Wolf's Cub

By: Mackay Wood

Narrated by: Cameron Beierle

Length: 22 hrs and 32 mins

Publisher's Summary

The realm of Athgar is the frail relict of a once-great civilization that was torn apart by hatred between mage-born sorcerers and men. For nearly a thousand years, Athgar has held to the fading remnants of glory, keeping the Covenant of Mages at bay. Under the rule of the Wolf King, Alric, Athgar has begun once more to flourish. That is until marauding barbarian tribes called Halga invade from the sea. Now the barbarian war threatens the fragile stability King Alric brought to his land. To fight off the barbarian invasion the king has only his youngest son, sixteen-year-old Herric. But many of Alric’s lords mistrust Herric, believing him to be tainted with magic....

©2011 Books In Motion (P)2011 Books In Motion

Surprisingly good fantasy with great depth

This book is surprisingly good fantasy. It started off with a standard fantasy prologue about the history of the land; however, book proceeded to be a great listen. What is striking about the book is the competency of the king and the prince. Though with their own flaws, there is no complacency from the leadership of this realm It was refreshing to that a lot of books portray the leadership to be inept or in turmoil, here we have a situation where a country's complete might is in struggle against an enemy that is hell bent on destroying them. The king and prince are making doing their best to fight off the enemy while making tough choices.

The relationship between the king and prince is very interesting as well as the relationship between the prince and his bride. To me this is more realistic for that time and has the depth that normally we do not read.

Overall story itself seems pretty straight forward o the first book, but it is written and delivered expertly along with interesting twist of hostility with Mages. There is a lot of court intrigue as well as to keep things interesting throughout the book.

Cameron does a great job here again. All voices were distinct and clear. In fact, narration was quiet moving a lot of times.

I am picking up the second book in the series now : ) I recommend this book.

6 of 6 people found this review helpful

Characters you can identify with and cheer for!

I enjoyed this book very much. It was refreshing to read a fantasy title that doesn't try to
be the darkest, grittiest book yet. The main character is a good guy trying to do what he thinks is best, and I like that. His challenges are formidable. This book shows that being a prince who is heir to the throne is not necessarily desirable. Many of the characters had personalities that shone through - like the King's adviser or the squire. The climax was well done, and I really wasn't sure of the outcome. There is political intrigue, some magic, and some battle, and even a sweet love story. On the negative side, I thought there was too much explanation at the beginning - better to just jump into the story. In conclusion, I am very happy with the purchase. It provided many hours of listening pleasure I am definitely going to be looking for other books by this author!

3 of 3 people found this review helpful

Enjoyable Listen

Have you listened to any of Cameron Beierle’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

Enjoyed the readers voices

Any additional comments?

The Hero and Herione was well created with the interlacing of a love story during a war, was well developed. I enjoyed this story and will be glad when and if a sequal is written.

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

Unexpected Enjoyment

Would you listen to Wolf's Cub again? Why?

Yes, the characters were well developed and very believable. I like the narrator even if his female voices are not his strongest point.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Wolf's Cub?

Climax of book was well done.

What about Cameron Beierle’s performance did you like?

His male voices are very good and consistently portrayed throughout the book. His female voices are not as good but still not a problem to me.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes.

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

Excellent Story

I'm very surprised at this tale. I've never seen it make any of the lists folks create around best books. The passion, fear, love and even pain portrayed by the characters I felt. While the story spans years and much of it was in war I never felt the story lagged. The narrator was how I found this book as I'd enjoyed other performances of his. The performance of this audio book was excellent.

Did I listen to this book for a thousand years?

What did you like best about Wolf's Cub? What did you like least?

The world building and his magic system had a ton of potential that felt unfinished. I can understand and appreciate a slow build for these two subjects. The story "I felt" needed a more solid base of magic and world building for it to stand out from other epic fantasy books.

The thing I disliked the most... Hands down the narration of the girls voice. Princess Elaine

What was one of the most memorable moments of Wolf's Cub?

Prince Herric's fight at the near end. It was written well and was pretty exciting.

What aspect of Cameron Beierle’s performance would you have changed?

He did ok. As i said, his little girl voice just just so very annoying.

