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Feral #3
Feral Pride
The explosive finale to the Feral series by New York Times best-selling author Cynthia Leitich Smith.
Anti-shifter sentiment is at an all-time high when Kayla’s transformation to werecat is captured on video and uploaded for the world to see. Suddenly she becomes a symbol of the werebeast threat and—along with fellow cat Yoshi, lion-possum Clyde, and human Aimee—a hunted fugitive. Meanwhile, a self-proclaimed weresnake has kidnapped the governor of Texas and hit the airwaves with a message of war. In retaliation, werepeople are targeted by law enforcement, threatened with a shift-suppressing vaccine, terrorized by corporate conspiracy, and enslaved by a top-secret, intelligent Cryptid species. Can Clyde rally his inner lion king to lead his friends—new and old—into battle against ruthless, media-savvy foes? A rousing blend of suspense, paranormal romance, humor, and high action.
Anti-shifter sentiment is at an all-time high when Kayla’s transformation to werecat is captured on video and uploaded for the world to see. Suddenly she becomes a symbol of the werebeast threat and—along with fellow cat Yoshi, lion-possum Clyde, and human Aimee—a hunted fugitive. Meanwhile, a self-proclaimed weresnake has kidnapped the governor of Texas and hit the airwaves with a message of war. In retaliation, werepeople are targeted by law enforcement, threatened with a shift-suppressing vaccine, terrorized by corporate conspiracy, and enslaved by a top-secret, intelligent Cryptid species. Can Clyde rally his inner lion king to lead his friends—new and old—into battle against ruthless, media-savvy foes? A rousing blend of suspense, paranormal romance, humor, and high action.
304 pages, Hardcover
First published February 10, 2015
6 people are currently reading
430 people want to read
About the author
Cynthia Leitich Smith
39 books1,287 followersCynthia Leitich Smith is the New York Times bestselling, award-winning author and anthologist of more than 20 books for young readers. She was named a 2025 Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award Candidate, the NSK Neustadt Laureate, Texas Literary Hall of Fame inductee, and winner of the Southern Miss Medallion for Outstanding Contributions in Children’s Literature. Cynthia has also been named to deliver the 2026 ALSC Children’s Literature Lecture. She is the author-curator of Heartdrum, a Native-focused imprint at HarperCollins Children’s Books, and served as the Katherine Paterson Inaugural Chair for the children’s-YA writing MFA program at Vermont College of Fine Arts. Cynthia is a citizen of the Muscogee Nation and lives in Texas.
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Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
January 16, 2016
As the final book of the Feral series, Feral Pride brings the series to an epic conclusion. The book switched between four character’s perspectives this time: Clyde, Aimee, Yoshi and Kayla. It picks up from right after the events of Feral Curse. As a fan of the Tantalize series, I loved that the author wrote a three-book spin-off series based around other characters.
I also loved that there books focus on the shifter and the social prejudices on whether they are considered human since they can become animals. The main characters (except Aimee, whose and normal human) are all some type a were-cat. Clyde is actually were-lion and were-possum and Aimee calls him a Lossum. So many books are about werewolves and vampires, that’s it’s cool to see different types of creatures or beings. There’s also were-deer, foxes, vultures, otters, dolphins, orcas, rabbits, tigers, bears, and so many more.
The book starts out with all four of the main characters, plus Kayla’s friend Jess are driving in Jess’s father police cruiser, trying to get to Oklahoma, but the never get out the state. The governor of Texas has been taken hostage by a supposed snake-shifter named Seth. Reptile shifters don’t exist, according to what they’ve heard from Kieran (Quince’s boyfriend and werewolf). They go back to Austin and are being pursued by agents of the FHPU. The snow people/yetis from the previous book are likely behind what’s going on and Clyde and friends have to find a way to stop them.
