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Wolf Flow
Thrown from a speeding car after attempting to cut into drug kingpin Aitch's empire, Mike lies near death on the Oregon desert, which, he discovers, is home to an abandoned spa with special healing waters.
247 pages, Hardcover
First published April 1, 1992
1 person is currently reading
53 people want to read
About the author
K.W. Jeter
112 books365 followersKevin Wayne Jeter (born 1950) is an American science fiction and horror author known for his literary writing style, dark themes, and paranoid, unsympathetic characters. He is also credited with the coining of the term "Steampunk." K. W. has written novels set in the Star Trek and Star Wars universe, and has written three (to date) sequels to Blade Runner.
Series:
* Doctor Adder
Series contributed to:
* Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
* Alien Nation
* Blade Runner
* Star Wars: The Bounty Hunter Wars
* The Mammoth Book of Best New Horror
* The Year's Best Fantasy and Horror
Series:
* Doctor Adder
Series contributed to:
* Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
* Alien Nation
* Blade Runner
* Star Wars: The Bounty Hunter Wars
* The Mammoth Book of Best New Horror
* The Year's Best Fantasy and Horror
Ratings & Reviews
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Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
February 4, 2022
I picked this book up for a reading challenge, the prompt was “a Palindromic title”.
I wasn’t sure how to rate this book since gory horror is not a genre I like in any media, but with a lack of reviews online I did not realize that going into this read. I tried to rate it based on the book itself, rather than my personal taste. The book had redeeming qualities. The concept is interesting and, as someone who is intrigued by old abandoned buildings, the setting was neat. When I first started reading Wolf Flow I was trying to think what it reminded me of and the best I could think was a cross between the movies Dead Man and Resevoir Dogs, which both also came out in the early 1990’s (not saying they influenced this book, but they had a similar feel in some ways). Overlayed on that were magical realism elements that transitioned to full-blown horror about 3/4 through.
Unfortunately, the writing was just okay. The dialogue was a bit stilted, the characters and some of the more interesting elements were not developed deeply, and so it came off like a B-slasher movie - a little bit ridiculous.
That said, like some B-movies, it was fairly entertaining if you glossed over the coarseness. It was a really quick read helped along by the basically intriguing original concept. Honestly, the ridiculousness was fine with me because I hate horror and wouldn’t have finished if it was actually terrifying.
Trigger warnings: violence, torture, and gory descriptions. Those sections were short and easily glossed over. There is also a lot of cursing, if you mind that sort of thing.
I wasn’t sure how to rate this book since gory horror is not a genre I like in any media, but with a lack of reviews online I did not realize that going into this read. I tried to rate it based on the book itself, rather than my personal taste. The book had redeeming qualities. The concept is interesting and, as someone who is intrigued by old abandoned buildings, the setting was neat. When I first started reading Wolf Flow I was trying to think what it reminded me of and the best I could think was a cross between the movies Dead Man and Resevoir Dogs, which both also came out in the early 1990’s (not saying they influenced this book, but they had a similar feel in some ways). Overlayed on that were magical realism elements that transitioned to full-blown horror about 3/4 through.
Unfortunately, the writing was just okay. The dialogue was a bit stilted, the characters and some of the more interesting elements were not developed deeply, and so it came off like a B-slasher movie - a little bit ridiculous.
That said, like some B-movies, it was fairly entertaining if you glossed over the coarseness. It was a really quick read helped along by the basically intriguing original concept. Honestly, the ridiculousness was fine with me because I hate horror and wouldn’t have finished if it was actually terrifying.
Trigger warnings: violence, torture, and gory descriptions. Those sections were short and easily glossed over. There is also a lot of cursing, if you mind that sort of thing.
December 1, 2022
This is a peculiar book. It starts off like a crime drama, as Mike, who apparently offended some hard cases, gets beaten badly and thrown from a speeding car in the desert. He is rescued by a kind (ish) truck driver who helps him out a little and gives him a place to hide and try to heal.
The place is an abandoned spa, and about halfway through the story, the narrative takes a hard left turn from crime story to horror novel, as Mike is plagued by strange dreams, discovers the secret behind the spa and eventually why it was abandoned.
It was a decent, not great, read. For those who care about such things, there are some gory scenes and a lot of "adult" language.
It wasn't bad, just never really grabbed me. Some interesting ideas that could have been executed a bit better.
The place is an abandoned spa, and about halfway through the story, the narrative takes a hard left turn from crime story to horror novel, as Mike is plagued by strange dreams, discovers the secret behind the spa and eventually why it was abandoned.
It was a decent, not great, read. For those who care about such things, there are some gory scenes and a lot of "adult" language.
It wasn't bad, just never really grabbed me. Some interesting ideas that could have been executed a bit better.
May 27, 2024
Eh. I’ve wanted to enjoy another Jeter book ever since reading the fantastic and quirky Infernal Devices, but it seems clear that his interests went in other directions from mine.
The writing in this book is solid and professional to be sure, but the obsession with grotesque horror is not at all my thing. Fans of Stephen King might go for this.
The writing in this book is solid and professional to be sure, but the obsession with grotesque horror is not at all my thing. Fans of Stephen King might go for this.
February 14, 2022
An angry little story about drugs and dodgy deals and just a little bit of eerie, ancient magic... This would have made a less than memorable episode of the X-Files.
I didn't really side with any of the characters but the kind hearted truckie and his diligent son were ok. Conversations were gruff and probably suited these characters well.
A little bit of the narrative near the start is taken up by a hawk surveying the opening scene, which was a nice way to start the story and actually had a coincidental little connection with another book I'd just finished, 'The Day Lasts More Than a Hundred Years', which ended with an eagle's point of view.
There seemed to be a loosely included theme of animalism and nature that was used to create a vibe but not much explored.
In a pretty short little novel I counted at least four sex scenes, and leaving aside my own personal taste these were fairly crudely drawn encounters. **She has boobs, I like boobs**
I have to admit that I'm not entirely sure what the point of this story is. There's an interesting central idea but it loses punch because the story holds no other appeal for me. Read it if you like cheap horror and roughneck culture.
I didn't really side with any of the characters but the kind hearted truckie and his diligent son were ok. Conversations were gruff and probably suited these characters well.
A little bit of the narrative near the start is taken up by a hawk surveying the opening scene, which was a nice way to start the story and actually had a coincidental little connection with another book I'd just finished, 'The Day Lasts More Than a Hundred Years', which ended with an eagle's point of view.
There seemed to be a loosely included theme of animalism and nature that was used to create a vibe but not much explored.
In a pretty short little novel I counted at least four sex scenes, and leaving aside my own personal taste these were fairly crudely drawn encounters. **She has boobs, I like boobs**
I have to admit that I'm not entirely sure what the point of this story is. There's an interesting central idea but it loses punch because the story holds no other appeal for me. Read it if you like cheap horror and roughneck culture.
January 31, 2024
Decently written but not nearly as weird as you would hope it might be. A replacement-level (but not especially memorable) episode of Tales from the Crypt. Also, for whatever it’s worth, wolves don’t really feature much.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews