I find myself struggling to write any kind of nuanced review for this book. On the one hand, I absolutely devoured it in just a little over a day. I read the first 300 pages in one sitting. I found the characters and their voices to be absolutely compelling, even if their arcs felt circuitous and repetitious at times. Ox especially had an absolutely wonderful narrative voice and made it so easy to be immersed in his story when normally, I find the first person POV absolutely grating. Every single one of his platonic relationships were compelling and interesting and I wish had been fleshed out even more than they were. The interpersonal dynamics here were fascinating and so much fun to read.

On the other hand, I don't know if I was really sold on the romance here. Next to Ox and the rest of the cast of characters, Joe did not feel nearly as fleshed out or strong of a character. Throughout the book, he was the only character whose voice I felt did not land for me. Considering he is the main romantic interest and driving force behind Ox's actions, it made it difficult to invest myself in the romance. What I find myself most distracted by, however, is that I was completely unable to look at the world-building and plot and not think that the author had to have been inspired by fandom for a very specific television show popular in the 2010s. Nearly every world-building element felt like a detail I had already seen before, to the point where I wouldn't be surprised to have found this on AO3. I don't want to outright say that this is a negative quality because I do think that it absolutely worked for this story, but it made for a very distracting read even as I sped through it.

Overall, I'm not sure if I will personally continue with the series, but this is absolutely the kind of book that has a very particular audience who I hope is able to find it.

I think I am officially admitting that I'm not the target audience for Klune. They've written several very intriguing and unique books, but they really don't get me excited. A solid purchase for libraries with a strong SF/Fantasy?Magical Realism reader base.

I loved the book overall. I was a little disappointed in a few things at the end. And I have to agree with one of my friend’s review, that I like Joe and Ox separately, but that their relationship was hard to accept. I don’t like some of the “you have a choice” but really “you were mine already because I chose you.” I don’t feel like Ox had that much choice, so it felt adjacent to abusive. I do feel like Ox has enough say in the matter to make it not quite abusive, but it was too close for comfort. The world was amazing, the characters were deep, the bonds and pack were so cool. So I had to give it a good rating, with some reservations.

I had previously enjoyed TJ Klune’s three recent stand alone adult novels The House in the Cerulean Sea, Under the Whispering Door, and In the Lives of Puppets so I was curious when I saw the Green Creek series he had written, was now being republished in new hardcover editions. Each of the novels in the four book series deals with a different members of a pack of werewolves in Green Creek, Oregon. The first book, Wolfsong, focuses on Ox a human boy who befriends the eccentric family that moves in near his house in the forest. He becomes particularly close friends with the youngest pack member and then as they reach adulthood their feelings evolve into something more. The novel has more sex and violence than his stand-alone works of fiction so if you are looking for gentler reads these might not be your jam, but for those looking for a complex mix of fantasy, bildungsroman, romance, and horror, Wolfsong will resonate. I received advanced reader copies of Wolfsong and Ravensong from NetGalley and the publisher to provide you with honest reviews.

DNFing at 30%.

I could not get into this book. I loved House in the Cerulean Sea. It’s my favorite book. I keep trying all of TJ Klune’s book and haven’t liked one other than THITCS. Makes me so sad.

Tj Klune always leaves me a little lovesick. Klunes characters have depth and so well rounded they feel so realistic. The story was beautiful, it broke my heart and then knit it back together. Perfect Found family, and a heartwarming lgbtq love store sit at the center of this shifter novel unlike anything I’ve picked up before. I will be jogging to pick up book two. I laughed out loud and cried twice, this book was a rollercoaster and I loved the ride.

If TJ Klune writes it, I will read it and I will LOVE it. Like all of his other work, Wolfsong broke my heart and made me feel whole at the same time. Could not recommend enough, and I can't wait to see where he goes with the rest of the Green Creek series.

4.75 / 5

Wolfsong is the first book in the Green Creek Series.

Oxnard Matheson is just a boy from a small town who thinks himself worthless because his father told him so when he left when Ox was only 12. <i>"Dumb as an ox."</i> He creates a home with his mom and his father's old coworkers at an auto shop and is content but doesn't feel complete. <b>Then the Bennetts come to town</b>. Rather, they come <i>back</i> after being gone for years. Beautiful and mysterious, just at the end of the lane.