We get to meet Clyde’s biological dad. Noelle returns and she even dressed up as an X-men character. Aimee’s father is also in the book, and possibly (unknowingly) working for the yetis. So much happens in this 285 page book. It’s so full of excitement and I hate that it’s over. I think that this series together could make one amazing TV show. There’s something very episodic and the world building is detailed. I love how it’s like an alternate universe in which shifter have been know to exist since the mid-1800s.
I really hope that Cynthia can write another amazing paranormal or maybe sci-fi series because her books are humorous. I love how she creates banter between the characters. The friendship are so well written that the character feel like my friends. I recommend this series if you enjoyed Tantalize, Eternal, Blesses and Diabolical. Also if you like the Curse Workers series by Holly Black. Or the Other series, Night World series, and anything with werewolves, shape-shifters and other paranormal beings.
Cover Art Review: Is that the Austin skyline? Probably. There’s a lion, which Clyde is able to turn into.
~Haley G
My blog:
http://breathlessbookreviews.blogspot...
I also loved that there books focus on the shifter and the social prejudices on whether they are considered human since they can become animals. The main characters (except Aimee, whose and normal human) are all some type a were-cat. Clyde is actually were-lion and were-possum and Aimee calls him a Lossum. So many books are about werewolves and vampires, that’s it’s cool to see different types of creatures or beings. There’s also were-deer, foxes, vultures, otters, dolphins, orcas, rabbits, tigers, bears, and so many more.
The book starts out with all four of the main characters, plus Kayla’s friend Jess are driving in Jess’s father police cruiser, trying to get to Oklahoma, but the never get out the state. The governor of Texas has been taken hostage by a supposed snake-shifter named Seth. Reptile shifters don’t exist, according to what they’ve heard from Kieran (Quince’s boyfriend and werewolf). They go back to Austin and are being pursued by agents of the FHPU. The snow people/yetis from the previous book are likely behind what’s going on and Clyde and friends have to find a way to stop them.
We get to meet Clyde’s biological dad. Noelle returns and she even dressed up as an X-men character. Aimee’s father is also in the book, and possibly (unknowingly) working for the yetis. So much happens in this 285 page book. It’s so full of excitement and I hate that it’s over. I think that this series together could make one amazing TV show. There’s something very episodic and the world building is detailed. I love how it’s like an alternate universe in which shifter have been know to exist since the mid-1800s.
I really hope that Cynthia can write another amazing paranormal or maybe sci-fi series because her books are humorous. I love how she creates banter between the characters. The friendship are so well written that the character feel like my friends. I recommend this series if you enjoyed Tantalize, Eternal, Blesses and Diabolical. Also if you like the Curse Workers series by Holly Black. Or the Other series, Night World series, and anything with werewolves, shape-shifters and other paranormal beings.
Cover Art Review: Is that the Austin skyline? Probably. There’s a lion, which Clyde is able to turn into.
~Haley G
My blog:
http://breathlessbookreviews.blogspot...
August 29, 2015
More like three and a half.
Full review to come, but I feel like the ending of this book....kind of cancelled out everything that happened in the previous books. I'm sad. I was left feeling very hollow after I finished.
Full review to come, but I feel like the ending of this book....kind of cancelled out everything that happened in the previous books. I'm sad. I was left feeling very hollow after I finished.
October 31, 2017
Recent events have caused society to feel very threatened by werepeople, when in fact, most of them want to live quietly in the shadows. The governor has been kidnapped and a wereserpent is trying to start a war between humans and weres. Characters from books one and two return to clear the shifters’ names. When I tried to describe the plot to a friend they looked at me like I was nuts. That’s probably a good way to describe the book. The book is goofy but fun. I hated the ending.
August 6, 2019
Volume 2 was tighter and more focused. I noticed that whenever characters from the previous series were brought in my interest lagged because I didn’t know anything about them. Who is Kieran again? This trilogy is best enjoyed by young readers, fans of the previous series, who will know all the backstories.
