Wolf's Cross

Wolfbreed #2

by S. A. Swann

S. A. Swann continues to reinvent the werewolf myth in this fantastic new novel set in the medieval world of the celebrated Wolfbreed. Like its predecessor, Wolf’s Cross is unafraid to cross boundaries and break taboos to tell an unforgettable story of romance and adventure that will forever change how you think about werewolves.
 
Maria lives a simple life in a small Polish village, working for the lord of the nearby fortress. Motherless since birth, Maria has been raised by her father and stepmother. Around her neck she wears—as she has always worn—a silver crucifix, to protect her from the devil. Or so her father tells her.

But when a contingent of badly mauled Teutonic knights, including a handsome and gravely wounded young man named Josef, ask for succor at the fortress, Maria’s quiet and comfortable world shatters. For the knights are Wolfjägers, an order dedicated to the extermination of werewolves, and Maria, unknowingly, is one of the creatures they hunt. Only the crucifix about her neck prevents her body from changing into a lethal killing machine.

When Maria meets Darien, a wolfbreed bent on exacting a terrible revenge on humans, she will learn the truth about herself, and find her loyalties—and her heart—torn in two.

Genres: Fantasy, Werewolves, Paranormal, Horror, Romance, Urban Fantasy, Wolves

323 pages, Paperback

First published July 21, 2010

Reviews

[Dillon · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great book until the ending, i hated the ending. First book was much much better. The storyline seemed incomplete to have Darien die, i would rather have seem Josef die, or in the least Darien escape. The story led me to like Darien. I found myself relating to him more and more, then it spat on his character as someone vile, which made this book contradict itself thoroughly and made it confusing whether or not i should think of Darien as a bad guy or simply angry tormented soul who needed to find someone/ something he could hope and live for, and his only hope ends up killing him off. That is an terrible ending for me. I would have rather seen Darien kill Maria in fact for her arrogance of her own kinds way, and her unwillingness to even attempt to understand Dariens troubles as the last of his kind. This made me despise Maria as arrogant and selfish temptress h backstabbed her own kind. I understood her loyalty was with her family, but she didnt even attempt to help save Darien. SO what do you expect to happen when you ignore someones feelings, especially a werewolf the size of a truck? First book was 10 times better than this for a powerful storyline and an excellent ending, (honestly the best book i have ever read ---> Wolfbreed) but this ending just ruined the whole book for me.

[Jeannie Mancini · Rating 3 out of 5]

Darien is half human, half wolf. He is a mix breed werewolf capable of morphing into either being at will. As a child he witnessed his whole family, his clan of Wolfbreeds burned to death when a band of Polish Teutonic Knights called the Wolfjagers specifically armed for hunting his kind, herded and locked his people into a church and lit a match to mass murder them all. From that day on he vowed to ignore his human half and to slaughter as many people as he could. His wolf persona is angry, cruel, and vicious; he becomes a relentless killing machine.

Josef is a novice monk in training, new to arrive to the Wolfjager Order. Putting the horrors of his past behind him, memories of the Plague that took his family and wife away from him, he chooses a life of solitude to extinguish his pain. Josef is unaware of what the Order hunts, until one day their band is attacked in the forest by a fierce predator who slashes and kills many of their men. Josef himself is critically wounded and is rushed to a nearby German village with the other injured knights to seek urgent medical attention.

Maria is a servant at the German fortress who aids the plight of the Teutonic Knights. She is given the task of caring for Josef, to heal his wounds and calm his fevered mind. As the two begin to acquaint, Josef doubts his monastic vows and is smitten with the raven-haired beauty tending to his soul and injuries. But Maria has a deep secret that even she is unaware of that prevents her heart from opening to Josef’s love. Given a silver cross as an infant by her father to always protect her from harm, she soon discovers that without that cross around her neck, she too becomes a creature unbound and can walk the forest on all fours to prey on the living as a fur-covered Wolfbreed.

