The Beast of Wheeler Ridge: Beauty and the Beast meets Jurassic Park:Gritty fantasy thriller

by Chris Stevenson (aka Christy J. Breedlove)

Wolf girl gone feral...

A DNA experiment gone horribly wrong...

A beast who will stop at nothing.

Seth Anson, a lovelorn forest ranger, never thought that he would shoot the first eligible woman he met after his divorce. Nor did he think that he would fall in love with her after nursing her back to health. But he certainly isn’t prepared to find out that she is the result of a DNA cloning experiment gone horribly wrong and, is in fact, a hybrid human/wolf.

It all comes to a head atop Devils Tower Wyoming.

The Beast of Wheeler Ridge examines the lurid morality issues that are dealt with in The Island of Doctor Moreau, while exploring the theme of forbidden love as can be found in Beauty and the Beast, only with the gender rolls reversed.

Contains mild language and suggestive themes

330 pages, Kindle Edition

Published March 10, 2020

About the author

Check out my blog GUERRILLA WARFARE FOR WRITERS (SPECIAL WEAPONS AND TACTICS):

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About me
Gender Male
Industry Science
Occupation Novelist and Science Writer
Location Fyffe, Alabama, United States
Links Wishlist
Introduction Been writing for 42 years, publishing novels, non-fiction books, radio horror plays, short stories, reviews, interviews, poetry and thousands of non-fiction automotive articles. I'm on my third agent, and have had 10 books and twenty-two short stories published, beginning in 1988. Writing Credits and History BOOK CREDITS: Auto Repair Shams and Scams (Forward--Ralph Nader), 1990, Price Stern & Sloan, Los Angeles--226 pages, non-fiction, consumer warning book. Garage Sale Mania, 1988, Betterway Publications, Crozet, Virginia--190 pages, non-fiction book—1988. Word Wars, a SF novel, to Rain Publishing, Canada—May, 2007. Once Upon a Goddess, a Fantasy novel, to Rain Publishing, Canada—January, 2008 Planet Janitor—Custodian of the Stars, a SF novel sold to Engage Books, May 2009 Gate Walker, a Paranormal Fantasy, sold Lyrical Press—January, 2009. The Wolfen Strain, a fantasy thriller sold to LBF Books, February 2009
The Girll They Sold to the Moon, Intrigue Books
Blackmailed Bride to Melange Satin Romance. Screamcatcher: Web World by Melange Books.

Interests Hiking, paleontology, Ufos, cryptozoology, bigfoot, astronomy, lake monsters, ancient Egypt, archeology, geology

Favorite Movies Blade Runner, Time Cop, Journey to the Center of the Earth, Logun's Run, Transformers, The Time Machine, Kickass
Favorite Music REM, Abbaa, When in Rome, Steve Miller Band, SF and fantasy soundtracks.
Favorite Books Icerigger, Virgin Planet, Moon is a Harsh Mistress, Lord of the Flies, Black Marble, Close Encounters, The Island, Black Marble, Dune, Riverworld, The Mote In God's eye

How many books have I published? 18 to date, with three out on agent subs, and five more in the wings ready to go.

Reviews

[Elizabeth Dragina · Rating 2 out of 5]

DNF - 1.5 stars ~

I don't know where to begin.

I don't like not finishing books ... but I could not continue to read this and be okay with it. EVEN IF I WAS SKIMMING.

The amount of nonsense that went on within the first few chapters is appalling. The characters have no depth whatsoever. I didn't connect to anyone nor did I enjoy the story in any way.

I love werewolves. This story is not the kind of werewolf story I want to read about. 😳

CONTENT ~

· Profanity.
· Pornography.
· Naked women.
· THE CUSS WORDS. *sick of all the nonsense*
· The sexual things that went on.
· The female werewolf (when she was in heat) actually drove male dogs crazy because they wanted to mate her. 😳😳😳
· UM. THANK YOU. NOOO.
· ADULT NOVEL

OVERALL ~

· I don't approve of male authors describing female parts just like I don't approve of female authors describing male parts.
· Chris Stevenson went all out describing the wolf girl's parts. Especially her breasts and legs. 😣😣😣
· I'm so done with all this garbage. I just was clean fiction.

