The world building was so authentic and hit all the things I would want for a sci-fi landscape. A far off planet long after ‘Old Earth’ has seen its days. Ruled by corrupt authorities bent on greed and technology. And MC that is both new and old. Trying to navigate the prejudices of her heritage. Growing exponentially as a human both emotionally and and physically. Everything was here. I thoroughly enjoyed the relationships forged. I adores the adventure and seemingly impossible obstacles that were confronted. I was hooked from the beginning. The writing is so fluid and captivating that I never had a moment where I didn’t want to know what would happen next.

I went into this book completely blind, which to be honest is not unusual for me. I’m chronically signing up for books without reading any form of summaries beforehand. While it may be one of my personal flaws, it’s always rewarding when I pick up a book like this and end up completely surprised by how much I enjoyed it. Right from page one this story is action packed- and of course it is. It’s a sci-fi story set in a harsh environment where everything and everyone is trying to kill our MC. That being said, there’s still small moments between the action that allow for a story of found family and character growth to be uncovered. I loved the bond that formed between Sena and Iska, and I am ALWAYS down for the formation of a girl gang. I know how difficult it can be to form such bonds over the course of a single novel and have it still feel natural and unforced, but it was executed beautifully here.
I enjoyed all of the character types in the novel- even down to the a**hole gang boss- though I would have loved to see Temur incorporated more into the story, it seemed like he was going to be very important in the beginning but just sort of faded away. The way the world building was presented was uncomplicated and immediately made sense to me and I was never left feeling confused.
Content warnings for animal abuse if you’re very sensitive to this is important to mention, as well (but I think is dealt with in the story well). I really recommend this book to anyone who is interested in sci-fi, but has previously struggled reading it or is intimidated by it. I’m a huge Star Wars fan and this story made me very happy with the Hoth like planet, space gangs, and corrupted ‘government’. The only cons I can think to mention are ones that I see often in standalones, and I think is mostly natural for me to feel about them at this point- in that I wanted more. I would love to see more of this world even if it were from a different character’s standpoint! I’m also a sucker for romance, so would have been happy if that was included but also acknowledge that it isn’t necessary for a story to be good, so I didn’t let that impact my rating!
In the end, though, I loved this story and it got me through a very long plane ride.

I adored the setting and world building in this book. The main character felt incredibly multifaceted and multidimensional. I longed for a little more romance within this story but loved the pacing and action.

This was pitched as like a ice planet iditarod meets Mad Max: Fury Road. Sounds great and exciting right? And it is… after the 55% mark when the race actually starts. With a main character who is constantly out to prove how badass she is and with side characters that are trying too hard to be lovable and quirky this whole thing fell pretty flat for me. And I love quirky characters. For me at least, most of the problems can all go back to the pacing of the book.

If the first half of the book had been consolidated into maybe 25%, it may have helped. The whole thing is packed full of constant action, but before the 55% mark it just feels like drama for the sake of drama. The author is trying to elevate the stakes and make the reader sit constantly on edge, but I just got tired of it. There’s also a lot of world-building with a side of info dumping. I didn’t feel connected to any of the characters enough for this drama to keep me interested for any length of time.

Most of the revelations about Sena’s “found family” all happened after they set out on the trail giving them extra depth a little too late for the reader to really care about them. I’m a character first reader, if I felt attached to any of these characters I could have excused a lot, but I didn’t care about any of them. Maybe Iska, but I have a soft spot for puppies. The rest of the characters can all get eaten by an osak bear.

Overall, I would recommend this for people who like non-stop action and don’t care as much about character development. Readers who are just in love with the concept may still enjoy it more than I did. Readers who love animal side-kicks and female main characters that are “hard.” I would be willing to check out another Meg Long book in the future, but if this turns into a series I am definitely not continuing with it.

Cold the Night, Fast the Wolves was very cold in terms of description and very fast in terms of plot. I flew through this one! It was so good and the stakes were incredibly high. The main character was super cunning and smart and I really loved the flow of this one. My main complaint is that the cold setting really threw me off to the point where I could not continue reading without having to be bundled in a cozy sweater, under a blanket with a hot cup of tea. Meg Long is definitely a force to be reckoned with and I cannot wait for what she writes next!

Apparently everything in this frozen world wants to straight up eat you or kill you, and I'm okay with that.

Thank you so much to Raincoast Books for the early copy!

In the Ket, the only thing that matters is money and corporate greed. Every year, teams of racers set off across the dangerous tundra to reach the valuable mineral deposits that will help build ships and the like. After both her mothers died in the same race five years before, Sena has sworn she'll have nothing to do with it. She's too busy stealing and cheating to make enough money to get off this damn frozen planet. After getting one over on a powerful gangster and accidentally stealing his prized fighting wolf, suddenly joining the race with several scientists is the only way Sena may find safety for her and Iska. Which is ironic, since everything that lives out on the snow will kill them in two seconds flat too.

Let's get my negative thoughts out of the way quickly. One, I did not care for the first 80 pages or so. It was rather slow and felt like a poor introduction to both this frozen world and Sena. Two, the writing style took a long time to get used to because simply put, there is zero flash. I would have loved to see some more embellishment to better paint so many of the scenes we get. Three, the ending isn't what I hoped for, even if it was satisfactory.

Okay, onto the good stuff! This was truly an incredible and highly unique book with high stakes and the very definition of high-octane action. Once things kick off, they almost never slow down, so you better be ready for an intense read in this snowy and ruthless world. The Ket is a bleak place, divided into those who work for the Corporate Assembly, and those who live under their thumb, or the crime syndicates' thumbs. Because of the intense storms that ravage the world, most technology doesn't work. There are entire graveyards of ships that crashed across the planet because their systems shutdown. This is what makes the race so crucial to access the huge deposits of valuable exocarbon hundreds of miles away. Teams train all year with their sleds and wolves to cross the frozen tundra, and hopefully survive the trip.

As I mentioned, Sena was a bit of a hard pill to swallow in the beginning. Her attitude rubbed me in an unpleasant way, and it wasn't until she was teamed up with Iska, the stolen fighting wolf, that I started to better understand her. And after reading the book and seeing that single-minded attitude translate into an incredible sense of resourcefulness, determination and loyalty, I have mad respect for her. Her goals are highly important to her, and she's so used to being alone and keeping everyone at arms length that watching her change was quite heartwarming.

I really loved that wolves are a central focus for this book. Dog sledding with engineered wolves is something I've never seen in the YA market, and I'm so glad I got the chance to read it. It's impossible for the reader not to fall in love with Iska immediately, and she held her own as a character so well. I'm actually quite surprised by how much agency the wolf was given, and how perfectly she fit into the story and Sena's development. The monsters in the splinter wood were a little hokey, but I enjoyed them all the same. A trigger warning if you have issues with animal death, there are several that happen on and off page, and it is quite upsetting, especially if you're not prepared for it.

Finally, I happily announce that there is no romance! Not so much that the character is opposed to it, as she herself states that it's better for her to keep people at at a distance so it will be easier for her to leave this planet when she has the money. No, there's no romance because "oh my god there is no time for it whatever you think and I'm just trying to stay alive here damn it!" Honestly, if there had been a romance, it would have ruined the book. The stakes of this story are impossibly high, the action so intense and fast-paced, that to shoehorn a relationship in would be an insult to this incredible tale of survival.

I can tell Wednesday Books is gearing up for this to be one of their big titles for the season, and I for one am looking forward to seeing how well this book will be received. Also will be keeping an eye out for whatever else Meg Long publishes in future!

This is an action packed YA SF novel, set on the corporate controlled world of Tundar, a frozen wasteland rich in exocarbon.

Teen Sena survives by scavenging and picking pockets. She's trying to save enough to pay her way off planet.

Her first encounter with red wolf Iska does not go well, but they later form a very strong bond and save each other repeatedly.

Sena ends up racing with an offworlder team to the exocarbon site in a wilderness filled with danger, from ice goblins, enormous bears - and competing racers!

Unfortunately this book did not hold my attention at all. I tried my best to get into it but it just wasn't happening. I DNF'd at 40%. I really wanted to like this one. 3⭐

Thank you to NetGalley and Wednesday Books for this preview ARC. Cold the Night, Fast the Wolves could be described as Call of the Wild meets the The Journey of Natty Gann (yes that 80's film where a girl treks across the country during the great depression). What this story really has going for it is its world building. An almost dystopian tundra where wolves are experimented on to make them go faster and become stronger. I also enjoyed the main character and her story arc. However, where this book falls for me is the story takes forever. Perhaps it's because she's trekking across the tundra in a race, trying to escape but it doesn't always feel that way. It's a 360 page book that really feels like a 500 page book. Overall, I would get it to those who are looking for a read alike adventure story with high stakes and don't mind the pacing.

The Quick Cut: A young orphan girl agrees to work for a racing team on her ice planet in order to get off-world.

A Real Review:
Thank you to Wednesday Books for providing the ARC for an honest review.

Losing a parent can be a difficult situation to go through, but what would you do if you lost both parents? Would you have the strength to care for yourself, with no other family by your side? Or would you want to leave everything you know behind and start over? For Sena, the answer to her orphan status is to do what it takes to get off-planet and start her life over again.

