Raised by Wolves by Jennifer Lynn Barnes - Review

Thrilling, action packed, with so much going on, it might be hard to keep up, if not for the love you feel for the characters and the way the words float off the page.

Raised By Wolves is not what I might call an easy read, it took me what seemed like forever to get into it, at first I resisted, almost like Bryn herself – but then, something so subtle, I did not even realize it, happened. I shifted, I let the words, the world soak into me, leaving me, in a state that I might call vulnerable, how a toy might feel left out in the rain...it was a scary feeling, with emotions left right out there to soak in the rain...until Bryn herself seemed to wrap her arms around me, holding me tightly to herself, which allowed me to feel safe, even if Bryn herself did not feel it.

My Synopsis:
Bryn is not like an normal “human” girl, at the age of 4 she witnessed her parents murder, only to then be taken into the werewolf fold, calmed by the head Alpha – Callum. She's only ever known pack life, but somehow no matter what Callum or her adoptive mother Ali, tells her, she feels separate from everything and everyone, she's not quite human, but she's not a werewolf either.

The humans stay away from her due to there fear, and the werewolves, minus one Devon, her best friend and only ally, hate her, they despise that Callum brought her into there lives, her very being irks most of them, and had it not been for the bond that Callum and her shared, she would have been abandoned or worse dead, any one of them would have seen to that.

And even though most people in Bryn's shoes might cower, Bryn has never cowered to anyone in her life, even and especially Callum; he might be her Alpha, but she's a tough cookie and under no circumstances will she allow herself to become “that girl;” ever!

Enter, Chase and though we don't get to know him as well as I would have hoped, he comes into the story, as a “made” werewolf, in a world where, once your bitten only 1 out of maybe 100 survive long enough to be changed. He is like Bryn, a survivor, above all else.

Somehow Callum got to him, saved him from the devious creature that was once werewolf and now, alone with out a pack; Rabid. With Callum's help, Bryn thinks, Chase will soon be in the folds of The Pack, and The Rabid will be dealt with; no Alpha would put up with such a Werewolf in there territories.

Bryn, for some reason is pulled to Chase, he's a werewolf that's not been born, he was bitten, he survived...Bryn is sure he might have some detail that could trigger a memory, and she longs to learn more about the night her parents were killed, the night she survived and they perished.

And when they meet, Bryn learns that it's Chase and only Chase that can answer her questions, quench her thirst for knowledge, but at what price? Can she survive this, can Chase? Will she or can she allow herself to be ripped from the folds of her life that she's come to count on, the safety she feels in the throws of the pack; will she be able to make the toughest choices of her life, and will those around her whom love her most let her, before they kill her?

One of the main things that struck me while reading Raised By Wolves is, Bryn when she's brought to The Pack is very young, but even at that young age, she creates “walls” around herself, allowing her thoughts, as well as her feelings to be those of her own. Because you see, in the Raised by Wolves world, The Pack can sense your emotions, feelings and can even, at times, “talk” to you with out using words, if you don't have Bryn's wall that is. Bryn is at one point forced to push down her wall's, though I can't explain why, and once she does she longs to be part of something more than herself, but yet on the other hand she worries she will never be the same person she was before. She takes a piece of herself, a place that holds her hopes, dreams and deepest desires and hides it deep with in herself, protecting it...shielding at least one small part from the rest of The Pack.

This very thought wormed its way inside me, twisted my stomach in knots, I think we all, at one point in our lives or another, struggle with this very thing, not in the sheer enormity of Bryn's decision, but I think we each long for a connection with those around us, while struggling to always maintain a separate piece of ourselves that's just “us.”

And that I think was one of the points that I drew breath, there was no turning my back on Bryn or on Raised By Wolves...

While Raised By Wolves, is untimely, about werewolves, it's NOT “just another werewolf novel, not at all...Jennifer Lynn Barnes has created a complex world, filled with bone chilling danger, a main character that kicks some proverbial butt and a story that will give any seasoned reader a run for there money.

Another “thing” that I enjoyed was in addition to Bryn, was the mass of characters, which honestly, can at times be a bad thing. With LOTS of characters in this book, far to many to comment on each, I never felt like I was lost in the world of “to many characters”, each and every one of them was extremely well defined. I am sure that Jennifer Lynn Barnes took great care to create each of them, from the ever present Chase whom I can't wait to learn more about; to the devilish and delicious Devon; to the adoring mother figure Bryn is lucky to have in her life, Ali; as well as all those Pack members, whom we did not totally get to know, but each of whom seemed to have a wonderful presence to them, if you know what I mean.

Bottom Line – Though Raised By Wolves is fiction, it's a story that impacts your heart, it's a breath of fresh air that's tainted with deceit, lies, and control while still holding, love, beauty and majesty with in it's grasp. It took my breath away, but not because of it's beauty, more likely because I felt like I had been hit in the gut; the scenes near the end especially, with the Rabid, were treacherous, scary and built a fear in me that not many books have. I very much enjoyed the world that Jennifer Lynn Barnes created, and I can NOT wait for more! Raised By Wolves is compelling, and unforgettable, I find myself pushing to even WANT to read something else! I give Raised By Wolves a 5 mushrooms, and am off to search out more of Jennifer's work!

Side Note: I like this cover much better than the one I got on the ARC I received, it means more, after having read the book especially! :)

Raised By Wolves
By: Jennifer Lynn Barnes
432 Pages
Published: June 8, 2010
Publisher: EgmontUSA
Received via an ARC tour, I can't wait to get my own copy!