Wolfgang

The Wolfgang Trilogy #1

by F.D. Gross

Sixteen years have passed since the death of Lord Egleaseon, the vampire lord who sought to be human again, defeated by the famous noble lord, Wolfgang. One day after cleansing the surrounding countryside of vampires, Wolfgang returns from his latest expedition only to be faced with the horrible reality that everything he held dear to his heart has been taken from him. His wife is dead, his home is burned, and his son is nowhere to be found. Only the smallest inclination leads him to believe his orphaned servant is somehow responsible.

He is desperate and provoked, and will do anything to get his son back, even if it means journeying the path of darkness. Thus begins the story of Wolfgang.

Genres: Fantasy, Horror, Vampires, Paranormal, Fiction, Supernatural, Gothic

241 pages, Kindle Edition

First published September 8, 2016

About the author

F. D. Gross is the creator of The Wolfgang Trilogy; Wolfgang, Inquisition, and Communion. Frank writes many different types of fiction and experiences the world for inspiration. Traveling is a passion and resting in haunted places is another. He also works in a haunted house for fun.

A new legend in vampire hunting emerges with his works of literature and has also published various short stories ranging from dark twisted tales to open ended mysteries. Frank resides in Florida with his wife, daughter, son, and four cats.

Reviews

[Matt · Rating 3 out of 5]

First and foremost, a large thank you to F. D Gross for providing me with a copy of this publication, which allows me to provide you with an unbiased review.

Having been asked by the writer to read through this book, I gladly took the opportunity to do so, waiting for the ‘ghoulish’ time to approach, when I would inundate myself with other tales of a similar nature. Lord Tenor Alvadine Wolfgang is a heroic vampire hunter like no other. Armed with all the tools of the trade, Wolfgang sets out to slay Lord Egleaseon, a powerful vampire. Completing the task, Wolfgang can only hope that peace has finally been established in the area. Fast-forward sixteen years and Wolfgang has started a family, including his lovely wife, Diana, and son, Dorian. When he returns from one of his missions, Wolfgang is stunned to see his house in flames and Diana clinging to life. Worst of all, Dorian is nowhere to be found, presumably kidnapped. Wolfgang sets out to locate his son, crossing paths with many ghoulish beings. With nothing to live for if Dorian cannot be saved, Wolfgang will stop at nothing and shed copious amounts of blood to track down the fiendish individual who captured his son. As he follows the path that may lead him towards Dorian, Wolfgang discovers a plot to deceive him that has been years in the making. With this knowledge, there are even fewer he can trust during his time of need. Gross does well to lay the groundwork for this series, sure to pique the interest of readers who enjoy vampires and their associated slayers.

I agreed to take the gamble and try this book, in hopes that it would prepare me for the season. While I admit that this is not a genre I read regularly, or really find a passionate connection to, Gross has done well painting a literary picture that is sure to keep those who love vampires keenly interested. Wolfgang appears to be one of those men who have the brains and brawn, particularly when it comes to slaying bloodsucking monsters. His love of killing seems only to be eclipsed by his passion for family, though that foundation is all but gone now. Using numerous tools at his disposal, Wolfgang sets out to rid the world of evil, one creature at a time, but his motivation is quite specific. How he will evolve in the novels to come remains to be seen, but Gross has much that he can do, given the time to develop this character. The other secondary characters serve a decent purpose, including the creatures he encounters on his mission, though I admit they held little interest for me. The plot is decent and the narrative pushes forward at a decent pace, even if I was not fully enthralled by the content. While the book was not up my alley, I can recognize great work and Gross surely has much to offer those who love a good vampire hunter. While no Stoker, he is surely an author to be noticed with a series worth the curious reader’s time.

Kudos, Mr. Gross, for an excellent effort. I may not rush out to continue the series, but I hope many will, enjoying each twist along the way!

Like/hate the review? An ever-growing collection of others appears at:
http://pecheyponderings.wordpress.com/

A Book for All Seasons, a different sort of Book Challenge: https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/...

[Bradley · Rating 5 out of 5]

This can be exactly what the doctor ordered...

As long as you've been craving GOOD heavy horror/fantasy films that ramp up the action and the pathos in equal time to fighting the beasties. :) Revenge? Check. Saving his son? Check.

Go Medieval on a ton of monsters? Hell yeah. He IS a vampire hunter, after all. Wolfgang is going to use every weapon available, killing bogarts, swamp things, and of course, VAMPIRES. Traditional ones! With big and beautiful castles! And of course, there's villages and poor people everywhere!