Do you think Wolf's Cub needs a follow-up book? Why or why not?

Not for me. Some others seemed to enjoy the book. I just have so much to read. I was hoping to find a gem but I did not.

Any additional comments?

Generally I would say skip or read on a book. But I am up in the air on this one. It was ok and a bit long for what it was. I did feel relief when the book finally ended.
Also I think the book might have been a little better with a different Narrator.

Surprisingly good fantasy with great depth

This book is surprisingly good fantasy. It started off with a standard fantasy prologue about the history of the land; however, book proceeded to be a great listen. What is striking about the book is the competency of the king and the prince. Though with their own flaws, there is no complacency from the leadership of this realm It was refreshing to that a lot of books portray the leadership to be inept or in turmoil, here we have a situation where a country's complete might is in struggle against an enemy that is hell bent on destroying them. The king and prince are making doing their best to fight off the enemy while making tough choices.

The relationship between the king and prince is very interesting as well as the relationship between the prince and his bride. To me this is more realistic for that time and has the depth that normally we do not read.

Overall story itself seems pretty straight forward o the first book, but it is written and delivered expertly along with interesting twist of hostility with Mages. There is a lot of court intrigue as well as to keep things interesting throughout the book.

Cameron does a great job here again. All voices were distinct and clear. In fact, narration was quiet moving a lot of times.

I am picking up the second book in the series now : ) I recommend this book.

6 of 6 people found this review helpful

Characters you can identify with and cheer for!

I enjoyed this book very much. It was refreshing to read a fantasy title that doesn't try to
be the darkest, grittiest book yet. The main character is a good guy trying to do what he thinks is best, and I like that. His challenges are formidable. This book shows that being a prince who is heir to the throne is not necessarily desirable. Many of the characters had personalities that shone through - like the King's adviser or the squire. The climax was well done, and I really wasn't sure of the outcome. There is political intrigue, some magic, and some battle, and even a sweet love story. On the negative side, I thought there was too much explanation at the beginning - better to just jump into the story. In conclusion, I am very happy with the purchase. It provided many hours of listening pleasure I am definitely going to be looking for other books by this author!

3 of 3 people found this review helpful

Enjoyable Listen

Have you listened to any of Cameron Beierle’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

Enjoyed the readers voices

Any additional comments?

The Hero and Herione was well created with the interlacing of a love story during a war, was well developed. I enjoyed this story and will be glad when and if a sequal is written.

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

Unexpected Enjoyment

Would you listen to Wolf's Cub again? Why?

Yes, the characters were well developed and very believable. I like the narrator even if his female voices are not his strongest point.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Wolf's Cub?

Climax of book was well done.

What about Cameron Beierle’s performance did you like?

His male voices are very good and consistently portrayed throughout the book. His female voices are not as good but still not a problem to me.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes.

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

Excellent Story

I'm very surprised at this tale. I've never seen it make any of the lists folks create around best books. The passion, fear, love and even pain portrayed by the characters I felt. While the story spans years and much of it was in war I never felt the story lagged. The narrator was how I found this book as I'd enjoyed other performances of his. The performance of this audio book was excellent.

Did I listen to this book for a thousand years?

What did you like best about Wolf's Cub? What did you like least?

The world building and his magic system had a ton of potential that felt unfinished. I can understand and appreciate a slow build for these two subjects. The story "I felt" needed a more solid base of magic and world building for it to stand out from other epic fantasy books.

The thing I disliked the most... Hands down the narration of the girls voice. Princess Elaine

What was one of the most memorable moments of Wolf's Cub?

Prince Herric's fight at the near end. It was written well and was pretty exciting.

What aspect of Cameron Beierle’s performance would you have changed?

He did ok. As i said, his little girl voice just just so very annoying.

Do you think Wolf's Cub needs a follow-up book? Why or why not?

Not for me. Some others seemed to enjoy the book. I just have so much to read. I was hoping to find a gem but I did not.

Any additional comments?

Generally I would say skip or read on a book. But I am up in the air on this one. It was ok and a bit long for what it was. I did feel relief when the book finally ended.
Also I think the book might have been a little better with a different Narrator.