Reviews

The Wolf Den by Elodie Harper

hellboooy's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional tense medium-paced

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

3.5

cassandia's review against another edition

challenging dark medium-paced

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

4.25

emppuu's review against another edition

emotional sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

thais_carri0n's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional tense slow-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

3.5

maddyshad15's review against another edition

adventurous emotional hopeful reflective sad 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

4.5

emiliejoychristy's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional sad tense

4.25

daenerystormborn's review against another edition

dark emotional tense medium-paced

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

4.5

poorlywordedbookreviews's review against another edition

dark hopeful medium-paced

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

4.0

𝘚𝘩𝘦 𝘳𝘶𝘯𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘵𝘰𝘪𝘳𝘦, 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘦 𝘣𝘦𝘵𝘸𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘧𝘦𝘢𝘳 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘦𝘳 𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘦𝘵𝘤𝘩𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘢𝘶𝘵 𝘢𝘤𝘳𝘰𝘴𝘴 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘵. 

   

The story of a group of prostitutes in Pompeii, this was engaging historical fiction, that felt modern but not too jarringly anachronistic. The plot is light, and centred around main character Amara’s desire to escape her current life. Amara was not born a slave, and cannot accept her life as it is, can she out manoeuvre the violent and/or powerful men she orbits to gain freedom? 

   

This was well done, conveying the brutality of life in a brothel without any explicit details, the wide range of reactions / acceptance levels / coping strategies employed, the complicated and often hypocritical nature of the men who ‘employ’ them. But what I appreciated most was the way it handled how such traumas impact on relationships, bonding you in unhealthy ways to destructive patterns and people. 

   

Criticism? It could have been set in any ‘olde’ Mediterranean city/state/empire, its historical details aren’t deep. The plot is pretty predictable - personally that didn’t take away from the journey with the characters. The writing is good but not lyrically evocative, but that suits the bleak awfulness of the story. 

   

This is the first in a trilogy, and I’m looking forward to the second book. Roman society was a place of dramatic social mobility and seeming contradictions in the interplay or freedom and power, so Amara’s tale should hopefully continue to engage. 

kkhabra's review against another edition

challenging dark reflective sad tense slow-paced

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

4.0

elenafay's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0