This creative mix of werewolf horror and paranormal romance is quite clever showing the author’s talent for ingenuity to pen a werewolf novel with an unusual twist. Set in Poland in the mid 14th century, Swann’s historical tale conjures up atmosphere of both horror and romance that is quite engaging. Well-developed characters, an alternative time period not overly used in fiction, and a plot quite different than the average wolf stories out there, Wolf’s Cross was an entertaining read that I really enjoyed and can highly recommend.

[Melanie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Normally I don't do this sort of thing. Meaning that I don't usually read the second volume of a series before the first. I didn't know this was the second till after I finished it and searched it up on here.

I really enjoyed the read though the beginning and middle were may favorite, but the ending though really left me dissatisfied. I don't really like love triangles for unless (in my mind) one of 'em is a clear and better match for the heroine. In here though it just seemed wrong like the author was in a rush to wrap everything in a nice neat bow at the end.

Even though I didn't like the way Darien thought Maria as his position, that was just the way he was raised. I felt like with a little bit more time he could have changed and grow to love her the way should wanted and deserved to be treated. Plus even if the way he treated her was how he was raised wouldn't he do just about anything (ie. change his ways) to make want to stay with him?

And although Josef and Maria did have their moments together (in the beginning where he was unconscious and his lips brushed his cheek, that was beyond uber cute) the interaction was limited to only caring for each (tending to each others wounds) other and telling each other there life stories, although not intensional felt really insta-love to me. To me there interaction didn't justify them ending up together. And I hate reading a book so far through to have it end up like that.

I did enjoy reading the book, but the ending really ruined the book for me. It really tainted what this book could of been but now could never be.

[S.J. Bell]

Wolfbreed was an underrated gem, a blend of historical fantasy and paranormal romance that gave a stark and authentic portrayal of life in the middle ages and the dark side of human nature. It's a tough act to follow, so author S.A. Swann doesn't try. Instead, he takes the setting and crafts a different story, with new characters and a completely different tone. Results are good. While Wolf's Cross does not pack the brutal impact of its predecessor, it is just as good as a story, and in its own way quite a bit deeper.

Read the full review at Lupines and Lunatics.

[Karla Gautreaux · Rating 2 out of 5]

Definitely not as good as the first one.

[Barbie · Rating 3 out of 5]

In my opinion, not as good as the first book.

[Awiatka · Rating 5 out of 5]

Niesamowita książka. Jej wnętrze przywoływało na myśl lodowate serce, które tłumiło wszelkie inne brzmienia swoim łomotem, dominowało nad nimi, niczym wilczy żywioł, górujący nad ludzkim śladem wrażliwości. Duszny, mroczny i pradawny klimat pompował mityczną aurę, a wszelkie formy miłości kreowały niezwykle głęboką falę unikalności; od człowieczego uczucia, po te wilcze. konfrontacja dwójki kochanków niemalże odebrała mi powietrze. po jednej stronie człowiecza figura, po drugiej bezlitosna potwarz, a wszystko to tak ściśle powiązane z Marią…Maria była naprawdę uroczą bohaterką. W pewnym momencie, jedynym ratunkiem dla niej okazała się być rodzina, co napawało komfortem i bezpieczeństwem; macocha dziewczyny traktowała ją jak swoją własność, mimo natury, pozornie postrzeganej za odrażającą. Znaczący okazał się być kontrast między pojmowaniem „własności” przez Dariena, a macochę Marii. Darien zdawał się rozdmuchać ludzką duszę, jakiej pozostałości gnieździły się gdzieś głęboko, tym samym pozwalając, by wilcze szpony zamknęły ją w dzikim uścisku: „Jesteś moją suką, bo należymy do takiego samego gatunku. Należymy do takiego samego gatunku, więc jesteś moja”. Macocha zaś wychowała Marię, nawiązała więź, ba, pozwoliła tej pięknej więzi rozwinąć się niczym mityczne skrzydła, kiedy tak przyjmowała ją do siebie, nie zważając na pokraczną naturę: „Jesteś moja, bo pozwoliłam ci zaufać, więc teraz nie opuszczę cię”.

[denudatio_pulpae · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Czy doprawdy tak duża jest różnica między wilkiem, który staje się człowiekiem, a człowiekiem, który staje się wilkiem?"

