The Half Wolf

By: Jay Northcote

Narrated by: Hamish Long

Length: 6 hrs and 38 mins

Publisher's summary

Mate, family, pack, home... Can Quinn and Kellan have it all?

Quinn grew up feeling out of place in the small town he calls home. Yearning for something he can’t name, he’s always felt different but never known why.

Kellan is part of a nomadic shifter pack. When they set up camp in the woods near Quinn’s town, the humans are unwelcoming and suspicious of the newcomers. The moment Kellan catches sight - and scent - of Quinn, he knows Quinn is special. But for the first time in his life, Kellan can’t trust his instincts. Quinn is human, and Kellan is a wolf shifter, so how can they ever be mates?

Their bond is instant and exhilarating. It breaks Quinn’s heart to know their relationship can only be temporary. Love isn’t enough when pack law forbids shifters to mate with humans. Tension explodes between pack and humans, and when Quinn discovers a shocking truth about himself that changes everything, he fears he’ll have to choose between the only life he’s ever known and the man he loves.

©2017 Jay Northcote (P)2021 Jay Northcote

another decent story made great by narrator

cute story. spoiler.
.sorta... the title gives the whole story away but the story's fun eben if completely predictable. I was very pleased we were presented the world as it was and there was no attempt to explain the origins... of course, Hamish Long's performance raised it by 2 stars. thanks.

Good listen

A good listen, narrator had a pleasant voice.
Story line was sweet and action filled, if at times somewhat predictable.

All over a good listen.

Hot MM Shifter Romance

After Quinn's parents die, one before he was born, one a few days after. He was raised by his Aunt. He helps run her shop in a small town where everyone knows everyone and thinks they know everything. Being gay in a small town is not easy. And to be honest it's kinda boring. So when a traveling pack of shifters show up right outside of town things start getting more interesting especially when Kellan walks into the shop.

All Kellan wants to do is help his pack in anyway he can. But people are still wary and speciesist about shifters. Finding a job in any town especially small ones is hard but it's harder in this specific one bc people have long memories about conflicts decades before where lots of shifters and humans died. Ever since as a rule shifters do not mate with humans. Even hooking up is frowned upon. But when Kellan enters Quinn's shop he's instantly intrigued. Quinn smells different than any shifter or human he's ever met. And after Quinn points him to the only person in town hiring who isn't prejudice against shifters Kellan can't seem to stay away from Quinn. His inner wolf loathes it when they kiss goodnight after their nightly swims and go their separate ways. And even though Kellan knows this all will have to end when his pack leaves, he still can't seem to stay away. But when a lone wolf is killing livestock and the pack is being blamed bc most of the town's people don't believe them, it looks like the pack's departure date is getting closer and closer.

Truths are reveled. Hope is restored and there might be a future between Quinn and Kellan after all.

Great listen!

This is such a great listen. Kellan and Quinn are such great characters and I love their story. These two are so cute together and the story is filled with action. Hamish Long really brings this story to life. It was so great to listen and I couldn't stop listening.

Highly recommend!

I loved this book. I think it was a great take on fated mates & shifters. It had a good mystery/whodunnit. Pretty hot sexy times. The narration was PERFECT. Hamish Long's voice is just so wonderfully delish.

Shifters in Wales!

I love this fresh take on shifters. The world building was well done, the strained relationship between humans and the werewolves. Kellan and Quinn are fascinating characters. The prevalence of bigotry and outright hatred for no reason than prejudicial bias towards shifters, it's well portrayed and actually mirrors current modern society, so there's a lesson to be learned from this story as well.
I wouldn't mind reading more from this small town and their residents, both humans and shifters. I'm hoping it becomes a series.
This is my first Hamish Long listen. He brought the story to life!

Wowza! Welsh Werewolves Woo

Welsh werewolves? A decades ago conflict between “shifters” and Humans has settled into an uneasy truce. Due to their genetics, shifters are humans-plus, but given their attitudes, tend to be secretive, insular, migratory and unwelcome in most “human” towns and villages. In this tale werewolf shifters are the modern day equivalent of gypsies.

Quinn, one of our main characters lives with his human aunt in a small Welsh village where he helps her run a news agent shop/convenience store. Quinn’s mom and dad both died long ago. He knows little about them, but he and his aunt Ruth get along quite happily – despite Quinn’s being the only out gay lad in the village. Quinn was outed as gay a few years back when caught “experimenting” with a school-mate.

