tmichelleb 's review for:

The Wolf Gift by Anne Rice

2.0

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Reuben is a very green, unfulfilled 20-something news reporter. He struggles to be taken seriously by his family, friends, and colleagues due to his lack of experience with “life” or “death”. Their condescending nicknames and references to him frustrate him. One day, he heads to Nideck Point to cover a story regarding a vast estate and falls in love with it and into the grasp of a mysterious love and the mysterious world of the Wolf Gift. With this Gift, Reuben reinvents himself, adapting a new persona, new perspective, and keener senses. 

This is my first TRUE Anne Rice novel. I read The Claiming of Sleeping Beauty but a) it made me want to claw my eyes out b) Rice wrote The Claiming under the pen name A.N. Roquelaure c) it was a different type of fantasy. It just. DOESN’T. COUNT.  

The Wolf Gift was ok. I definitely had to adjust to Rice’s writing style when I was reading. It’s chock full of descriptions and poetic language. For some people, it’s nice and creates an easy flow to the story. In the beginning, when you’re still trying to figure out who Reuben is, it’s substantive. The descriptions add to his character and give you an idea about Reuben’s point of view. However, once you’re halfway through the story, the fluid descriptions and loads of information dumped simultaneously into your lap get old and don’t hold much entertainment value. There were whole chapters when I just wanted some action. Even worse, sometimes the action added very little to the storyline.  

I liked Reuben being a young adult who’s just trying to figure it all out. He’s sweet and relatable even though he begins the story in a miserable rut.

It was also interesting to see how parts of Rice’s life/beliefs influenced the book. For example, Rice declared in 2010 that she was “done being Christian” and refuses to be homophobic because of her Christianity.  The characters in the story have many discussions/deliberations about the existence of God and the purpose religion serves humanity. One of the most boisterous characters on the subject also happens to be gay. It was nice to see which thoughts were the most prevalent.  

Although The Wolf Gift wasn’t a favorite, I will be joining my book club in reading the second installment in The Wolf Gift Chronicles, The Wolves of Midwinter just to see what happens. 

Happy Reading!
Teri