Po pozytywnym zaskoczeniu pierwszą częścią sięgałam po kontynuację z pewnymi oczekiwaniami. Niestety, tym razem trochę się przeliczyłam. Na szczęście tylko odrobinkę. Książka nie jest zła, ale jak dla mnie w porównaniu do części pierwszej wypada słabiej, chociaż okładkę ma już trochę lepszą :)

Tak jak w "Wilczym miocie" dylematy moralne głównej bohaterki oceniłam na plus, tak tutaj momentami miałam już dosyć łagodnej, cnotliwej i doświadczonej przez los Marii wraz z jej podejściem do życia. Niezmiernie irytowały mnie również przejawy jej podwójnej moralności.
Wątek miłosny oklepany, jeden kandydat jest zły a drugi dobry, a nasza biedna Marysia musi wybierać co jest dla niej w życiu ważniejsze.
Momentami było krwawo, ale niestety tym razem bez atrakcji typu palenie na stosie, raczej zwykła jatka wilkołaka z jego przeciwnikami i to niestety tylko od czasu do czasu.

Mimo tych kilku wad książka wciąga, szczególnie jak ktoś lubi sobie poczytać o wilkołaczych sierściuchach.
6/10

[Patricia De Boer · Rating 4 out of 5]

The second book in the series about the wolf hunters and the half-human, half-wolf creatures.
But both books can also be read independently.
A well-crafted fantasy story with historical elements, making this a very enjoyable read in its genre.

This installment is about the young girl Maria, who lives with her mother and brother in a small house outside the fortress.
Maria goes to the fortress every day, where she works as a maid.
There she cares for young Josef, whose wounds Maria treats during the wolf hunt. He is a member of the Teutonic Order, and on behalf of the Pope, they hunt these creatures.
One day, Maria meets the handsome Darrien, who rescues her from a man who has her in his sights.
But Darrien shows Maria who she truly is: a werewolf. Chained by the silver cross she wears, Maria is prevented from transforming into the wolf she truly is.
Darrien lets her experience what it's like to be who she truly is.
But what does she want to be? And can she lay down her life as a human?

[Belinda Vlasbaard · Rating 4 out of 5]

4,25 sterren - Nederlandse paperback

Meeslepend verhaal over een weerwolf die verliefd wordt op haar jager. Hoewel het verhaal grotendeels voorspelbaar loopt, bleef ik lezen.

Ik vond het aantal bladzijdes helaas net iets te kort, waardoor sommige ontwikkelingen net even te snel gingen (echter niet heel storend). Ik kon me goed in leven in de personages.

Het verhaal wisselt om de aantal bladzijden van verteller, waardoor er wel veel herhaald wordt. Dat vond ik jammer. Van het wisselen en het herhalen (weliswaar vanuit ander perspectief) moet je als lezer persoonlijk houden. Ik vond de herhalingen weinig toevoeging hebben.

[Kathryn(sage) · Rating 2 out of 5]

When I read this I was expecting... well not this. I kept drifting in and out of this book and unable to hold my interest, not even just tugging on it I skipped to the end halfway through and was unsurprised and unimpressed with the ending. The writing wasn't the best and the main characters were are vanilla as you could get. Good for putting yourself to sleep or wasting time and I do mean wasting.

[Lisa · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is a werewolf book in case you didn’t pick that up from the title. After finishing the book I found out this was the second book in a series. 🙄so I guess I will try to find the first one. I listened to the audio version. It was good not exceptional but entertaining. Took place in the 1500’s. So before anything modern. And a lot of superstitions.

[Tristan Di Lupo · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very enjoyable historical werewolf novel. Actually read it before it’s prequel ‘Wolfbreed’ which inspired me to find that. Good characters and good plot with a nice blend of action, character development and romance.

[Mangamaximis · Rating 5 out of 5]

To any werewolf enthusiasts this is a book I would highly recommend. It hits all the right spots for me with mid-evil sort of time, the main character being female werewolf. With a lot of contemplation on what makes a monster and what makes one human. And of course love blooming between people.

