“Wonderfully unique and imaginative. I was enthralled “-JEANIENE FROST, New York Times bestselling authorFor three days out of thirty, when the moon is full and her law is iron, the Great North Pack must be wild. If she returns to her Pack, the stranger will die. But if she stays…Silver Nilsdottir is at the bottom of her Pack’s social order, with little chance for a decent mate and a better … is at the bottom of her Pack’s social order, with little chance for a decent mate and a better life. Until the day a stranger stumbles into their territory, wounded and beaten, and Silver decides to risk everything on Tiberius Leveraux. But Tiberius isn’t all he seems, and in the fragile balance of the Pack and wild, he may tip the destiny of all wolves…
The Legend of All Wolves series:
The Last Wolf (Book 1)
A Wolf Apart (Book 2)
more
I loved The Last Wolf by Maria Vale. As I read it (in one day), I kept thinking of Anne Bishop’s The Others series–like Bishop’s books, this is a story with characters who are not and have never been human, and Vale does an excellent job of showing that essential inhumanity through her narrator, Silver, even as Silver comes to recognize and value of the parts of herself that are somewhat similar to humans.
I saw online that some other reviewers disliked the novel because it felt “flat.” Although I understand why they might feel that way, I think that kind of review is a misreading of the character. She’s not flat–she’s simply not human. That difference leads to some fabulously funny moments in the novel, too; I laughed out loud when Silver congratulated a woman in a grocery store for surviving so many “live births.”
The use of Old English as the traditional language of the wolves was a nice touch, too, hinting at the similarities between the historical Anglo Saxon world and the wolves’ culture in the book.
Maria Vale is now officially my favorite new author of the year. I’m sharing her book everywhere and she’s moved to the top of my auto-buy list.
The cover looks like such a run-of-the-mill shifter romance, but the story inside is deeply engrossing and unique. Also very hard to describe! It’s beautiful in a way similar to Maggie Stiefvater’s Shiver, is steeped in Scandinavian lore, and is also lushly romantic. The perfect book for a rainy weekend!
I love everything about this book! This is the most original romance I’ve read in years. This book will make you fall in love with wolves and all things wild. I HIGHLY, HUGELY, WOW-THIS-BOOK-IS-AMAZING recommend!
Maria Vale has created a fascinating world of shifters and werewolves in The Last Wolf. I’ll be thinking about this one for some time to come!
I really enjoyed reading The Last Wolf, and this book was a great mix of Paranormal Romance and Fantasy. Neither overpowered the other and the author did great job in balancing those two genres. Lately, I don’t read a lot of PNR/UF books and it is really difficult for me to find a story that will keep me interested in this genre, so I was really happy that this story exceeded my expectations. The blurb gives a great short overview of what this story is about: “Silver is at the bottom of her Pack’s social order, with little chance for a decent mate and a better life. Until the day a stranger stumbles into their territory, wounded and beaten, and Silver decides to risk everything on Tiberius Leveraux.” These two characters are complete opposites of each other. Silver was born crippled and a runt, and Ti is half shifter and half pack. Ti sees himself as human and hates his pack side, while Silver doesn’t know anything else. These two would under normal circumstances never come across each other, or associate with one another.
Werewolves are my favorite paranormal creatures and I love learning about pack law and their traditions/customs. I have read a lot of paranormal romance, and especially with the werewolf/shifter type of stories the author usually doesn’t focus that much on the ins and outs of a pack. I loved that they didn’t try to live in the human world, they have their own home and they are happy with their lives. I loved how Silver and Ti met and how their relationship developed. The author didn’t rush and she also focused on their individual growth. This is the first book in The Legend of All Wolves series and I am wondering if the next book will focus on the same couple or other pack members. I personally love Silver and Ti, and I would love to see how their story will continue.
The Last Wolf grabbed me from the first few paragraphs! The writing and world-building are so well done, it was like reading an actual werewolf’s first-person account of Pack life.
Silver and Ti’s love story unfolds slowly yet surely, with enough twists and turns to suck you in. By the end of the novel, I couldn’t turn the pages fast enough.
Highly recommend!