Sound familiar? Well, that's because it is exactly what a lot of us want. :) Castlevania. In novel form. Doing what only novels can do without huge budgets for special effects and big name actors getting their swords bloody.

Who's the ravening fiend, here?

That's right! It's US! We eat this stuff up.

So did I see this as a movie for the entire time I read it?

Yes. I smelled the offal and felt the squish of the swamp in my boots, too.

Okay, yeah, so I'm kinda a sucker for this stuff. Lots of monsters, lots of action, lots of pathos. There's even plot and intrigue that spears through all that action, but for the most part, I was all for the darkness and the horror. :)

I'm a fan, okay!?!?

Thanks to the author for offering this little gem up! I would never have seen it, otherwise! We should all be on the lookout for great independents! :)

[Helen Power · Rating 4 out of 5]

Synopsis:
Wolfgang is a nobleman who spends his days and nights purging the countryside of the undead.  But when he returns home after killing a nest of vampires, he discovers his wife dead, his town in ruins, and his son is missing. Desperate to find his son alive, he must fight a race against time, all the while killing the hoards of undead that are trying to keep him from his goal.

Plot
The book opens with a little preamble setting the stage for the story. It sort of reminds me of the sliding words on the screen of the beginning of Star Wars movies.  I think this will be very useful in follow up books in the series, so that readers can be quickly reminded of what happened in the previous books, so the the author can jump right into the plotline in the first chapters.

This novel reads like a rocket-fast paced version of Dracula (minus the epistolary style).  The story itself is quite different from Dracula, but the writing has a similar language and tone.  The plot plunges forward from the very first pages, and things are explained just enough so that the reader can follow along for this wild ride.  There are quite a few twists and turns in the plot, some which were predictable, and others were not. 

Characters
Because of the fast pace of the story, there is not much opportunity for scenes that are crafted solely for the purpose of character development. However, every scene is carefully planned.  F. D. Gross does an excellent job of giving us a clear understanding of who Wolfgang is, what his motivations are, and even showing some vulnerabilities. For instance, in the very beginning of the story, he has to kill an undead woman.  He does so, because it’s his duty, but he wavers at the thought of killing her child, even though the little boy is no longer technically living. This tells us so much about not only the nature of the undead in this world, what the plot will be like for the story, but it also tells us bucketloads about the main character.

Side characters are a little less developed, and I would have liked to have had some more scenes with simple conversations between the characters, to get a better sense of who they are.  Wolfgang’s wife dies very early on in the book, but we didn’t have much opportunity to grow attached to her. However, F. D. Gross does provide some flashbacks later in the book, which allow the reader to better understand how greatly Wolfgang loved his wife.

Worldbuilding
While the plot is fast-paced, every word is carefully selected and F. D. Gross crafts a well-developed and elaborate world.  He even describes what the undead smell like - cloves and burnt leaves, in case you were wondering.



Overall, I highly recommend this book if you're a fan of fast-paced plots, effortless worldbuilding, and old-fashioned vampire killing.



*Thank you to the author for the ebook for review!*

This review appeared first on https://powerlibrarian.wordpress.com/

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[Ashley Daviau · Rating 4 out of 5]

I want to start this review by stating that I received a free copy of this novel from the author in exchange for an honest review. This in no way changes or affects my review.

I’m always hesitant about vampire stories because they’re either done really well or really terribly, there doesn’t seem to be an in between. I was quite pleased to find this is one of the stories that does vampires really well! They’re actually quite scary and I loved it. I also really loved all the other creatures the characters had to deal with, each time a new one was introduced I was delighted. This book was dark and creepy and pure horror and I haven’t read anything quite like it! My only minor complaint that I had to remove a star for is that the writing is a bit awkward and choppy at times, a couple times I had to reread sentences or paragraphs multiple times because they were slightly confusing. But don’t let that deter you from reading this fantastic horror novel!

[Trish · Rating 2 out of 5]

You know those (mostly old) computer games full of quests against beasts in dark dungeons with beautiful damsels in distress either waiting for you as a prize or being sacrificed at the very beginning to spur the hero on? This is such a story.

An impossibly powerful evil is vanquished in the prologue or, to be more precise, wants and allows to be vanquished. Sixteen years later (no idea what took so long) the hero’s family and nearby village get attacked, he loses everything but his son, and therefore goes on a quest to get him back.