October 8, 2017
Oh, that ending 😭😭😭😭
October 26, 2019
Why did CLYDE have to die? It left the story hanging, like it hasn't ended yet.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 18, 2017
I loved this one a little more action , but the last one. I want more and will be searching. I need more Yoshi.. And what about
Amiee she needs a great happy ending...
Amiee she needs a great happy ending...
October 26, 2014
**See my review in VOYA magazine.**
Someone leaked a video of Kayla’s shift from human form to werecat, and homo sapiens everywhere now have proof of the existence of werepeople, the PC term for werebeasts. While many homo sapiens had some inkling of werepeople’s existence, seeing one shift frightens them; they don’t understand that, like humans, there are both good bad werepeople. Some humans in Texas are rallying against the werepeople, implanting a device to prevent shifting and to make them easy to control. Now, Kayla is a threat, along with her were-friends, Yoshi (a werecat), Clyde (a werelion-possum), and Aimee (a human), they are on the run. Only the capture of the governor of Texas by a claimed-to-be weresnake (which no one has ever heard of) bring the foursome back to their hometown to fight for what is right. Add a vampire with a soul, a guardian angel, the homo deific (snowpeople), and a horde of other mythical creatures and you have one interesting fight on your hands.
Smith’s final installment of the Feral Nights trilogy completes the story of our main werepeople, Clyde, Yoshi, Aimee and Kayla and their mythical friends. Feral Pride could easily be read as a stand-alone even though it references Clyde’s coma and the terrible occurrences on Daemon Island. Werepeople being friends with vampires and angels and being considered children of God is a great idea, but the storyline and delivery of this final book is lacking. Whilst reading the book, I went back many times to re-read. Often, I found myself lost in choppy, unconnected dialogue and action that didn’t flow. This book either needs to go through the copy editor one more time or be better developed so that it’s easier for young adults to follow. All in all, a great idea, but poor execution.
Someone leaked a video of Kayla’s shift from human form to werecat, and homo sapiens everywhere now have proof of the existence of werepeople, the PC term for werebeasts. While many homo sapiens had some inkling of werepeople’s existence, seeing one shift frightens them; they don’t understand that, like humans, there are both good bad werepeople. Some humans in Texas are rallying against the werepeople, implanting a device to prevent shifting and to make them easy to control. Now, Kayla is a threat, along with her were-friends, Yoshi (a werecat), Clyde (a werelion-possum), and Aimee (a human), they are on the run. Only the capture of the governor of Texas by a claimed-to-be weresnake (which no one has ever heard of) bring the foursome back to their hometown to fight for what is right. Add a vampire with a soul, a guardian angel, the homo deific (snowpeople), and a horde of other mythical creatures and you have one interesting fight on your hands.
Smith’s final installment of the Feral Nights trilogy completes the story of our main werepeople, Clyde, Yoshi, Aimee and Kayla and their mythical friends. Feral Pride could easily be read as a stand-alone even though it references Clyde’s coma and the terrible occurrences on Daemon Island. Werepeople being friends with vampires and angels and being considered children of God is a great idea, but the storyline and delivery of this final book is lacking. Whilst reading the book, I went back many times to re-read. Often, I found myself lost in choppy, unconnected dialogue and action that didn’t flow. This book either needs to go through the copy editor one more time or be better developed so that it’s easier for young adults to follow. All in all, a great idea, but poor execution.
May 23, 2015
In this finale to the trilogy, racism is at its highest for the were-people. Kayla has been outed on camera; Jess steals her father’s police car several times to get the weres places fast; the weres are constantly on the move to avoid capture, and now a were-snake has surfaced to create even more grief for the were-world, kidnapping the governor of Texas. Clyde’s relationship with his father could create a highlight, but fizzles.
The story had its usual share of smart-mouthed humor, but the irony meant for adults was misplaced for the obvious junior high audience. The message of tolerance is well-played, creating the highlight of the book. The final scene action would make a great movie, and makes as little sense. With corporate conspiracy, shift-supresssion drugs, bad parenting, secret cryptid species, top secret government agencies, and deadpan statements, you lurch from one plot to the next.
