A review by wyabook234
Good Dogs by Brian Asman

adventurous dark emotional mysterious 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? It's complicated

4.0

Brian Asman's Good Dogs is an entertaining howling romp that pits a migrating group of werewolves against a beast higher up on their food chain. Having the hunters be the hunted allows for an interesting take on the type of characters that you root for while the big evil monster is stalking them. Each of these wolves has a defining role within their family, and I wish that Asman couldn't have explored that dynamic further within his narrative, except the flashbacks seem devoted to the murderous history of the "Watcher" or "Mama Bear" and her victims instead of strengthening how these characters became a found family. There could be missed opportunities for further flashbacks as this wild bunch manages to differentiate themselves from each other. They have regaling personalities and backstories surrounding their "change," which makes it difficult to see how they eventually become victims in the later half of the story, especially when it comes to Linnae, who probably has it the most difficult out of all of them as she was forced to become an attack dog for her drug-dealer boyfriend. However, the book has some entertaining and gruesome moments akin to a bloody monster flick that will flip through the pages.

The opening of Esther's siege against the werewolves is pretty tense, suggesting that most of the cast won't be unscathed by the end, whether human or not. This lack of armour is accentuated when you discover what happened to one of her children when she discovers the bone pitt near the mine within her transformation. There is also a scene from her perspective where she describes killing Joey, who is one of the lycanthropes. The way that his mangling and his last agonizing moments are expressed through a predatory lens is pretty visceral. 

While I did expect more from the characters, I recommend this book to anyone who wants a distinctive take on the werewolf mythos and a creative perspective on the creature's feature.
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