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3.87 AVERAGE
3.87 AVERAGE
adventurous
hopeful
inspiring
tense
fast-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:
No
What a cool world Meg Long has created in Cold the Night, Fast the Wolves! This action-packed YA fantasy had me shivering on the edge of my couch. It felt like a mash-up of The Call of the Wild, The Scorpio Races, and The Hunger Games with the unforgiving weather, a yearly race that defined the city, and monsters—human and otherwise—lurking in the dark, including an evil boss trying to control the outcome.
This tale is plentiful with characters, but I was never confused. Long has done a good job of fleshing them out and making them memorable. Like any good hero, Sena is far from perfect but the reader is invested in her outcome. Long does a good job of laying the ground work for the characters AND the world, giving the reader an adequate understanding as we jump right into the action.
At the heart of this story, and by far my favorite aspect of the book, is the relationship of Sena and her wolf Iska. Iska takes on an almost human role becoming one of the main characters, and I cared about her outcome as much as Sena’s. Much like the skittish wolf, Sena has her guard up, and watching these two break down each other’s walls was quite rewarding.
I was also a fan of the team aspect. I love a good book that involves a great cast of characters working toward a mutual goal and that’s what we have for part of this book. The ending did seem to wrap up quickly, but satisfactorily. And I’ll be very surprised if this one doesn’t become a series. Long left the ending fairly open with the possibility of future adventures and a few of the minor side stories have further potential, as well.
If you’re a fan of fantasy adventure stories set in impossible terrains, found families, and down-on-their-luck strong female characters facing impossible odds, then you should appreciate Cold the Night, Fast the Wolves!
Thank you to the publisher Wednesday Books and Netgalley for providing me with an advance copy.
Check out my reviews and playlists at A Book Wanderer
This tale is plentiful with characters, but I was never confused. Long has done a good job of fleshing them out and making them memorable. Like any good hero, Sena is far from perfect but the reader is invested in her outcome. Long does a good job of laying the ground work for the characters AND the world, giving the reader an adequate understanding as we jump right into the action.
At the heart of this story, and by far my favorite aspect of the book, is the relationship of Sena and her wolf Iska. Iska takes on an almost human role becoming one of the main characters, and I cared about her outcome as much as Sena’s. Much like the skittish wolf, Sena has her guard up, and watching these two break down each other’s walls was quite rewarding.
I was also a fan of the team aspect. I love a good book that involves a great cast of characters working toward a mutual goal and that’s what we have for part of this book. The ending did seem to wrap up quickly, but satisfactorily. And I’ll be very surprised if this one doesn’t become a series. Long left the ending fairly open with the possibility of future adventures and a few of the minor side stories have further potential, as well.
If you’re a fan of fantasy adventure stories set in impossible terrains, found families, and down-on-their-luck strong female characters facing impossible odds, then you should appreciate Cold the Night, Fast the Wolves!
Thank you to the publisher Wednesday Books and Netgalley for providing me with an advance copy.
Check out my reviews and playlists at A Book Wanderer
adventurous
emotional
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I’m a sucker for kid-and-their-dog books, and this is a high-stakes scifi version of that. It’s the perfect book for reading while snowed in and cuddling your own dog.
“No wolves. No sleds. No racing.” I say it automatically despite the lump in my throat.
“Foolish rule for life on a planet that revolves around those three things,” she quips.”
Tundar, an Edge World, that has near constant electrical storms and a frigid climate. Corpos – giant corporations – attempted to terraform the world once, but just made it worse, exacerbating the weather and making the wildlife even more deadly. Sena grew up a child of two worlds and none, the daughter of an ex-racer, who trained the genetically engineered vonenwolves for the famous Tundar race, and a scavver, who believes that the race, to mine a rare ingredient, is unethical. She grew up learning how to care for injured vonenwolves and the scavver ways of living with the planet. But after her mothers die in the race, Sena refuses to have anything to do with the race anymore. On a world that revolves around the race, that means she’s left with pickpocketing and not much else, and before long she’s in trouble with one of the crime bosses.
“They think they can just take a piece of Tundar without giving anything back. But that’s not how it works here. Nothing taken, nothing given.”