[Mei · Rating 2 out of 5]

Argh. I don’t like werewolves almost as much as I don’t like vampires, sadly. This wasn’t appalling however and I did manage to finish it in the end.

[Linda Lorentz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Extraordinary Storytelling.

[Kim · Rating 3 out of 5]

Book wasn't bad, but just not as intriguing as I hoped for. And I really hated one of the characters.

[Lauren · Rating 4 out of 5]

For a werewolf story, it was well done. Not usual my genre, but I enjoyed it very much.

[Geroen · Rating 2 out of 5]

Hoewel Swann’s schrijfstijl heel toegankelijk en bij momenten wervelend is, voelt dit vervolg op Het Wolvenmeisje aan als “meer van hetzelfde”.

[Patrick Willems · Rating 2 out of 5]

Leuk en spannend verhaal over weerwolven.

[Kitty · Rating 4 out of 5]

Spannend boek, het duurt even voor dat je door krijgt in welke tijd het zich precies afspeelt. Het boek is wel wat heftiger dan ik had verwacht.

[Shelia D Turner · Rating 4 out of 5]

Heart wrenching story of love, loss and finding yourself. Maria is a courageous and strong young woman seeking who she is and not letting the men around her define what that is.

[Thistle · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was surprised to see that Amazon lists this book as a romance book. (Though, now that I can see the cover...) There's no way in the world I would have considered this romance as I read it. Yes, there's a relationship in it, and yes there's a love triangle, but that's only part of the plot.

Set in 14th century Poland (Middle Ages Europe), the story followed three POVs:

The first was a werewolf. As a very young boy, his whole village and family (all werewolves) were violently killed by werewolf hunters, and with nothing else left, he dedicated his life to revenge against humans.

The second was a young man, an initiate to an order of monks. The order worked for the church, tracking and killing "demons" (werewolves). They were the ones who murdered the werewolf boy's family/village.

The third was a young woman with a secret. (BET YOU CAN'T GUESS WHAT THAT SECRET IS.)

I really enjoyed the plot. The werewolf's reason for killing humans was completely believable, and yet sad because he was fueling the whole 'werewolves are demons and so we're right to kill them all' thing. The young woman's secret made complete sense. All the characters behaved believably and realistically.

And I mentioned a love triangle, which would usually be a bad sign for a book? In this case, it completely worked. I actually liked it! I spent most of the book trying to figure out how in the world it could resolve. A young woman with a SECRET, in love with both a werewolf and a werewolf hunter.

The only downside to the book was how that love triangle (and the book's whole ending) was settled. For some reason, the werewolf went from a reasonable, believable character to an OH HO HO YOU'RE MINE SO NOW I SHALL RAPE YOU BECAUSE IT'S MY RIGHT BECAUSE YOU'RE MINE character. He went from loving her and wanting to show her the world to OH YAY NOW I SHALL RAPE YOU. Though I have to say, this is the first time I've ever read a wolf/human woman (attempted) rape scene before... (Scanning Goodreads reviews, they seem to agree with me that that ending made no sense and was generally disliked.)

Anyway, ending aside, I really, really liked this book. Some of the names were insane, but mostly they were kept for minor characters. Rycerz Telek Rydz herbu Bojcza. Wojewoda Boleslaw. The names included a character I've never encountered before, a lower case L with a slash though it. Hm, Google tells me it's a Polish character. Ł or ł. The three main characters had more "normal" names (the werewolf was Darien, the woman Maria, and the young monk Josef), so it was really perfect: The main characters were easy to follow, no distraction with wild names, but all other characters having more period/Polish names kept the feeling of the world realistic.

I was more than halfway through the book when I discovered this was actually the second book in the series. That being said, it 100% worked as a stand-alone book. (Though one funny bit, I read a part and said to myself "That's a great plot hook! I bet it's foreshadowing for the next book!" but it was actually something from the previous book.)

[Lexie · Rating 4 out of 5]

In Swann’s first book in this series, Wolfbreed, we were introduced to a young girl who had grown up treated like a monster, but who found a way to reconcile who she was with who she could be. In this second book, set a hundred years later in 14th century Poland, it’s the exact opposite set up. Maria grew up human, unaware of who she was or what she could become. Upon learning of her heritage, she has to reconcile the monster she sees herself becoming to the human she wants to remain.

