Disclaimer: I got this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Okay, so I absolutely loved this!! This is a retelling and it’s a lot darker. The protagonist, Adele comes from a generation of women who can turn into wolves! They have to protect their village and the village people are not allowed to know about their existence. This book was so good and it’s pretty fast-paced so I highly recommend it!!

There is a LOT packed into this book--hereditary werewolf revelations, hidden betrothals, a love triangle, a mysterious forest that talks to people, and village people who are liable to burn their protectors at the stake for witchcraft. This isn't even accounting for the last half of the book, which is just WHOA crazy.

I was not immediately drawn in by the writing--it felt a little too juvenile for the dark, gritty retelling it was trying to paint. The plot itself, with Adele having no inkling of what she is and getting thrust into her destiny as a village protector led to infodumps. Her choice of boys kind of gets lost in the last half of the book, when the werewolf story really gets into gear, leaving her with a chaotic choice: kill werewolf children or...abandon them in the woods. It seems like a ridiculous choice on it's face, but it gets weirder!

Ultimately, I was a little confused about the novel's decisions where it concerns Adele--talked up as the only thing protecting the townspeople from the woods, when really it's more interested in what she'll do to protect herself and what she loves, which are two very different things. That isn't fully explored, and mostly seems brushed off in the end. The woods aren't fully explored much, either--the thing causing all of this chaos.

In any case, I was fully expecting this to be the first in a duology, but I think it's a stand-alone, and that's, I think, fine. That's fine.

First: The cover is amazing, second: its a about a creepy forest; third this a dark retelling about Red Riding Hood. Is everything I want.

On the edge of a forest full of creatures and danger, Adele lives with her family, every full moon she goes into the forest to visit her grandmother, who lives in the cabin surrounded by monsters.
When Adele turns 16, her grandmother shared her a secret, the women in her family possess magical skills and are trained to fight the creatures of the forest, including the great big bad wolf, the most powerful beast of all.
Adele's life will take a turn that she did not expect, she needs to guard her secret, no one can know, including her sweetheart, he is a guard and swore to protect the village of paranormal creatures, Adele's family does not think he will react well when he finds out about Adele's abilities and want other future for her.
But when danger comes to town, Adele will face a moral dilemma, keep her secret or protect everyone's safety.

This is page turner, and its full with action. At the middle the story takes some twist, and you only want to know what will be happens, the end I feel was rush, but this is a good retelling, Adele is a nice protagonist, but I prefer the secondary characters. I like the forest creatures and the myths behind the werewolf and beast. This was so entertaining, a new perspective about a classic tale.

This had me in the middle third, not gonna lie.

Me at the beginning: This seems like a pretty basic concept and I don't even like werewolves at all.

Me in the middle: Ooh, okay this is interesting. This mess the kids are in is tense, and I feel for Adele's inner conflicts.

Me at the end: lol WHAT

There's obvious Red Riding Hood homages going on here, but at the core of it this is a "cursed wood" story. You know, when the forest corrupts people, spawns monsters, has an agenda and a mind of its own, and constantly encroaches on everything around it.

Adele finds out when she's sixteen that she is one of a long line of women with special werewolf powers, whose destiny is to protect small French villages from the evil forest and the monsters within. At the beginning, her constant shock and befuddlement at the turn her life takes gets a little annoying. There is sort of a love triangle later on, but it's actually NOT annoying.

Then, the ending goes totally off the wall nutso.

There's a theme present throughout the book of Adele coming to grips with the hard choices she has to make as village protector. Is it mercy to spare the infected, or kill them before they can infect more people? Is it more vital to keep her own secrets, thus allowing her to protect more down the line, or help one person right now? "It takes a monster" to be a guardian, she is told.

At the end, "being a monster" takes the form of, instead of being the one willing to kill monsters and the infected, being willing to seemingly off as many random members of her village as it takes to keep her own secrets. She does something dumb, and puts herself in the position of killing like three innocents and maiming another in order to protect two of the infected.

I get how everything cascaded to that point, and it seems like Adele might even be right about whitewulfs not being inherently evil. But it DEFINITELY seems like she made a wild, impulsive choice without really thinking it through. It also strikes a jarring, awkward note for the story to end with her putting crossbow bolts through her own hapless friends, who just came looking to see if she was okay.

