The Wolf at the Door

The Big Bad Wolf Series, Book 1

De: Charlie Adhara

Narrado por: Erik Bloomquist

A former FBI agent is partnered with the enemy in this suspenseful male/male shifter romance from debut author Charlie Adhara.

Hunting for big bad wolves was never part of Agent Cooper Dayton's plan, but a werewolf attack lands him in the carefully guarded Bureau of Special Investigations. A new case comes with a new partner: ruggedly sexy werewolf Oliver Park.

Park is an agent of The Trust, a werewolf oversight organization working to ease escalating tensions with the BSI. But as far as Cooper's concerned, it's failing. As they investigate a series of mysterious deaths unlike anything they've seen, every bone in Cooper's body is suspicious of his new partner - even when Park proves himself as competent as he is utterly captivating.

When more people vanish, pressure to solve the case skyrockets. And though he'd resolved to keep things professional, Cooper's friction with Park soon erupts...into a physical need that can't be contained or controlled. But with a body count that's rising by the day, werewolves and humans are in equal danger. If Cooper and Park don't catch the killer soon, one - or both - of them could be the next to go.

Contains mature themes.

©2018 Charlie Adhara (P)2019 Tantor

Unusually great story / Unusually poor narration

TLDR: skip the audio book version and just get the Kindle version.

It's really a bummer how bad the narration is, because this story (and indeed this series) is _amazing_.

From other reviews I expected the narration to be too fast, but (as other reviewers commented) you can fix the speed by setting the playback between 0.9 and 0.95x. I did this and it did fix the speed.

Unfortunately there are other issues with the narration. The narrator barely uses any inflection (he sounds bored?) which was a bummer. But the real deal-breaker for me is there is no vocal difference between the narration and the dialogue, and within the dialogue there is no vocal difference between any of the characters (male or female).

I wasn't long into the audiobook before I was totally lost as to what was happening. I had picked up enough of the story and the author's style to realize the book was good, but I just couldn't follow it from the narration. So I bailed on the audiobook and got the kindle version, which I devoured.

Storyline is great. The dialogue is really cleaver. But what is really stood out to me is the tension/angst/chemistry between the two MCs is just... palpable. This was my first time reading Charlie Adhara, but it won't be my last. Can't wait to get the next book in this series! (But since the narrator is the same for the next book, I'll skip the audiobook and go directly to Kindle)

Good story

I like the narrator. The story was good. Nice character development. I Leaves you guessing

Great voice acting and amazing story

I've listened to the whole series like 4 time in 2024 alone. The VA I first found him a bit rushed, but throughout the series he grew to be more comfortable and does such a great job 🤭

Full of twists and turns

This story was great. Lots of plot twists so it really keeps you guessing. I thought I had it all figured out, but there were a few surprises in the final chapters that I really didn’t see. There were a lot of names and world building in this book so the audio got a little confusing to follow. The performance was fine, but the performance didn’t offer a notable difference between the two MCs voices. It got confusing. I had to buy the book to follow along.

This is the wolf series you need!

This is not a perfect book, or a perfect series. However, Adhara creates a wolf story that comes close to feeling real world, with characters on both sides that are easy to identify with. It doesn't take itself too seriously, like Wolfsong, or go beat the chest like KiKi Clark's The Alpha and His King. Instead, Adhara creates a world where the wolves have a parallel society, and struggle to keep rogue factions in line, just like regular old humans. When the two world connect, crazy things happen. Buckle up and enjoy the ride!

Blomquist is newer to me, but overall did a solid job. There are some moments where he misses the mark, he is at times a bit rushed, and has a slight nasal tone, but he has a huge cast of characters to cover. He generally navigates this material well. I can see why he turns some listeners off, but in my opinion, he sounds believable for Cooper and Oliver, and as the series progresses, he has more challenging characters that he handles quite well.

The story takes some time to get going, and having finished the series before writing the reviews, I can say that my initial thought that Oliver Park is the more interesting character played out over the course of the five books. Cooper is written as the challenging guy, the one who has more to offer than he thinks he does. He is supposed to be in awe that someone like Oliver, who is polished, educated and gorgeous, could care about him. However, time and time again, the heart of the books comes back to Park. Coopers insecurity is a constant issue for me.

The way Adhara writes the wolves, there is a touch of tongue in cheek that is often missing. Compared to the self important Wolfsong, Wolf at the Door is a breath of fresh air. Cooper is still healing from a wolf attack, something that unexpectedly propels him to a governmental department that secretly deals with wolf crimes. He is partnered with wolf Oliver Park for a special assignment, and test to see what it would be like for mixed partnerships in the department. We learn that Park works for a similar agency on the wolf side of things.

The working relationship is as slow to grow as the romantic one, but both are worthwhile endeavors. There are some quirks and twists along the way to keep you guessing. This is a smartly crafted world that sets up an interesting pair that we really get to know over the course of the series. Highly recommended!

I liked the premise of the story werewolf working with human partner

I don’t care for all the sex. I got a werewolf book for the werewolf

An excellent first novel

This is the author 's first novel, and it does an excellent job. I expect her future novels will improve

So good

I'm relistening to the series, and I forgot how good it was. Not a whole lot of sexy time, so if that's what you're looking for this isn't it. But if you're looking for a great romance with a really good storyline, this is a great choice.

Loved it!!!

Loved it. Couldn’t put it down⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Can’t wait to get the other books I. The series!!!

The perfect paranormal mystery romance

I've been trying to come up with a meaningful review, but I can only say that this book, along with the whole series, is the most perfect paranormal/urban fantasy/murder mystery I've read in a long while. I can only compare it to TJ Klune's Green Creek series, and just because of the wolves.

The Wolf at the Door is an exciting, angsty, suspenseful mystery with wolf shifters, a slightly awkward agent, and his temporary partner who happens to be a wolf shifter himself. The story is engaging and captivating. The characters are far from perfect but very, very lovable and fun. The mystery is definitely mysterious, and we are kept on our toes the whole time. The world building is slow, but it suits the story (throughout the whole series).

Copper might be one of my favourite main characters. He's a complex person with heavy and substantial baggage, a chip on his shoulder, and an urge to prove himself competent and useful. But he's also smart, quick-thinking, and a lot reckless. His interpersonal skills are not the best, and he's attmpts at romance need some work. Yet, I couldn't help but adore him.
Along with Oliver Park, his wolf shifter partner, they make an unlikely but very efficient (well, mostly) pair of investigators. Even though their friendship starts out haltingly because they're the first human-shifter partnership. And also because of Copper's mistrust, the bureau's mistreatment of wolves and their fledgling attraction.

Without spoiling anything, I just want to say that this is a really well-written book and series, and it's definitely on my regular re-read list.

The narrator took a little bit of getting used to, just because he's talking a bit faster than usual. However, I ended up liking him a lot.