I enjoyed Wolf’s Cross more than its predecessor. I found myself empathizing more with Maria’s problems than I had with Lilly’s. Maria’s problems, though similar to Lilly’s (just from the opposite spectrum), felt more developed. Whereas Lilly struggled with the notion of being a human, Maria struggled with being herself; for Maria it was a question of whether she could retain herself while lost in the power of being the wolf.

A lot has happened since Lilly’s time, as well; her kind are no longer servants of the Order, but feared enemies hunted mercilessly (and brutally, I might add) by “wolfjagers.” Darien, a survivor of a massacre twenty years previously by the wolfjagers, is our only clue to what happened to other wolfbreeds. As his community had survived for nearly 150 years before the wolfjagers, it opens up tantalizing possibilities for other stories.

I was a little at odds with the Darien-Maria-Josef triangle. It was an unbalanced triangle, but not in the usual female has no idea who she really wants to be with. After finding out her true heritage, but only having Darien as an example, Maria is a confused tangle of emotions. On the one hand, she thrills at the power she feels as a wolf, but as a human she feels guilt and she is uncertain whether that’s her true path. Then again, with Josef she feels nothing but guilt for being everything he hates. I wish there had been more time for her to explore being with Darien vs. being with Josef. As it was, the entire Darien aspect was given an abrupt ending.

A personal nitpick I had was that in Wolfbreed I spent a lot of time looking facts up. Which isn’t a bad thing–I have a whole new subject to obsess over now–but it took me out of the novel itself too frequently. It helped this time that due to a different interest altogether, I knew more about 14th century Poland. The pacing and flow of the plot felt better, more fluid and involving. I was able to concentrate more on the politics of both the Order and the Polish.

I read that the author hopes to write more stories about the Wolfbreed universe, set across more countries and times. I sincerely hope he is able to, as this is a fascinating series that I think has a lot of potential.

[Ian · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not nearly as good as the first book, but not bad considering it was only written because the publisher wanted 2 books from Swann and wouldn't just publish Wolfbreed by itself. This sequel takes place 100 years later in 1300s Poland instead of 1200s Prussia. The main characters are the Polish servant girl Maria, the brave knight Josef, and the vengeful werewolf Darian. I liked Maria and Josef as protagonists, but not nearly as much as Lilly and Uldolf. Some readers found Maria and Josef to be more relatable because they were more normal, but I found that very normalness to make them a bit dull. Lilly and Uldolf had flaws like real people do, and while Lilly's psychological damage was FAR from average, I thought it made her character more deep and whole than the simply pure, good Maria and Josef. Maria is a serving girl who takes care of her family, cares for the sick with angelic patience, and refuses to kill or ever be tempted by evil. Lilly was a child soldier who was abused physically, sexually, and psychologically. As a result, she had a LOT of internal anger and made decisions that weren't always moral. She wasn't used to heroically saying NO! to evil orders because her entire life was follow orders or else terrible things happen. Lilly committed truly horrible acts while fighting for the German Army against the East European Prussians, but her deep remorse and flawed nature made her that much more interesting. Darian kind of sucked as a character. His plan towards the end of the novel was UNBELIEVABLY stupid and didn't follow his much more logical choices from earlier in the novel. I was hoping he would see the error of his ways and become more than just a soulless shell bent on revenge. I of course wanted Maria to choose Josef, but I still think Darian could have been at least a more complex villain if nothing else. This novel had a bit less historical detail, which some readers liked. Unfortunately it was a bit short and replaced that detail with a certain wolf sex scene that I REALLY could have done without! The first novel had a sex scene as well between Lilly and Uldolf, but that one actually had a point and was more than just an excuse to write a sex scene. Lilly's internal struggle over the morality of sleeping with Uldolf gave the scene psychological tension. Unlike Uldolf, The reader knew information about Lilly's past encounter with him that made the scene...somewhat messed up to say the least. This book will not move the reader the way the first one did and will not bring tears to anyone's eyes, but it is a fun little read and I would check it out.