An gritty shifter romance with a unique and original perspective. I loved the detailed world and structure of the pack, while Silver was a complex and compelling point of view character. The immersive story telling had me hooked.
Maria Vale’s wolf tale is gripping, suspenseful, and often hilarious, as her wolves try to navigate in a human-dominated world. But that doesn’t stop Vale from writing a determined underdog female lead (pun intended) and her sometimes shifty love interest. This book–and its sequel–kept me up WAY past bedtime.
This book is simply extraordinary. Hauntingly written, compelling, mesmerizing. I couldn’t put it down. The take on wolves is fantastic in every sense. I loved the gritty realism and sensuality of the wolves lives. This isn’t a lighthearted tale – it’s like a fist to the heart. I loved everything about it and immediately went on to read the second book, which I also love. This debut author has won me over. This is paragon of what fantasy/paranormal/romance crossover can do.
I cannot recommend this book highly enough.
This book came as such a pleasant surprise. When I thought I could not imagine enjoying another werewolf/shifter tale, or that there could be anything original in this genre, I found this little jewel. A totally unique and interesting story, great writing, and wonderful characters. I’ll definitely read more by this author. She’s a fresh new voice in what I thought was a tired old genre.
This is the most fascinating shifter book I’ve ever read. The world-building is unparalleled! Instead of humans turning into wolves, we have wolves turning into humans and this nuance changes everything. Silver and Ti have so much to lose and they really are each other’s only hope for survival. Nothing about this story was what I guessed or expected. I’m still reeling from some of the twists and turns. Maria Vale really and truly outdid herself.
A very different and original take on the werewolf legend and shifter storyline. It’s grittier and a starker view than the usual paranormal shifter romances. Excellently written with a multilayered plot that has no easy resolution. The characters were all well portrayed and quite easy to identify with, Silver more especially. The wolf hierarchy presented was unique despite having similarities with other shifter books. There is a love story evolving but it’s mostly revolving around the pack loyalty and the building of a world quite different from other wolf shifter romances. I definitely recommend this book if you want something familiar and yet quite different.
Great characters, In-depth story line, and soft romance scenes 🙂
It does start with a lot going on for the first little bit and was a lot to take in, but read and pay attention and its way to understand and follow. Would recommend this book for a nice twist on werewolves vs shifters.
Loved this and can’t wait for the sequel!
Much more realistic than other wolf shifter books, but still has a sweet romance.
This book was absolutely mind-blowing. It’s so rare to find an author who breaks new ground like this. It’s sexy and emotional, suspenseful and thrilling. I could not put this one down.
A the start of trilogy a series.
This isn’t a typical shifter book, the author has gone for a different spin. These are wolves that change into humans, most don’t like to be humans for long. They aren’t comfortable in the human skin, nor the surroundings of being trapped in a human body, they prefer the hierarchy that the wolf pack brings them. To a wolf, it’s all about the pack, and feelings don’t usually come into it. So romance isn’t really high on their list of things that is important. They mate, not necessarily for love, it’s more of an alliance between packs or for the good of the pack.
Silver isn’t a typical wolf shifter, she has a disability, but it doesn’t stop her, in fact I think it’s made her more determined. She knows she won’t get a chance at getting a mate, the best she can hope for is being a “servant” to the alpha pair.
She is strong willed and will speak her mind when warranted.
She doesn’t really get noticed, but all that changes when she meets Tiberius…..
Tiberius beaten and wounded badly, stumbles into the Great North pack’s territory.
He spends most of his time in human form (living with an abusive parent, he suppresses that side of himself). But the pack of wolves won’t be as understanding as the single she wolf who found him. They don’t accept the wolves who live a human life.
As I said before, the romance isn’t a big thing in this book, it does focus on how they feel, and reading how Silver thinks and feels about Tiberius, it really gives us a different opinion.
It does make it hard to keep reading, but if you forget about the other shifter books you’ve read, and read it for what the book is trying to tell you, then it’s a really good read.
We start in the past, and how the Pack was created.
We learn about pack through Silver’s eyes, and the love she has for her pack. But we also learn that Silver wants a life and a mate of her own.