But then a group of shifters arrive in the area. Quinn has always been a bit fascinated by the idea of shifters. He’s powerfully drawn to Kellan, a young shifter male, that he first spots skinny-dipping in the local quarry.

When Quinn forgets to take his “epilepsy meds” one day, and notices his senses seem to have improved. The story, and his fascination with Kellan, take a wild turn.

Ultimately this is just a book that tells a good story. Enough drama to keep it interesting, with a literal “big bad wolf” posing a real threat, and some small-town, small-minded, “shifterphobic” bigotry that made matters worse. But we’re dealing with basically good-hearted, if somewhat naive people. This has a happy ending that suggests that if we can come together and work toward the community good, things can get better.

I grew up with a mom who was bi-polar, so this story spoke to me on a whole different level as well. When I was young Mom had some episodes where she went off her meds, snared by the euphoria that the onset of a manic phase engenders. But things can quickly get out of control. Most of the time she felt that emotional stability was worth missing some of the elation that that impending mania engenders. Seeing the disruption that “slips” like this caused first hand, I could really sympathize with Quinn’s Aunt Ruth and her decision. And yet, seeing how Quinn was deprived of making that decision for himself, for as long as he was, did indeed feel unfair.


As with so many other Jay Northcote books, Hamish Long does the narration. He gives us great pacing and ably acted male and female voices. The distinctive Welsh accents were well done. There was just enough of that English verbal class distinction present as well.

Given that bigotry (and racism?) is such a factor in this story, the one accent that seemed just a bit off was the one “American southern” accent. That accent was attributed to Sam, a building contractor. It’s pretty clear from the text that he’s African-American. While his accent clearly sounded “American,” it had more of a creasotey “cowboy twang” of the west, rather than a molasses coated “southern” feel as suggested in the text. And while race isn’t always evident in an accent, it generally is a component. So much so that this mid-western born-and-raised “yank” has been surprised a few times to learn that a particular voice actor is black after hearing no clue in their vocals.

This low angst tale of first love is definitely a title that will make it into my frequent re-listen queue.
*** While this review is honest and entirely above board, I do want to disclose that I received a free copy of this title in hopes of an honest and interesting review ***

The Half Wolf

This was the first book I’ve listened to by this author and also my first time listening to the narrator. I throughly enjoyed the storyline and the different character voices. I felt immersed in this world and can’t wait to listen to more.

Good shifter story supported by a great narrator

I have a soft spot for well-written shifter stories and was happy to discover a reliably favorite author of mine had one I hadn’t read before. The Half Wolf delivered and was a good listen with a talented narrator. I love the easy rhythm the narrator has and how it matched the tone of the book, making The Half Wolf easy to get lost in.

This shifter story moves fairly quickly, but there's good development along the way so I was never frustrated or left wanting. I liked both characters and appreciated that the young men came across as “acting their age”—mature but a little impulsive and reckless at times. I also really liked how easy the romance between Kellan and Quinn is. Love at first sight is usually a negative for me, but I expect it a bit in shifter/paranormal romances and when it’s done as cleanly and openly as this book, it just works.

From the shifter universe standpoint, this world is not necessarily unique, but I did really like the way Quinn’s revelations come about. I wasn’t necessarily expecting some of it, and it only served to draw me further into the story.

If you are looking for a good shifter story with a moderate amount of action and a sweet, young love-style romance, The Half Wolf is definitely worth the listen.

Enjoyed Quinn and Kellan together

Hamish Long did an AMAZING job. I loved how emotional his tone got at the right times. I noticed a couple of times my heartbeat picked up at the excitement portrayed by Hamish Long. I was so into this story. It helps that Hamish Long has a nice recording voice and oh, that accent… I can’t get enough.

I really like Quinn and Kellan. Both were so sweet and I enjoyed the chemistry between the two. In the beginning my heart hurt for the two wondering if they could really be together if Quinn wasn’t a wolf, but then the slow changes start happening and I was hopeful. Though its obvious what’s going to happen with Quinn in the beginning of the story I still liked following his change.

There was something that confused me a little in this story and with the title, but its not enough to cause me to lower my star rating. I just have to assume I’m probably over thinking things. The story otherwise was really great and again I absolutely loved Hamish Long’s narration!!!