True love was a lie. Betrayed by her childhood sweetheart, Scarlet is enslaved to the very creature who murdered her parents. With no options but to bow down to the wicked elf Arwen, Scarlet serves as her personal assassin to protect those she loves. That is until a ghost from her past throws her life upside down and endangers everyone she loves. Escaping the criminals Brine called kin was the easiest choice he'd ever made. Now a Dark Court agent, his past catches up to him as his family's schemes endanger the new queen. Tasked with infiltrating Arwen's corrupt organization, Brine becomes what he was always meant to be - a monster. But everything goes sideways when he discovers his mate enslaved by Arwen, her hands steeped in blood as red as her cloak. In a bid to keep them both alive, Brine strikes a deal with his human bride. One that could spell redemption or destruction for them both. The Wolf is a complete, *stand-alone novel*, inspired by the classic fairytales of Red Riding Hood and Cinderella with a "happily ever after" ending. It's a must have for dark romantic fantasy readers who loved A Ruin of Roses, A Dance with the Fae Prince, and Hooked. It features found family, mates, enemies to lovers, arranged marriage, Mafia, and pulse pounding adventure.
USA Today Bestselling Author Frost Kay is a certified book dragon with an excessive TBR, and a shoe obsession. If you love bewitching fantasy and sci-fi, epic adventures, dark promises, thrilling action, swoon worthy anti heroes, and slow burning romance; her books are for you!
She claims ownership to the bestselling young adult series The Aermian Feuds packed with adventure, secrets, and betrayal.
Fans of Frost Kay love her epic and science fiction teen titles for their "witty banter and exquisitely crafted sentences (that) never leave you bored or wanting," and "find the writing on par with Queen (Sarah J.) Maas and Elise Kova."
Author was caught plagiarizing another author and the same day posted a message they wouldn’t be on social media for a while. No apologies, no acknowledgement. Wouldn’t recommend her work since I don’t know what all authors have been ripped off
Brine deserved a better story. Scarlet was lovely, but the plot was so disappointing. I was either bored or annoyed the whole time. This story would have been soooo much better if Brine and Scarlet had talked sooner and teamed up. Instead, I spent most of the book rolling my eyes. The only reason I liked this book was because of the characters we got to know in the other books in this series. If I had read this as an actual standalone, I would have hated it.
Another great edition to the Twisted Kingdom series. Scarlet & Brine have appeared in previous books & I was excited to hear their fairytale retelling. Only 4 stars because the ending felt rushed. A must read series for any fans of the Six Crows Series.
Who knew Little Red Riding Hood and Cinderella could play so well together? This is a fantastic mash up full of feels. It's a reminder of why Ms. Kay is one of my favorite authors.
When I saw The Wolf is a dark romantic fantasy inspired by Red Riding Hood and Cinderella, I was immediately intrigued. Kay did not disappoint! With some of my favourite tropes such as enemies to lovers and found family, I was taken by Scarlet and Brine. This book gives new life to the classic fairytales and I felt Kay added a creative twist.
One of my favourite parts is the prologue, it reads like the beginning of a fairytale and captivates the reader, but it turns dark and evokes curiosity and wonder. If you're a fan of HEA endings and dual POV, you'd love this story. The world building is amazing and once I started reading, I felt like I stepped into a new world. I forgot I was reading and saw the story playing like a film. Escape to a new twist of fairytales in this 300+ page read and prepare to come face to face with the big bad wolf.
Thank you MTMC Tours and the author for gifting me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
The madness continues in Twisted Kingdoms' sixth book, The Wolf. Frost Kay got really creative with this one, it's a mix of two fairytales, Little Red Riding Hood and Cinderella. The story focuses on our favorite grumpy Talagan, Brine. And where Brine goes our favorite cast of characters is sure to follow, you know Pyre can't stay out of anything.
I liked Scarlet, I really did. She was smart her knowledge of medicine and poisons is unparalleled. Scar is also dangerous, not only is she an assassin but she's a fighter for her people. Scarlet has been through so much, sacrificed so much and yet she was still standing. However, when it comes to Brine she's clueless. Scarlet wasn't seeing Brine for who he was when she had the proof, no she made him out to be worse than she was (which was a lie) and worse than the shifters of the pack (another lie). She put all her hatred for those same shifters and pointed it a Brine. Plus she was a hypocrite, she could do whatever but if Brine does anything (good or indifferent) he was cruel, she didn't see anything from his perspective. Like I said I like Scar but when it comes to Brine, she infuriated me. Sure Brine made mistakes but at least he tried.
Brine has been around for a while, ever since the first book. I thought I knew the shifter and in some ways I do but I never realized he was so sad. Of course, he was grumpy but as the series went on I saw a brighter side to Brine. It wasn't until this book that I realize that even with a chosen pack (Tempest, Pyre, and the gang) he's missing someone. Apparently that someone is Scarlet who was his childhood friend. Brine falls first and he falls hard. Through Brine's musings and actions it's clear that he wants a future with Scarlet and Scarlet wants one too she just had to figure her stuff out which took way too long.
Red Riding Hood is one of my favorites and it doesn't get near as much love (in the retelling department) as I would have liked. Frost Kay did an excellent job blending the two fairytales, using them in such a creative story. I'm so glad that Frost not only gave us an RRH retelling but she's made it Brine's story (don't worry, he's not the villainous wolf) cause after all, the grumpy shifter has won me over a long time ago and I'm glad he gets a HEA.
You've heard snippets about her, the big bad. Lady Arwen, Alpha, the Duchess of Betraz, she goes by all these titles but you probably remember Old Mother the most. Well she's even worse than I imagined, she's a gods darn monster. This woman is a true villain, evil to her core and darn powerful. The level of cruelty and maliciousness that she has is unbelievable, worst yet, she spreads it. There is most definitely some dark history there that was hinted at but she's ruined too many lives and had to be stopped.
Scarlet and Brine are working on the same cause but from different angles but neither of them knows it but poor communication, assumptions, and too much past trauma. It becomes a cat-and-mouse game between the two and it only leads to more problems for both of them. It was so infuriating. There are daggers to the throat, poisons, bridal trials, explosions, and so much more. Danger lurks everywhere and they didn't know who to trust.
The Wolf was spectacular. I love this series with its crazy cast of characters that keeps hanging around. It looks like the crazy train doesn't stop here, the next book is The Pearl, one guesses what retelling that might be. It's Chesh's story and I just know all sorts of hijinks are gonna be involved.
This story follows Scarlet who lives in Betraz with her stepmother called the Old Mother and Alpha of the pack there and works for her stepmother as an assassin by day basically and other times she creates tonics and potions and tries to help her people. Brine is the Old Mother’s grandson and he decides to bring down his grandmother once and for all and take back his pack as Alpha. When he arrives back home, Scarlet thinks he may ruin all her plans and Brine thinks Scarlet will ruin his plans, and so both are tiptoeing around each other trying to decide whether to tell the other their plans or to go through them alone.
I really liked the blend of Red Riding Hood, Cinderella and Robin Hood in this book. This is a stand-alone interconnected with other books in the series, so you don’t have to read the other books, but to get a better idea of the other characters mentioned, you may want to read the earlier books in this series. That being said, I think this world is interesting and I love the blend of different fairytales, it was well done.
I liked some of the characters. I would say Chesh is my favorite and the next is supposed to be about him, so that should be interesting!
My biggest issue with this book were the two main characters, Scarlet and Brine. I cannot stand the miscommunication trope. They both tiptoe around each other the entire book, and each time they each would say to themselves “I’m going to talk to them we’re going to figure this out together”, but instead they start kissing and no conversation would happen, and then they leave the room, both still feeling like they can’t trust the other person. It was the most frustrating thing to read. I only kept reading because I wanted to know how it would end. But the moment they would not communicate with one another, the story lost me, and their romance was not believable to me, because they clearly did NOT care enough about each other to actually communicate like a normal couple would. Oh, and for some reason it was all Brine’s fault, when communication goes both ways 🤨, and after Scarlet blackmailed him, why on earth would he want to talk to her, why on earth would he trust her?
I really wanted to like this book, and I did give it three stars, because it is well written, and I love the blend of the different fairytales, it was well done, and for the most part, I really did like a lot of the characters, just not the main characters or their romance. That being said, I’m sure a lot of people would love this book and so I would definitely recommend it, especially if you love retellings!
I received a free digital copy to read, thank you to the author. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
I do and don’t like these books. This one has some sad parts with hearing the horrible things that happened to Scarlett. I did like the villain in this one. This one was a nice change since yes all her others are male but the step mother in this one was definitely horrible. Although some things I felt were left out. Like more of this step mothers story. I think it would’ve been great to see more into her mind and understand why she became this way. I also thought it was weird that she combined two stories of Red riding hood and Cinderella. I also thought it was strange that with all the stories the girls where human and the men mated with them. Why couldn’t there be a cool shifter girl. That would’ve been fun to read about. I also thought it was weird they all mated with humans. Makes me think they can only mate with humans. And I thought this one was the last one but at the end it make you wonder if she’s gonna do a story about Chesh. Also, again with the repeating of the story told in the previous book. The copy past annoys me because she says these are stand alone so I see that you do need those parts in them but why not write them from another’s perspective or not put them into the previous book. And why say they are stand alone when they really aren’t. To get the whole picture and know who everyone is you need to start at the beginning. I also thought it was weird when she wrote in things that don’t really fit. Like… “don’t go running a marathon tonight.” I get she was probably trying to be funny but talking about a marathon where they probably have never done one much less understand what that is. Just doesn’t make sense. And that happened a couple of times throughout the series.
And there was a point in the book that I didn’t like when Brine was saying why has no one stood up to his grandmother. Did they not have a backbone or integrity? They knew what she was doing but didn’t rise up against her. Could they really be ignorant? He doesn’t believe they were in the dark and believed them to be complicit. And he was disgusted. When I read that I was so mad. And found the at very hypocritical. He himself was a coward and ran away. Yes he was young and probably couldn’t stand up to her but for his to say these things about people who are trapped and can’t stand up to her without getting killed or their loved ones killed. That just made me so mad at him for not understanding why some people stayed. And then the pictures. My guess is she’s trying to be more fun and creative and painting a picture for the readers which we don’t need it you write it well. But I thought the pictures were terrible. They didn’t even match what was written and just kind of annoyed me more then brought the story to life. I would’ve nixed those if I were the editor or at least make the pictures be what was actually written.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
It was so good!!! I loved this reimagining of little red riding hood and Cinderella! It was the perfect mash-up with a wonderfully dark athmosphere and fantasy elements that I loved!
Now, the first three books in the #TheTwistedKingdoms series have been on my tbr for a while now, but I read this one first, because I participated in a book tour for it. #TheWolf can be read as a standalone and it shows the characters of the former books, but I had absolutely no problems getting into the story and navigating my way through all these characters. So, as someone who doesn't know the rest of the series, you can definitely enjoy reading the Wolf on it's on, but if you're anything like me, you will definitely want to grab the other books, too! I am definitely going to treat myself to the rest of the series, because not only am I curious about the other characters' stories now, but also #FrostKay 's writing simply convinced me! The story was beautifully written, in a way that hooked me, caught my attention, immediately gave me this unique fantasy feeling that allows you to fully dive into a story and that lets you forget everything around you for a while. I want to experience that feeling again and I am convinced that the other books in the series will give me the same wonderous feeling!🖤
As for the story; I already mentioned briefly that The Wolf is a #darkfantasy and a very athmospheric read. It has dark characters, it has morally grey main characters, it has a really interesting villain and it also gets quite emotional at points. Now, as far as the spice level goes, that is probably the only thing I'd critique here. As I like my books with spice, I would have been happy with a tad bit more spice, HOWEVER, this book does not need the spice in order to be great! In fact, even without the spice the story and the romance was believable and their attraction was great. I especially loved Brine's POV in that regard. 🥰
All in all a nearly perfect fantasy that I really enjoyed reading and which leaves me wanting more!🖤
This is book 6 In the Twisted Kingdoms Series. Although it is book 6, you can read this one without reading the others in the series. The only drawback to not starting at the beginning is that you will see other characters interwoven within the story which I believe gives this series more depth and enjoyability while reading.
Frost Kay has added another amazing book to her repertoire. Her writing is so fluid and easy to understand. You actually forget that you are reading a book and are not in a theater enjoying a full movie. At least that's how I see it as I am reading. The story is so beautifully told with a heartbreaking story for our beautiful main character. A woman set as a prisoner is such a harsh environment. I love having a female villain and a strong FMC, Scarlet, who will find a way to survive in a world where she is considered weak and all of the odds are against her. We also have a conflicted MMC in Brine. A man who wants to make the world a better place and protect those that are unable to protect themselves. Brine and Scarlet have so many obstacles to overcome. In the end we get our HEA and I love how this story concluded. This beautiful book gets 5 stars from me. Well done Frost...you have a forever fan in me.
*****Just a side note. It angers me that people post terrible ratings for a book that they haven't even read. The one star ratings for this story are from people who have a grudge against this author. Please keep that in mind when reading these reviews.
From the very beginning this book captured my attention! I've always loved Red Riding Hood and Cinderella so I knew I was in for a treat with this story and I definitely was! The way Kay took the original tales and made her own story was so fun and interesting, it felt like an original fairytale!
And to say I feel bad for the protagonist, Scarlet, is an understatement. She goes through so much and still tries to help others even if it will kill her in the process. She is strong and intelligent, but it really made me sad to see her gifts used for bad. But she needed to survive, especially with the people around her, so I understood.
The very handsome Brine is exactly what Scarlet needs. He is thoughtful and wants a future with someone...so who better than Scarlet. The one person that thinks her future is as bleak as they come. They have great chemistry and the way he falls for her (no spoilers here) is also quite cute!
The romance between Scarlet and Brine was chefs kiss! It was passionate and lovely and made me squel just a bit at certain parts!
I will say that I was confused with some of their actions as it felt a bit unnecessary but overall I really enjoyed this story and am definitely going to read her other stories!
The wolf, is the sixth book in the Twisted Kingdom series. I’ve been reading this series since it started you can read each book as a standalone but if you really wanna know all the characters, then you can start with the first one the hunt.
One of my favorite things about this series is the blend of fairytales with a totally new story. It’s like finding little Easter eggs and trying to guess which one you’re reading. I feel like the overall fairytale connection in this book is Little red riding Hood with a little Cinderella thrown in.
Our heroine in the story is Scarlet. We get to follow her on her journey to becoming the person she’s meant to be. She has a tough road set a tough road set out for her. It seems like there’s a lot stacked against her. But this is how she truly starts to shine and overcome.
Our hero is Brine. He’s struggling to make the world into a better place. He’s a bit of a Robin Hood. Together he and Scarlet will strive to break the world a better place.
Overall, I really enjoyed this latest addition to the twisted Kingdom series and I cannot wait for the next one. Job well done Frost Kay!
I had high hopes for this one, i mean the cover itself is five stars! gorgeous! It just unfortunately didn’t hit all the tropes it claimed it would have. Arrange marriage trope? @70% in book. “touch her die” trope? absolutely not. Never felt that. Infact the opening scene someone else, not the main love interest saves her - He was a mystery until it was revealed he was a side character. But i totally had a huge crush on him since he definitely gave an awesome first impression and played the Alpha/dont mess with her vibes to ANY female. The main love interest never gave those vibes: it was hate, curiosity, interest, and occasionally “cared” but not enough to actually do something to help her, even seeing the abuse. It was always someone else helping her or she saving herself. Thats my favorite trope “touch her and die” that i was looking for and it didn’t deliver. Another main one that was missed was “found family” and “grumpy/sunshine “ - i didn’t feel that or saw it. They both had secrets and motives and both played grumpy to be honest. The chemistry unfortunately wasn’t there. This was a Cinderella with Robyn hood mix fairytale and that’s about it.
Despite the only 3(.75) star rating, I actually really enjoyed this one.
The world was incredibly fascinating and FUN, and there were so many fairy tale easter eggs in there. It was simply delightful. I loved what was, for me, super original shifters, where even when they are in their "human" form, they have still have elements of their animal - dog ears, slitted eyes, etc. - showing.
Even though this is a standalone, and yes, you can read it without reading any of the others, this is book 6. In my opinion, I would probably recommend reading in order, as this one refers to a lot of previous characters and events that I probably would have appreciated more had I read the other books first.
