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Summer of the Wolves (Sisters in All Season #1)

by Lisa Williams Kline (Goodreads Author)

3.85 of 5 stars 3.85 · rating details · 61 ratings · 25 reviews

Stepsisters, yes. Friends? Maybe ... 'I smelled the wolf now---sharp and musky. I scanned the pen and saw a shadow behind one of the bushes that might be another wolf. Probably two of the most miserable looking creatures I'd ever seen.' --from Summer of the Wolves Stephanie and Diana are having a hard time adjusting to life as new stepsisters. The girls 'pretend' to like e...more

Hardcover, 238 pages

Published May 2012 by Zonderkidz

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May 28, 2012 Majibookshelf Juhina & Farah rated it 4 of 5 stars

Summer of the Wolves is the first book in the "Sisters in all Seasons" series, and it was just what I needed. A chill, cute, and fun contemporary book that never bored me. The writing was never confusing, and the flow of the book was great. It sort of felt like realistic fiction to me, because it talked about the relationship between the two step sisters, and their struggle to accept the reality of them becoming one family.
First off, I would like to say that I loved the idea of portraying it fro...more

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Apr 15, 2012 Melissa Haggerty rated it 5 of 5 stars

I was first completely interested in this book because of the wolves. I quickly realized that this book is so much more. Kline did a wonderful job of showing the difficulties in merging families.

I loved both Stephanie and Diana. There is no way I could pick one as a favorite because they were both appealing characters in different ways. I enjoyed Diana's love of animals so much. She may have had her issues but she was amazing with the animals. Stephanie was just so sweet. She tried hard to be f...more

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Jan 20, 2013 Michelle rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: ya, fiction

Summer of the Wolves tells the story of two step-sisters brought together to achieve a common goal. This was a fast, easy read with good character development and pacing. It was also exceptionally researched -- I loved all the information about wolves and Cherokee lifestyle and history. And I really loved the setting, which was described wonderfully.

If I were rating this book solely for young adult readers, I would give it four stars, but reading as an adult, I found it just lacked a little some...more

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Oct 14, 2012 Tina rated it 3 of 5 stars

I think this is a great book for young teens. After reading this book, I am giving it to my niece who is 12 & I think she will be able to relate to Diana because my niece loves horses also. The book does not lag & keeps a nice pace to keep young readers interested. I did not realize this was a series & now I want to read the next one to see what becomes of the wolves (if that is included in the next book?). I was a little concerned about the medications that Diana had to take but tot...more

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Nov 25, 2012 Brooke Banks rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: first-reads, middle-school, written-reviews

I won this in a First Reads Giveaway.

This book was cute, sweet, touching and flows nicely. It was an okay read which I finished in one sitting. The characters and stories were well enough done. There was definitely some character progression in here. I think middle schoolers will love this book more than I did. I think it's okay but for me, it was missing something to really like it and get into. I think it's just because I'm older. I usually go for the more hard hitting young adult books for o...more I won this in a First Reads Giveaway.

This book was cute, sweet, touching and flows nicely. It was an okay read which I finished in one sitting. The characters and stories were well enough done. There was definitely some character progression in here. I think middle schoolers will love this book more than I did. I think it's okay but for me, it was missing something to really like it and get into. I think it's just because I'm older. I usually go for the more hard hitting young adult books for older teenagers instead of fluffy books for kids this young. I hate the way we don't know what happened with the second wolf at the end. I really hope that the girls keep in touch and find out what happened in the next book. I also really hope there's more information about Diana's mood disorder in the next one as well since the treatment of that and Diana because of it, bothered me.

One aspect of the book I really liked was the information on animals, nature and Cherokee heritage. I thought that was great. I liked how it was really strong on the issues of wolf-dog breeds and how really they shouldn't be kept like that. There's a lot of scams out there selling half-breeds and lies. I know someone who has taken in half-breeds as rescues being in the wilderness, with the space, time and knowledge to care for them properly. It's a huge undertaking and they really aren't like dogs. I wish there was a bit more about the Cherokees since the setting was in their region and how much misinformation is out there regarding Native Americans. This book could really get kids thinking and interested in such things. I think it would have helped to put some links or information for kids to look into after reading. Just put a warning for the kids to go online with their parents to do it.

The whole conflict about the family not getting along makes me wonder what the family did before this vacation. The only thing mentioned was the one weekend Stephanie came over while Diana stayed in her room. Seems rather short sighted and stupid to not work on this before even getting married. The girls never even met before or something? Seems like the parents were thinking more of being together than making a family work. I'd be upset too if this was just sprung on me. Do parents really not understand this? It's also tired trope about going on family vacation making it all better. It works here but it's not really new or exciting. Honestly, though, those issues are probably beyond any middle schoolers concerns.