Told in the many voices of its characters, the author herself loses track of the speaker, and twice the narrator as if she were the third person.
When we first saw Clyde as a were-opossom, in the Tantalize series, we were charmed. When he became part of the Feral Nights series, we cheered. Now the series is done, and we are glad of that too. By the 7th book, the were-population isn’t as charming or funny.
The uneven writing of this book was tiresome at times with bad grammar. While some sentences were correct, they bordered on run-on. Was this perhaps written in a weekend to finish the series? Smith claims that all of her books stand alone, but she alludes to so many former details that we are left reeling. If you hadn’t read the other books in the series, and perhaps even some of the Tantalize series, you would not really understand much of this book.
The story had its usual share of smart-mouthed humor, but the irony meant for adults was misplaced for the obvious junior high audience. The message of tolerance is well-played, creating the highlight of the book. The final scene action would make a great movie, and makes as little sense. With corporate conspiracy, shift-supresssion drugs, bad parenting, secret cryptid species, top secret government agencies, and deadpan statements, you lurch from one plot to the next.
Told in the many voices of its characters, the author herself loses track of the speaker, and twice the narrator as if she were the third person.
When we first saw Clyde as a were-opossom, in the Tantalize series, we were charmed. When he became part of the Feral Nights series, we cheered. Now the series is done, and we are glad of that too. By the 7th book, the were-population isn’t as charming or funny.
The uneven writing of this book was tiresome at times with bad grammar. While some sentences were correct, they bordered on run-on. Was this perhaps written in a weekend to finish the series? Smith claims that all of her books stand alone, but she alludes to so many former details that we are left reeling. If you hadn’t read the other books in the series, and perhaps even some of the Tantalize series, you would not really understand much of this book.
August 20, 2016
Three teenage "wereanimals" (two Cats and a Lossum--a lion/possum hybrid), along with their human friends, try to out local and federal human authorites (who are assisted by werebears controlled with neural implants) while a mysterious weresnake takes to the news and announces to the world that he has kidnapped a Texas state official who will be excuted unless humans "confess to being the subordinate species".
This is the 3rd book in a trilogy. Because of this, there was a lot of backstory that either doesn't need to be mentioned or needs to be better explained if you haven't read the others (which I haven't)
I enjoyed the fact that the author chose some "uncommon" Shifter-types like Armadillos, Deer, Tasmanian Devils, Donkey and even a "Porcupine-Bunny" hybrid, as well as dealing with ghosts, vampires (with and without souls), "Earth-bound angels" and a humanoid species she chose to call "Cryptids" or "yetis".
I enjoyed the book but it took quite awhile for me to adjust to the author jumping POV from one character to another and a number of times I had to flip back to the chapter beginning to remember whose POV I was following. I often like that authors do this, but this author jumps POV so quickly that it can be difficult to follow.
I will definitely look into her other books (including a separate series), but not certain what I fill find.
This is the 3rd book in a trilogy. Because of this, there was a lot of backstory that either doesn't need to be mentioned or needs to be better explained if you haven't read the others (which I haven't)
I enjoyed the fact that the author chose some "uncommon" Shifter-types like Armadillos, Deer, Tasmanian Devils, Donkey and even a "Porcupine-Bunny" hybrid, as well as dealing with ghosts, vampires (with and without souls), "Earth-bound angels" and a humanoid species she chose to call "Cryptids" or "yetis".
I enjoyed the book but it took quite awhile for me to adjust to the author jumping POV from one character to another and a number of times I had to flip back to the chapter beginning to remember whose POV I was following. I often like that authors do this, but this author jumps POV so quickly that it can be difficult to follow.
I will definitely look into her other books (including a separate series), but not certain what I fill find.