Which... I do plan to do. I definitely enjoyed this one enough, I'd like to invest in the rest of the series.
For me, my biggest wish was that the story would have been fleshed out more. It's a fairly light, easy, quick read, but I feel like it could have gone a lot deeper, which I would have LOVED.
I LOVE this world!!! I was not sure how this Red Riding Hood and Cinderella mix up would work, but leave it to Frost to make it all come together. 100 stars for your genius mind. Brine is the big bad wolf who must return to his pack and his evil and totally insane grandmother. Her rein of terror needs to end. Scarlet, also known as Red, has been locked in her evil stepmom's to clutches long enough. She has been turned into an assassin and to have no feelings. Underneath she is still that little sweet girl that should compassion to all - including her childhood crush - Brine. Can these two once childhood friends come together and end Arwens rein of terror? Both hold so must distrust and secrets that you will have to read their story. All of the other characters from this world are in this book. Scarlets reaction to them all will make you laugh. Brine and Scarlets story is full of laughs and misadventures.
The Wolf by Frost Kay is book six in the Twisted Kingdoms series and is an absolutely action packed & adventure filled romantic stand-alone novel. This book sweeps you off your feet right from the beginning with strong fairytale vibes and fierce characters.
The writing in this book is wonderful and quickly brings the world and characters to life - it almost makes you feel like your reading one of your favorite classic fairytales. The author did an amazing job interweaving all the little hints and tells of Cinderella, Red Riding Hood, and Robin Hood into the story without bombarding you with it all, creating not just some amazing main characters but side ones as well.
I’d definitively recommend this book to anyone wanting to read a cozy but adventurous romance with plenty of intrigue and a strong storyline that will keep you on the edge of your seat. The Wolf by Frost Kay is a book just as gorgeous and magic filled as the cover.
I bought this book because the art on the cover is gorgeous and I'm a sucker for fairy tale retellings. However, this was a DNF.
This reads more as fanfic from Wattpad than a published novel. While there's little grammatical errors, the structure of the book is not up to par with adult literature. From the short and abrupt sentences and paragraphs to the severe lack of descriptions. Most of the characters are not described and the ones that are, there's very little to them. There's also lack in description in the settings and what the characters are doing.
The narrative is awkward most of the time, it does not flow well. The scenes shift abruptly rather than a smooth transition. There's a lack of explination through out the story.
While this is a stand alone, I feel that I missed a lot of the world building in not reading the other books.
This is a fantasy fairytale mashup of red riding hood and Cinderella. I loved this story, just as much as I have the rest in this series. Kay never ceases to disappoint. These books are stand-alones but I do think reading in order makes the most sense as the characters do interconnect. I loved Brine from day one. I love his grumpy, wolft attitude but his interactions with Tempest in previous books made me start to really like him. Scarlett was a capable female that was a bit of a villain--in a way. Loved that, honestly. You don't see that enough, and it was a great twist. This book is about freedom, leaving to forgive and trust despite years of toxicity. There's flaws, loss and pain in this, but the undercurrent of second chance, and then third chance is well done. Can't wait to read more!
This was another fantastic fantasy story in this amazing series.
In this new story little bits of Little Red Riding Hood and Cinderella are interwoven into a darker more terrifying world.
Brine is our big bad wolf that needs to return to his pack and end his grandmother’s rein of terror. And Scarlet is our little red riding hood/Cinderella, who has been turned into an assassin by her evil stepmother. Together they take us on a journey filled with danger, laughs, mistakes, and an unbreakable friendship.
This story was filled with action, adventure, violence, drama, angst and love. It is a story that kept me on the edge of my seat, turning the pages quickly, needing to know how it would all play out in the end.
