Noble, Harlan, Argus, and their sister, Tora, are werewolves. When Ranger Brock found them in the forest after a fire, he thought they were human babies. Even when he and his wife realized that the infants were part wolf, they were determined to raise them as normal children.
In Lone Wolf, a sequel to Wolf Pack, the quartet, now in their teens, face the same challenges as everyone else their age: Tora wants desperately to be chosen for the school play. Harlan, who is smaller than his siblings, is the victim of a bully, and Argus wants to help his little brother but knows it would humiliate him. Daily problems are pushed aside when the foursome must unite against a common enemy; an unscrupulous logging company is planning to clear-cut the woods in which they run freely – and secretly – as wolves.
By turns funny and frightening, Lone Wolf is an irresistible adventure story.
Bram Stoker and Aurora Award-winner Edo van Belkom is the author of over 200 stories of horror, science fiction, fantasy, and mystery. As an editor, he has four anthologies to his credit that include two books for young adults, Be Afraid! (A Canadian Library Association Young Adult Book of the Year finalist) and Be Very Afraid! (An Aurora Award winner — Best Work in English). Born in Toronto, van Belkom graduated from York University, then worked as a daily newspaper sports and police reporter before becoming a full-time writer. Edo van Belkom lives in Brampton, Ontario, with his wife Roberta and son Luke.
Second book in the series continues the story of the Brock werewolf kids, four fifteen-year-olds being raised by a sympathetic forest ranger in the wilds of British Columbia. This one tries for the same action-heavy feel as the first, but adds heavy-handed environmentalism into the mix that slows things down a great deal. One would also hope for deepening of the characters, as often happens in second books in series, but with the exception of a couple of the main characters, that doesn't happen. In fact, coming this early in the series, it almost looks as if the series was started just for van Belkom to air ecological concerns; I'll hold off on judgment on that until I've read the next two books (believe me, if I knew it for certain there would be a lot fewer stars at the end of this), but very disappointing compared to the first book. ** ½
Both the plot and the characters weren't as in-depth compared to the first book of the Wolf Pack series. The main female character had a good love interest, which was refreshing to see (especially in a YA book).
Not as good as the first book because their problem solving seemed a little easy. For werewolves who don't want to be discovered they are making a lot of noise and risk being seen (or actually are seen). Of course it's all in the guise of the "spirits" but I still hoped for a little more conflict. Still, I like the characters and the book is not supposed to be an epos, just a short story about werewolf siblings in high school growing up. I hope there is more about Phelan in the next book.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.