*FTC DISCLOSURE* I received a complimentary copy of this book from the author in exchange for an honest review. This review is my OPINION and should not be taken personally. It was not written to be offensive. Thanks! :)

[Erica Robyn Metcalf · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Beast of Wheeler Ridge by Chris H Stevenson is a paranormal/sci-fi romance that is packed with savage attacks, bear traps, forest fires, and mystery. Centered around a man who will do anything to protect a woman with a rare condition that appears outside of his home one day, you’ll see just how far this man is willing to go.

Full disclosure: I was given a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. This did not affect my rating in any way.

This is a story about a DNA cloning experiment that had gone wrong. Instead of cloning just a breed of wolf that had previously gone extinct, this scientist wound up with a giant wolf, a hybrid human/wolf, and something else…

All of the creations have been locked away in a bunker. Each raised by the scientist. One day, one of the creations escapes. While they are distracted trying to find the first escapee, another, much more dangerous creation also escapes…

Meanwhile, a forest ranger hears something rustling outside of his home. He goes out and when he sees eyes reflecting back at him, he shoots and the thing falls to the ground. When he gets closer to see what he had hit, he realizes that it’s a woman, but she’s covered in hair. He bring her up into his home so she can recover from the wax bullet he hit her with.

When she comes to, the two of them quickly become acquainted. He believes that she has Hypertrichosis, otherwise known as “Werewolf Syndrome.” Before he knows it, he’s helping her with her “maintenance,” and the two become closer and closer every day that they spend together. Little does this forest ranger know, there’s a lot more to this mysterious woman’s story. And he’s about to find out that he’s in a very dangerous predicament.

I really enjoyed that this book began with a chapter all about something fleeing through the woods. It was clear that something was very wrong, but as a reader, you didn’t know what just yet.

Overall, I really enjoyed how the facts were given to the readers slowly. It was interesting to see how little the wolf/human hybrid actually knew about herself.

The DNA project itself was my main interest and I couldn’t wait to learn more on that front! The action was also very well done. The chase scenes and the dashes of violence were my favorite elements of the book by far!

Beware, the negatives
As the novel mainly centered around the romance, it wasn’t a huge hit for me, personally. **UPDATED TO REMOVE COMMENT THAT WAS PREVIOUSLY HERE – The author commented that this bit will be changed**

However, I will say that the chapter where they go shopping was adorable. I loved that Seth thought about feminine hygiene products. I also really loved how protective he was of her overall.

**UPDATED TO REMOVE COMMENT THAT WAS PREVIOUSLY HERE – The author let me know that this was likely just my version that had some errors with the Kindle formatting

My Final Thoughts
When I finished reading this book, I can definitely say that I enjoyed my time reading it and I would recommend it to others. I loved the mystery and the action! The characters were well-developed and interesting. But unfortunately, as the novel mainly centered around the paranormal romance, it just wasn’t a huge hit for me personally. Check out the review from Kaye on Goodreads to get another opinion!

If you enjoy paranormal romances filled with action and nervous anticipation of what would happen next, I would highly recommend this one to you!

[Steph Warren · Rating 3 out of 5]

*I received a free copy of this book, with thanks to the author. The decision to review and my opinions are my own.*

This is a really ambitious book, melding sci-fi thriller (genetic engineering) with fantasy horror (werewolves) and adding some gender-reversed Beauty-and-the-Beast romance.

I felt the sci-fi thriller and fantasy horror aspects worked really well in the story, and the concept of werewolves as a genetically engineered wolf-human hybrid was intriguing and well-thought out. Similarly, the roles of scientist and forest ranger respectively felt well-researched and the detail the author brought to his setting and male characters felt authentic.

Unfortunately, it was the romance side of the story which didn’t work for me. I’m not going to go into the issue I had with the ages of the main characters, as I understand that the copy I read is an old one and the author has addressed this problem after readers raised it.