Sena is a young girl who has spent her entire life on her desolate ice planet. One of the few opportunities people have is participating in the races on the planet, which can be dangerous and deadly. It is in these races that Sena lost both of her parents. Now alone and in trouble with a local crime boss, Sena is desperate to get off-world and begin her life again. Without the resources to do so, she joins a racing team so she can achieve her goal. With a wolf by her side who was born to fight, she does what has to be done to survive the race. Will it be enough? Or will her efforts just put her in more danger?

This story is a fantasy novel with plenty of elements from the real world. The environment and people who survive off the land is very much meant to give the reader an indigenous people vibe, which comes off very strongly. If you enjoy that type of people and the scenarios that come along with that lifestyle, you will enjoy this story. The environment and worldbuilding are sufficient enough to give you a clear idea of what the planet is like, including the deadly creatures that live on it. However, the problem I had in reading this story is that you never really get to know the main character Sena. Plus, for how strongly connected Sena is supposed to be to the wolf, that relationship never feels more than just convenient to me as the story goes along. It makes for a lovely setting with a lack of emotional depth in the characters and their story.

The book starts in the middle of the action and really doesn't ever give you the time to get to know Sena on a deep level. It's made known to the reader that Sena's mom used to be a trainer and then stopped once she married Sena's dad. A lot of the locals seem to think that her parents think they're better than them and in a way that motivates Sena. That being said, you have these moments where you see elements of what drives Sena as a character. You never get to truly know her yourself. After reading 300+ pages of material centered around her, I can't say I feel like I really know her at all. If you are like me and need to feel a connection to a character to care, this book is not for you.

An atmospheric tale with a missing emotional component.

My rating: 2 out of 5

DNF @45%

I did my best to give this book time to catch and hold my attention but ultimately I decided to throw in the towel at the 45% mark.

I truly enjoyed how an Indigenous-esque culture was woven into the story. I loved hearing about how they live as one with both the planet and the animals and I adored that Cold the Night, Fast the Wolves took place on an ice planet with lore type creatures! The storyline was unique and I was very intrigued by the elusive race! If I were to rate this book up to the 45% mark, I would easily give it a 3 star rating. However, upon nearly reaching the halfway mark I didn’t feel like the characters (or storyline) were fleshed out well enough for me to be invested in either.

There were many side characters that didn’t get explored, and the main character (Sena) was scarcely described. Although not providing the reader with much information was likely intentional, it only resulted in me holding no attachment towards anyone.

I would have loved to have seen the story pick up faster, and to have had some of Sena’s past explained to the reader – an internal monologue would have kept her elusive while simultaneously letting the reader be a part of her world.

Unfortunately this book didn’t hold my attention but I’m sure there are readers are out there for it! Thank you to NetGalley and Wednesday Books for providing me with an e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

The world building in this one was the gem of the story. I loved learning more about it and I hope we get another book set in this world. The characters come second in this one but are just so amazing as well. I loved everyone and everything. The second half of the story did lose me for a little but by the end I was fully invested.

The story was very intriguing and it had my attention but I feel like it could’ve been something more? I loved the MC and her story but I’m also someone who needs a little romance and this had none. And okay no romance that’s fine, but it still felt like I was missing something like it needed something more.

3.5

I really liked the vibe of this book: a cold, barren atmosphere and a girl who lives there that inherently feels too much but won't let herself. Her mothers were killed in The Race, something that happens every year(?) where people come from off-world to mine exo-carbon (valuable ore from within the planet's ground). The Race allows locals and tourists alike to race through a dangerous landscape to get to the mineral dig site first. Sena hates the race because it took her mothers from her, and all it really does is kill people who don't know how to survive. (Un)shockingly, she gets roped into a race.

The summary promised found family, and while there was definitely enough of it for the trope to be relevant, I personally didn't think it was enough. To start, The Race doesn't start until the 55% mark—from the summary I assumed almost the entire book would be during the race, and I felt a little let down that it wasn't. The writing in the first half was slow and weirdly paced, some thoughts + exchanges between characters also happening multiple times in different ways (this might be because it's an ARC, so I won't hold it against the author). The second half was really fun and filled with action. I really liked Sena, and Remy and Pana were both great characters. I wish we got more from them (hence wanting more found family aspects). The real star of the book was Iska.

This is clearly a debut but it was fresh and different, and I like that it wasn't overly sappy or uplifting at the end. It just kind of was; Sena dealing with her trauma and seeing where she could go from there. I'm definitely looking forward to other books by Long!

This was a fun book. Unique planet and I loved the wolves as characters. The story was sled racing with aliens entertaining. If someone enjoys SF\ fantasy I'd definitely recommend it

I received a digital advance copy of Cold the Night, Fast the Wolves by Meg Long via NetGalley. Cold the Night, Fast the Wolves is scheduled for release on January 11, 2022.

Cold the Night, Fast the Wolves is a young adult science fiction story that follows Sena, a young woman who lost both of her parents to the races on her icy planet. Desperate to flee her frozen world, Sena accepts a position with a race team in exchange for payment that will get finally get her off-planet. Sena takes her rescued fighting wolf with her on the journey across the frozen tundra. On the way, they save each other, build a relationship, and find a place for two unwanted souls.

As a YA novel, the pacing of this sci-fi/fantasy story is much faster than an adult novel. This was both good and bad. While I did appreciate not having long sections of information dumping, I found myself missing some of the world and character.

From the beginning of the story, Sena is dropped into a series of physical confrontations and other life-threatening situations. There were very few moments of quiet and calm for her. As a result, we learned that Sena was a strong woman, determined to survive, and that she deeply missed her parents. We did not learn much about her beyond that. The constant high stakes of the story prevented Sena from revealing nuances of her character.

The other trouble with the constant fast pace of the story was that it didn’t give time to show us the world. There are many details dropped into the story that are not explained or explored for the reader. While I don’t mind not understanding every aspect of a world in a novel, much of what was left unexplored were aspects that were critical to the story or the plot. This included information about one of Sena’s parents. A term was used throughout to describe them, but any sense of what that meant did not come until almost the end of the story. This same lack of explanation applied to the world in general, with details and information decreasing through the story. By the end, it felt like the story was taking place in our Earth’s Alaska, rather than on an imagined planet.

In the end, Cold the Night, Fast the Wolves was a new version of a classic survival story featuring the relationship between a human and an animal. While the fast pace of the story impacted the development of setting and character, I did enjoy this journey across the tundra.

Thank you so much to NetGalley for my ARC of this book!

Sena is a girl with a lot of problems - in trouble with a local crime boss, she agrees to help a scientific expedition participate in a local race. And not just any race, but a terrifying, deadly race on an inhospitable ice planet. Her bond with a fighting wolf puts her at the center of a survival tale that teaches her about the importance of trust, compassion, and connections with others.

This book was a lot of fun, reminding me of such “person tames wild animal” adventures like White Fang and The Black Stallion. The environment was completely unique - I don’t think I’ve read a YA book that takes place on an ice planet! - and I really loved the worldbuilding that took place. I was really rooting for Sena and her wolf by the time the race began.

The only issue? That race took place around the 55% mark. While the worldbuilding was great, the plot up until that point was so repetitive: Sena got in trouble with the same crime boss like three times! I really feel like some of that could have been compressed to give her fellow racers more attention. There was simply too much going on, and characterization ultimately suffered.

That said, I did enjoy my time with this book. It makes the perfect winter read!

What I enjoyed most about this book was the world building. Long brought a unique twist on how she wrote and how I was able to relate to her story. The way the cold barren climate was written made me feel like I was there at some points.

I enjoyed Sena's likeable personality, and while she did make some crazy decisions, I enjoyed her character.

I can't wait to read more about Sena and I will say I loved Iska.

Cold the Night, Fast the Wolves was a very unique take on a wonderful story.

Sled racing, a frozen planet, and wolves? I don’t believe there’s another book out there as perfectly tailored to my wants and needs as Cold the Night, Fast the Wolves. I’ve made it very clear in the past that if the title says “wolves” or “wolf” there is a one hundred percent chance of me reading it and this was no exception. I was so excited for a story about the bond between a wolf and girl, especially one that features sled racing (I mean, I named my husky Balto for crying out loud).

The world-building is definitely the book’s strong point. The author did an amazing job creating a setting that was both believable and imaginative. The vivid descriptions easily bring to mind images of an inhospitable frozen planet and the feel of the sharp sting of cold winds on your face. It was so easy to feel transported into the story while reading. The entirety of the setting of Cold the Night, Fast the Wolves was detailed, well thought out, and excellently written.

I was truly expecting to love everything and anything about this book, but the pacing of the story needed some work. The actual sled race doesn’t happen until well past the halfway mark. The beginning half of the story spent way too long setting up for the events of the second half and I was getting frustrated. I felt like the same plot line was reused multiple times: Sena angers her boss, Sena runs away from her boss, Sena has to go back because she needs something–rinse and repeat until the race begins. My expectations of the story were hoping for a book that spent a majority of time following Sena and Iska during the sled race as they fought for survival in the deadly elements of their world.

Cold the Night, Fast the Wolves is a debut that I still highly recommend, despite my personal shortcomings. The world-building and atmosphere of the novel is phenomenally written and who can resist a book about the bond between a wolf and girl and a deadly sled race?

Great story. Long really knows how to tell a story that keeps a reader invested and feeling like they truly apart of the whole experience.