[Kelly · Rating 4 out of 5]

(3.5)The Teutonic Order, under the sadistic Brother Semyon, once trained wolfbreed (werewolves) as holy war machines. But when the Order lost control of the wolfbreed, they changed focus. Now, a century after the events of Wolfbreed, the Order believes the werewolves are Satanic and are dedicated to exterminating them.

In Wolf’s Cross, a group of Order knights chases a werewolf onto Polish land. After a disastrous battle, the bloodied and tattered knights seek shelter at the castle of Polish leader Wojewoda Boleslaw. Two intertwined plot lines emerge. One focuses on the conflict between the Order and the Polish nobility. The other revolves around Maria, a young woman employed at the castle. She learns a devastating secret about herself and is torn between two men: an injured Order knight, and a charismatic stranger she meets in the woods. Along the way, she develops from subservient peasant girl to strong woman.

S.A. Swann’s writing style keeps the story moving quickly. The prose is descriptive but not so much that it gets bogged down, and the pace is fast. I often found that I’d just read 75 pages without even noticing. The action is frequent and exciting, and the novel also touches on some deeper themes, such as prejudice and the idea that one can have a traumatic past without letting it turn one into a monster.

I didn’t like Wolf’s Cross quite as much as I did Wolfbreed. Part of the reason is that I loved the romantic plotline in Wolfbreed. Lilly and Uldolf’s story felt really fresh, with its question of whether these two characters could overcome the horrific way their paths first crossed. Maria’s choice between the “knight in shining armor” and the “bad boy” feels like more well-trodden ground. I also don’t recall Wolfbreed dwelling so much on the sexual aspects of lycanthropy. Sure, I know animals mate, but from this and other books I’ve learned that I don’t enjoy reading about it from inside the animal’s mind. It makes me feel icky. Then again, Wolfbreed and Wolf’s Cross are not for the squeamish in general. Besides the sex, there are plenty of disembowelments, dismemberments, and so on.

I did really love Hanna, Maria’s stepmother, and would eagerly read a prequel about her life if S.A. Swann were to write it.

I recommend Wolf’s Cross to people who like their werewolves visceral and their novels gritty but with a philosophical moment here and there.

[Jacqueline J · Rating 4 out of 5]

maybe 3-1/2 stars? I don't know. The book was amazingly good. Well written, well plotted. The medieval details were very vivid although perhaps not quite as vivid as in the first book, Wolfbreed. But it kind of didn't end totally right. For me at least.


There are going to be some SPOILERS in this review so you're warned.

Maria was a werewolf or wolfbreed who didn't know what she was because her parents had made her wear a silver cross all her life which kept her from shifting. Germanic knights come chasing a killer wolfbreed who has been slaughtering humans. Darien was a boy of 9 when his entire village of wolfbreed kin was slaughtered and he has been killing for vengeance and has been alone all these years. He finds Maria and wants her for a mate. He shows her what she is.

Also on the scene is Brother Josef who was one of the German knights. He had been injured in a clash with Darien. Maria looks after him and falls in love with him but decides to go with Darien as he is her "kind".

So all this blows up in their faces. Darien is too far gone down a wild vengeance path. He has been killing for 20 years and has had no gentler influences in all that time. Josef believes Maria is evil once he learns the truth and attacks and tries to kill her.

At first I wanted her to get with Darien, but it soon became clear that he could not change or at least he wouldn't change. So she really couldn't end up with him. After all he was wantonly and indiscriminately killing innocents by the end. Not real hero material.

Josef eventually decides that she is not evil and that he loves her and he saves her and gets her in the end but I didn't really care for him. His character didn't do much for me and I didn't really believe his love for her. And I guess I didn't see a real strong reason for her to love him either. The strength he showed in the last few pages wasn't enough to overcome how weak he seemed earlier.

I still kind of rooted for Darien. She was decided to go away with him and I can't help feeling that if she had been able to come right back to him as she planned, they could have gone away together and he could have been redeemed. I felt a great regret over his pain and lonely, wasted life and damaged psyche. But she ends up killing him so that sucked monkey butt.