Even taking Melina’s age out of the equation, her innocence and naivety are stressed and the romance between her and Seth feels more like the ownership of a pet or guardianship of a child being passed from one adult male to another, unwillingly. It just didn’t feel like a relationship between adult equals – there is a power imbalance in Seth’s favour, regardless of Melina’s physical strength and prowess.

Plus, his insistence that she be shaved, groomed and made-up, that this maintenance is necessary and her ‘human right’ was off-putting for me. There is an implication that unless she conforms to Seth’s (somewhat old-fashioned) image of ‘normal’ femininity, she isn’t good enough. I didn’t find that particularly romantic! I understand that the author might not want to suggest Seth is attracted to bestiality, but I think there is a line between that and constantly expecting his girlfriend to ‘pretty herself up’ for him.

And the other ‘romance’ option interested in Melina is just downright incestuous!

I just wanted Melina to get a flat of her own, a job of her own, and get some simple life experiences away from the domineering men who are all trying to ‘protect’ her, but actually all using her for their own ends.

With the romance aspects removed, or toned right down, I think this book would be a really good cross-genre thriller, but as it stands I found it quite an uncomfortable read.

Review by Steph Warren of Bookshine and Readbows blog
https://bookshineandreadbows.wordpres...

[Julie (Bookshelf Adventures) · Rating 3 out of 5]

An action packed mystery and thriller; cross between Jurassic Park and Beauty and the Beast.

This novel had such an interesting premise but honestly had no real memorable parts. Solid ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Full review here:
https://bookshelfadventures.home.blog...

[Kaye · Rating 5 out of 5]

ONE PHENOMENAL EXPERIENCE!!!
Holy hell! Chris just rocked my world and rang my bell, then blew me out of the water with this impressive treat, laying it out and mixing it up, wielding this bad boy together sleek, shiny and tight. One non-stop, action packed, hard hitting, pulse racing, heart pounding bombshell, blasting this jewel to life spectacularly. A tumultuous wild ride of fervent events and stunning circumstances, launch this baby to staggering heights. You feel everything the characters feel, you become a part of the adventure instead of on the sideline. Cognizant of the instant realization and charged atmosphere, along with a slew of nerve racking twists and shocking turns, tests our characters in ways they could have never envisioned. Anarchy, escapades and havoc run amuck, kicking this bad boy into a roaring tempest, catapulting it into a tailspin with an explosive culmination. Sparks fly as drama, intrigue, tension, turmoil, danger, odious deeds, mounting suspense and nerve racking situations along with a boatload of sinister intentions while dodging disaster, you have one mind-blowing masterpiece. The characters are complex and authentic with depth and traits that blend and flow, transforming into genuinely relatable personalities. The scenes are strikingly sharp with abundant details and descriptions you have no problem picturing each scenario creating a colorful backdrop that makes the storyline pop. Remarkable job Chris, thanks for sharing this bad boy with us.

[Deandra · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Beast of Wheeler Ridge by Chris H. Stevenson is a thriller with the tag line, "Beauty and the Beast meets Jurassic Park", and I can fully back this up.

In the author's note of The Beast of Wheeler Ridge, Mr. Stevenson credits his writing style to the late Michael Crichton, along with Poul Anderson and few other great sci-fi authors. Crichton, as some of you may know, penned the novels made famous by a slew of 1990s movie adaptations like Jurassic Park, Lost World, and Congo. He also wrote the screenplay for Twister with his wife Anne-Marie Martin. All of these movies are personal favorites of mine, and the novels that they were based on are no exception, holding coveted spaces on my bookshelves. With that being said, I felt the strong influence of Crichton in the story development of Stevenson's novel and I thoroughly enjoyed it; the story he created matched the pacing of full Hollywood script and it definitely had the depth to support it.