Sadly, this was not for me. It has too much religiously tinged pathos, the writing often felt chunky, the story as well as the characters felt like cardboard cutouts. And what, in the name of all vested and enjoyable sexual interventions, were those dreams?!
There was also no flow to the events (not in the dialogues either) and I spotted several errors (mares wouldn’t be called "lads“; fire only gets worse when raging through a house so the smoke wouldn’t suddenly clear off in a windowless corridor just so the MC can see better; if saliva is how one becomes a monster, then a claw is not infectious, the MC would have been infected/turned himself long ago otherwise - to name but a few).

I wasn't even enjoying the fight scenes with all the monsters this dark world spit forth ... ok, maybe because I wanted Wolfgang to die and not succeed so I was disappointed every time he slew something *lol* but also, I think, because of the way the fight scenes were written. Can't quite put my finger on it.

What I did very much like was the creatures spat forth by the darkness here: ghosts, zombies, werewolves, will-o’-the-wisps, vampires, bogarts and others, not to mention animals doing the evil’s bidding.
The castle itself was cool, too, with the mechanical walls that could be moved and all the creepy critters waiting … but no matter how much one enjoys roaming through such a structure and encountering a host of beasts, at some point you just want and need the story to get to the point.

There were also constant convenient appearances and disappearances and reappearances of characters with vital information or of people thought dead. The fact that the reveal that Bronin was a bad guy wasn’t surprising at all isn't helping either.

B-movie stories are what they are. Popcorn fiction, some call them. However, even within this sub-genre there are good ones. I like a number of B-movie stories despite them having rather generic plots (they usually make up for it with some characters being cool in some way or with some special monsters making me enjoy blood and gore spraying everywhere). Sadly, this story did not deliver, no matter how many wonderfully creepy creatures and castle corridors the author threw at me.

At this point I should mention that most of what I call generic here seems to have been done on purpose as this story is part of a narrow sub-genre and these are all elements of said sub-genre. It’s evidently not for me but others might very well delight in it.

I was provided a free copy by the author in exchange for an honest review. Sorry it didn’t work out. :(

[Maxine (Booklover Catlady) · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had started this in January then had a holiday and things got in the way so I started it again. Firstly I need to say that I'm not a fan generally of Vampire related books but if they are written well I'll rate them highly. This was something quite unexpected.

I really liked the main character, his role as a Vampire hunter and his presence is strong. His role is sometimes not an easy one. He's got plenty of battles to fight.

The plot is interesting and the setting intriguing. This is not sparkly vampire fiction! The strength is absolutely in the strong main character. I also liked a dark twist on who and why he has to kill. No plot spoilers for you however! It's quite sad in places.

This is suitably dark fiction.

I think Vampire book lovers will enjoy this one. I do think as a first novel it's a good effort and hope to read more from this author in the future. 3.5 stars rounded up to 4 stars from me. Fancy a bit of Vampire Hunting? Off you go!

I received a copy of the book from the author. All review opinions are my own and totally unbiased.

[Kitty G Books · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is one of my #SPFBO reads and it's a Vampire hunter story with a lot of potential, but sadly I don't think it really worked out for me. Personally I find Vampires aren't my favourite type of character, so I was quite happy to watch someone go around hunting them, but it felt quite repetitive to me and in the end I found myself a little bit too detached and estranged from the character to really be invested.

This follows Wolfgang, a famous hunter of Vampires who has been killing them for years and who, in the beginning of this book, has just slain a very old Vampire Lord. We follow Wolfgang six years after this killing when he returns home to find that his family is gone and his village is burned and in disarray. He quickly sets out to hunt down his lost son, and that is where the story begins.

What I liked about this was the concept, it's a story about a man who tries to do good by ridding the land of an evil unparalleled. However, sadly I just wasn't a fan of the battle scenes in this, they all seemed very...'lucky'. Wolfgang would easily escape situations that seemed hopeless and I found that the book was mostly made up of pure battle and fight scenes between him and various monsters. This would have been okay if there was a little more depth to the world-building and a little more depth to the character of Wolfgang, but sadly it ended up being a bit too lacking and I couldn't relate to and root for Wolfgang as I wanted to.

I gave this a 2.5*s in the end, so a 5/10 for SPFBO purposes.

[Scott Hale · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received a copy of the eBook from the author in exchange for an honest review. I ended up purchasing the paperback on my own.

I had a lot of fun with this book. It called to mind images from the video games series, Castlevania, and classic horror movies. Briskly paced and well-written, Wolfgang was very enjoyable to read. I never found myself bored with it, and I was glad to see there is a second book coming out this year.

Sometimes, I find myself disappointed with horror novels, as they tend to do everything they can to hold off from indulging in actual horror. Creatures left to lurk in shadows; a lot of did I see what I thought I saw? And then when the creature shows up, it's kind of underwhelming; not really worth the wait. Fortunately, there is a whole host of baddies in Wolfgang. They're fairly traditional in their descriptions and actions, but they are very much present, and they are very vicious. Some could have used a little more visual flair, but at the same time, I found their names were enough to fill in the gaps left by the author. I can't say whether the book is scary or not (I've been exposed to far too much horror to make that call), but certainly has its intense moments.

I enjoyed the plot quite a bit, though at times, I do wish there was a bit more of it. There are two maps in the book; those, in combination with the limited world building, really made me want to know more about this place, what its history was, where it fit in with the rest of the country/world. It's a quick read, and I expect the second book will satisfy some of these curiosities, but I do think it would've helped break up the narrative some, which leads me to...

...the only other qualm I had with the book, which were the large number of action scenes. I love a good, juicy slaying, or a nice spot of violence, but there were moments were it was chapter after chapter of action. And that's cool. But a little repetitive. And I think those scenes could've stayed, as long as they were more descriptions of other things... small reprieves that delved into the world or the main character's mind. The narrative is tightly focused on him, though at the same time, told distantly. Splicing in some inner-workings in between all that slicing may have made the action hit harder for me.

But those are minor things, really. I gave the book five stars for a reason. I really liked it very much. I think F.D. Gross is a talented writer, and his imagination appears to be perfect for this kind of work. He stages action well, and keeps the plot moving through a multitude of locations and events without breaking a sweat. His prose is descriptive without being too flashy; just enough, without bogging the reader down in minutiae. He is a confident writer, and this is a confident work. Definitely looking forward to whatever he publishes next.

[Alina · Rating 2 out of 5]

All the time I was under the impression that this was the video-story of a game, with vampires, lechers, bogarts, ghouls and zombies and whatnot spawning from everywhere and trying to rip up the main character.

I scan the floor for something but there is nothing. The table breaks, shattering in two, splintering like the door. There is one piece in each hand now. Not all is lost. The bogart lashes out and I stake the cursed thing through its one yellow eye, pushing it through the back of its head. Gore spurts onto the wall and floor.

I was provided by the author with a copy, but this wasn't anywhere near my cup of coffee, sorry..

[Nelson · Rating 1 out of 5]

The first thing I noticed while reading the pages of this book is how much of Castlevania influence there is in it; the setting, the characters, the situations, and even the weapons, you can feel that the author has a lot of love for these things, maybe just as much as I do. (there’s even a map at the end that looks very much like one of those old Castlevania levels)

But I truly believe that Castlevania’s structure does not work when trying to create a narrative in book form. The moment-to-moment gameplay of killing hundreds of creatures and traversing stages is translated to this book most faithfully, but with the interactive element that is so intrinsic to video games taken out of the equation, we are left with the sensation of watching someone else play the game.

The decision to use present tense throughout the book never felt right with me. It made the book read more like a script than a novel or worse (IMO) someone LARPing while playing a game.
The idea of an aristocrat vampire hunter is good, but Wolfgang himself is just too generic, there is no personality in him, and you can see the author trying to make him a character with depth, but it just didn’t work with me.

Wolfgang is just too repetitive and generic.

[Charlie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wolfgang is a great little book. It’s a vampire tale, written more in the style of Castelvania than Twilight (you know it’s a classic) that jumps off the page with surprising vigour and reads like one plays a video game as after a nice introductory scene we are thrust straight into the action. Our protagonist Wolfgang has delivered a life-giving artifact to the Lord Egleaseon (head vampire) expecting to see it destroyed only to see him embrace it, become human and instantly age a thousand years, turning to dust and blowing away like a fart in a storm. 16 years later a new threat has returned and Wolfgang must hunt down the monster responsible for killing his wife and taking his son.

His quest is a straight shot and there is a little time for world building or complicated plotlines but Gross manages it nicely putting beasty after beasty between Wolfgang and his quarry and quickly fleshing out the world he has created. We have Bogarts that are shambling and sprinting decaying zombies, Caretakers that seem to be ghouls carrying lost souls in lanterns with the intent of rehousing said souls in a new host, Gellies that are piranha like creatures, daver hounds that are half wolf and half dog, bred for eating dead and decaying flesh and cleaning up after a nice massacre and more. There was even a nice moment that reminded me of Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas where he was assaulted by bats It’s a quite impressive cast of characters and Wolfgang must slice and dice his way through them all with his Bawaka - cross shaped blades that fly like Captain America’s shield and cut like a Yoshihara
Katana.

