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4.07 AVERAGE
4.07 AVERAGE
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
I read it. It was okay.
Honestly, I’m really sad that this book was so disappointing to me. I was excited for it. But,I knew that Cressa was going to die, and I figured out that as soon as Amara was free, she would lose Dido permanently. The ending reads as this could have been a standalone and that is how I’m going to treat it. The language was also a little too modern for my tastes (why are we using girlfriend/boyfriend in a book about Ancient Rome and prostitution???) I also felt like Amara was being forced into this trope of “forced girlboss in the face of weakness” and it did such a disservice to her character because she is a strong woman but it felt harped on.
Honestly, I’m really sad that this book was so disappointing to me. I was excited for it. But,
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
adventurous
sad
tense
fast-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 wish I had known that this was the first book in a trilogy going in. As a standalone novel, it often feels like it's dragging its feet, accomplishing in 400+ pages what it could have in 200. But as the start of a series, it does a good job establishing a lot of characters who don't really get a chance to shine in the first book, but might be able to in future books.
I found many of the characters frustrating by design, like the brothel guards and customers, and some others frustrating despite their design. I never felt the affection that Amara claimed to have for her friends or lover. But her cunning was entertaining to read and I was rooting for her, even in her more questionable moments. I think the characters were very well developed, with everyone--besides for the occasional detestable man--having more to them than meets the eye. Britanica (not sure if it's spelled like that, was probably my favorite character, maybe because she stood out so much as the only person who said/did what they meant. I got a rich view of the setting and the culture of the time. I never deeply considered the divide between Romans and Greeks of the time, so this book was an eye opener to that.
By the end of the book, not knowing that it was part of a series, I didn't feel like I needed to know any more about this world. And now that I know there's a second book, I probably won't read it. But I got a good amount of enjoyment from this one nonetheless.
I found many of the characters frustrating by design, like the brothel guards and customers, and some others frustrating despite their design. I never felt the affection that Amara claimed to have for her friends or lover. But her cunning was entertaining to read and I was rooting for her, even in her more questionable moments. I think the characters were very well developed, with everyone--besides for the occasional detestable man--having more to them than meets the eye. Britanica (not sure if it's spelled like that, was probably my favorite character, maybe because she stood out so much as the only person who said/did what they meant. I got a rich view of the setting and the culture of the time. I never deeply considered the divide between Romans and Greeks of the time, so this book was an eye opener to that.
By the end of the book, not knowing that it was part of a series, I didn't feel like I needed to know any more about this world. And now that I know there's a second book, I probably won't read it. But I got a good amount of enjoyment from this one nonetheless.
dark
emotional
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
dark
emotional
hopeful
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
challenging
dark
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
dark
hopeful
reflective
sad
tense
medium-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
Spoiler alert, The Wolf Den is not for the faint of heart. However, it was for me.
This book is a violent, bleak, and at times heartwarming tale told from the life of a woman living in a brothel in ancient Pompeii. I didn’t have any more of an idea than that what I was getting myself into when I started it, for which I’m glad. Typically, stories with a lot of violence toward women are difficult for me, and preconceived notions would have deterred me from entering Amara’s world.
In retrospect, this is not just a story of ancient Italy. This is a story of women surviving, grieving, loving, making mistakes and choosing what they can, when they can. The tone does tend toward modernity more than I usually like in a historical fiction book, but these themes don’t only belong thousands of years in the past, do they?
I’m thrilled to find out this is the first of a trilogy, and look forward to spending more time in Pompeii this month. A dark story in an ancient world is perfect for fall’s season in my books!
A final note about this book — I appreciate being faced with the lives of people from all social castes in the ancient world. It makes my stomach churn when I see Pompeii reduced constantly to its tragic end, without any consideration for the full, complex, beautiful, difficult lives people led there before they died. I was glad to see something else in this novel.
Many trigger warnings (Google if needed), but I did enjoy this read.
This book is a violent, bleak, and at times heartwarming tale told from the life of a woman living in a brothel in ancient Pompeii. I didn’t have any more of an idea than that what I was getting myself into when I started it, for which I’m glad. Typically, stories with a lot of violence toward women are difficult for me, and preconceived notions would have deterred me from entering Amara’s world.
In retrospect, this is not just a story of ancient Italy. This is a story of women surviving, grieving, loving, making mistakes and choosing what they can, when they can. The tone does tend toward modernity more than I usually like in a historical fiction book, but these themes don’t only belong thousands of years in the past, do they?
I’m thrilled to find out this is the first of a trilogy, and look forward to spending more time in Pompeii this month. A dark story in an ancient world is perfect for fall’s season in my books!
A final note about this book — I appreciate being faced with the lives of people from all social castes in the ancient world. It makes my stomach churn when I see Pompeii reduced constantly to its tragic end, without any consideration for the full, complex, beautiful, difficult lives people led there before they died. I was glad to see something else in this novel.
Many trigger warnings (Google if needed), but I did enjoy this read.
april 2025
rating: 5 stars
listen, i could not have seen this reread coming. when i first read the wolf den back in 2022, i felt very underwhelmed by the end. i had really high hopes, but i just wasn't feeling that emotional connection i usually need to commit to a series. however, a good friend of mine (hello rachel!), who i really trust with book recommendations, read the wolf den earlier this year and then proceeded to binge the rest of the trilogy. her raving reviews of the entire series made me realize that i had to give the wolf den another chance.
this second time around, i read the wolf den via audio, and let me tell you, that was such a good call. the narrator, antonia beamish, does such a good job with depicting the horrors of amara's life, but also the hardness that amara needs to convey, in order to just survive. i was so invested with the plot, and my heart hurt every time something truly horrible occurred (which was quite often, unfortunately).
i cannot wait to keep going with the trilogy, and i'll definitely be picking up the second book via audio as well!
october 2022
rating: 3 stars
rating: 5 stars
listen, i could not have seen this reread coming. when i first read the wolf den back in 2022, i felt very underwhelmed by the end. i had really high hopes, but i just wasn't feeling that emotional connection i usually need to commit to a series. however, a good friend of mine (hello rachel!), who i really trust with book recommendations, read the wolf den earlier this year and then proceeded to binge the rest of the trilogy. her raving reviews of the entire series made me realize that i had to give the wolf den another chance.
this second time around, i read the wolf den via audio, and let me tell you, that was such a good call. the narrator, antonia beamish, does such a good job with depicting the horrors of amara's life, but also the hardness that amara needs to convey, in order to just survive. i was so invested with the plot, and my heart hurt every time something truly horrible occurred (which was quite often, unfortunately).
i cannot wait to keep going with the trilogy, and i'll definitely be picking up the second book via audio as well!
october 2022
rating: 3 stars
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes