While the werewolf curse isn’t real (as far as we know/thank goodness!), I do know what it’s like to have my life turned upside down by a painful illness that seems like a curse. When I was 23, I almost died from a rare autoimmune disease that tried to devour my lungs. More than a decade later, I’m still here and fighting, and my escapist love of reading fantasy books turned into a passion to write them. I also love metaphors and werewolves, and it all combined nicely with my BA in English! Aside from writing, I help other “underdog” authors as COO for indie publisher Thinklings Books.
This book is at the top of my list because it’s one of my very favorites. Dunkle spins a gripping, atmospheric story with memorable characters, and you can tell she’s done her research on medieval Scotland. I love the old Celtic tales woven in, and the sweet romance between Maddie and the woodcarver. But what I like most of all is the theme of redemption. Maddie is a true hero, brave in the face of an unimaginably powerful, ancient evil. She showed me that you don’t have to be big or strong or rich or “somebody” to make a difference. You just have to be willing, have faith, and do your part.
There’s hidden places all over this land-old, old places. Places with a chain for them to chain up the wolf when it’s time. A mysterious young man has come to a small Highland town. His talent for wood carving soon wins the admiration of the weaver’s daughter, Maddie. Fascinated by the silent carver, she sets out to gain his trust, only to find herself drawn into a terrifying secret that threatens everything she loves. There is an evil presence in the carver’s life that cannot be controlled, and Maddie watches her town fall under a shadow. One by one, people…
This third Harry Potter book features a werewolf, Remus Lupin, as one of Harry’s professors. (Sorry if that was a spoiler, but his name is practically Werewolf McWerewolf, as the joke goes.) I found Lupin to be highly sympathetic and easy to love—hands down the best teacher Harry ever had. Despite being shunned by most of the wizarding world, Lupin still persists in living as good a life as he can, helping others, and not giving in to despair. That’s a true hero. I also like how Rowling uses lycanthropy as a metaphor for illness, as I have a chronic autoimmune condition and I very much relate.
It's time to PASS THE MAGIC ON - with brand new children's editions of the classic and internationally bestselling series
The third book in the global phenomenon series that changed the world of books forever
When the Knight Bus crashes through the darkness and screeches to a halt in front of him, it's the start of another far from ordinary year at Hogwarts for Harry Potter. Sirius Black, escaped mass-murderer and follower of Lord Voldemort, is on the run - and they say he is coming after Harry.
In his first ever Divination class, Professor Trelawney sees an omen of…
Werewolf Cop is a hard-boiled noir quite unlike the other books on my list, but Klavan’s powerful voice drew me in and never let go. The book wasn’t entirely hard and gritty like I assumed at first. I especially like the way Klavan portrays the relationship between the main character and his wife. My favorite quote from the book is: “Bloody hard to know who the good guys are, isn’t it?” “It is,” said Zach. “I’m not even sure that’s how it works... It’s more like—messed-up guys, some fighting for the good, some for the bad, and the rest just wandering around bumping into the furniture.”
Zach Adams is one of the best detectives in the country. Nicknamed Cowboy, he's a soft-spoken homicide detective known for his integrity and courage under fire. He serves on a federal task force that has a single mission: to hunt down Dominic Abend, a European gangster who has taken over the American underworld.
In a centuries-old forest under a full moon, a beast assaults Zach, cursing him forever. In the aftermath, he is transformed into something horrible-something deadly.
Now, the good cop has innocent blood on his hands. He has killed-and will kill again-in the form of a beast who…
I saw the 2010 movie first and then later found the book version in a thrift store and had to grab it. Both book and movie deftly create a gloomy, gothic, Romantic atmosphere; the book develops the characters and relationships further. It’s the age-old story of a man seeking to rid himself of a curse, pursued by the law and betrayed by someone who was supposed to protect him—I’m a sucker for that kind of tale! If you enjoy the classics like Dracula and Frankenstein, but find it harder to get through them or connect with them emotionally because of the older language and style, give this book a try.
Inspired by the Universal Pictures' classic horror film, "The Wolfman" tells the story of Lawrence Talbot, a man haunted by dark, disturbing memories. When his brother mysteriously disappears, Talbot returns to the village of his childhood to investigate. In the process he discovers both a terrifying secret about men cursed as werewolves and the truth about this tortured past. This movie tie-in edition is written by Bram Stoker Award-winning author Jonathan Maberry ("Patient Zero"). The film is directed by Joe Johnston Oscar(copyright)-winning director of "Jumanji", "October Sky", and "Jurassic Park III", and will star Oscar(copyright)-winning actors Benicio Del Toro and…
While this book was a bit slower-paced than I typically prefer, Anne Rice’s elegant style kept me turning pages. Reuben’s transformation isn’t a painful curse but is, as the title suggests, more like a superpower, a gift to be used for good. As the “Man Wolf” he becomes a popular and controversial media figure, a vigilante who literally devours attempted rapists, muggers, and other criminals. Meanwhile, in his human life, Reuben wrestles with Catholic guilt over the people he has killed. I like that thoughtful, spiritual angle, as well as the rich descriptions—and I also love a certain group of characters who come in later, but that’s a spoiler!
When Reuben, otherwise known as Sunshine Boy, was sent to write a piece about the uncertain future of the giant house on the cliff, he wasn't expecting to warm so instantly to elegant heiress Marchent Nideck. Nor was he expecting to get caught up in a violent attack which will leave him changed in ways he could never have imagined ...
Anne Rice's 'Vampire Chronicles' defined a genre, but now she has another age-old story in her sights: the terrifying werewolf legend. The classic monster of horror fiction is here reimagined and reinvented, with all Rice's supernatural sympathy and inventiveness,…
College was hard enough before Melanie got bitten by a werewolf. Now she has to deal with painful transformations, a secret organization stalking her, and hunters looming on the horizon.
Growing up in New England, my mother had a set of books that she kept in the living room, more for display than anything else. It was The Works of Edgar Allen Poe. I read them and instantly became hooked on horror. In the seventh grade, I entertained my friends at a sleepover by telling them the mysterious clanking noise (created by the baseboard heater) was the ghost of a woman who had once lived in the farmhouse, forced to cannibalize her ten children during a particularly bad winter. And I’ve been enjoying scaring people ever since.
In 1939, on a remote Pacific island, botanical researcher Irene Greer plunged off a waterfall to her death, leaving behind a legacy shrouded in secrets. Her great-niece Julia, a struggling journalist recovering from a divorce, seeks answers decades later.
Tasked with retrieving Dr. Greer’s discovery–a flower that could have world-changing properties–Julia unearths a story rife with hidden agendas and a missionary community unwilling to share the truth. As she confronts the eerie legends and a fellow traveler with his own motives, Julia finds that the longer she stays, the thinner the line between reality and the fantastical becomes until she…
From the award-winning author of Dead Souls and Poe comes an all-new bone-chilling novel where a mysterious island holds the terrifying answers to a woman's past and future.
In 1939, on a remote Pacific island, botanical researcher Irene Greer plunges off a waterfall to her death, convinced the spirits of her dead husband and daughter had joined the nightmarchers-ghosts of ancient warriors that rise from their burial sites on moonless nights. But was it suicide, or did a strange young missionary girl, Agnes, play a role in Irene's deteriorating state of mind?