Diana's mood disorder. I'm really not sure how to feel about this. We don't even know what specific disorder is being talked about here. Diana is old enough to know herself, why is it not mentioned? Without that information it comes off as a gimmick to explain Diana's emotional problems but really it hardly seems like a problem at all. When Diana forgot to take her medication the side effects where dizziness and such from not taking the pill and being up all day. I can't really pin point where Diana was shown to really have a problem. She seemed fine. Her emotions and actions seemed perfectly normal and expected considering the circumstances. Without something concrete or a specific name to her disorder, it feels like the book is saying any kid that acts like Diana needs medication and is "off balance". Like the default for girls should be acting like Stephanie. That bothers me. I also question about Diana's therapy. Doesn't seem like much is getting talked about and it really just seems like Diana needs someone to talk to. It's not like her mom tried to understand, just blamed Diana's behavior on the disorder instead of wondering why she was acting this way. I don't know why Lynn would go the extra mile for Stephanie but didn't even try to talk to Diana. Hopefully, in the next book this is expanded on and explained.

As far as it being Christian fiction, the only mentions of God were Stephanie talking about her bible study group and the rare spontaneous “Oh god” prayer from Diana. I'm not sure how this gets classified as Christian fiction. All mentions of God could have been removed and you wouldn't have been able to tell. In America the majority of people are Christian. It's the dominate religion so that most people automatically assume you believe one version or the other. This leads to a lot of Christian characters. If you're only criteria is having a Christian character, then sure this qualifies. The other themes and morals are basic love your family, try to do the right, fix what you get wrong and get along with people and it's not like that's unique to Christianity. Christianity isn't necessary for those at all. On this site the only way to see it's labeled as Christian fiction is to click on the 'more shelves' used by users link on the side bar. (less)

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Dec 08, 2012 Laurie Franco rated it 5 of 5 stars

This was an awesome start to a series! I love how the chapters take turns giving the perspective of both girls, one for Diana and one for Stephanie. I thought it was great the way Stephanie was really trying to get along with Diana and how Diana finally gave in and started being nicer to her. I only wish the author gave more details on what the deal was with Diana's father. Clearly something was up, but you're just kind of left wondering what was going on that he was being so rotten. Hopefully I...more

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Nov 07, 2012 Brittan rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: favorites

This review was originally posted on my book blog: Written By Brittan

Summer of the Wolves is a cute and meaningful book, that will stick with you even after your finished reading. This book is great for all ages, it doesn't feel like it is a middle grade. This book has a really great message, and a great and creative way to tell it.

This book is written in alternating point of views of Diana and Stephanie. Diana's mom married Stephanie's Dad. They all go on a family vacation to a horse ranch. Ste...more

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Aug 19, 2012 Rose rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: favorite-genre-chall-june-2012, young-adult, arc-or-galley, netgalley, realistic-fiction, tbr-challenge, middle-grade, family, coming-of-age, contemporary, christian-fiction

"Summer of the Wolves" I think makes a decent middle grade story about two very different girls - Stephanie and Diana, who spend a summer with their family at a horse ranch. The story shows a fragmented family trying to adjust to their new lives and find time to bond, even in consideration the growing pains of having to get along with each other and taking into consideration that one of the girls (Diana) has a mood disorder. The two girls eventually find a bond and actually end up freeing two wo...more "Summer of the Wolves" I think makes a decent middle grade story about two very different girls - Stephanie and Diana, who spend a summer with their family at a horse ranch. The story shows a fragmented family trying to adjust to their new lives and find time to bond, even in consideration the growing pains of having to get along with each other and taking into consideration that one of the girls (Diana) has a mood disorder. The two girls eventually find a bond and actually end up freeing two wolves in captivity during their time at the ranch, only for it to result in circumstances that they do not realize carry heavy repercussions with what results after the girls free them.

This is very much a coming of age story within the realm of Christian fiction, and while it has its heart in the right place, I thought the book lacked a necessary amount of intimacy to really bring some of its issues and characterizations home. The mood disorder that Diana has is never expanded upon - it's treated with sensitivity but lacks intimacy. It's an element and it is shown to have complication (as well as shown that Diana has to cope in spurts with it), but I felt it was dealt with at arms length. Much of the other parts of this story were lacking intimacy as well, and the flow of the story feels fragmented, even though the girls have very distinct personalities from each other. Diana is a bit rebellious and Stephanie's stuck in trying to please as many people as she can despite what she wants at her core. Both girls have to come to terms with themselves in this story. What I really liked in this story was the attention to the animals and the environment - I thought that was a nice element of the book. There are some peppered references to Native American/Cherokee culture here, but I wish it were a little more expanded than what it was in its presentation, because that would've been interesting to get into with the lore and what the girls ultimately learn from it.

Overall, I think it's a decent story, but I think it could've had better pacing and a little more intimacy in the writing to drive the story home for what it was trying to show.

Overall score: 2/5

Note: I received this as an ARC from NetGalley, from the publisher Zondervan.(less)

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Jun 30, 2012 Jacqlineveve rated it 3 of 5 stars

STEPTSISTERS, YES. FRIENDS? MAYBE…

Stephanie and Diana are having a hard time adjusting to life as new stepsisters. The girls “pretend” to like each other, but it’s pretty hard considering they are complete opposites.
When their new family takes their first-ever vacation to a horse ranch in North Carolina, not even long horse-back rides in the forest can tame their tempers. Diana’s anger issues and Stephanie’s fear of everything prove disastrous, until Diana discovers the caged wolves in the deep...more STEPTSISTERS, YES. FRIENDS? MAYBE…

Stephanie and Diana are having a hard time adjusting to life as new stepsisters. The girls “pretend” to like each other, but it’s pretty hard considering they are complete opposites.
When their new family takes their first-ever vacation to a horse ranch in North Carolina, not even long horse-back rides in the forest can tame their tempers. Diana’s anger issues and Stephanie’s fear of everything prove disastrous, until Diana discovers the caged wolves in the deep woods. She vows to free them, and surprisingly, Stephanie agrees to help. But their actions have unforeseen consequences, and if there’s any chance to make things right, Stephanie and Diana must put their differences asside.

“I smelled the wolf now – sharp and musky. I scanned the pen and saw a shadow behind one of the bushes that might be another wolf. Probably two of the most miserable looking creatures I’d ever seen.”
- from Summer of the Wolves

First of all I would want to say that lately I was a lot into books with wolves. I don’t know why, but this animals make me want to read every story they are in it.
I didn’t know what to expect from this book. All I knew is that I won’t find any fantasy action or supernatural creatures. And I’m glad I wasn’t and it made me take a break from my usually reading.
Sister of the Wolves is the first book in the “Sisters in all Seasons” series, and it was a very nice, interesting and fun reading.
I really enjoyed the idea of telling the story from both of the girls points of views. The alternating chapters made me connect better with Diana and Stephanie and understand how both of the girls are feeling.
Norm and Lynn, decide to take their daughters in a family trip to a horse ranch in North California. But the idea of sharing their parents and now the room dosen’t make the new stepsisters very happy. Each of them is trying to find a different activity and that is beacuse they don’t even like the same stuff.
Diana wants to ride all day long, while Stephanie wants to spend her time with Nick. And just when I thought they will never be friends something happend.
Overwall, I liked the idea of this book. It was a really fast and enjoyable reading, and I can’t wait to read the sequel “Wild Horse Spring”. I recommend you to give this book a try if you want to read a nice and realistic fiction family story.(less)

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Apr 26, 2012 Danica Page (One Page at a Time) rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: out-in-2012, arc, netgalley, young-adult, coming-of-age, self-discovery, family-issues, family-relations, animals

This is a condensed version of my review. The extended version can be found here.

My Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars.

My Overall Thoughts/Impressions: First off, I'd like to thank netgalley and the publisher for allowing me to review this copy.

I love christian fiction and I love young adult fiction, so going into this novel I had some high expectations.

I loved Lisa's writing style from the very first page. She wrote in a way that left me captivated with the characters and their stories. Diana and Ste...more

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Aug 02, 2012 Karen Fowler rated it 4 of 5 stars

Although I don't read much in the way of Young Adult (especially the very-young kind) I couldn't help but falling in love with this story and the girls, so much so that my often angst-ridden early teen years floated to surface in my mind and I understood how the girls were feeling and thinking. To me, that means the author Lisa Williams Kline not only did her job with this book, but did it exceedingly well.

I didn't feel like I was reading a book about two young girls who are suddenly step siste...more

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Apr 18, 2012 Gina rated it 4 of 5 stars

My first impression of this book was a bit of amazement this book is recommended as for ages 9-12 but I loved it! Two girls, close in age are brought together by marriage, into a new family they are not familiar with. The book is written back and forth from their points of view. Diana is impulsive and a bit out of control, while Stephanie follows all the rules and is timid and fearful of the thing Diana loves the most, horses.
The girls bond together with a night out in the woods with the wolves...more

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Oct 13, 2012 Julie rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: first-reads

This gave me lots to think about and I like the way it did it. The feelings of both 8th grade girls are presented every other chapter, so you see one event through one girl's eyes, then the next chapter is the other giving you her reaction to the previous event, or in typical teenage fashion a new subject, new thing happening, or new thing to stress about!

I have a daughter turning 13 this year, I think this will be a wonderful book for her to read, it has animals and step-mom/dad issues. Both o...more

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Oct 28, 2012 Nicole Trott rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: first-reads

*I received this book for free from Good Reads First Reads*

This book was good for what it was which is a kids novel. It demonstrated how to correct a problem or mistake you have done and that family bonds and love prevails through all. All and all if I were still a twelve year old I would have really enjoyed this book because I have a sister as well. There is nothing like being a kid and exploring the outdoors with the added bonus of riding horses and meeting some hybrid wolves.

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Mar 26, 2013 Janice rated it 4 of 5 stars

Summer of the Wolves was a very good book about the blending of 2 families. I enjoyed reading how the 2 teenage girls battled it out in their new relationships as "sisters". It had a few good lessons to be learned as well. I have given it to my granddaughter to read and I think she will really like it as well. Thank you Lisa Kline for the good read and thank you Goodreads for the free book!!

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Jan 05, 2013 Amber rated it 5 of 5 stars

This is a great book for middle school age. (I'd probably classify it as the juvenile section in the library) I really enjoyed reading it-finished it in a couple of hours. It's focused around 2 eighth grade newly step sisters going on family vacation with their parents. The girls have very different personalities and its a learning experience for the whole family adjusting the new family situation and relating to each other-trying to find their niche in this new family, as well as their place in...more

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Dec 12, 2012 Wendy rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: unowned

I thought this was a good story and it would be perfect for early teens. It didn't hold my attention quite as well as I thought it would though. I think this is one that is definitely geared tword younger readers. It is full of teenage angst and drama as well as sibling rivalry.

* I recieved this book for review but that has in no way effected my opinion.*

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Jul 25, 2012 Pam Torres rated it 4 of 5 stars

See the full review here: http://soimfifty.blogspot.com/2012/06...

The best thing about this book are the characters. I've read books before that have alternating POV between characters and often you would have to check back to see who was talking. You won't have this problem because Diane and Stephanie are well defined with unique voices. I also really liked the Native American culture slipped in throughout. The friendship that forms between the sisters is authentic and multifaceted just like th...more

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Jul 27, 2012 Alex Owens rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: netgalley-arcs

Great little YA book about cobbled-together families, the bonds of sisterhood, set against the backdrop of a family vacation where wolves are penned up and appear to be miserable. Entirely clean and uplifting, enough for my 10 year old daughter to read.

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Feb 19, 2013 Autumn rated it 5 of 5 stars

I liked this book, but it was kind of sad :( good book though.

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Dec 29, 2012 Annika rated it 4 of 5 stars

Loved it, but a little corny and cheesy with Norm....

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Jan 23, 2013 Elizabeth rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: young-adult

I entered (and won) the goodreads giveway because of the wolves. Even though that was only a small part of the book, I really enjoyed it overall. It was a great story about two very different girls coming together against the odds. The story was told in alternating perspectives of Stephanie and Diana. In some books it can become confusing or make it harder to connect with characters but it worked perfectly in this book. I would not hesitate to give this book to anyone working through the struggl...more

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Oct 30, 2012 PWRL marked it as to-read

Shelves: 2012-new

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Nov 19, 2012 Angelina rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: first-reads, ya, christian

This is a quick feel-good read. The story is full of lessons about perspective and growth. Delightfully, there are also learning moments for the adults.

The closeness that evolves between characters happens in a realistic way and the voices of the two girls are authentic.

I love that there is a theme of balance in all things throughout this story.

This book is well suited for 4th through 6th grades.

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Oct 24, 2012 Donna Kurtz rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: winners

I received this book free from Easy Reads. It was a good read especially for teenagers that have anger issues or come from a remade family. The story moves along and keeps your interest.

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Nov 10, 2012 Mendy rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: first-reads

Even though this book was geared towards younger readers, I really enjoyed it. It had really good lessons in it and a good story line.

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Jan 08, 2013 Sandy rated it 4 of 5 stars

I won this book in a Goodreads giveaway. It was a fun, quick read and would be perfect for teenage girls.

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May 20, 2013 Hannah marked it as to-read

May 08, 2013 Elizabeth marked it as to-read

May 06, 2013 Emmia Isabelle rated it 3 of 5 stars

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