I have read some bad reviews and I understand their opinion; luckly, I like to make a judgment by myself and I LOVED this book! 😍 Yes, the miscommunication trope was frustrating, but all the world building and the plot around our beloved couple was amazing!!!... and, of course, I loved the cameos from the previous books; having all the crew working together was incredible! 🤗🥰 And while I would loved to have more romance, I remember were Scarlet and Braine are coming from, so an immediate sweet and trusting relationship would be unbelivable 🤷🏻♀️ And, as I live for the angst, I'm happy with the way it was written!!! 😍 Now, I hope we will read the story of a certain sassy cat next! 😉
I so love this series. The characters (including the bad guys) have so much depth to them. The author writes in such a way that you feel pulled into the story. The heroes become your friends and you feel the pain and joy they feel. This one has quite a bit of a little red feel but is definitely is so much more. Scarlet may be one of the few humans in the story but she is so brave even when she has to do terrible things. Then there is Brine. He will make you want to pull your hair out. The tension is hard from the start and only seems to get more insane as the story goes. Filled with truths and lies that no one can tell apart. Can the good side win or will they be destroyed?
I was looking forward to Brine's story so much, but it fell flat for me. There was a lot of setup, like in The Beast, but not as much getting to know each other to actually fall in love beyond the instalust. The whole story felt rushed, and several of the first chapters were taken from the previous book to show the story overlap. Introducing new character POVs in this series has always jarred me a bit, though I get why the author did it. Just don't think it was necessary. Might have worked better if the series went chronological from the beginning with all characters' POVs as an ensemble, rather than trying to do standalones after the initial trilogy.
I have been waiting for Brine to have his own book for what seemed like ages. He's my favorite character. I'm so happy he finally got his own book. I enjoyed the little red riding hood retelling with hints of Cinderella. The world building is not overly complicated, but it's not so simple that it's just a throw away. It definitely has to be read in chronological order. The missing star is due to a couple typos, and just how long the miscommunication and mistrust happened in the book. Because if these two were not fated mates, there is no way their relationship would have survived the book. It was still enjoyable and I'm looking forward to see what happens next in the series.
It is finally here! I have been waiting for this book, and it does not disappoint. There is violence and anger and hatred. But there is also hope, love and goodness. The path these 2 had to travel to find each other is rough, and rocky, and marred with pain. But the ending is oh so good. I love the Twisted Kingdoms and am anxiously awaiting the next story <3
This book is part of a series, but it can be read on its own. For a fuller picture of all the characters in this story, I recommend reading the previous 5 tales.
This was my first time reading a book in the Twisted Kingdom series and I really did enjoy it! I love Frost Kays' Dragon Isle series so I was excited to read something new by her. I did think it was a bit short and rushed, I would have loved more content with Brine and Scarlette, their tension and their slowburn. Despite that I still enjoyed reading the book. If anyone is looking for a NA, fun, fairytale series I reccommend the Twisted Kingdom series and The Wolf. I started with The Wolf which is book 6 and found no issues with not having read the previous books :)
And this is yet another great addition to this series! I love how the characters are woven through one another’s stories — with each book, you’re fully immersed into a new storyline (of 2 individuals) yet you still get to know the supporting characters (that starred in their own novels) on a deeper level.
And even better, it continues to be a great world with interesting combinations of fairytale retellings in each storyline.
Glad to be back in this world and to finally get Brine's story. I have always liked Brine and wondered at his past that had been hinted at. I've have also wondered about the mysterious Red and we get to find out about both in this book. This book made me laugh and want to cry at times. Frost of course gives us a happily ending after the emotional rollercoaster she puts us through.
All the best stories retold in a way you've never read before. This is one of my top favorite series for so many reasons. Such interesting characters, excitement, heartbreak and more interwoven into overlapping fairytale retellings. This particular book tugged at all the heart strings with Brine and Scarlet's rollercoaster story full of revenge, murder, conspiracies and old love. Really excited to read Chesh's story next!
I was so looking forward to reading Brine's story, but the miscommunication ruined it for me so much! I wanted to bang my head against the wall! The ending felt a little rushed to me, and I feel like Scarlet was a little naive. I love how Pyre and Tempest keep showing up throughout the series, I'm also really looking forward to Chesh's story (because, come on, he NEEDS someone that can hurt him! 😂)
I have Bern intrigued and a fan of Brine since he first appeared in thus world so it was nice to see him get his HEA. Of course the bloody wolf had to work for it and nothing was easy or as it seemed. Scarlet is a goid match for him. Their story is full of angst and twists but it's so worth it at the end.