Reviews with content warning for Pedophilia - The Wolf Den

Really empathised with the MC, Amara, but the story is very slow. Lots of world and character building but not a lot of story until the very end, although this is the first in a trilogy.

Definitely worth a read, albeit not a necessarily happy one!

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mscarlettc's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense 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

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miaaa_lenaaa's review against another edition

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3.75

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bookphenomena_micky's review against another edition

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3.25

Headlines:
Traumatic narrative
Raw life in a brothel in 79AD
Men with power

I didn't expect to be rating as high as 3.5 stars to be honest but the characters weedled their way into my psyche and I found it harder and harder to put the book down. Do not be mistaken, this is a difficult book to read. I am putting triggers warnings at the bottom of this review because the narrative is overtly abusive and not for the faint of heart.

The MC Amara was a kidnapped Grecian young woman, sold into sex slavery and living in a brothel in Pompeii (yes, I too wonder where the volcano might feature). The cast of characters in this story were difficult to like, even the MC and some of the other enslaved women. They weren't endearing but can you blame them? No. However, I did grow to become invested in their lives. Amara did have some surprising character development.

The cast of men are quite frankly almost completely vile; none more than Felix. There were some men who gave the women compassion or chances but it was often for a price or to gain something. Life in Pompeii was rough, dangerous and male-centric. Men had all the power and women had none to very little. You could never call this a feminist read because the women were afforded nothing; they were surviving.

I'm glad I read this despite my difficulty with the trauma in the first half. I'll definitely be reading on in the trilogy and I'm really glad this was a buddy read so that we could fume and discuss together.

*TW - rape, sexual assault, abortion, suicide, physical abuse, sex trafficking*

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miamcmillan's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional sad fast-paced

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

3.75

very good quick read, i loved all the female characters so much and the sense of pompeii was extremely vivid. a little bit vague plot-wise sometimes and the relationship between amara and menander felt a little bit rushed, but overall i really liked it! it was also a very solid move to make the more overlooked members of roman society more visible, very carefully done. and i really appreciated that the author didn’t make certain scenes intensely graphic as many other books tend to. very excited for the sequels! (also i hope felix suffers intensely in the next book. just saying)

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blueheure's review against another edition

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dark tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

I really struggled to finish this book. I was really excited to read a story set in Pompeii, I thought that was a pretty unique setting especially as the story doesn’t revolve around (or mention at all) the eruption of Vesuvius. I really liked the authors choice to include quotes from graffiti found in Pompeii but I also kind of felt like that was the only piece of Pompeiian culture included in the book.. period. If the city’s name wasn’t mentioned throughout the book it could have taken place anywhere; and in a nearly 500 page book I feel like there could have been a little bit of detail about the city. Not only is this book long, but it’s slow (so slow). When I was about 70% of the way through I was still kind of wondering what the plot was because the whole book just reads like a day in the life of a prostitute in Pompeii, it isn’t until probably the last 10% of the book that anything starts happening.

I loved the relationship between the women, I think it was probably the most tangible thing in the book, but I really struggled to care about the women individually. There aren’t a lot of characters, but there are enough (that we spend almost every page with) that there wasn’t enough space for all of them. There are main characters that feel like background characters because you learn one thing about them and then they’re just kind of there to interact with the protagonist, and then there are more brought in that you learn even less about and they felt completely pointless. I thought the backgrounds of the characters were really interesting and I really would have liked to see more done with that information.

[Minor spoilers warning - no details]

My biggest problem though was with the ending. It’s rushed. Like running through the airport with one shoe barely hanging on your foot and the other in your hand because security took too long and you’re about to miss your flight rushed. It starts and ends in about 11 pages. Something big happens and there’s no wind down, no resolution, the characters don’t even process it. It happens, it’s over, it’s mentioned and then the book is over. I really wanted to like this book but I’m left feeling bored and unsatisfied much like the women in the story.

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