Sena is honestly half-feral herself. Traumatized and determined to be independent, even as a young teen, Sena’s cut herself off from anyone and anything that could get between her and somehow earning enough money to leave the planet. She’s impetuous, frequently acting or speaking before she thinks, which lands her into trouble about as often as you’d expect. Sena’s constantly leaping from one bad situation to another, and that’s what drives most of the book’s plot. And while she’s not afraid to fight for what she wants, she’s also got firm lines she won’t cross. Her scavver äma taught her to respect life, even that of vonenwolves, whom everyone else seems to view as expendable components. It’s that connection with the wolves that leads her to get involved with Iska, an injured fighting wolf that belongs to one of the crime bosses. Sena’s a loner, and the last thing she wants is a connection to anyone, including a wolf, but her continued survival on Tundar depends on joining a racing team, and Iska seems to have her own ideas.
“Sometimes you don’t get to pick your family. Sometimes, they show up and pick you and you have to embrace it. And that wolf picked you.”
The slow build of the relationship between Sena and Iska was one of my favorite parts of the book. Watching Sena slowly accept her trauma – and understand that accepting help from others isn’t a weakness – was the heart of the book. The world building was surprisingly interesting for something that’s, well, just a scifi version of Alaska. I mean, Tundar is, after all, just “tundra” with one letter switched, and a lot of the fauna Sena encounters have Earth analogs, like reindeer and polar bears. Vonenwolves, in fact, are hybrids of the native vonen mixed with Earth wolf and dog DNA. They’re genetically engineered to pull sleds and not much else. The secondary characters were also fun. Remy – and her sense of humor – and Pena were my favorites. Where the book faltered was in the pacing. Sena is constantly faced with the consequences of her impetuousness, hopping from one disaster to another, so it’s not like nothing is happening, but some of those threads and characters never felt fully developed. It takes about half of the book before we even get to the race, but wow, once that happens, the book really picks up. The author’s prose is evocative of the snowy wastelands Sena and her team have to cross, and it made me very happy to be huddled up under a blanket with a warm drink.
“We race the cold and night, my wolf and I.”
Overall, while it takes a while to get going, this book was full of action and heart, and I particularly loved the ending. I would happily read a sequel! This is a very promising debut and I’m excited to see what this author comes up with next.
I received an advance review copy of this book from NetGalley. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Content notes: (view spoiler)
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Death
Moderate: Death of parent
adventurous
emotional
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
emotional
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Read a NetGalley eARC
Content warning: dog fighting, hypothermia, vomiting, blood, gore, loss of parents, child abuse, gun violence, colonialism
Content warning: dog fighting, hypothermia, vomiting, blood, gore, loss of parents, child abuse, gun violence, colonialism
Attention all readers who once identified as wolf girls: this book is for you. On a frozen planet Tundar, Sena is scraping her way to survival while being caught between the competing interests of local gangsters and corporate overlords. An Iditarod-type race takes place every season, and she’s sworn off it as it claimed the lives of her mothers. But when she pisses off a gangster and steals his prized wolf, she must partake in the race for a chance to get off that rock.
A compelling relationship between a girl and her wolf woven throughout rad world-building that takes a hard look at the literal colonialism of taking over a planet for its resources.
This read is so much fun. The characterization is great, I really enjoyed Sena as a narrator. So much thought went into the world-building, especially as far as examining corporate takeover for colonist interests goes and the way that affects human relations. There’s also a lot of thought that went into the ecosystem and the flora and fauna found within the book. It’s science fiction that almost feels like magic, and that’s wonderful.
My only hang-up is that the pacing felt a little uneven. The race does not start until about the halfway mark, but the character development and world-building leading up to it are absolutely necessary. And then comes a cinematic adventure through frozen woods, across icy lakes, and within cozy caves. The details and scenes are vivid and immersive, making this a quick read.
This is something I want to specifically point out, but this book has no love interest, at least not in the romantic sense. Its heart lies with Sena and Iska, and I’m so glad Long kept that focus throughout. Sure, there are people who come in and out, and the theme of found family is certainly there. But the bond between wolf and human develops and weaves through every aspect of the plot. It’s compelling and heart-wrenching at times, and the way they find healing through each other is absolutely beautiful.
I also hesitate to call the world-building queernorm because while people held prejudice against Sena’s mothers as far as relations between the colonists and colonizers go, they are dead at the start of the story and there isn’t much mention of other queer relationship or non-traditional familial structures.
