in his Greenhouse that had good art, I just wish the rest of the comic was of this level of quality because even though the roses were simply drawn, they were vibrant in color and beautiful.


Honestly I love the story in Cry Wolf. The way the panels and layout are done is fitting, so they did a good job with it. One thing I did realize at the end of the story, that considering how powerful "black" evil witches are, it sort of explains why the medieval people reacted the way they did.

[Erin Dall · Rating 2 out of 5]

Drawings could be better but the dialogue follows the book really well.

[All Things Urban Fantasy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Review courtesy of All Things Urban Fantasy

When the world is as lush and mystical as Patricia Briggs has created for the Alpha and Omega series, it just begs to be adapted to a visual form.  This graphic novelization (which includes issues 5-8 of the comics) is once again brought to vivid life by David Lawrence, Todd Herman, and Jenny Frison.  It's an excellent team, as this volume, is even more beautiful than the first.

  

While I'm partial to Dan Dos Santos as the artist who creates the novel covers for Patricia Briggs series, as well as the covers for these graphic novel collections, Jenny Frison's issue covers (all included in this volume) are pretty spectacular.  She captures action in a way that makes the wolves feel like they are about to leap off the page.

I still view these graphic novels as a compliment to the full novels, but this volume does a pretty impressive job of condensing the plot both through Patty's original dialog, and Todd Herman's deft illustrations. I especially liked how tortured Asil was drawn (great to get to see so much of the character since he crosses over so prominently in FROST BURNED, the most recent Mercy Thompson novel).  This volume is a no brainer for fans of Patricia Briggs, but more than that, it's a real treat for graphic novel fans too.

[Danielle The Book Huntress · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this immediately after finishing the first volume. Much of my issues with the first and second volume are the same.

I don't want to have the exact same review as for Volume One, so I'll go in a different direction.

While the illustrations didn't work for me as far as most of my favorite characters' faces (Charles, Samuel, Bran), I did think they capture the menace of that little ball of nastiness, Mariposa quite well. Walter's story also drew me in, although I pictured him with gray hair instead of red hair as depicted. The illustrations do lack clarity somewhat on the storyline. If I hadn't read this book previous to reading the graphic novel, I think I would have been be kind of lost and confused. You don't really get a lot on Bran's back story and how he was worried about being susceptible to magic again. One of my absolute favorite scenes from the book doesn't have the same powerful resonance in this version, and part of it was omitted. I cry at that loss.

I'm still at the point where I feel that 3.5/5.0 stars is probably as high as I can rate this one. Good, but disappointing in comparison to the prose version. Glad I read it, even though it doesn't quite measure up.

Will I read more Patricia Briggs graphic novels? Heck yeah! I just hope the illustrations are better in the next ones I read.

[Lexie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Prelim Review: Sadly I am still not pleased with the artwork, but I was able to focus more on the story this time since there was a lot of Asil and he's one of my favs.

[Bea · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm still not crazy about the artwork, Charles looks white for instance, but it was a good adaptation. Full review to come.

[Darcy · Rating 2 out of 5]

I really like how this graphic novel closely follows the book, but didn't always care for how things were drawn, mostly because things aren't as I envisioned, not that I could do any better.

[Ivy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this graphic novel. I think I will have to read the other graphic novels and start reading the books!!

[AnonBuddha · Rating 2 out of 5]

Read this in the hopes that it would redeem the first volume and because it completes the first story. I shouldn't have bothered. All my complaints are the same. Astounding. I genuinely don't understand how it got published with the art looking this way. Just going to copy/paste my review from the first volume:

TLDR: Don't. Bad art, bad adaptation, just bad. I genuinely don't understand how this got published based on the art alone.

So incredibly disappointed. I am an avid fan of the novels this is adapted from so read this knowing I am inherently biased, though I tried to approach this from the view of a completely new reader.

Start off by saying the actual art, while not my favorite style, was a good choice. Bold lines, a bit gritty, suits the story well and was a good choice in my opinion. Kudos to Mohan for the colors, Jenny Frison for the issue covers, and Daniel Dos Santos for the volume covers. However, to Todd Herman, creator of the actual storyline art... just wow. A large percentage of frames are not done well. They show faces deformed or wonky. Eyes are missing pupils. I am astounded it made it to publishing looking this way. Maybe in the future they should get Jenny to do more than just the issue covers.

Additionally, I understand that when adapting a novel to a visual format that things need to change. In fact I think it necessary. However, this graphic novel managed to simultaneously cut portions and then edit none of the stuff that should have gone with the cut. If you are going to edit out things, you have to completely edit them out. Not just cut a chunk of time and not address the details related to it that show up later. If I hadn't read the novels, I would have been very lost and confused what the heck was going on in this graphic.

They also tried to leave in parts of the unseen stuff in the novels like magic and mind stuff but they don't address that it's not a visible thing. Like when an alpha gives an order, the lesser wolf is magic bound to follow it. But the graphic is all "that's an order" with no explanation that it's not just the boss sayin' something. It's a magic binding that has to be followed. Which had they edited later parts to make it read smoothly I would have just grumbled quietly but because they didn't address it the scenes read weirdly and are off-putting.

