Reviews

“It’s you. I would always choose you. I don’t care if it’s a biological imperative. I don’t care if it’s some destiny. I don’t care if you were made specifically for me. It doesn’t matter. Because I would choose you regardless.”

The fact that some people call this a gay version of Twilight, but make it werewolves only, is cruel.

The fact that the comparison is made in the first place is offensive.

This is a story of love, loss, friendship, and family. A journey showing the connection between a pack showing you acceptance, loyalty, and hope.

Twilight could never.

I do have to say, though, I feel like my rating doesn’t reflect how I felt about this.

The book isn’t forgettable and my enjoyment was quite clear from the start, so 3 stars feel too little for how I actually feel, but 4 stars also feels too high due to the book having more than a few niggles that upset me.

Nonetheless, I feel like TJ Klune is one of the only authors many of my friends who are not exclusive romance readers read. And I get the love now. I really do. Instead of the hype surrounding him and his books intimidating me, it’s been the length of his books, as they’re all more than 400 pages, which isn’t long for some but I’ve kind of grown used to those short novels that barely surpass 300 pages.

But I won’t lie and say Wolfsong has not only met certain expectations I had, but also made me far more curious about his other works.

“I love you, too, Ox. You’re my mate. And one day soon, I’m going to show you that.”

Wolfsong follows Ox, who gets abandoned from his father when he’s 12. A couple years later, he comes across a 10-year-old boy in the dirt, who runs up to him like a small tornado, talking about things Ox doesn’t understand. Ox then becomes involved with this little boy’s family, only to later find out they’re a pack of werewolves. As the years pass by, Ox, despite being human, becomes one of them. Their relationships grow, forming a bond of family like nothing else. But when tragedy hits and causes the little boy to leave at seventeen, Ox is left with a responsibility and choice he never would have thought about if it weren’t for the Bennett pack. Three years later, that boy is back, but now he’s grown into a man. Ox is still hurt, feels lied to, and is unsure who to believe, but he’s still sure the boy he came to love is still there.

The age-difference between Joe and Ox are one of the biggest problems people find in this. I do get why it can be a problem, but I didn't mind it. I was not only aware of it already, but I also expected the dynamic of it. There is a 6-year-age difference between Ox and Joe, and I think what bothered people wasn’t so much the age gap, more like the dynamic of it. When Ox is 16 and Joe is 10, Joe essentially “claims” Ox, despite Ox being confused about it all. Be that as it may, nothing happens until Joe is 17 and Ox is 23. Joe is also pretty possessive from the start, getting mad at anyone who gets close to Ox, growling, and even snarling. But, what exactly is a paranormal romance story without possessiveness and ownership anyways? Not to mention, possessiveness and ownership exist in the animal kingdom. Healthy? Depends how you describe it. But, I didn’t find their relationship toxic. Toxic, to me, means cruelty and abuse, unloyalty, unfairness, constant lack of communication, controllment, physical and mental harm, etc. Toxic to me doesn’t mean Joe saying he wants to mark Ox so everyone knows who he belongs to. In real life? Yes, of course. In this fictional book? I swallowed that shit up.

“You confuse me. You aggravate me. You’re amazing and beautiful, and sometimes, I want to put my teeth in you just to watch you bleed. I want to know what you taste like. I want to leave my marks on your skin. I want to cover you until all you smell like is me. I don’t want anyone to touch you ever again. I want you. Every part of you. I want to tell you to break the bond with Gordo because it burns that you are tethered to someone besides me. I want to tell you I can be a good person. I want you to know that I’m not. I want to turn you. I want you to be a wolf so we can run in the trees. I want you to stay human so you never lose that part of yourself. If something were to happen to you, if you were about to die, I would turn you because I can never lose you. I can never let you leave me. I can’t let anything take you from me.”

Some may also describe this as a romance, but I’d describe it as a love story instead. Romance is honestly not the central point in this, at least how I saw it. Even then, the relationship between Ox and Joe was pretty . . . underwhelming. I found that their relationship was not the primary focus of the story. It’s extremely slow, and nothing really happens until 80% or so. Before that, the center isn't even the romance, yet rather things like the pack individuals, the villain, and for the most part, the general plot. Which leads me to say that as I finished this at 5 AM last night, I immediately started having trouble putting into thought how I felt about the relationship overall as I reflected on my thoughts.

For most of it, the relationship felt forced, as if their relationship needed to occur for who they were to one another. However, I feel as though they didn't get to know one another as much as I had expected. There's those little details I wish they would be familiar with simply because of who they are to one another, but nothing was ever pointed out. While they have a connection that is different than the rest, this felt like it was only because they're mates. I feel like there was a lot of room for both of them to simply grow as a couple and learn about each other. Things like their hobbies, likes and dislikes, favorite foods, places to be at, things they think about, small gestures, etc., especially after a long separation that caused them pain.

Going back to how their relationship didn’t really start until Joe was 17 and Ox was 23, they had one mini date that was then ruined by the certain tragedy that struck. Then, a little after that, we follow a 3-year long separation that causes longing and ache. When the two rejoin, we follow them as they slide around one another, keeping away from each other and not really talking (more like Ox not talking to Joe). Then, when they finally talk, it leads to angry confessions and regrets, which then causes them to make up and engage sexually. Before we know it, they're together, attempting to frame the two packs together, and fix the past. Yet, besides that one mini date they had, their relationship felt primarily like a siblings one, where Joe was the little brother Ox didn’t have. Them growing together and having a siblings bond didn’t bother me, especially because I love friends to lovers in any way, but their relationship felt like it was missing that spark and connection that allows me to start viewing them as a romantic couple instead. Their connection was felt through the mate bond, but there was nothing outside that. In other words, the chemistry was lacking, and instead of a romantic relationship development, it only felt like a relationship development.