Wolfgang is good fun and gives us new and familiar supernatural threats, exciting action sequences like a classic ‘horse drawn carriage vs werewolves’ chase and some genuinely heart pumping fight scenes. The world could have been built on in order to extend the length but I respect Gross keeping things tight and taut all the way through and giving reader’s a riotous manic journey as opposed to a slower ride flush with more external details.

Wolfgang is highly recommended and at 200 pages is a nice palate cleanser between larger tomes.

[Jay · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars rounded up to 4

Wolfgang's premise reminded me of Gary Whitta's Abomination, which I've loved, so I was very excited to start this book.

What I liked:
I liked that the author had a different take on vampires and appreciated that they had that true creep factor and they weren't some sort of friendly, misunderstood creatures who drank cranberry juice because they didn't want to hurt anyone. Bleh.

I'm also a sucker for fucked up fantasy horror and it was fun to watch how these people dealt with all sort of monsters like bogarts and caretakers with the tools they had around medieval times. The author has a good imagination and there's a lot of future potential.


What I didn't like as much:
Wolfgang himself. I found it hard to connect with him, he seemed very distant even though the book was told from his POV. It was difficult to get a read on his character and sometimes he was a bit... melodramatic.

The quality of the writing definitely improved throughout the book, but in the beginning it was very jerky with scenes that didn't always flow too well. We were also just sort of dropped into the prologue where things didn't make much sense (I thought I may have missed a prequel or it was one of those prologues that actually took place later in the book and the story focused on how we got there).

I'd like to thank the author for my free copy!

[Carl Alves · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wolfgang is a vampire novel set somewhere around the seventeenth century. I wasn’t entirely clear of the date. In this novel, Wolfgang is a lord and a vampire hunter. In the opening scene, he is pivotal in the demise of Lord Egleason, who died after taking possession of a relic. Years later, his wife is murdered and his son abducted, by what seems very obvious from the beginning, a reprisal of vampire Lord Egleason. With his Watson-like sidekick, Kromlich, he sets off to find his son and exact revenge.

There were certain things that I liked about this novel. One was the overall quality of the writing. The flow of words, the language used was all to the good. I also enjoyed the incorporation of religion in the story. That is something that is lacking in modern day vampire stories, but works well here. Wolfgang is yet another novel written in first person, present tense—a major pet peeve of mine that I see all too frequently. It’s an illogical way to tell a story, but I digress. The pace needed some work. There were a couple of parts that dragged, but for the most part it was action, action, action, with not enough time given to character development. Finally, I found, especially toward the end, the novel a bit easy to predict. On balance, I though this was a strong novel and a good way to start a series.

Carl Alves – author of Conjesero

[Fiona Knight · Rating 4 out of 5]

Set in a world where bumps in the night are the sounds of everything bad you can think of, Wolfgang is the debut novel from F.D. Gross, and shows a lot of potential.

It's a medieval-ish world, though there's mention of electricity near the end, which along with the cast of vampires, ghouls and ghostly beings, helped contribute to the overall feeling that this is a book that could inspire a video game tomorrow. The action starts early and doesn't let go until the last couple of pages - the stakes are high and the setting was fantastic.

There were a couple of issues I had with it, mostly around the fact that the only women mentioned throughout died shortly after those mentions, without exception. I don't believe women should be invulnerable in the name of representation, but those are pretty bad odds!

Overall definitely a strong debut, and thank you very much to the author, who provided me with a free copy in return for an honest review.

[Lena (Sufficiently Advanced Lena) · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you like Castlevania , you need this book in your life

[Bmquiram · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wolfgang by F. D. Gross

This story makes me thinkI wouldn’t want to live in a world were the authors nightmares suddenly become reality. Maybe this story isn’t a nightmare, but with the dark and spooky setting and the never ending stream of monsters I can’t imagine it is anything but a bad dream.

I found I was easliy distracted in the first half of the book. As I kept reading it felt like the author was really getting into his own story because I couldn’t help but get swept away by the intense non-stop action and adventure.

Character building / descriptions : 3 (The main characters were build up but I would like some more on some of the minor characters.
Settings 4.5 (I would have liked to see even more)
Readability 4 The begining was a bit sketchy for me and the middle was perdictable at times. But every story has moments where the characters actions become perdictable. That is a character who is clearly described in the story.
Enjoyment 3.5 I love monster stories, but I find I lean toward the drama style of writing instead of the action side.
Plot 5 The plot of the story was clear and easy to understand from begining to end. There was no question what the story was about or what was motivating the main characters behavior. There was a couple twists and turns with the minor characters that helped keep the story moving forward.

