With thanks to netgalley and Tanya lee

As a fan of dystopia fiction, The wolf and the rain didn't disappointment me but it didn't really float my boat either, an all right read.

Well written, while not my typical genre of reading I’m learning to expand and read new authors and new things!!

This is a fantasy story set in the future decimated by climate change, which has divided our continent in two. Both north and south are changed, but changed in different ways by the effects of climate change. Samarra, a very good soldier from the south, seeks to change her past by helping find girls that were taken from the north for reasons unknown. Samarra is sensitive but strong at the same time. For me the beginning of this book was slow and somewhat boring. As I continued to read, it got better and better. I would recommend it. I liked the story line, despite the slow start.
I would like to thank Netgalley, the publisher and the author for providing me with a review copy in exchange for my honest and unbiased opinion of it.

After Global warming has divided the continent, the South, though drought-stricken, is completely controlled by an administration that values uniformity and all for one ideology; and the North is a rainy, mud-filled free-for-all of complete, unregulated chaos.

We are introduced to Sam, a Southern soldier pretending to be a Northerner, although we are never told why or how she comes to be here. Through flash-backs we are able to see part of her early life in the South all the up until her training to defend the Southern territory. We come to her some time after she has installed herself into life in the North. After taking a liking to Ava, she learns that Ava’s daughter has gone missing. Her desire to find the truth about the girl’s disappearance takes us into the darkest places that the North has to offer, his seething underbelly and it’s slimy corruption.

Sam learns that although the she is miles away from her former life in the South, it has a long reach and the answer to the problem she is trying to solve in the North may lie in her past.

There was just enough missing from the flashback period to keep the reader wanting to have those gaps filled in. Who is Sam really? How did she come to be here? There was enough left open at the end to make for a good foundation on which to build a series.

Slow start. Seems i yawn every time i turn the page. I almost gave up. Its too boring. I can even imagine the scenes vividly in my head.

I enjoyed The Wolf and The Rain. Our heroine, Samarra (Sam) has a decent-paying job in a dangerous, dystopian world. She becomes obsessed with finding a missing person, Raina; this obsession brings her into increasing danger. Will she solve the mystery?

While I did like the book, it had a slow start for me. The dystopian world is so much unlike ours, and the two storylines, switching from the present day North narrative to the South narrative (which takes place in the past) was confusing at first. Nevertheless, by the end of the book, I was excited to read more to find out the answers to the mysteries that this book was uncovering. I was starting to get to know the characters better, and I found them to be likeable.

By the end of the book, you still don't fully discover the truth about Sam, although there will be a sequel, which I think would be interesting to read. You know that something happened, but don't know quite what.

I wish I could give this book 3 1/2 stars. The book was more interesting than a lot of the books that I give 3 star ratings to, but wasn't quite as compelling as most books I give four stars to. There were also some parts that I found confusing. Nevertheless, this book is good enough for me to want to find out more.

The wolf and the rain is set in a future where there is a North and South, one is a thriving, militant, and technologically advanced group.. The other is dirty, uneducated, and ruthless. Sam grows up learning to be the best soldier she can be, fighting and educated. Situations land her in the middle of an unfamiliar land, working as a drudge in the middle of a post apocalyptic nightmare. She tries to fit in and keep her real identity hidden while also trying to uncover the mystery of the missing girl whose position she filled. She makes friends along the way, but as she keeps being told, “you can’t trust a drudge”.

I was glued to every page and couldn’t put this book down until I knew what was going on! I can’t wait for the next book!

'The Wolf and the Rain' by Tanya Lee is a fantasy novel set in a dystopian world, whose counter-side (the positive side) has also been depicted in detail in the book, which is the first of many to be followed in this series.

The story is intriguing, especially the protagonist's upbringing which the author has described in excessive details throughout the length of the book. This does make the book a tad bit lengthy. It also makes one wonder if providing all those details were in fact necessary if this book alone was to be considered in isolation, but I assume this is done to set the stage for the next part of the story, which is expected to be based a lot in that world owing to how it ends in this book. Anyway, this is me speculating, not complaining. Needless to say, I am looking forward to the next part.

I was a bit disappointed after I'd finished reading the book since the blurb had me excited about the quirks and effects of global warming that the author would have perused to sew up the story, which I felt was missing to a greater extent. That being said, it may be more prominent in the upcoming books, since this one is just the beginning of an epic adventure. One can only wait to confirm the speculation.