Small peeve, they don't mark the passage of time at all. There are time jumps hours long between one frame and the next that only the novel readers would know because they aren't marked. Come on, just add a "two hours later" or something.

Additionally, what the absolute hell was going on when y'all chose to make Bran look like mafia Captain America?! Dude is supposed to be low profile and easily looked over and you made him alpha as hell. Bran is a huge recurring character and this will cause issues later in the story if you decide to keep adapting the novels. Similarly with Charles. It's like the artist drew the characters based on their jobs instead of their descriptions. Bran is the alpha of all the alphas but he looks like a nobody. Charles is the hitman of the werewolves, but should just look like a stoic Indigenous guy. In fact every dude in the graphic looks angry as hell. Carter Wallace, the sweet vet that died and shows up in a single frame? Made him look like he was plotting to take over the city of Gotham. WTF.

Overall, I'm incredibly frustrated by how badly this turned out. And it a huge shame because I feel it could have been so amazing. When both the story gets botched AND the art, don't bother publishing in the future. Giving two stars because Mohan, Jenny Frison, and Daniel Dos Santos did amazing on their portions. Only redeeming qualities.

[Bluebelle-the-Inquisitive (Catherine) · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Da was right to send you along. I was helpless.
How are you?"
"About medium rare. Now What?" — Charales Cornick & Anna Latham

This adaptation does a decent job of explaining the basics of the werewolf lore that Briggs uses, specifically omega lore. The transformations are shown well. The ease in which Charles transforms in relation to everyone else. The magic is illustrated in a decent way, even if it is so obvious in colouring and style. The main new character we are introduced is so endearing in his insolated brokenness for good reason. I think I find the art used for the individual issues much more appealing than the actual graphic which I think is something. My art opinion hasn't really changed from volume one. So if you really want to know it's there. Again the plot is easy to follow but I think fans of the book would get more out of it.

As I wrote in my review of volume one I have not read any of the Alpha & Omega series books. I have read some of the Mercy Thompson books so know the basics of the world but know nothing of most of these characters. I do want to read this series though. When/if I ever get around to reading the novel I might reread this to see what the changes made are. Until then I'm giving it an average rating.

"He doesn't mean us any harm
He misunderstood when he saw us wrestling in the snow,
I think he was trying to protect me." — Anna Latham

A representative gif:

[Cara Noyes · Rating 4 out of 5]

After reading volume one, I had to jump right into this one! I am glad both were available at my local library! :-) Asil and Mariposa were strong characters. I’d read other books and short stories with Asil, So I was finally glad to get his backstory. Well crafted, Patricia Briggs! And the artwork was once again absolutely beautiful and fully complemented and enhance the plot.

[Andrea Trenary · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was super shocked to find this at the Dollar Tree, admittedly I read thru this without having read thru the first one, but I still enjoyed this one. I liked the art and that it's about werewolves and witches.

[Heather · Rating 1 out of 5]

The art is lackluster, and the adaptation adds nothing to the story. It removes much of the complexity. I'm honestly not sure what the point was of making these. To be clear, the one star rating is only for the adaptation, the original novel is really really good.

[Christina · Rating 1 out of 5]

The art was really bad, worse than the first one.

And the plot was still a retelling of the novel with some key details changed. Some made sense for graphic novel format and some just seemed like unnecessary changes.

And there was nothing new added to the story except more info on Walter's knife.

[Beth Tabler · Rating 2 out of 5]

I’m not even really sure what I have read, or if the author even read the source material. I’m all for creative license but this felt like it jumped the shark a bit.

[Theresa Bollinger · Rating 5 out of 5]

thoroughly enjoyed reading it

[Necessittee · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved rereading this story!

[Sophia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Note: This review encompasses both v. 1 and v. 2 and is copied to both.

I'm not a regular graphic novel reader, but for a favorite author, it becomes a must read. I found this graphic version of Cry Wolf just a delight to my visual senses. The storyline wasn't bad either though I will warn other readers that there is some flashback stuff that can make things confusing if you're not paying close attention. I won't say you have to read the novel first, but I think without having already read Cry Wolf the novel then I would have been lost in places particularly during the flashbacks. Others who are regular graphic book readers probably would fare better.

The graphic work is done by three different artists. The cover art, issue covers, and the story pages are all separate artists. The work is exquisite and I loved how facial expression, body language and movement were vividly portrayed so that words were almost unnecessary in places.

Briefly, the storyline begins just after Charles Cornick, mystic werewolf and son of the Alpha of all alphas and an alpha wolf in his own right, brings his new mate, Anna Latham back to his home town in the Montana wilderness so that she can continue to recover from the abuse she was dealt in her old pack and they can adjust to their new mating. Anna is a rare omega wolf and doesn't even no how special she is because of the way her old pack kept her ignorant and abused. Charles knows that things will take time since it was his wolf and her wolf that began the mate bond and not their human sides. Anna doesn't know the full extent of who and what he is as his dad's enforcer and he worries that it will drive her away after all the violence she was subject to before.