To put simply, if you asked me to describe certain moments between them that I found cute, there wouldn’t be many simply because there weren’t any. Besides the small mini date and how they were together domestically (not to mention, that was 87% in), they just . . . were there. Yes, they had cute moments, but they weren't moments that made the feelings between them grow. The manner in which Ox began feeling towards Joe was sexual first, and when Joe courts him (he's a wolf, remember that), I couldn't see how Ox began feeling drawn to Joe, other than his reasonable arousal.

Other things that I wasn’t the biggest fan of was the writing style. While I was able to ignore it at first, it got frustrating as I kept making progress. It wasn’t such a big deal that it took out of the story for me, yet I actually wish it had more substance. Adding on to that, the little significance Richard had in the end was incredibly baffling. For a beast/villain like him, the battle was unquestionably underwhelming and disappointing. I think the whole execution had potential, but it seemed like it was over in the span of a second. I was stunned, truth be told, at how rapidly it gave out and fell. With a villain that had such a huge amount to do and say, he was pathetic. This can connect with how I felt about how the ending started to unfold. The lack of proper communication, especially with how Ox and Joe started finding trust in each other again, talking about how they shouldn’t be hiding anything between them, made no sense to me. I viewed Ox as fraudulent and couldn't comprehend his rationale and credulous perspective. And last but not least, I’m also upset with how many people described this as being really emotional and depressing but I didn't really feel it to be.

“Once upon time, there was a lonely boy, a broken boy who didn’t know if he could shift, and it took one person to show him how. And now I’ve done it for you because that’s what we do for each other. That’s what pack is. That’s what this all means.”

Yet, with these objections aside, I was really invested in the book.

I absolutely loved the secondary characters and new family Ox found. The author manages to keep the story engaging, with something continuously happening each time a section or passage closes. It never assumed control over the other significant variables of the story. While I did find the relationship and romance in general lacking, it was completely made up by the communications with the remainder of the pack and individuals. There can be things that don't appear to be legit, like how the people begin turning out to be essential for the wolves without turning into a wolf, or even the way in which Ox turned into a human alpha, but I believe that made this story all the better since it doesn't follow a traditional route. Not to mention how the banter and dialogue between everyone is always top notch. One minute I was laughing hysterically and the next I wanted to let everyone know that everything will be okay, because I knew it would.

The found family trope in this is portrayed exactly how I love it. Ox’s father left him and his mother, so when he meets Joe and turns into a piece of his life, he can't resist the urge to develop nearer to his family. He becomes one of them, all while human, yet an individual from the pack. A brother, lover, and son. They all become protective of each other, and the relationship between them all is different yet all the same. Thomas and Elizabeth treat him like their own son, Kelly and Carter treat him like a brother, Mark treats him like his nephew, and Joe treats him like his mate. Not to mention the beautiful relationship he has with Gordo, who was also like a father/older brother figure, taking up the space his father left. While angering and saddening at times, their relationship only grew. Rico, Tanner, and Chris also became the best friends Ox could have asked for, supporting him in every way and understanding his emotions. There was never any judgment from anybody, and in spite of the book having a few dismal subjects inside, each character is adoring and steady. Seeing how they all came together—humans, wolves, and the witch—no matter the obstacles that tried stopping them, was heartwarming every time. I wished there had been more proper communication in some situations, but at the same time, I was able to understand how and why they happened.

“Though sometimes, the songs are meant to sing a pack member home. It’s easy to get lost, Ox, because the world is a wide and scary place. And every now and then, you just have to be reminded of the way home.”.

The 3-year separation angered me, but I was also able to sympathize with both sides. However, I will say that while I in all actuality do think it sort of took from a portion of the relationship improvement, it likewise added to the strength of the reliability of the pack and the amount of character development Ox had. He went from being abandoned by his father, telling him he was stupid like an Ox and that everyone would give him shit, to becoming the leader he never thought of himself as. His character development is a slow progression. He suffers from impostor syndrome, although not entirely direct, and is still thinking low of himself. Not only that, but in those three years, there is so much emotion packed in the inner thoughts. We don’t get Joe’s point of view, but we can only imagine how much he is suffering as well. As for our narrator, Ox, we see how much he struggles with everything–his loyalty, his love for Joe, figuring out how to lead, wanting to protect. And when Joe does come back, the way he manages to forgive everyone else but Joe added to the yearning. They were both mindful of their sentiments, however Ox realized he was unable to have excused him with such ease. He needed time to process and think about how he would approach the situation that broke his heart.

In conclusion, Wolfsong was a book I had been wanting to read since around 2017. While it didn’t exactly live up to all my expectations, I’m glad I finally found the motivation to read it, as well as finally read a book by TJ Klune. I’m definitely curious about the rest of the series, especially book #3, and seeing how everyone else gets their HEA.

sfm2x's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional hopeful sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.0

thealyssa_ann's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

I wasn’t sure what to expect going into this besides that I would love it because it was TJ Klune. The beginning felt very slow, but looking back I appreciate that because it meant we really, really got to know Ox. And he’s simply the best. This book has mystery, werewolves, romance (including the sweetest beginning of a courtship), and heartbreak of the romantic and non-romantic variety.