More of a "what was THAT mess?" feeling, rather than an empowering crescendo.

I thought this was a very imaginative take on Little Red Riding Hood. Adele was a likeable character and the situations and decisions she makes are really nuanced. I did not love the situation with Grainger. Their interaction through the story just didn't feel complete to me. I would have liked to see more progression, so that the ending didn't feel like such a sudden turn. Adele also had to make a lot of difficult decisions and some that she made really irked me. I feel like she did exactly to Grainger what she feared would be done to her. I get her reasoning, but I still don't like it.

Overall though, I really enjoyed this book. It was a very fast paced and interesting read. It was pretty dark, but intriguing, all the same. I was fond of the author's writing style and it made it easy to read through this one quickly.

Given the ending, I'm really hoping this a series and not a standalone!

Red Wolf has been one of my favorite reads of the year so far. I did feel that the middle could have moved a bit quicker but I was not expecting the twists and turns that the end of the book brought and that more than made up for it! I would have also loved to see more of Adele in her wolf form. The end was abrupt but left me wanting more of these characters and this world - I hope we see more of this setting in the future if not a direct follow-up!

There are A LOT of Little Red Riding Hood retellings out there. This one stood out to me.
Adele has plans of marrying her childhood sweetheart, working in her mother's bakery, and raising her children next door to her best friend. But all that gets turned upside down when she discovers a different fate awaits her.
Adele must learn to make difficult decisions-protect the village or her family?
This book digs into what makes a monster?
It is dark and somewhat unexpected.
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an early copy for review.

Deliciously dark and imaginative, Red Wolf was unexpected. Fast paced, entirely enchanting, and more than anything else, it had me hooked. I couldn't turn the pages fast enough. There were times I held my breath, sigh in relief and gasped in shock. I truly couldn't of asked for a better read. It had all the classic feel to the original story and all the twists and turns I love in a truly well thought out story that will stand out and stand all on it's own.

Thank you so much NetGalley for the eARC!

I cannot begin to express my feelings for this stunning book! I was hooked from the very beginning to the end. I was not at all dissappointed by reading this. I loved reading Adele's journey to accepting herself and doing all she can to protect her village and family. I really loved this retelling! But oh my what was that ending? It killed me!
4 stars for this gorgeous book!💖

I'm conflicted on this book. I loved the writing and the concept was unique, new, and exciting but overall it fell flat for me at the end. Adele was an incredibly strong heroine and one that I wanted to root for, but near the end, her decisions were not ones I could get behind. She claimed to have spent her entire life loving Grainger but what she let happen to him felt inexcusable. I get what the book was trying to say about making tough choices and at times having to be a monster, but I felt like she let that side of her make too many decisions and ultimately ended up hurting the village more than she was protecting it.

So overall my rating is based on the fact that this book was interesting and unique, but ultimately left me with a bad taste in my mouth.

This retelling of Little Red Riding Hood has a twist, what if the main character was also connected to the Big Bad Wolf? Vincent does an incredible job of retelling a familiar tale but keeping it fresh enough to warrant its own novel.

Adele's family has a reputation in her village. Her family is whispered about because of their red hair, and their matriarch Emmaline's preference to live in the Dark Wood instead of in town. Everyone knows the Dark Wood is full of monsters and predatory vegetation. Surely only a witch would live in such a horrible place?

Adele has her entire life planned out: a marriage to Grainger, and living next door to her best friend Elena. Little does she know, one fateful trip to her grandmother's house will change her life forever.

What if the Big Bad Wolf wasn't who you thought? What makes a wolf bad?

All of these questions are explored in Red Wolf. While, understandably as a retelling, this book is stand alone, I was left hoping for a sequel.

The only critique I can provide is I found Adele's choices to be questionable and at times almost irritating, but what 16 year old girl hasn't made questionable choices?

Once upon a time, there was a little girl who walked through the dark woods to grandmother's house. Oh, you've heard this story before? I guarantee you haven't heard this version of the story, for you see—in this story, the little girl is the wolf.

This was such a lush and spellbinding version of Little Red Riding Hood. A dark, deep wood encompasses the village, barely kept at bay by those who live there. Only the careful eye of the watch who stand guard with torches keep the threatening woods from encroaching further, or so they believe. There's another watcher in the woods, however. Adele thought she has her life all planned out until she discovers her true fate and everything she thought she knew changes overnight. Thrilling, pulse-pounding danger awaits Adele in the woods and she is uniquely equipped to meet it. Risks and uncertainly await Adele every day and she's forced to make decisions that change her destiny and those of the villagers.

Blood and savagery are about and it's not only the wood's monsters who are fearfully made. Rachel Vincent has crafted an environment where deviating from the norm is dangerous, and where secrets must be kept to survive. This is witch-burning territory and it only takes a word to incite the villagers viciously into action. Like the dark woods, Vincent's world is perilous and full of wonder. This is a tale of fur and teeth, haunting and harrowing.

As a result of my various committee appointments and commitments I am unable to disclose my personal thoughts on this title at this time. Please see my star rating for a general overview of how I felt about this title. Additionally, you may check my GoodReads for additional information on what thoughts I’m able to share publicly. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to read this and any other titles you are in charge of.

I wasn't quite sure what to expect from this book--the beginning was a little simple (girl turns 16 and finds out she has a secret destiny oh nooo) and the red riding hood tie-in a bit obvious, so I had reservations about where it was going to go. But as it went on, I found myself pleasantly surprised by the nuance of the decisions Adele was grappling with. It was much darker than I expected it to be, though the reason I rated it three stars (probably closer to 3.5 really) instead of 4 is that Adele's morality felt a little confused. She forgets about Grainger very easily once it's clear he's not going to forgive her, and she bends over backwards to save the pups but doesn't worry too much about the realization that she's going to have to kill townspeople to protect their secret. Which it IS a complicated issue and there ISN'T really a right answer, which I like, but I wanted her to grapple a little more with if she really was doing the right thing saving the pups.

Overall, an easy, enjoyable read! There were some questions with the world left unanswered, but with this kind of story, I think that's okay. The cast of characters were all distinct and interesting, which I can always appreciate. Left me wanting some apple tart though.

A fantastic book by a very imaginative author who has transformed the tale of Little Red Riding Hood into an amazing retelling! I was totally immersed in this story and could not put it down. It was full of adventure and it was very unpredictable. Whenever I thought I knew what was going to happen, the author tricked me and kept me interested and intrigued. The book is exceptionally well written and the characters felt realistic and alive on the pages. I love a good book with a strong female lead and although there were some elements of romance, it is not the main theme and does not overshadow the action of the story. If you have previously enjoyed books by Kelley Armstrong, I would highly recommend this author.

<i>*This book was given to me by NetGalley in return for an honest review*</i>

Can we take a moment to appreciate that cover?! I expected this retelling to be more along the lines of Red Riding Hood falls for a boy who turns out to be the wolf. But Vincent took a different turn with this and I found it to be surprisingly creepy. I would have loved more spooky forest time vs. love triangle and had a hard time with the main character, but overall enjoyed it. If you love retellings, you'll need to read this one!

4.5/5 stars - to be published July 2021.

I really, really enjoyed this book. Red Wolf is a play on the traditional Red Riding Hood Story - but in this one not all wolfs are the monsters. Adele is a guardian, meant to protect her village from the ever encroaching dark woods that threaten to take over the time as well as the monsters that dwell within. The book is dark and spins a tale of spreading paranoia, internal battles of what is right and wrong, and who the true monsters really are. This book is great for anyone who enjoys retellings or a good suspense novel.

Really fun for me to read. I don't know if it is for everyone but as someone who does not typically read YA/middlegrade I found this story engaging, emotionally enthralling and enjoyable. Would like to see this in the format of a graphic novel. Thanks to netgalley and the publisher!

In Oakvale, a town surrounded by a menacing forest, Adele is both Little Red and the wolf. Awakened as a guardian werewolf on her sixteenth birthday, Adele is tasked with protecting her town at all costs—and the costs are great. In quick succession, she learns that she is a werewolf, that she can never tell the boy she loves, and that she is betrothed to a man she’s never met. Red Wolf could be a typical fairy tale retelling, but it isn’t, because Adele’s challenges not about who she’ll end up with but rather about who she will be.