That all being said, this overall a great adventure with tenderness and healing at its center taking place on a frozen planet which felt written for me specifically.
adventurous
dark
emotional
inspiring
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for allowing me to read this ARC!
Content Warning: violence, murder, death, animal cruelty, animal death, racism, colonization.
On Tundar, survival is everything. Sena Korhosen knows this better than anyone: she spends her days pickpocketing rich tourists in the hopes of earning enough to buy herself an off-world ticket. There's nothing keeping her on Tundar anymore since her mothers' death five years ago. When she runs afoul of a local mob boss, though -- one of the most powerful men in the Ket -- Sena runs out of options. She swore she'd never race, but when a team of scientists offers her more money than she could ever hope to steal if she coaches them through the notoriously dangerous sled race, Sena agrees. With her fighting wolf, Iska, at her side, Sena embarks on a journey so deadly that most racers don't live to see its finish line. Can she find a way out of the dead-end existence on her home-planet, and keep them all alive in the process?
One of my most highly anticipated 2022 reads, my first reaction upon reading the premise of Cold the Night, Fast the Wolves was "wow." It was exactly like something I'd have eagerly devoured in my adolescence, with its animal sidekick, gritty planet and deadly race. In many ways it reminded me a bit of The Hunger Games, though this is not dystopian, but in fact sci-fi. Long's story starts with Sena stealing money from the wrong guys, and a chase sequence that leads her straight into the arms of syndicate leader Kalba.
The first few chapters captivated my interest: I liked the icy setting, and I loved just how mean and cruel the world Sena lives on can be. Long's writing left something to be desired for me; I'm never a fan of first-person, present-tense at the best of times, but it was also quite dry and spent most of the narrative telling, rather than showing. However, I can often overlook qualms with writing-style -- after all, it's something completely subjective, and just because it isn't my cup of tea doesn't mean it won't be someone else's.
The concept is fantastic. I had a bit of an obsession with sled racing (particularly the Iditarod) as a child, and I kept thinking, I can't believe no one's capitalized on this idea before! I'm sad to say that the execution did not meet my expectations. The actual race doesn't even begin until the 55% mark! The pace was painfully slow, and in my opinion, so much could've been cut. A huge portion of the scenes that take place before the race could've been cut, and would've made for a much faster, more satisfying read. That wasn't actually my main issue with the story, though: it was Sena herself.
All of the characters feel very one-dimensional (aside from, perhaps, Remy, one of her sled-race teammates), but Sena suffers the most from this since the book is told through her eyes. Although she often tells us the grief she's still experiencing from the loss of her mothers, the narrative feels distant from her actual feelings and experiences. I also didn't like that the only LGBT representation in the book is Sena's mothers, who are both dead long before this narrative begins. Sena is one of those boringly tough female YA protagonists; she is rarely allowed to display any softness or tenderness, as if in fear that she'll be seen as "weak." She's not sympathetic or likable, particularly after one incident with Iska that left me speechless. How was I supposed to relate to her, or empathize with her, after she did something so shockingly cruel?
I hate giving books low-star ratings, and they have to truly be earned, but I'm disappointed to have to say that Cold the Night, Fast the Wolves was not enjoyable for me. Many people will love (and do love; simply take a look at the reviews on Goodreads) this novel, but I simply couldn't become immersed in it. I'm sure many edits will take place, but the core problem is with Sena's character, and I just couldn't bring myself to root for her. I do want to reiterate how original and fresh the actual concept is (and I absolutely love that we're seeing some YA sci-fi!), and I will be interested to see what else Long comes out with. It's worth remembering that this is a debut, and therefore I'm sure that Long will grow as a writer in the years to come!
Although I can't personally recommend this, as it was not a pleasant journey for me, I do think that those who have an interest in sledding, deadly quests and gritty sci-fi should give it a shot.
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
adventurous
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
This fast-paced, action-packed book hit all the right spots for me. Girl on adventure? Check. Survival in icy tundra? Check. WOLVES? Check!! Sena faces obstacle after obstacle as she resists a legacy that seems to be her fate: racing in a deadly journey on an icy planet with wolf hybrids being used as sled dogs. Note that there is animal abuse, but it happens almost entirely off-page. Animals and humans also face danger and violence from nature and other animals.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Violence, Death of parent
Minor: Animal death