I am sure the content of the book has been proof-read quite many times, but I'd urge the publisher and the author to give it another go or two before it goes for publishing, since I encountered a few mistakes here-and-there.

Lastly, I'd like to thank the author and the publisher for the ARC.

Verdict: Highly recommended.

I cannot wait to read the next book in this series. Sam, a girl living in the Barrow, finds herself working for a compound and hiding a large secret from her friends. She becomes committed to solving a disappearance that ultimately leads to multiple near death encounters. I could not put this book down once I started. This story is absolutely unique and so well written. Every character added many twists and turns to the story. By far, the most captivating part of this novel is the Sieren life. Sora has much more story to tell. The ending was a bit rushed and the dialogue jumped quickly, but it did not sway me from continuing. I thought the author did a spectacular job with sexual orientation in this novel. I absolutely recommend this book to anyone who enjoys dystopian novels and enjoys books like Oryx and Crake. There are several sudtles to this story and several of Atwood's classics.

The Wolf and the Rain
By Tanya Lee
IBPA
1 Oct 2018
Post date: 9/1/2018 (patreon.com/ironink)
9/16/2018 (ironinkservices.com)

Settings / Time Periods: An undefinable period in the future, at least several generations past “the Decline”, when environmental issues from global warming have caused cataclysmic damage and society has been completely remade. There is a bit of time jumping between chapters set in “the North” which are present time and “the South” which are a previous time in the main character’s life. The geographical area is not specified, but there are clues that it’s most likely in the area that was formerly the United States.

Point of View: 1st person

Main character: Sam (Samarra), a young woman with a secret in her past.

Is there a particular issue this book deals with? Many of the usual dystopian issues, but they are not the main focus of the story. There are repeating elements of trust and friendship throughout the story and they play a large role in the main character’s development.

What genres could this book be categorized in? There are aspects of adventure, and of mystery, and a bit of coming-of-age.

Is there violence in this book? Yes. Notable amounts. There is “standard” fighting, there is a rape without detail and multiple references to rape, there is abduction and human trafficking, a significant injury on-page, and more than one non-major character who enjoys harming women.

Is there romance in this book? There is no significant romance on-page. There are several relationship shown, including more than one same-gender pairing.

How to the characters view sexuality? Sex is a normal, natural part of life, and consent is notably observed several times on-page. Individually, characters represent a notable variety of attitudes towards sex and relationships.

Did you enjoy reading it? Yes. It’s better than a lot of first books I’ve read. I’m looking forward to the sequel to see what happens in the next stage of our heroine’s journey.

How does it rate on the tests? (link to tests description)
Bechdel? With flying colors.
Mako Mori? With flying colors.
Tauriel? With flying colors.
Racial Bechdel? By description, there are several races and mixes represented. But since race is only implicit in description and there isn’t notable description of several characters, there is no way to tell. Unsure at best, probably no.
Deggans? Passed.
Vito Russo? Passed.
Fridge? Not applicable.

Plot: All of the worst-case scenarios about global warming didn’t even touch on how bad it really happened. The South is a drought-stricken authoritarian regime, and the North is a wet, trash-filled chaos. Samarra is a Southern soldier hiding from a dark past in the Northern Barrow. She counts herself lucky to find work in a Compound, but must choose between the ghost of a missing woman and a chance at freedom.

Comments: It had a very slow start, and dragged a bit here and there. There were a few places where the violence was a bit hard to read. Overall, though, I did care about the main character and several secondary characters and enjoyed following their story. The time jumps (which I normally don’t care for) were not overly jarring. The South reminded me a bit of some of FM Busby’s stories about Total Welfare, and the extreme difference between the North and South was interesting. The ending was at a good break point, although I do wish a few more questions about Sam’s background could have been answered without having to wait for the sequel. I will be waiting to read the sequel as soon as it’s available!

Dystopian, apocalyptic novel... that alone is enough for at least a cursory read. There were moments of brief questioning but never really regret. Here is a book that straddles two worlds, that delves into disparate, cultures, characters and people, but still leaves us haunted by tantalizing mysteries. It's a Wall-E, garbage-encrusted world, infused with barbarity and inhumanity. Yet, it's still the story of a girl, her cat, and the haphazard misadventures that always lead her home...