Adele’s first choice seems simple. Stay on the path or go into the woods where she hears a crying child. There are some mitigating circumstances. The woods make you hear things that aren’t there, and everyone knows never to leave the path. Still, it’s a simple choice, and Adele brings Tom, a non-speaking child, into the town.

The second choice is much more complicated, as most matters of the heart are. Adele has to choose between Grainger, the boy she’s loved all her life, and Max, her betrothed. Grainger is a watchman who protects Oakvale from wolves, witchery, and monsters, but can’t be trusted with her truth, while Max already knows and could share in her destiny but is from Ashborne and expects to live there. It’s a big choice, but it isn’t the center of the story.

The third choice, however. The third choice is the crux of the matter. When Adele’s family discovers that Tom is actually a whitewulf—a bad werewolf—who has infected Romy, a young girl, Adele has to decide who she’ll protect. Will she obey her mother’s and grandmother’s advice to kill the whitewulves and save the town, or will she protect the children who haven’t killed anyone yet? And when Grainger shoots one of them, Adele will also have to choose between starting a wolf witch hunt with the truth or betraying him with lies.

No choice is easy, but Rachel Vincent has outdone herself. Red Wolf is a fantastic read.

I received this ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest and voluntary review. I was in no way compensated for this review.

Rachel Vincent brings us a dark new twist on the beloved Little Red Riding Hood fairy tale with Red Wolf! If you’ve ever read a Rachel Vincent book, you know she excels at the shifter character and I was eager for her take on the classic fairy tale with a twist!

Not all fairy tales end happily ever after. Adele knows that more than anything, having lived her life in her little village of Oakvale surrounded by a dark and evil forest, she never expected much out of life. Perhaps marry Grainger, her childhood love, but then she learns of her family’s dark secret and what it means for her and her future.

Adele comes from a line of redwulfs, loup garou, or the standard werewolf. Her family is sworn to protect the village of Oakvale from the dark creatures from the forest around them, except, if the town were to know of their true nature, they would kill that which protects them. The town is very superstitious and doesn’t like anything to do with dark magic. In fact, Adele’s father was burned at the stake after her suffered a bite from a werewolf.

But that’s not all that turns Adele’s world upside down, her mother informs her shortly after her first change that her betrothed is on his way to meet her. All of Adele’s plans for her life are suddenly falling apart. Now she has two suitors vying for her hand, she has to keep her dual nature a secret from her younger sister, her friends, her lover, everyone or risk certain death.

This book, was just amazing! I love a good fairy tale retelling and this one, while not quite a Little Red Riding Hood story does contain some of the same elements, a girl, the woods, a wolf, a red cloak, a grandmother who lives deep in the forest. This book has all the makings of a modern day Grimm fairy tale for sure. It’s dark, gritty and will have you on the edge of your seat.

I lamented what Adele was going through. Not only does she have to adapt to her new nature and keep it a secret from the ones she loves most, but she’s thrown into an impossible love triangle. To be with the one she longs for, Grainger, who knows nothing of her family history, or settle for her betrothed, Max, who knows everything about her family secrets and isn’t too bad of a guy either. Though Adele has herself a love predicament, it doesn’t take over the story as much as I thought it would and honestly, as the story moved forward, you start to see who the victor will be long before Adele does. I’m still left feeling conflicted over everything that happened romance wise, but again, since it wasn’t a focal part of the story, I am not overly torn up about it.

The pacing of the story was somewhere in between fast paced and well-paced. I wouldn’t call it slow, but there are definitely moments where you wonder where the grand finale is headed. This is a standalone novel and yet it ends in a way that leaves you craving for more, but could be satisfied by the lack of more. It was a riveting tale of a girl finding out her identity and accepting the fate life has dealt her. Its ending is sure to leave you a bit shell-shocked.

Red Wolf was the Little Red Riding Hood retelling I didn’t know I longed for. It is the perfect standalone read for all werewolf fans to devour in one sitting. The blend of fantasy and fairy tale likeness made it a most enjoyable read and I would eagerly devour another retelling should Rachel go down that path! There is nothing I wouldn’t read from this lady!


Overall Rating 5/5 stars


Red Wolf release July 20, 2021