Overall rating 4

[Wade Johnston · Rating 4 out of 5]

A solid 4 star read. A breath of fresh air as I've been reading some novels with complex plots and tons of moving pieces this novel drops you in explains what you need to set off and then you're freaking OFF at a breakneck speed. It really does read like castlevania in novel form and I love it for that. I'm very glad I found this author and his work. I will update this review in a few days as I feel I owe this book and it's author a proper review for the wonderful time I have had reading this novel.

[Fiona (Titch) · Rating 3 out of 5]

I would like to thank the author for allowing me to read and review this book. I like reading vampire books with a story line. It gives me the insight to the undead (I'm not a vampire lol).

A father & husband on a revenge for what the vampires have done to his wife and son. Thinks that God has left him in his time of need. Where is his servant, why has he taken his son. This story gives you the insight to vampires and what a vampire hunter does (when I read or watch a film, it's not always the same). The story continues and I wonder what will happen to Wolfgang in the search for his son.

[Sue Wallace · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wolfgang by F D Gross is a paranormal read.
Sixteen years have passed since the death of Lord Egleasean, the Vampire lord who sought to be human again, defeated by the famous lord, Wolfgang.
This was a fantastic read with brilliant characters. Wolfgang was my favourite character. Very cleverly written. 5*. I voluntarily reviewed an advanced copy of this book from tbc on fb.

[Jeff Dawson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Are your ready for one violent, bloody vampire hunter tale? If so, you will love this.
Trevor Alvadine Wolfgang has been hunting vampires and creatures of the dark as long as he can remember. He performs a task for the head of the vampires, Egleason; he brings him the “Hand of God.” Egleason wishes to be human once more, what he doesn’t know nor does, Wolfgang what will happen when he grips the artifact. Think of the movie, “Ghost Rider” when the villain looks into Nicholas’ Cages eyes; all the torment and pain he has passed out during his centuries of living come back to haunt him in a most gruesome way.
Fast forward sixteen years and you get to meet Wolfgang’s family: wife Diana, son Dorian servant Joachim, batman Kronklich.
Wolfgang receives an urgent message; his services are required. Without a second thought, he kisses his wife, says by to his son and heads off to kill another unlucky family-all in a day’s work. The return trip home is another story. As they get closer to town, the sky is red and the town is infested with ghouls and goblins or in this case bogarts-very nasty creatures.
From this point forward, the action never stops. Seriously, it never stops and for me, that diluted the story. I’m guessing the author wanted the story to keep crescendoing. Even a good Classical composition allows the audience to take a breath now and again. This story doesn’t.
I did find this intriguing, Wolfgang is s soldier of God and keeps asking, where is he? Which I can completely understand since his family, servants and the entire town, with the exception of the church have been wiped out and burning. I can see where it would be easy to lose one’s faith under such circumstances. He finds some solace from Father Bronin, but not all is at it seems.
Wolfgang returns to where he believes all of this new evil is residing: Egleason’s castle. Even though it is nothing but a collapsed pile of rubble, something or someone must still be there.
If you read Dante’s Hell or played Dungeon and Dragons you know how deep one can descend before having a chance at redemption.
Wolfgang is obsessed with finding his son Dorian. He believes, if he’s alive, he’s somewhere in the ruins. His dead wife comes to him urging him on. I’ve never read anything like this. He suffers more injuries, fights more creatures and evil than the law allows. I keep wondering when he’s going to rest, eat and tend to his wounds. It never happens and that is what watered down the story for me. He is a medieval superman!

Who will like this? Anyone who enjoys the macabre. It is packed with it!

Three and-a-half stars rounded up to four.

[Aneta · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received a copy of the eBook from the author in exchange for an honest review.

I did not enjoy the story being told in present tense - somehow it took away from the suspense. And there was a lot of it because this book is action-packed.

A vampire hunter seeking his lost family goes through hell. The descriptions of the nightmares he comes across are so vivid and at times so skillfully graphic that you cannot help but cringe. While vampires have been explored in many ways and I have read countless vampire series, it was really refreshing to come back to Stoker's style Dracula, who was first and foremost evil.

I really recommend the book for the beautifully crafted scenes mixed with creative descriptions of the world Wolfgang lives in.

[Raegan Fredrickson · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was given this book by the author in exchange for an honest review, and an honest, unbiased review I will give.