[Tiffany Cole · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wolf's Cross by S.A. Swann

Maria is a kind, helpful girl who assists the lord in the neighboring fortress. So when a group of badly injured Teutonic knights arrive in her Polish village asking for medical help, it's not surprising that Maria is eager to give aid. That's how she meets Josef, a wolfjagger (wolf hunter), and all the consistent aspects of her life steadily fall apart.

While walking through the forest, Lukasz, a knights's personal servant, attacks her. She survives, thanks to the intervention of the creepy, but alluring Darien. His intervention also leads to Maria seriously questioning the silver necklace around her neck: Why does her dad need her and her alone to never take the cross off? Why does Josef react so strongly when he sees it? And, most importantly, why does Darien insist she answer what she is?

Maria's a genuinely nice person, but that's not enough to stop her from being the creature wolfjaggers hunt.

If Maria chooses Darien, she can give in to her animalistic side and live the life always hidden from her. If she chooses Josef, she can stick with her human side, as well as rest assured that she will be treated kindly. But whether she chooses the wolfjagger or the wolf, the prey or the predator, goes much deeper than Maria's desires. Her decision has the power to ruin her life and the lives of those she loves the most.

In a time where vampire books are all over the place, Wolf's Cross is not only a refreshing break, but an intriguing view into the world of the werewolf.
________________________

My name is Tiffany Cole, and I'm a book reviewer for Suspense Magazine. I am also an aspiring young writer. Savior of the Damned, the supernatural/dark urban fantasy novel I've been writing and editing for five years, is one step away from the agent/publisher hunt. You can find me in many places:

writergirllw@yahoo.com
tiffanyrambles.blogspot.com
thesavior.tk
tcole.tk
http://tinyurl.com/27x9sdz {My Facebook}

[Ross Bauer · Rating 3 out of 5]

For all it's interesting set up and historical setting, once you are intriduced to the main characters, you can only see the story going in one particular direction and the narrative tries to do what it can to keep the reader engaged and guessing, which it does a relatively good job of. But once the plot takes it's final turn you can pretty much tell what is going to happen, and I didn't bother confiring my suspicions apart from skimming the last few pages , thinking 'ahh thought as much.' Like Wolfbreed, which I have also read, Wolf's Cross paints a sympathetic picture of the Werewolf curse, which is in this instance, not a curse at all, but something one is born into. The real curse I suppose is grappling with the primal, unencumbered bestial side whilst trying desperately to reconcile it with innately good human nature; can you live impaled on the dilemma, or do you reject one for the other? That is the question that forms the crux of both books. Religious bigotry, as we know was rampant almost to plague proportions in the setting it is placed in, and indeed it might be said, with some conviction, that the purge of the pagans by the encroaching new religion claimed far more innocent lives than any disease. Blind zealotry is the villain here, as are victims of an irretrievably warped and scarred past. An interesting, sometimes gripping always engaging read that somewhat lets itself down with a predictable denouement.

[Barbara ★ · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this one but not as much as the first. Technically they are a series but none of the characters of the first appear in the second and the plot doesn't follow the first book at all except for the need to destroy the wolves.

Maria is a simple country woman who works as a servant in the house of the local ruler. When the Teutonic Knights arrive bloody and torn from a battle with a mysterious foe, Maria is given the task of caring for Josef, one of the wounded knights, a novice monk. I found it strange that a society that values it's virgins allowed a woman and a virgin at that, to care for a monk with no supervision.

I think Darien went about it the wrong way to introduce Maria to her other self. But I guess with distancing himself from humans for so long, he lost the art of subtlety. To Darien, he had found his mate, the last of his kind. To me it was forced, especially on her part. She just didn't understand Darien and I felt the sex scene was just distasteful.

I liked Darien and felt his pain. The Wolfjager knights destroyed his entire family and he went nuts killing any and all humans he came in contact with until he met Maria. Then he tempers his fury until he thinks she betrayed him with, of all things, a hated human. Then he once again goes on a killing spree wherein Maria must save her people. I disliked the ending and found what Maria did horrifying and just wrong. I enjoyed the story even though it is overly religious.