Enter one Melina Salinger, the female main character (MC) of The Beast of Wheeler Ridge, who is described as a fit, Amazon type, "diagnosed with hypertrichosis". We meet Melina as she's running at a breakneck speed through a forest in Wyoming and seemingly on the run from captivity and savage litter-mate hellbent on hunting her. Enter Seth Anderson, the male MC Forest Ranger based out of Wheeler Ridge who just so happens to find her. They've got nothing in common, what with lusting animal urges, copious amounts of body hair, and a desire to see the elusive Emerald City. But then they've got everything in common...a longing for justice, truth, acceptance, love, companionship, the outdoors...a valued place in society. There's is a story for the ages, or another action-packed thriller that I'd pay to see on the silver screen any day (no werewolf pun intended). Seriously people, back this book up! I would, 100% .

What we've got in The Beast of Wheeler Ridge is a story that blurs the line between genres...it's not just one kind of story, but a combination of the best from each element. The science was gory, the passion was honest, the monsters were scary, and the suspense was so intense I was fearful of any more twists and turns with only a few pages left. I held onto the edges of the book until the very end and I was so in love with the story by the time that I put it down that I just wanted to sigh. *sigggghhh*

I would like to thank the author, Mr. Chris H. Stevenson for reaching out to me and requesting a review of his book. He's an excellent story teller and I would highly recommend The Beast of Wheeler Ridge as the perfect book to jump start an action-packed summer.

[Christine · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think my favourite part about this story was the creative concept. Stevenson took the roots of a werewolf story, rolled it into a sci-fi and smushed that into a romantic thriller. Seth Anson is a divorced, retired volunteer forest ranger living in a decommissioned fire watch tower in the Shoshone National Forest. He's gearing up for the Independence Day celebrations and keeping an eagle eye peeled for the slightest hint of a fire when he shoots what he thinks is an animal skulking around his cabin. It turns out to be an incredibly muscular, hairy woman. Miles away, Andrew Besser arrives at the underground lab of one Dr. Davis Salinger. Seventeen years ago, the two of them stumbled across the preserved body of a direwolf. Besser knows of Salinger's Jurassic Park dreams of grandeur and covers Salinger's tracks when he snags a few samples and runs back to his "Nature and Research Preserve." The ensuing research produces human-direwolf hybrids, one of whom gets tired of only being able to watch the Wizard of Oz and not actually visit Emerald City and escapes the compound where she has lived her entire life completely isolated from outside contact. If you take Seven of Nine from Voyager, change her Federation uniform for a fur suit and drop her in a forest you've got a pretty good idea of what kind of person Melina is. Seth wants to take her shopping, Davis and Andrew want her back in the compound, and Melina wants some food, a shave, and a trip to the big city. Being part wolf, she's got hypertrichosis (or the regular amount of hair for a wolf?) and prefers - or has been raised to prefer - regular "maintenance" that involves a full body shave and make up. This ties in heavily to the romantic parts of the novel. It struck me as a little odd that her being part extinct canine gets mentioned less often and seems to be less of an impediment to joining society than her being really damn hairy. But to be fair that may have been outside the scope of the novel. The other weird part that gave me the creepies has to do with the age difference between Melina and Seth. Seth is most likely in his 50's. Melina is chronologically twelve. Because of the "dog genes" she looks like a woman in her late twenties and the male characters have "no idea" of her "true" age, not that they describe what that might mean. Her mental development is irregular, she's extremely educated but has had essentially no socialization or life experience. I could absolutely see this age disparity being a deal breaker for some readers and it took me some effort to put it aside and finish the book. Anyways, Melina has been on the run from the compound for weeks and had to raid the occasional farm for chickens to survive. News of these encounters has trickled out, attracting attention from the sheriff and bringing in cryptid hunters from across the country. Stevenson weaves all these disparate strands together in a story with a quick pace, plenty of romance and action, and a satisfying conclusion. I'd give a couple content warnings for some general descriptions of violence and some alcohol abuse. There's one First Nations character who is simultaneously vital and superfluous, a sort of Indigenous sexy lamp. That may or may not bother some readers. I appreciated him, but also wished he had been more active in the larger story arc. Overall, I thought The Beast of Wheeler Ridge was a decent read with an interesting premise, although it did have some issues that could be turn off.

