Howl: Howl, Book 1

By: Jody Morse, Jayme Morse

Narrated by: Meghan Kelly

Length: 6 hrs and 16 mins

Publisher's summary

One girl... Two werewolf packs... What will she choose?

Samara's first date with Luke, the hot new guy at school, didn't go exactly the way she planned. She figured they would stargaze and maybe share a kiss at the end of the night, but she couldn't have prepared for what really happened. She was bitten by a wolf, and not just any wolf: a werewolf.

After she shifts for the first time, she meets her new pack's alpha in the woods. While he answers a lot of her questions, he remains in his wolf form during their meetings to keep his identity a secret. She wonders who this mysterious wolf is and why he bit her.

As Samara begins to learn more about her family secret and how it plays into her new life as a werewolf, she realizes that she has an important decision to make, one that could hurt the ones she cares about most. She must choose between two werewolf packs: the one that she's destined to be in and the one that she feels she belongs in.

Howl is a suspenseful tale of secrets, betrayal, and forbidden romance.

This audiobook is recommended for ages 10 and up due to mild language, underage drinking, and mild sexual references.

©2011 Jody Morse, Jayme Morse (P)2015 Jody Morse, Jayme Morse

Great read

It was great listening to this but yet again another series with only book 1 and no other to continue with.

Howl series

Very in-depth story excellent voice over and very drawing and creative character development! Other then that all around above average score I say!

A frustrating read.

Any additional comments?

I'm torn with this book because while I enjoyed bits of it, I found most of it to be frustrating and with nothing new added to the genre, there was too many cliches to truly like it. For this review I'm going to list my likes and dislikes and see how we get on.

Dislikes.

Samara. She is the MC and I find, if I don't immediately connect to the main character, then it's hard to like the story. She frustrated me no end! She gets bitten by a wolf on her date and honestly, does nothing about it. She was way too calm when it happened. I mean, come on. If a wolf bites you, you would freak!! Then when the bite clears up so fast, she just kind of shrugs it off! THEN when she finds out she is a wolf, she takes it in her stride!! Any normal person would be freaking out in some way!!

The dreaded love triangle. I HATE them!!! I may not be a teen anymore but when I was I never knew anyone who went through a love triangle. It's so prevalent in YA that it puts a lot of people off books. This particular triangle just felt so wrong and unreal. It felt like the second choice was thrown in just to throw it in! Her first choice was cliche as well. I mean a stranger comes to town that happens to be her possible mate!! UGH.

The ending!!! This made me want to through the book across the room (I was reading on my kindle so I didn't!!) It was so abrupt and just seemed like the author stopped writing the scene and pressed published. I don't mind a cliffhanger if it's well done, but I do hate one that ends so abruptly! It ruined the story for me.

The way the author made her so special. Of course the main character had to be special! I mean that hasn't been done to death before, right!! She becomes a wolf but she is extra special! Everyone wants her to join their pack and are willing to fight over her!! It was so predictable and annoying really.

Then we have the 2 main packs that want her! The alpha of one is horrible and pure evil and the alpha of the other is nice! Another cliche!! One pack has people she loves in it and the other has a new person she only met (not going to say much more about this because of spoilers) so 2 guesses which one she thinks she will choose!!!

Likes:

OK, I trying to think of what I liked about the book and if I'm honest, I'm struggling to find some. I did like a few of the secondary characters more than Samara. I liked parts of the plot and thought that if there weren't so many cliches in there, it may have been slightly better. I think the only thing that saved this book was the fact that I listened to it rather than reading it. I think if I was reading it I wouldn't have finished it but because Meghan Kelly was reading it and did an amazing job, as always, it gave the story a little bit of life.

In all, I felt this was just a forgettable read. There was too much cliches and not enough of the authors own spin. In all honesty, I don't think Ill continue on with the series because I just didnt care what happened to the characters, and I know myself that if all the books end like this one ended, Id just rate them all the same!

Meghan Kelly, as I said, did an amazing job of bringing a drab story to life. I can't fault her performance and she was the only thing that kept me listening to the story.

*I received a copy of this for review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.*

Great Book!

Any additional comments?

This is a great book; this is the first book in the Howl series by Jody and Jayme Morse. Samara was excited about her first date with Luke, the hot new guy at school. However, on her date she ends up getting bitten by a werewolf. She ends up shifting and meets the Alpha of her new pack, but she doesn’t know who he is because he never shifts to his human body. She learns about a secret her family has been keeping and soon has to make some decisions that can affect her future.

The narrator Meghan Kelly did a great job with this book, and was very easy to listen to. She did a great job with the different voices of each character in this book. It was very easy to listen to in one sitting and I didn’t want to stop listening until the end.

If you are looking for a book with a great story, and characters then you need to listen to this book. I am looking forward to listening to the next book by this author and narrator.

A Review copy was provided to me in exchange for a fair and honest review. The free book held no determination on my personal review.

