This is actually book 2 in a series; I didn't know that when I read it, and to be honest, I don't think it took away from the story not know what happened in The Passion.

Definitely much deeper - more serious - than books I usually enjoy, but I did enjoy this one. I listened to the Book on CD and the reader was fantastic! His voice reminded me of James Earl Jones - very deep and foreboding.

Recommend to those who enjoy family sagas... well, werewolf families, that is. ( )

This book has absolutely nothing to tell about the plot, who was behind it, what its goal was or the consequences of lifting the anti-human killing ban. There is no information about any of those things except in a sketchy way that just basically says that these things happened and that’s that. I sort of remember what happened in the last book and virtually no information was added to that knowledge by reading this book. Very disappointing.

This is almost completely the text of the mysterious family diary that Nicholas must read. Except that he doesn’t read it. He has it read to him by a lowly human who has rescued him from a helicopter crash and is nursing him back to health. Nicholas is resentful and ungrateful throughout. But he listens because he has nothing else to do while caged up.

The book chronicles the life of the ½ breed that was found at the end of the last book. Brianna (what a ridiculous name) is found with her parents, Alexander’s brother and his human companion (exile). The birth was too much for the mother and she died. Alexander and the brother fought and Alexander killed his brother. They take the brat to raise. Why no one could smell the human blood in her is beyond me. All the bragging about superior intellects and senses was bullshit because her not changing into a wolf and smelling like a human didn’t trigger anything in them. So much for superiority.

Eventually it is discovered (actually, Brianna shows them on purpose) that she cannot change and they kick her out of the pack. She runs to the world of humans where she is a prodigy rather than just an average werewolf. She is a celebrity but can’t get rid of her love for her brother Matise. It’s sick the way it’s described, like a bad romance novel. How much higher and truer and more spiritual the love between werewolves is and how puny and pale in comparison is the love between humans. Puke.

Eventually, one of her only werewolf buddies thinks she has a cure for what ails Brianna. But she can’t find her. You see, in a fit of rage and jealousy (two things that the werewolves seem to always be in and have no control over, some superiority again huh?) Matise killed Brianna’s human lover/fiancée. Of course, we know that they aren’t really brother and sister and despite the fact that there’s some chemical reason that true brothers and sisters can’t be sexually aroused by each other, these two only figure that out when they are told by Alexander. Morons. In a fit of sorrow and self-pity, Brianna goes into self-imposed exile. A super secret retreat of the werewolves is available to her but no one else knows where it is or how contact her (what??). When this friend finds Matise and tells him that she thinks she can “cure” her, Matise pulls some strings and finds her.

They draw her blood and immediately smell the human in it. It freaks them all out and there is uncontrolled changing and anger (again, such superiority). In a fit of rage and humiliation, Brianna finally manages to change. And I guess she and Matise screw like mad because she gets pregnant and has a quadroon for lack of a better term. This brat must be hidden from everyone and it’s all the harder because now Brianna can’t change back (duh).

In the end, Nicholas is “rescued” by Matise who has been hiding with Brianna and a few stragglers in Alaska. When the human woman follows them and kills an attacking wolf bent on killing Nicholas, she is gored to death (so much for using that superior intellect and thinking before one acts). Nicholas is pissed because she killed the spy in their midst who killed everyone at the lab where the newest brat was being held and studied by us lowly humans. But his edict was read to the pack and now apparently, they’re killing humans willy nilly. This is never explained.

For such an arrogant race, completely convinced of their superiority, there is little example of it. They have no restraint, no forethought and no dominance on the planet. If they were really so superior, why do they have to hide all the time? Why not come out and rule if that’s what they think they ought to do? Instead, they spend all their time concealing their true identities and spending almost all their time in “human” form. Why even call it that if they are so superior? Why spend so much time that way? It makes no sense. ( )

The fantastic sequel to "The Passion", this book explains the history of werewolves. Fans of supernatural fiction will love this. It's a beautifully written, suspenseful novel. ( )

A pleasure to read! One of the best books on the history/ lore of shapeshifting werewolves. Beautifully written. It can stand alone, but reading the first book (The Passion) may help in understanding some background information. ( )