Five Word Summary
Hilarious, jocular, enchanting, enthralling, perceptive.
For
- Fantasy lovers
- Lovers of humorous banter and comedic style
Blurb
A Land of Darkness drowns in despair.
It’s called My Office.
When I’m not typing manifests, I churn out fantasy books no-one reads.
Less Young Adult, more MAD: Middle Aged Disappointment.
So, when I’m gifted a magic book for Secret Santa, I can’t believe my luck.
One miserable ‘Once Upon a Time’ later and I’m marooned on a frozen mountain,
heaving with weirdos, biting each other’s throats.
The Snake’s oily,
The Eagle’s bald,
The Bear’s accident prone,
My ‘Handsome Prince’ is more cheesed off Wolf, busy scratching,
and
I’ve no idea who the Villain is (unless it’s me).
Worst of all…
I’ve no way home and the Mangy Wolf’s got the hots for me.
Growing old is no fairytale.
My Thoughts
I loved this book! In fact, I’d go as far as saying that A Wolf So Grim and Mangy is one of my favourite books of the year. It is written with such a fresh and enjoyable voice. The author is perceptive and empathetic and communicates with delightful prose and sharp description that is economical and vivid – the Holy Grail of writing! I giggled throughout the story and INSISTED my husband listen while I read a chapter out loud to him. For the record, he loved it too. More than this, though, the story is tight, and I turned pages, wanting to know what would happen next and how the story would end. I was not disappointed. There is also a lovely message of not judging or profiling people because of where they come from, the colour their skin, their age or gender. It subtle enough that it flows beautifully under the story.
We all know about MG (middle-grade) and YA (young-adult) and NA (New Adult) but this book has carved out a brand new age market – MA (middle-aged). I’d imagine youngsters might not quite get as much out of it as us more seasoned readers, but I’m sure anyone of any age (with the possible exception of young adult readers) would enjoy the delightful writing and story.
I highly recommend A Wolf So Grim and Mangy.
This was the first book I’ve read by Caroline Noe and there are no two ways about it – it will not be the last.
Cover
The cover is spot on, communicating the style and genre perfectly. It is also eye-catching. Congratulations to the cover designer – you nailed it!