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Wolves of Llisé #3
Before Winter
The exciting conclusion to the Wolves of Llise trilogy
As rumors of Devin's death at his own bodyguard's hands reach the capital, the Chancellor is detained on fabricated charges of treason, which may cost him his life. In the provinces, there are signs of people fighting to reclaim their history – but the forces against them are powerful: eradicating the Chronicles, and spreading darkness and death.
Accompanied by a wolf pack and a retinue of their closest allies, Gaspard and Chastel must cross the mountains in a desperate attempt to save the Chancellor before winter makes their passage impossible. But the closer they journey towards Coreé, the clearer it becomes that there are those who don't intend for them to arrive at all.
As rumors of Devin's death at his own bodyguard's hands reach the capital, the Chancellor is detained on fabricated charges of treason, which may cost him his life. In the provinces, there are signs of people fighting to reclaim their history – but the forces against them are powerful: eradicating the Chronicles, and spreading darkness and death.
Accompanied by a wolf pack and a retinue of their closest allies, Gaspard and Chastel must cross the mountains in a desperate attempt to save the Chancellor before winter makes their passage impossible. But the closer they journey towards Coreé, the clearer it becomes that there are those who don't intend for them to arrive at all.
- GenresFantasy
288 pages, Kindle Edition
Published September 21, 2017
2 people are currently reading
12 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
February 12, 2018
Nancy K. Wallace’s The Wolves of Llisé series has gained a resonance with current affairs that Wallace perhaps hadn’t expected at the time when she started the story. Its central themes — showing that information is power, (mis)information is a tool, and truth is malleable — are eerily relevant today. Wallace also shows that there is a subversive power to storytelling, one we should cherish and not fear to wield. With Before Winter Wallace brings this trilogy (the previous books were Among Wolves and
Grim Tidings
) to a close and she does so with panache.
We return to the story after a whopper of a cliffhanger at the end of the last book and much of the beginning of the story deals with the fall out of that event. The bonds that were forged over the previous books are shattered and rebuilding lost trust is hard, but we see how Marcus works to regain Devin’s. The pervading sense of distrust from the last book, where Devin truly didn’t know who he could trust, slowly abates in this one and by the final third the true nature of the antagonists has crystallised.
Before Winter is the book in which Devin and Gaspard truly grow into young men. I really liked how Wallace developed both of them, which their growth not being a straight line, but one with stops and starts and sometimes, especially for Gaspard, doubling back on itself. Because we are in Devin’s head we see his growth from within, while we can only guess at Gaspard’s inner life from Devin’s observations and the conversations he has with Gaspard. Central to both of their turmoil is their relationship to their father and how this blood bond shapes their identity and perhaps their future. In that sense Gaspard’s journey is the harder one, because it is hard to admit, even if only to yourself, that your family is less than honourable and even harder to fight free from that.
All of that is of course complicated by the discoveries Devin makes about the history of Llisé and the origins of the current political unrest. The depth of its roots and their connection to Gaspard’s family are surprising. We also learn more about the history of Llisé and even discover the origin story of the country and the secrets of both the Chastel and Aucoin family. The party travel via underground tunnels kept safe by the Church, but they also encounter somewhat supernatural elements that assist them on their way. I liked the understated magical elements of the world building. It's not showy and flashy, but it is unmistakable and I really enjoyed it.
I missed the female protagonists a bit with Madama Aucoin and Angelique being of screen for a lot of the book, though they do play large roles at critical points in the narrative. Devin discovers that his ties to Madame Aucoin and Angelique are closer than he suspected and in the original plan to rescue Devin’s father Angelique will play a central role in defeating the usurper Forneaux. And of course there is the lost Jeanette. I liked how Wallace resolved that situation, though I’d rather suspected it all along and as such it wasn’t really a surprise. However, while in the first book I didn’t really feel the romance, this time I certainly did. Still, I would have liked to have seen more of the ladies and have them take a more active role.
In all, Before Winter was a very satisfying ending to a wonderful series. Wallace resolves the main mystery in the series tying off loose ends, but with Devin’s new position, there is an opening for far more adventures in Llisé. I really hope she’ll get to tell them, because I’d love to see more of the characters, of Llisé, and its surrounding countries. If you haven’t yet picked up this series, I highly recommend you do so, because The Wolves of Llisé deserves to be more widely read and talked about.
This book was provided for review by the publisher.
We return to the story after a whopper of a cliffhanger at the end of the last book and much of the beginning of the story deals with the fall out of that event. The bonds that were forged over the previous books are shattered and rebuilding lost trust is hard, but we see how Marcus works to regain Devin’s. The pervading sense of distrust from the last book, where Devin truly didn’t know who he could trust, slowly abates in this one and by the final third the true nature of the antagonists has crystallised.
Before Winter is the book in which Devin and Gaspard truly grow into young men. I really liked how Wallace developed both of them, which their growth not being a straight line, but one with stops and starts and sometimes, especially for Gaspard, doubling back on itself. Because we are in Devin’s head we see his growth from within, while we can only guess at Gaspard’s inner life from Devin’s observations and the conversations he has with Gaspard. Central to both of their turmoil is their relationship to their father and how this blood bond shapes their identity and perhaps their future. In that sense Gaspard’s journey is the harder one, because it is hard to admit, even if only to yourself, that your family is less than honourable and even harder to fight free from that.
All of that is of course complicated by the discoveries Devin makes about the history of Llisé and the origins of the current political unrest. The depth of its roots and their connection to Gaspard’s family are surprising. We also learn more about the history of Llisé and even discover the origin story of the country and the secrets of both the Chastel and Aucoin family. The party travel via underground tunnels kept safe by the Church, but they also encounter somewhat supernatural elements that assist them on their way. I liked the understated magical elements of the world building. It's not showy and flashy, but it is unmistakable and I really enjoyed it.
