When I first read the summary of this book I was intrigued but not quite sure what to expect. A human raised in a werewolf society sounded great and I could see a real Jungle Book allusion with this, however at the same time I was worried that it would be cliched and the character a little too perfect. Thankfully, I was proved very wrong as Barnes has managed to write Bryn (I have to say I do dislike her full name though) as a strong character who is not perfect but also is not weak or subservient. What I enjoyed most was the way in which Barnes rejected the “I am yours now” mentality that can be seen in paranormal romance novels or young adult and played with it too. One particular exchange that made me laugh was when Chase said Bryn was his and she clarified it would have to be in a non-creepy, maintaining your own independence way.
I also loved that Chase himself claimed to be hers and there was an equality with this. While I don’t wish this to turn into an essay on gender, Barnes subtly asserts female strength from both Ali and Bryn and shows the injustice and difficulty of being in a male dominated society such as the werewolf one.
The overall plot of Raised by Wolves is the growth and development of Bryn, a human raised as the sole survivor of a were attack in the pack and her discovery of another werewolf who was made by the same werewolf that attacked her. Bryn is essentially an outsider, too human for wolves and too wolf for humans and I loved this about her and how it was explored. To belong and simultaneously not belong is something all teenagers feel to an extent and this was well written and suitably amplified in this instance.
The romance aspect with Bryn and Chase was well done, both of them need to know about each other because of their shared experience and it is that at first that draws them together rather than insta-love. I also adored that the wolves weren’t this fluffy pack of puppies but impulsive, possessive and animalistic, but ruled by strict customs too.The book is action packed and whether Bryn is training with the pack or on her own there is generally a sense of urgency and pressure on her which she handles well. Her strength in facing the Rabid who attacked her and turned Chase and everything around that was well written and left me wanting more. I don’t want to spoil the end for you but the ending leaves Bryn in a unique position that I loved and needed to read more about.
I also liked the depiction of Callum overall – sometimes I adored him and sometimes I truly, truly hated him. He is the alpha of the pack and a paternal surrogate of sorts for Bryn and sometimes you know he really cares about her and is trying to help her, other times I kind of wanted to kick him. Really hard. In a painful place. If I feel strongly about a character I always take it as a good sign of the author’s characterisation and my feelings about Callum were definitely complex.
The only character I wasn’t such a big fan of was Devon and I think that was just because he was too extroverted for my personal liking, that said he did have some great lines and dialogue (anyone who references Dirty Dancing and Johnny Castle wins points from me!)
When I began this book I didn’t know how much I would like it, by the end I loved it and would definitely encourage fans of paranormal romance YA novels to check this out. I have read the next in the series, Trial by Fire and loved that too. I was lucky enough to receive this book from free from Quercus Kids for review and am incredibly grateful and thankful for the opportunity and add a particular thanks to Alice at Quercus for this!