Anna is made of sterner stuff than anyone realizes so when Bran Cornick sends Charles out to investigate the suspicion of a rogue werewolf attacking humans in the mountains, she insists on going with him. Their trek takes them into danger and really tests them conjuring up their pasts as well as the past of another pack member, Asil. The future of the entire werewolf race may be at stake when they realize the full extent of their enemy's plotting. It's Anna's gifts that may save them all.

I read volumes one and two together and they contained the full set of issues to this story so I've also combined them together in the review here. The volumes are split pretty much at the half-way point of the original novel story where Charles and Anna encounter a werewolf and Asil realizes that he needs to get to Charles and Anna because he knows what they are dealing with. The first volume is largely establishing the backstory and characters with most of the action taking place in the second volume. There is a lot of backstory in both because there is Anna, Charles, Bran and Asil's histories to cover which play a part on the present so as I said before, the reader must pay attention.

All in all, it was a wonderful experience to see the story after having already read the novel. It was a visual treat that I encourage all Patricia Briggs fans to try on for themselves and I would also recommend this to Urban Fantasy graphic novel lovers in general.

[Sharon · Rating 5 out of 5]

I reviewed the Alpha and Omega: Cry Wolf: Volume One graphic novel a while back. I wasn't happy with the artwork and thought the story deserved something less cartoonish considering the dark edge to the story. I did find the story captivating and the cliff hanger ending had me wanting this next volume, which contains issues #5-#8 and is the conclusion to the story. The artwork is by the same artist and it isn’t as disappointing as the first volume, but still not to my taste. Since I addressed those issues in the previous review I am not going to discuss it again and not factor it into my review of this volume.

This issue tells Asil’s story in flashbacks and we learn why he is unstable and suicidal. The witch Mariposa has come to get revenge on Charles’s father Bran, and ends up finding Asil and causing him to relive his painful past. I haven’t read the book this graphic novel is based on so the story is new to me, and it is a quick page turner. Charles and Anna get caught in the crossfire and Anna embraces her omega powers to help save the day with Charles and Anna completeing the mating bond.

There is an excerpt at the end from Briggs's most recent Mercy Thompson release Frost Burned (reviewed here). The Cry Wolf graphic novels give a peek into the world Briggs has created in her novels and will definitely appeal to urban fantasy fans. The cover art of each individual issue is included and is absolutely beautiful.

http://www.ismellsheep.com/2013/05/co...

4.5 Sheep

[Under the Covers Book Blog · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well, what can I say....I love Patricia Briggs. Lets start out with the fact that her worlds are amazing to begin with so as fans, these graphic novels are pure enjoyment. That being said, I'm a big fan of Dan Dos Santos, whose covers symbolize Patricia Briggs.

So to go from that awesome representation to the graphics found in this and the previous volume, yes the fangirl in me isn't as happy. There were a few pages that captured emotions really well, but in the back of my mind they felt a bit lacking.

That being said, the storyline in this one was great, condensed and action packed. Awesome job! We get more of Asil in this one, which was nice to see especially after recently reading FROST BURNED and seeing his cameo appearance in that series.

Anna was the big game changer in this episode as she is starting to find her strength.

These are great for both long time fans of the series, but also for newbies to get a real taste of Ms. Briggs world and characters. You won't be sorry you pick them up either way!


*ARC provided by publisher

Reviewed by Francesca

❤ ♡ Don't want to miss any of our posts? Subscribe to our blog by email! ♡ ❤

[R. · Rating 3 out of 5]

The art still feels off in this portion of the series, especially in contrast to the images painted of the characters from the original book descriptions. Still, it's fun to see the stories come to life. Anna is still the most surprising character of the series, though there are less flashbacks in this half of the story than in the first. Can't help but feel bad for Asil with everything haunting him this turn around.

[Andi · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved the first in this series and this one the second in this series is just as great.
I love the fact that Anna has compasion and loves charles with her heart but in is her own person. I love the story line in this story,the visuals set in the moutains are amazing and the fact Patrica Briggs brings back Charles heritage is impressive. Highly recommend if you want to be taken on a wonderful journey, refreshing

[Hilda · Rating 4 out of 5]

After listening to all the Mercy Thompson series, I moved on to this one. This was a novelette preamble to Cry Wolf, even though it's listed as Volume 2. I miss the regular narrator from the Mercy series, still it was engaging, however, I found the characters a little stilted and not as magnetic as the other series. Then again, the series is just starting so maybe it'll pick up in the next books.

[Art Lueder · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is set in the Mercy Thompson universe of Patricia Briggs. They tend to be more detective story oriented and that is fine. Excellent read. As many have noted the characters often do not match what one pictures from the books and the quality is a little spotty. 5 Stars for the Patricia Briggs story, 3 stars for the graphics evens out to 4 stars.

[Nancy · Rating 5 out of 5]

This series has grown better from book to book; I think it has surpassed Mercy Thompson series in term of the appeal of the overall development of the characters and the relationship btw main characters. Even the secondary characters are more interesting. One of the best part of the Alpha and Omega series is Bran. I wish Patricia Briggs would change her mind and write a book or series on Bran.