I missed the female protagonists a bit with Madama Aucoin and Angelique being of screen for a lot of the book, though they do play large roles at critical points in the narrative. Devin discovers that his ties to Madame Aucoin and Angelique are closer than he suspected and in the original plan to rescue Devin’s father Angelique will play a central role in defeating the usurper Forneaux. And of course there is the lost Jeanette. I liked how Wallace resolved that situation, though I’d rather suspected it all along and as such it wasn’t really a surprise. However, while in the first book I didn’t really feel the romance, this time I certainly did. Still, I would have liked to have seen more of the ladies and have them take a more active role.
In all, Before Winter was a very satisfying ending to a wonderful series. Wallace resolves the main mystery in the series tying off loose ends, but with Devin’s new position, there is an opening for far more adventures in Llisé. I really hope she’ll get to tell them, because I’d love to see more of the characters, of Llisé, and its surrounding countries. If you haven’t yet picked up this series, I highly recommend you do so, because The Wolves of Llisé deserves to be more widely read and talked about.
This book was provided for review by the publisher.
August 25, 2018
Since the first book of the series, The Wolves of Lislé, I have been drawn irresistibly into these stories. Nancy K. Wallace is a literary chef, blending fantasy, adventure, and archival history into a saga which breeches deep, and sometimes difficult subjects, in a world that fully comes to life in these pages.
Hidden plots, shadow governments, misty forests and mysterious creatures that change shape in the night are woven through this dangerous and unexpected journey. Devin, a serious student of the Archives at the Académie in Coreé, takes us with him as he leaves his safe and sheltered home and begins a quest that will change him from a hesitant, dreaming boy into a determined man.
Having left poor Devin for dead at the end of Grim Tidings, I was relieved to find him struggling back to life in Before Winter. But could he ever trust his bodyguard, Marcus, again? After all, the man shot him in the head! But not everything is what it seems in this often chilling tale. Myth seems at times to mix with reality...is the hired assassin who follows the travelers an immortal who cannot be killed? And exactly who is the little grey wolf who clings to Devin’s side? But as Devin and his companions persist in their search for the truth, they discover that many of the stories they had come to accept as facts of history, were merely lies meant to keep the true seat of power in evil hands.
One of the things I liked best about the characters in Before Winter is that they are flawed, and altogether human. Gaspard, Devin’s sometimes dubious friend, drinks too much, and reacts without thinking. He sulks, he blames, he drags his feet...but as the challenges comes to threaten the lives of the people he loves, there is something in him that toughens to rise to the challenge. Another favorite of mine is Madame Aucoin, a seemingly frail old woman who turns out to have an unexpected connection to Devin, along with a hidden power that he may share.
Some of the subjects of the book are painful – loved ones are lost, trust is betrayed, physical hardship is endured. But at the center of the story runs a solid vein of purpose – to save Devin’s father and restore him as the High Chancellor of Lislé, to preserve the Chronicles, and to bring opportunity and education to the people of the provinces.
Will Devin find happiness with his true love? Have the tentacles of the shadow government truly been expunged from the land? As Before Winter ends, Master Bard Armand prepares to perform a new story he wrote for Omria’s Chronicles. If the request of one reader can be heard at Harper Voyager, I herein make this plea: keep going! Let the Chronicles continue! I’m putting my advance order in now.
Hidden plots, shadow governments, misty forests and mysterious creatures that change shape in the night are woven through this dangerous and unexpected journey. Devin, a serious student of the Archives at the Académie in Coreé, takes us with him as he leaves his safe and sheltered home and begins a quest that will change him from a hesitant, dreaming boy into a determined man.
Having left poor Devin for dead at the end of Grim Tidings, I was relieved to find him struggling back to life in Before Winter. But could he ever trust his bodyguard, Marcus, again? After all, the man shot him in the head! But not everything is what it seems in this often chilling tale. Myth seems at times to mix with reality...is the hired assassin who follows the travelers an immortal who cannot be killed? And exactly who is the little grey wolf who clings to Devin’s side? But as Devin and his companions persist in their search for the truth, they discover that many of the stories they had come to accept as facts of history, were merely lies meant to keep the true seat of power in evil hands.
One of the things I liked best about the characters in Before Winter is that they are flawed, and altogether human. Gaspard, Devin’s sometimes dubious friend, drinks too much, and reacts without thinking. He sulks, he blames, he drags his feet...but as the challenges comes to threaten the lives of the people he loves, there is something in him that toughens to rise to the challenge. Another favorite of mine is Madame Aucoin, a seemingly frail old woman who turns out to have an unexpected connection to Devin, along with a hidden power that he may share.
Some of the subjects of the book are painful – loved ones are lost, trust is betrayed, physical hardship is endured. But at the center of the story runs a solid vein of purpose – to save Devin’s father and restore him as the High Chancellor of Lislé, to preserve the Chronicles, and to bring opportunity and education to the people of the provinces.
Will Devin find happiness with his true love? Have the tentacles of the shadow government truly been expunged from the land? As Before Winter ends, Master Bard Armand prepares to perform a new story he wrote for Omria’s Chronicles. If the request of one reader can be heard at Harper Voyager, I herein make this plea: keep going! Let the Chronicles continue! I’m putting my advance order in now.
August 9, 2018
What a great book series this was. As I was nearing the end I was hoping for more pages to magically appear! I for one am hoping that there is more of Llise to explore!!!
February 27, 2020
Excellent book. I was unable to put it down the whole time I was reading it. I hope Nancy will do more books about Llisé. I look forward to reading anything else she is able to publish.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews