I am not much of a historical fiction reader but I've only heard amazing things of Alma Katsu's writing so I decided to give this a try and I was pleasantly surprised. Since it is a short story the plot gets going fairly quickly and I was fully hooked the whole way through. It was a fascinating exploration of how quickly one can turn from human to monster and what that means to us and how it affects those around us. I loved the importance of fairytales/ folklore, the dark atmosphere, and the horror elements.

Thanks to Netgalley and Amazon Original Stories for the ARC of this!

This was interesting but not as creepy as some of the author’s other stories - maybe because the concept of a werewolf had become kind of sexy and less scary in recent media? Overall it was short and I enjoyed reading it. If you like historical fiction with a supernatural twist and have KU, I recommend picking it up to kick off spooky season

The Wehrwolf, the latest historical horror story from Alma Katsu, is a dependable enough read, but not one that breaks any new ground. Inspired by the atrocities of World War II and America's recent brush with fascism under the Trump administration and his attempted overthrow of the US government, The Wehrwolf is explicit in its brief explorations of how easily it is for common men to become monsters.

In 1945, on the cusp of the Allied invasion into Germany, the farmers and their families in the small village of Scharweg are bracing themselves for the atrocities of war to hit home. Many of them live in denial of the Nazi's actions, or fear what the Allies might do to them simply for being German. Hans Sauer is forming a guerrilla army based on Himmler's plans for dealing with the enemies on German soil and his creation of an elite team of fighters called Werwolf. Lured into Hans private army is Uwe Fuchs, an otherwise gentle but naive soul desirous of power and wanting to keep his wife, daughter, and home safe.

Katsu does a terrific job incorporating Germanic myth and folklore surrounding werewolves into the narrative, giving this brief historical work a deeper and more ancient underpinning, one for which the Devil himself may be responsible. The first half of this slim narrative is devoted to character development and world building, and works well enough even as I spent the bulk of it wondering when and where the werewolves were at, especially given how short this work is. Horror hounds with an insatiable appetite for werewolf action may find themselves disappointed, as we simply do not get enough of the creature feature component to truly satisfy.

The Wehrwolf also lacks much in the way of originality, opting instead to trade in the obvious. The tropes employed are almost as old as the werewolf myth itself - Uwe naturally finds himself at odds with the alpha dog that is Hans, and is a weak man who finds himself emboldened by power only to pay the deepest consequences for his poor choices. The story itself isn't particularly surprising or inspiring, its few plot points broadcast loud and clear ahead of time, and decidedly carries the whiff of been there, done that for the bulk of its page count. Much of it, sadly, feels like a retread of other better stories in werewolf-centric pop culture.

What Katsu does well, however, is showcasing the power of the werewolf as an analog for the myth of Aryan superiority and the ways in which Hitler's forces sought occult practices to ensure their military might. Her explorations of this creature in Germanic myth is truly intriguing and consistently interesting, as is Uwe's realization that, once infected, he is essentially akin to a god even as it becomes clear just how pathetic and compromised he really is.

That all this ultimately boils down to a riff on absolute power corrupting absolutely and weak men paying for their bad choices is a foregone conclusion, and that's this short story's biggest problem. The narrative too often trades the possibilities for fresh twists and turns for the safety of the obvious and expected. Katsu's central message and her exploration on the themes of how easily men can become monsters are certainly important ones, particularly in this day and age, but it lacks any degree of freshness to make it interesting in either concept or execution. Sadly, I also suspect that for any readers, like those who slip on a red ballcap as easily as Hans or Uwe transform into a wolf, who genuinely need to take Katsu's warnings to heart, she's barking at the moon.

Alma Katsu is the queen of historical horror. She never fails to give me the shivers, and The Wehrwolf is no exception. Startling, atmospheric, deeply unsettling, this book is everything I want out of horror,

I only wish that it was longer. I didn't realize it was a short story going in, and was quickly saddened to discover there weren't many pages left. I suppose this is a positive in some ways, but in all I was left wanting for more. I hope Katsu returns to this premise or something akin to it!

Set in Germany in 1945 Wehrwolf by Alma Katsu gives the reader an interesting perspective of what life was like for an ordinary German citizen during World War 2. As the residents of a small village set in Reinhardswald gather around a radio to hear news from the government it is clear that Germany is losing the war and the fear of the oncoming Allied Troops is suddenly very real. A group of men in the village have decided to form a guerrilla resistance group to fight off the inevitable arrival of Allied troops but other citizens weren’t as confident in this approach. What is the point when it is clear the war is lost? Would it get them killed? Would they be hauled off to a prisoner of war camp? While they felt a fierce loyalty to their country many wanted to distance themselves from their governments agenda and all the atrocities committed and instead place the blame on the leaders of the country instead of them, the citizens. As the village of Scharweg becomes divided a horrific fairytale comes to life starting with a body found in the woods. A love letter to the Brothers Grimm, Wehrwolf is fairytale in its own right. Alma Katsu beautifully and viscerally captures the internal conflict of right versus wrong and combines history with horror to give the reader a reminder of how easily a person can “slip the skin of human and become a monster” and how one must ultimately face the consequences of their actions.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ I adored this book

I got to read @almakatsu's new novelette, "The Wehrwolf" early, and it's marvelous! She weaves fairy-tale tradition with history into a tight cautionary tale of how ordinary people allow themselves to be swept along and become monsters. Excellent and timely work!

WEHRWOLF, a glowing work of historical fiction, hinges on the nearly century-old question: "What were ordinary German citizens doing/thinking during the Third Reich? Were they really unaware of the Holocaust? Did they concur?" Or as Edmund Burke orated, "The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.” WEHRWOLF postulates one such "good man," who keeps to himself with his wife and young child on a farm near a Spooky forest. Near the end of World War II, he is presented with a bizarre dilemma, and his decision has unforeseen and tragic consequences. The reader will not leave this story lightly. I predict its questions and themes will surface at odd moments, demanding consideration.