February 2, 2015
Shifters have been outed in the media when Kayla’s transformation to werecat is recorded and uploaded for everyone to see. She is now seen as a werebeast threat and is on the run with Yoshi, Clyde and Aimee. As if things couldn’t get any worse, a weresnake has kidnapped the governor of Texas and announced to the media that this is just the beginning. All werepeople are now at risk as law enforcement tries to round them up, corporations develop a shift-suppressing vaccine and an underground slave trade is uncovered. Do Clyde and his friends have the strength to overcome the obstacles put before them? Who can they trust and how far are they willing to go?
Feral Pride is the third and final book in the Feral series. This book picks up shortly after the ending of the second novel and I encourage readers to start at the beginning. Although Smith references people and events from the original series (Tantalize), this spin off series can still be enjoyed by itself. As a final book in a series I was pulled in by the quick plot twists and fast story progression. I do feel there were a lot of “lessons” thrown in as the characters were explaining different werepeople traits, but if that flaw is ignored Feral Pride is a very satisfying conclusion.
Feral Pride is the third and final book in the Feral series. This book picks up shortly after the ending of the second novel and I encourage readers to start at the beginning. Although Smith references people and events from the original series (Tantalize), this spin off series can still be enjoyed by itself. As a final book in a series I was pulled in by the quick plot twists and fast story progression. I do feel there were a lot of “lessons” thrown in as the characters were explaining different werepeople traits, but if that flaw is ignored Feral Pride is a very satisfying conclusion.
May 16, 2015
“Feral Pride,” is the final installment in Cynthia Leitich Smith’s “Feral” series. It was preceded by “Feral Nights,” and “Feral Curse.” This urban fantasy can be read as a stand-alone, although it does reference events in previous volumes.
Shapeshifters are “outed” by the media when Kayla’s werecat transformation is recorded and exposed to the world. Perceived as a threat, Kayla is now on the run with Yoshi (a werecat), Clyde (a werelion-possum), and Aimee (a human/homo sapiens). The four abort their flight to sanctuary because they feel compelled to return to Austin to rescue the Governor of Texas, who is being held captive by Seth, a weresnake. The situation is complicated by a vampire (with a soul), a guardian angel, the homo deific (snowpeople), and other paranormal characters. The unlikely conglomeration collaborates to combat a secret police force that threatens the new species with a serum that controls/eliminates shifting behavior.
Without appearing parochial, the action-packed plot explores themes of tolerance and self-esteem. Lively, humorous dialogue is a bonus. Fans will not be disappointed.
Shapeshifters are “outed” by the media when Kayla’s werecat transformation is recorded and exposed to the world. Perceived as a threat, Kayla is now on the run with Yoshi (a werecat), Clyde (a werelion-possum), and Aimee (a human/homo sapiens). The four abort their flight to sanctuary because they feel compelled to return to Austin to rescue the Governor of Texas, who is being held captive by Seth, a weresnake. The situation is complicated by a vampire (with a soul), a guardian angel, the homo deific (snowpeople), and other paranormal characters. The unlikely conglomeration collaborates to combat a secret police force that threatens the new species with a serum that controls/eliminates shifting behavior.
Without appearing parochial, the action-packed plot explores themes of tolerance and self-esteem. Lively, humorous dialogue is a bonus. Fans will not be disappointed.
April 5, 2015
the characters really dont failed to amaze me.. i really love how the author show how awesome they are on their unique selves.. kind of sad at the ending where clyde died at the end and never have the chance to tell aimee that he love her.. or is it the other way around.. pshaw!.. but in all itthe journey to the ending is totally worth it.. thumbs up to an awesome author.. Cynthia Leitich Smith .. idol kita!
May 3, 2015
What the crap? This book sucked. Not to spoil anything but I hated the ending the ending was awful the book was great quick fun Up until the ending. I probably would've given it a one but I really did like the series. And there's no hope of another spin off because this one only even has 15 ratings. I don't mean to be mean but it was pointless.
March 19, 2015
Review to come..
December 7, 2016
Fun read in the way that an episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer is a fun watch.
May 19, 2015
I am dying from that ending. Review to come!
Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews