Blood of the Wolf

by Jeffrey Goddin

WARNING:

Before you read this book, there are two things you ought to know:

1. Ly*can*thro*py/like an-thro-pe: the assumption of the form and characteristics of a wolf or other predatory animal held to be possible through the practice of witchcraft or magic.

2. Even a man who’s pure in heart. And says his prayers at night. May become a wolf when the wolfbane blooms. And the moon shines full and bright.

Genres: Horror, Fiction, Werewolves

368 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published December 1, 1987

Reviews

[Josh · Rating 2 out of 5]

Werewolves have long been a horror staple, and there's been some great fiction produced featuring on the furry nightmare menace, however, Blood of the Wolf, doesn't add to that rich tapestry. There's a couple of reasons for this; the book doesn't have an identity or clear plot outline, the characters meander in and out of sequence with little consequence, and the where the author attempts to assign a plot, it fails from being short-sighted (i.e. nothing much seems to happen with each thread, mobsters, scientists, telekinetics, shapshifters, cops, mindreaders, and a mental asylum all feature without much rationale). I wanted to like this book but it just didn't connect with me despite getting off to a decent start.

My rating: 2/5 stars.

[Benjamin Thomas · Rating 3 out of 5]

Every once in a while I like to scratch my itch for 1980s era horror. This one had a reasonably good start and an interesting take on a scientific explanation for lycanthropy involving psychic abilities. But the plot tended to meander a bit and the characters were a little two-dimensional for my taste. Still, I found it quite readable and would consider reading other works by Jeffrey Goddin.

[Velvetink · Rating 2 out of 5]

Giving to si cotic

[Darian · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was the equivalent of a fever dream. I didn't hate it and I read the entire thing but I had no idea what was happening.

[Matt · Rating 3 out of 5]

While it's true that this book is fairly trashy, the overall story of Blood of the Wolf is entertaining and worth the read for anyone interested in werewolves.

[H.R. · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.7. I really like the premise, but the execution was lacking for me at the moment. Didn't keep my attention. Will likely give it another attempt down the road.

[Reuxbot · Rating 3 out of 5]

Awful like a trashy horror film. So of course I think it's great.

[Cassandra Glissadevil · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.0 stars
If you find Blood of the Wolf on the cheap and you adore werewolf stories, take a chance a dive in. Looking for underrated horror classics? Keep looking.

[Sharon Hattingh]

Andrew

[Jesse · Rating 1 out of 5]

In a word: awful. This horror novel attempts to explore werewolves from a more rational, scientific perspective, but instead engages in limp storytelling, pallid, overheated prose, dumb characters, dumb dialogue, and boring pseudoscience. While there is an occasional interesting idea or two (such as a wolf turning into a man, rather than the other way around), any such intriguing plot points are quickly swept away, until we're faced with a climax that, for absolutely no discernible reason, devolves into a 30 page scene about pseudoscientific concepts like astral projection and psychic reading. It's like a scene from a giallo movie plopped at the end of this novel (supposedly) about werewolves. Other issues, such as an overstuffed cast, terrible plotting, and unrealistic motivations drag this wrongheaded book down further. Honestly one of the worst horror paperbacks I've ever read. At least Laymon has the decency to be concise and to the point, this overstuffed thing can't decide if it's a werewolf novel, a sci-fi novel, or a generic psychic thriller, a la The Fury. Skip this piece of crap.