"it's easy to slip the skin of humanity and become a monster."

This was an interesting folklore/Brother's Grimm type fairytale. I liked learning about the family and the town and the environment. Because it's short, it didn't take long for the plot to get moving and for the pieces to start falling in place. It was an interesting reflection on how things like this can happen, average men becoming monsters. I liked it.

A huge thank you to the author and publisher for providing an e-ARC via Netgalley. This does not affect my opinion regarding the book.

This a great novella and perfect for werewolf fans. Alma Katsu is a brilliant historical fiction author and Wehrwolf is no exception. A perfect spooky season read. Thank you netgalley!

I jumped at requesting this book when I saw a new Alma Katsu. I loved The Hunger and The Deep and was quite intrigued by the description for The Wehrwolf. Although it was a novella, it spoke volumes about genocide, and also German folklore.

Alma Katsu's short story sets out to illustrate how the horror of genocides and other human atrocities might occur, what might turn ordinary people to become monsters and engage in terrifying inhumane acts. It is the end days of WW2 in Germany, the Nazis have been all but defeated, in this blend of horror fiction with the real life horrors people are capable of. The lonely Uwe Fuchs, a farmer, has managed to avoid the front lines as he cared for his widowed mother. However, some have sneered at him at their village, referring to him as a mama's boy, but like so many Germans, he has kept quiet about not supporting the Nazi Party. With the allies soldiers approaching, there is fear and apprehension about what is to come. Uwe is determined to protect his beloved wife, Katya and daughter, Liesl, to whom he reads fairytales from the Brothers Grimm, a favourite being Little Red Riding Hood with its big bad wolf.

Hans Sauer, the village bully, rumours abound about his desertion from the army, tempts Uwe to join his militia, dedicated to fighting the enemy Allied soldiers. Uwe has his doubts, but his insecurities and low self esteem push him to reluctantly join, only to be shocked by his initiation that draws on local ancestral werewolf folklore and legends, with Uwe facing the terrors of what he had believed was fantastical. A kind, thoughtful and compassionate man finds himself seduced by power, brutality, of being part of the Aryan dream, at long last part of something with other men in the militia. That is until he can no longer delude himself about the evil that he has become a part of. Is he going to be able to find some form of redemption or will he remain a monster? Many thanks to Amazon Original Stories for an ARC.

I’m the first person to rate and review this. Fresh off the presses, read all about it here.
I selected this one because it’s Katsu – the author who has impressed me so much with her story of cannibals once upon a time. Plus, it was short.
Katsu has done many different things during her writing career from outright garbagey romancey looking series to spy fiction to (my favorite) historical fiction based literary frights. This story is definitely of the latter variety, which is good. It’s the execution of it that left a lot to be desired. Surprisingly so.
Inspired by January 6th 2021 events, the story is set during the end of WWII. Because authoritarianism, jingoism, and lie-based ultranationalism translates well throughout time and offers plenty of examples.
This is the story told from the losing side of war, where one village decides to pick up the metaphorical pitchforks and fight the Allies in a very area-specific, local folklore-based fashion. Which the title explains quite plainly.
Primarily it is a story of one man who gets caught up in the fervor and madness of the moment and compromises his principles for false ideology.
Good idea, sure, and the historical fiction aspect is done nicely, but the writing itself is so oddly flat here. More than plain, it’s practically amateurish in its blandness. You’d never know this was the same author if the cover didn’t tell you so.
It’s still entertaining enough and, being so brief, it reads quickly, but it certainly isn’t author’s best. Still, fans of weres might have fun. Thanks Netgalley.

Katsu wrote a really fun combination of a WWII story and a werewolf fairy tale, effectively using the mythic setting of the woods of Germany that inspired the Brothers Grimm. This was an easy to read short story with a great escalation and solid ending. The afterword makes the themes of the story very clear and Katsu did a great job finding a way to use werewolves to reflect our current shift towards authoritarianism. I read the story in one sitting and thoroughly enjoyed it. If you like either WWII historical fiction or werewolf novels and want an easy branch into the other genre, this short story will be well worth your time.
Thank you to NetGalley and Amazon Original Stories for a copy of the story in exchange for an honest review.

DNF - For some reason I was under this impression that this was going to be a Horror. Perhaps I had this impression given the way the author's other work has been categorized. The description lends itself to this fancy I held that the plot might not be a garble of regurgitated morals of which we are all highly aware. By the 37% mark nothing had happened that one might not already understand by the fact that this story relies on actual events to work its way to a conclusion I could not have cared less about reaching. Again, I reiterate that I thought this would present itself as being a Horror. Given the fact this book is indeed a novella I was ready for the story to be quick moving & straight to the essence.

The sheer number of WWII fiction novels that present the exact same format as this, published within recent years - if not this year alone - is mind boggling. I should not have thought this one any different & ultimately that is my fault.

The writing should be revisited so as to add some gumption to the characters. It was difficult to care about anyone in this story because the writing style presents itself as uninterested in the story it is telling. The transition between scenes is disconnected & dry without any real reason for a reader to move forward. Certainly the connection to the Grimm stories will play a part & I presume the big-bad-wolf is just as much a feature in the woods as in the man who hunts its habitat.

Katsu has dedicated readers who will revel in this new read. I am not one & therefore wish them much enjoyment in reading this account of a small town German man who wades through woodsman life with pedantic life lessons tossed within the pages in a story that enticed me with the promise of the ghoulish monsters that exist in fantastical forms.