Howl

Any additional comments?

I haven't listened anything by these authors before, but it . I liked that Samara was mature for her age and didn't act like a lot of the other girls at her school did Luke was ok.. I'm not sure who I want her to end up with If you like werewolf romance stories, you should give this one a try.

Teenage Werewolf Angst! lol

Would you try another book from Jody Morse and Jayme Morse and/or Meghan Kelly?

Probably Not....Jody Morse or Jayme Morse...But Meagan Kelly...ALWAYS!!! Meghan can only work with what she is given..and this was just a very juvenile book and predictable story....

Would you be willing to try another book from Jody Morse and Jayme Morse ? Why or why not?

Most likely not...I like YA...but this is very very very YA....

Which scene was your favorite?

The End...

If this book were a movie would you go see it?

mmmmm maybe...this might transfer to screen nicely....screen plays are different...

Any additional comments?

** I was given this book for free in exchange for an honest review **First off...I love Meghan as a narrator...she is very nice to listen too...she speaks clearly, and reads at the perfect pace....she makes me laugh when its appropriate and I love how she gets very dramatic at times....I just wish she was given better material...because I absolutely adore her!!! I would put her up there with some of my ATF's Like Tavia Gilbert....I see good things to come for Meghan!

Howl is a young story...very YA...I usually love YA...but not so much this one..its repetitive...predictable...and just not for me...I do like Samara and Luke....they are super cute together...if you are a young person who like's werewolf stories, with sweet romance and lots of hi-jinks...you will like this story...The ending was cute, the pack is adorable...and I wish them the best...I don't think I will continue this series...but I see its potential...and if they have Meghan on board I think it will do well...

Thank You, Audiobookblast(dot)com

Great Start To A YA SERIES!!

Any additional comments?

I love Jayme & Jody Morse!! I've been a Fan of theirs for a LONG TIME!! I've watched them grow as authors & I CAN'T WAIT FOR THE REST OF THIS SERIES TO COME TO AUDIBLE!! Howl is a Good book it is a YA NOVEL IM TELLING YOU, THIS SERIES AS A WHOLE IS AMAZING!! I LOVE Samara & since I've already READ the series I know what's coming & I DO HOPE YOU ALL KEEP WITH THIS SERIES CAUSE IT DEFINITELY GETS REALLY GOOD!! I know there have been some PRETTY HARD CRITICS on AUDIBLE for this book... Idk why other then maybe the Cliffhanger!! But as I said the SERIES IS WORTH IT!!

Choosing

I enjoyed listening to this book. The story held my interest. Now I need the feast of the story.
I was given a copy and voluntarily leave this review.

Unable to get away from this book!

This was edge of my seat excitement! I couldn't put it down. The Overall description of Sam's feelings as she began to experience her new way of life made it feel as if the reader went through this themselves. An understanding of the life of a teen living in a rural setting with the added pressure of learning that everyone expected so much from her gave the story a sense of realism throughout.
The narrator made the story come alive by using the best tone of voice when depicting the various scenes. Excitement, wonderment and sarcasm were depicted through various sciences. Even the whiny, somewhat obnoxious voice of her best friend came across clearly in this narration.
I would definitely recommend this book to anyone, whether they enjoy this genre or are just looking for something new. It was simply that good.

Good story with more depth added to the characters

Would you listen to Howl: Howl, Book 1 again? Why?

Yes, I would listen to the book again because I feel like it is kind of like a good movie. It can be watched again and I'll probably pick up on more by listening to it a second time.

What other book might you compare Howl: Howl, Book 1 to and why?

Howl reminds me quite a bit of Heather Hildenbrand's Dirty Blood series. Beyond the obvious that they are both about werewolves, it also involves some personal discovery on the part of both the main characters. In addition, in this first book there are a lot of questions on the part of the reader (and the heroine) regarding what world they have just stepped into.

What does Meghan Kelly bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Meghan Kelly certainly provides more depth to the characters and made me feel more opinionated about them. I have actually read the books prior to listening to it and I can honestly say that Emma annoyed me so much more in this version than actually reading it. Kelly made Samara seem much more compassionate and caring than her voice sounded in my head too. Overall, I think Meghan Kelly's voice added life to the characters that was missing when I was the narrator.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

To pick one particular moment is pretty tough. I will say that when Samara discovered that she didn't have just one mate, and that one of them was her best friend and on a rival pack, I felt for her. Not only that, but her brother is also on that rival pack, I felt that she truly did have the weight of the world on her shoulders. It would be an impossible decision for an adult to make much less a girl so young.

Any additional comments?

My one critique is that sometimes the males voices were harder for me to believe. For example, when I first started listening, the male voices sometimes seemed silly sounding. Jason's character was the hardest for me to believe because his tone still sounded feminine despite him being (literally) an alpha male. As I listened further I got used to the male tones and it bothered me less.