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A review by rosemarieshort
The Wolf and the Woodsman by Ava Reid
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
3.5 / 5
There was a lot in The Wolf and the Woodsman that worked for me. I enjoyed the world building, and the layered, oft times almost overlapping belief systems which mirrored so many real world religions. This more than anything made the story feel grounded. I also really loved the pairing of Évike and Gáspár who fully fulfilled my enemies to lovers quota for this book (my favourite kind of pairing). The slow burn of the romance, along with the hatred to understanding to alliance to lust to more was really well done. This, however, was in contrast to the pacing of the rest of the book, which at times felt rocket fast. I most enjoyed TWatW when we were getting to know characters or the religions or cultures that made them tick. I didn’t mind forays into stories of Gods and mortals as it built on the world Ava Reid was creating. However moments after hearing a God-tale, we were rattling off 2-3 key plot points in the space of a few pages. Why would the King make an agreement with Évike after she turned one sword to rust? Why would she be allowed to his secret meetings with councillors? Where wolf-girls and pagans hated by the capitol, or tolerated? Things seemed to move so quickly and choppily once we reached the capitol that I lost track of what I had so enjoyed in the first 150 or so pages. Things felt they came back together and I enjoyed the ending, but I think a world as rich and interesting as this needed a series to make room for world building and plot to fit together comfortably.
There was a lot in The Wolf and the Woodsman that worked for me. I enjoyed the world building, and the layered, oft times almost overlapping belief systems which mirrored so many real world religions. This more than anything made the story feel grounded. I also really loved the pairing of Évike and Gáspár who fully fulfilled my enemies to lovers quota for this book (my favourite kind of pairing). The slow burn of the romance, along with the hatred to understanding to alliance to lust to more was really well done. This, however, was in contrast to the pacing of the rest of the book, which at times felt rocket fast. I most enjoyed TWatW when we were getting to know characters or the religions or cultures that made them tick. I didn’t mind forays into stories of Gods and mortals as it built on the world Ava Reid was creating. However moments after hearing a God-tale, we were rattling off 2-3 key plot points in the space of a few pages. Why would the King make an agreement with Évike after she turned one sword to rust? Why would she be allowed to his secret meetings with councillors? Where wolf-girls and pagans hated by the capitol, or tolerated? Things seemed to move so quickly and choppily once we reached the capitol that I lost track of what I had so enjoyed in the first 150 or so pages. Things felt they came back together and I enjoyed the ending, but I think a world as rich and interesting as this needed a series to make room for world building and plot to fit together comfortably.