[KayBee's Bookshelf · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wolves, wild animals, and beasts, Oh My! This story evokes action, mystery, and romance. All of these combined inside a relationship between a half-werewolf-human, Melina Salinger and a human, Seth Anson. Melina was made by her "father" Davis along with a pack of other wolves mixed with DNA. Melina longs to escape the confinement of the compound where she was created and taught, which is how the story opens. She attacks farm animals after her escape for food and falls into the hands of Seth. He teaches and takes care of her. However, Romulus was also born of the pack and is a force to be reckoned with. Will good (Melina) win over evil (Romulus)? Will love (Seth) save Melina from danger or death? These are the questions Mr. Stevenson wants you to ask yourself while you read this out-of-this-world book. Though the story did not capture my attention, I see how it can lead you on a fast-paced, action-packed ride. Seth and Melina had the chemistry needed for this true to its genre, fantasy-themed, romance-laced, action-soaked story. A few grammatical errors threw me off a few times and while there wasn't a moment that truly stood out, I would give it 3.5 out of 5 stars and definitely recommend to anyone a fan of fantasy.

[Anthony · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Review

A fantastic blend of science fiction and horror thriller, author Christ Stevenson has brought to life a one of a kind reimagining of the classic werewolf tale. Exploring the horrors of genetic experimentation gone wrong, the author does a great job of finding a natural balance between the horror elements of the story with the romance and character growth of the cast of characters.

It was refreshing to get such a unique take on the werewolf genre, exploring ancient creatures from a long-forgotten age being brought back by science, and evolving from there. The idea of restoring lost creatures back into modern society and the experiments pushing past boundaries to see human and animal hybrids becoming a reality made for a unique twist on the genre, making the story easy to engage with.

The Verdict

An evenly paced, action-fueled, and tense romantic sci-fi thriller, author Chris Stevenson delivers a powerful story in “The Beast Of Wheeler Ridge”. Discovering the meaning behind what makes someone a monster and what makes them “human” blends with the forbidden love theme in a remarkable tale that will keep readers invested throughout. Be sure to grab your copies today!

[Anu · Rating 5 out of 5]

A gritty masterpiece

An action-packed thriller with a unique werewolf tale.

The book begins with a prequel and takes the readers on a spine-chilling adventure in the case of a mystery animal. Brilliantly narrated with an eye for details.

The fantastically structured plot, well researched with the right mix of intense and lighter moments and perfect execution on coping with the world of reality between life and death.

The scenarios in the book make the readers experience the still shots out of an intriguing werewolf film. The unpredictable twists in the story give you nightmares and goosebumps.

Impressive characterization stands out and insights on hypertrichosis, ancient DNA and scientific breakthrough, vast knowledge of living in wilderness and preservation of the environment deserves a special mention.

I loved Melina's childlike nature, the father’s love for his daughter, the cop versus the forest ranger, confrontations, and the game plan sequences in the story.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this amazing book.

“ Understanding is the manifestation of true affection.”

[DebbieReadsBooks]

Dnf at 34%

[Gary · Rating 5 out of 5]

A different kind of love story.

A truly different story line. This book has enough action and twists and turns to keep you flipping pages long after bedtime.

[Tabatha Shipley · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was sent an electronic copy of this one in exchange for an honest review.

What I Didn’t Like:
-The romance doesn’t work. I hate that our male MC felt the need to shape this poor creature into his perfect image of sexy. I hate that makeup and constant shaving had to be the way to go. I hate that there was no loving her for who she was. I hate that the romance felt like something out of an adult movie instead of an actual romance. There was no love, just convenience.
-No characters I related to. A lot I screamed at because I didn’t like them. None that I feel like I will remember later.
-Some scenes probably could’ve been cut because they didn’t add to the major storyline we were building. This isn’t a huge problem in a book of this length, but it does make the book slow down.

What I Did Like:
-The concept is interesting. Twisting what you think you know of a werewolf story into this is great.
-Firefighting scene was pretty good. It seemed well researched and it was definitely intense.

Who Should Read This One:
-If you like the idea of making the werewolf in a tale a woman crafted by science and you don’t mind if it’s romance, you may love this one.

My Rating: 2 Stars. For me the way Melina was handled in this was INCREDIBLY problematic and frustrating.