This book is a fun, fast read for a niche group. People who like gothic fantasy with action will enjoy the tone. The author did a great job of providing a story and setting on a large, epic scale. The world and maps were well thought out and engaging.

There was a heavy influence of video game story-telling throughout the novel. By that I mean that there was a considerable emphasis on action, scenery exploration, and a solitary, stoic character. Due to these specific emphases, the story falls short in its pacing and plot. Action scenes without proper stakes and consequences make for a slower pace. A battle would ensue, and then a second would happen without any breathing room or character development between the two. By the end, I was desensitized to the action scenes because I did not feel grounded to the characters or their growth.

The video game influence, however, did make for great scenery details. Video games focus on environment and characters interacting with said environment. That certainly could be said for this novel. The environment certainly was detailed and imaginative.

All in all, I enjoyed my read. Was there room for improvement? Yes. But the imagination and passion of the author is what gives this book it’s charm. Throughout the whole book, I constantly had the early 2000’s Van Helsing movie in my mind. A movie with flaws and improper pacing, but a wild, imaginative, and passionate ride.

If you’re in this niche group, I’d recommend giving this book a read. I certainly enjoyed it.

[Vicky Whedbee · Rating 5 out of 5]

Non-stop action!

If you love horror, gore, and edge of your seat anticipation then this is the book you're looking for! It's very well written, and descriptive enough for you to feel the tension of ALL the characters but most definitely the main character, Tenor Wolfgang. I am looking forward to the next two books in this series!

[Cynthia Raleigh · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was provided a free copy of Wolfgang in exchange for my honest review.

I love to see artwork/maps related to the story, so the illustrations pleased me right off the bat. This tale is immediately full of action and intrigue; a dark and murky type of intrigue. The story gallops along at a brisk clip through wild carriage rides, battles against and flight from enemies, and struggling through endless corridors filled with the unknown. I very much enjoyed reading about the character's history, imaginative and dangerous foes, and the adversity Lord Wolfgang encounters. The developing events progress with every turn of the page. I highly recommend Wolfgang and I will certainly want to read the rest of the trilogy.

[Leah Gunter · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well that was a fun read! There was just so much action! I do this thing when a lot of action or an exciting scene is happening where I read too fast and then I'm not sure what just happened, I just feel I had to go fast to keep up the characters. So a couple of times I had to tell myself to chill out and slow down. I loved the traditional horror in this, as well. I wouldn't say it is so much scary and more taking horror back to the basics. I also found it refreshing that the protagonist wasn't the all around good guy. For some reason that just bothers me so much with books. He saw someone dying and was like 'meh, it was going to happen' instead of jumping in and saving everyone. Thank god! One thing I would like to see is more of Lord Egleasean in the next book. I have this feeling that I am really going to like this guy. Of course, I always like the villain.

[Incog Nito · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is Van Helsing meets Conan, full to the brim with action and monsters from the warped mind of one F.D Gross.

The book starts at the end of a potential prequel, it throws you right into the middle of chaos and never slows down. The story then jumps forward 16 years where it follows Tenor Wolfgang after his home and town are destroyed by creatures of the night, in the midst of this attack his wife is killed and his teenage son is taken. With a few friends and his faith in God failing this ruthless man sets out to find and rescue his son leaving death and destrustion in his wake.

Now i love a good paranormal and supernatural book but i found Wolfgangs character to be quite impersonal which made it hard for me to connect with the character making it seem more like reading his memoirs than being on a journey with him.

But saying that i take nothing away from the story itself, it is a good concept and F.D Gross's descriptive abilities are off the charts, it made it very easy to visualise the surroundings and characters.
I gave it 3 stars because even though it was a good story it was easy to put down and pick up at random, i will however read the second book when it hits shelves and hopefully it will give a more indepth background and look into the mind of Wolfgang himself.

Would i recommend you read this book.....yes i would, especially for those who like chaos and destruction, even though i have slight reservations it is still a good story in its own right

[Pam Fox · Rating 5 out of 5]

What an opening to a series and I really hope it's a long one. I've never heard of this author, never mind read him and he's definitely now one of my favourite fantasy writers. I think you can probably guess but for those that haven't, I loved this book.
Admission to make first, I'm not a great reader of narrative, it can get boring at times but not in this book. Gross takes us on a beautifully described, fast paced, harrowing and emotional journey. At no time did I feel 'oh no, not more dark tunnel descriptions' each one was a work of art in words.
I don't want you to think it was a book solely of narrative though, the characters grabbed me just the same. From feeling sorry for the millennia old vampire at the beginning to the frustrations of Tenor who just can't seem to get a break, I loved everyone of them.
As a good epic series book should do, this ends with so much still to happen and left me with the urge to immediately read the next. I'm so pleased that, apart from stopping to write this review, that's exactly what I'm about to do.

[Spencer Scott Holmes · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you love Castlevania, Bram Stokers Dracula and Van Helsing, this books for you!
Such a great book about hunting the evil in the night. An amazing story, with great character development and all killer, no filler content. Like an alternative Castlevania story that still does its own thing and presents a story both classic and fresh all at the same time. One to defiantly pick up soon cause there are more coming along the way to create a nice trilogy out of Wolfgang.

Spencer Scott Holmes
That "Pizza Boyz Comic" and Old Man Orange Podcast guy.

[Jo · Rating 1 out of 5]

I won this book in a Facebook competition.

First I'd like to say I didn't finish this book.
I really struggled just to start this book. The beginning seemed really confusing to me and it didn't really get much better.
It seemed to contain an over use of punctuation and the lack of distinction between who was talking just made the whole thing seem really muddled and confusing.

[Indigo Crow · Rating 3 out of 5]

*grits teeth* I hate first person present tense narrative. I mean, I really, really hate it. I loathe it! I'll get back to that in a moment, though, because there are other things to say and if I linger on that hatred for too long, it'll consume my attention and I won't ever get to anything else! >_<

Anyhow... yeah. I think somebody likes Van Helsing! XD That's okay, I like Van Helsing, too. ;)

I felt like this was well written, though... yeah... that narrative... More later, really!

If you like action, then this book would be right up your ally, because it's got plenty of it. Although, in my opinion, maybe a tad too much... The action begins almost immediately, which isn't necessarily a bad thing, but then it never really stops. And while it's some no-holds-barred hardcore anime style bloody massacre action with lots of darkness and horror, there's not a lot else. I think the battles should have been slowed down a bit and spaced out more. Because it's basically one action scene after another, there's not a lot of room for character development and world building.

It's a shame in terms of that world building. I think this world is pretty interesting, but there's not much about it that we're really told about. We have all these really badass creatures, but not too much informtation about where they come from or what their general purposes are outside of this isolated situation.

The character development really needed some attention. The hero is pretty typical, but I don't feel like I know him very well. I understand his motives in this case, but I don't know much about him in general, and sometimes I felt like that held me back from caring all that much what happened to him. In terms of his relationship with his friends and family, there's almost nothing there. Of course he loves his family and is distraught over what's happened, but we hardly got to know them at all, so there's not a lot of reason for the reader to feel invested in the cause. The relationship the hero has with people like his servent and Kronklich (who is an absolute badass, and I was dying to know more about him) is pretty much nonexistent. They're just there. But why? I mean, yeah, with the servent you get a small piece of backstory, but I hardly know where Kronklich comes from.

Seriously, that guy needs his own story. He's awesome. I love his sarcasm. He's my favorite!

And, no, this plot isn't anything new. We've seen a hero whose family is stolen from him in some way lots of times in other stories, and they all react pretty much just like this guy, so if you were hoping for something super original, this isn't it. That doesn't make it bad, but just don't expect anything you've never seen before.

However, I will say that you can't always predict what some characters are up to, unlike in some stories like this where you rather know who is going to do what, when, and why. That's not always how it works in this book, so definitely kudos to the author for those little surprises!

Okay, let's go back to that seething hatred for first person present tense narrative!

...alright, I won't be too nasty about it. I'm honestly trying to be fair, and even my husband said I couldn't give a fair review if the book was in first person present tense because he knows how much I royally hate that style of narrative, but dammit, I was resolved to power through it and be honest! ...but also not a bitch.

I still hate it, but here's a fair reason why I don't think it works, especially not for this book.

This book and the story could have been a buttload cooler and more interesting if we weren't locked into following a single man the entire time, which is exactly what first person present tense forces the writer to do. If perspective could have been swapped between different characters, I imagine that we'd have a lot more opportunity for character development and world building, but alas, we're chained to this one dude the whole time, so I felt like that made us miss out on really awesome stuff that was happening away from him. So, while I definitely have a burning hatred for this style of writing, I think I'm being fair when I say that, especially in the case of this book, it hurts the story rather that "drawing the reader in". I've never felt drawn in with this narrative. Because it's unnatural, I always get a headache when I try to read it, but anyway, that's my opinion on it and I'll shut up about that now.

TL:DR - Blood, gore, vampires, death and damnation, and lots of action. If those things are of any interest to you, then give this book a try. You'll probably like it.