On his 16th birthday, 10 year old Joe Bennett finds Ox walking home and is instantly curious about him. He introduces Ox to his family and they receive him happily right away. But they have a major secret: they’re <i><b><u>shapeshifters</i></b></u>. And it’s an emotional rollercoaster from there. From laughter on one page to gut-wrenching sobs the next, TJ Klune is a poetic storyteller.

The first half of the book is playful and fun because they’re kids. Ox finds a family in the Bennetts. When Ox is 23 and Joe, 17, tragedy strikes, people die, and choices are made. They’re forced to be adults. The second half is darker; raw and full of emotion. But surprisingly still a lot of action. The divide is clear and impactful and it was amazing to watch the characters grow as themselves and with each other. Even with Ox as the narrator, you can feel what the others feel and watch them evolve throughout the novel because they are so well developed.

Though there is a psychotic killer they are hunting for, the romance that blossomed between Joe and Ox is in the undercurrents throughout the entire book. Though the age gap is a hard pill to swallow (for me personally, since they met when Joe was so young), when you look at the “wolfiness” and development of feelings, it’s hard not to root for them. They <i>go through it</i>. So you do.

I will also say though that there is a lot of repetition when it comes to Joe and Ox’s feelings/conversations which seemed unnecessary because their emotions are already so evident. On the other hand, I couldn’t get enough of their possessiveness. I don’t know what that says about me, but it was hot especially because Ox started out this innocent, naive boy and Joe the sweetest cinnamon roll. The <u>spice</u> is on page, fantastic, but only a couple of drawn out scenes though it didn’t feel lacking.

Green Creek is full of magic and love and family and this story engulfs you in one giant bittersweet hug. I definitely recommend it, but to a mature audience. And I feel like there should be trigger warnings for rape (even though it doesn’t happen on page and only mentioned) and violence. Though there is not a cliffhanger, there are still some questions left unanswered about things that were introduced— like witches!— and I can’t wait to read more about it in the next book(s) in the series.

<i>Thank you to the author, the publishers and NetGalley for an eARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.</i>

This book is an absolute gem that had me hooked from start to finish. This book is like a warm hug wrapped in a sprinkle of magic and a dash of humor. It's the kind of story that tugs at your heartstrings, makes you laugh out loud, and leaves you feeling all warm and fuzzy inside.

Ox, the main character, is a total sweetheart who starts off thinking he's as smart as a potato but ends up discovering his worth and finding his place in the world. And let's not forget Joe, the love interest, who is an absolute cinnamon roll with a hint of mystery. Their journey together is an emotional rollercoaster ride that will make you squeal, cry, and feel like a lovestruck teenager.

The village of Green Greek and its quirky inhabitants add so much charm to the story. It's like stepping into a world where werewolves fix cars and magic lingers in the air. The friendships formed and the sense of belonging that permeates the pages will make you wish you were part of their gang.

TJ Klune's writing style is pure magic. The way they blend heartache and humor is simply genius. One moment you're snorting with laughter, and the next, you're wiping away tears. It's an emotional rollercoaster you won't want to get off.

In a nutshell, Wolfsong is a book that will take your heart and refuse to let it go. It's a well crafted story, and exactly what I expected from the author. So, grab a copy, snuggle up with a cup of tea, and prepare for an unforgettable adventure that will make your heart sing and howl with joy.

After reading and reviewing Klune’s last three novels, I have come to the conclusion that he is just not the right author for me. I understand why people love his books, but I do not feel the same way.

Thanks to Netgalley I was able to read Wolfsong by TJ Klune.
It is a story of Ox and Joe throughout years of being neighbours, friends and eventually something more. The first part of the book is so easy and fun to read, they are kids, doing kids and staff not thinking about anything except each other and their family. Ox greeting walls when flustered was the funniest and the most embarrassing thing ever. The second half was much darker in narration and I loved the difference because it showed the divide between being kids and adults and having to deal with responsibilities, feelings and more. I didn’t cry during some of the most heartbreaking episodes but I was close to it. I loved the book to pieces and can’t wait to read the second one!
As for my students, I think the ones who love fantasy and magical realism would really love it too. So definitely going to recommend it.

THIS BOOK IS NOT FOR KIDS
I´m sorry, but this is not what I expected. Also, there is almost everything wrong here.
I liked the beginning, when we meet this boy that is only 12 years old, his dad just left the family saying mean things, and this sweet boy is trying very hard to understand what is going on. This part is sad but nicely written, and I sincerely hoped to see how this sensitive Ox will be growing up and change into a grown-up man. But this never happened.
Instead, we have here a very weird relationship with a 6 years younger boy. From friendship to romance and it´s toxic. Not to mention that it´s also on the verge of breaking the law and common sense. It makes me think of Lolita, although the resemblance is very weak (literary speaking).
Let me show you some quotes:

"You´re a fucking child." - nice statement, don´t you think?

"This guy came into work. I thought he was very attractive. I check out guys sometimes". It came out fast, because that was the first time I´d saidit aloud. (...) "oh. Okay. Did you lick his balls?" (...) "I popped your gay cherry!" (...) "Fuck you, Oxnard, (...) You´re lucky I´m straight. I would have hit that a long time ago. (...) Seriously? You´re not aroused? At all?" ---- no comment :(

“I had to stop myself from tearing you apart...you’re amazing and beautiful, and sometimes I want to put my teeth in you just to watch you bleed. I want to know what you taste like…I don’t want anyone to touch you ever again…”

“There are times when all I can think of is marking you so that everyone knows who you belong to. to carve my name into your skin so you can never forget me...I have to protect what’s mine.”

Seriously, this book needs psychiatric care. Everything here screams for help.
And yes, there are werewolves in here.
THIS BOOK IS NOT FOR KIDS

"The Bennett family has a secret:
They're not just a family, they're a pack.
Wolfsong is Ox Matheson's story.

Oxnard Matheson was twelve when his father taught him a lesson: Ox wasn't worth anything and people would never understand him. Then his father left.

Ox was sixteen when the energetic Bennett family moved in next door, harboring a secret that would change him forever. The Bennetts are shapeshifters. They can transform into wolves at will. Drawn to their magic, loyalty, and enduring friendships, Ox feels a gulf between this extraordinary new world and the quiet life he's known, but he finds an ally in Joe, the youngest Bennett boy.

Ox was twenty-three when murder came to town and tore a hole in his heart. Violence flared, tragedy split the pack, and Joe left town, leaving Ox behind. Three years later, the boy is back. Except now he's a man - charming, handsome, but haunted - and Ox can no longer ignore the song that howls between them.

The beloved fantasy romance sensation by New York Times bestselling author TJ Klune, about love, loyalty, betrayal, and family."

And shapeshifters, don't forget the shapeshifters!

"All I wanted to do was come home, because without you, I don't have a home."

Originally published in 2016, this is book one in the Green Creek series.

It took a bit for me to get into this one, as we follow Ox, a boy who's abusive father leaves when he's 12. The impact his father makes (that he's worthless and stupid) follows Ox through the story as he learns to trust in his own worth. Once we met 10 year old Joe, who just moved with his family into the abandoned house next door, the story picks up.

Joe, and by extension, the entire Bennett family, take an immediate liking to Ox, and soon he and his mom are welcomed into the group. I've said before that TJ Klune is the "King of Found Families" and this earlier work reflects that theme. Found families can heal broken ones.

Of course, the Bennett family has a secret... they are a pack of werewolves. Ox becomes a human member of the pack and life seems "normal." As Joe gets older, Ox develops romantic feelings for him and they are just starting to explore them when an old Bennett enemy surfaces and kills family members in an effort to become the new alpha. This drives a wedge between Ox and Joe, and makes Ox have to step up and lead a mourning, broken pack.

The small town, the werewolves, the "you can choose to be turned" plot is Twilight-esque (with the movies coming out only a few years before the original publishing date, the influence makes sense). A character even jokingly refers to "sparkly vampires."

At about the halfway point, I couldn't put it down. The battle scenes were epic, the love story real and sorrowful and deep. I rooted for these characters, especially Joe and Ox, but also the other pack members, who are well-developed and well-written.

As an aside, I would have appreciated the reprint removing the r-word. It's jarring to see in print, even when coming from a despicable character.

I can't wait to pick up the next 3 books in the series (I've already pre-ordered the ones available)!

*****
I received this eARC from Netgalley and TOR Publishing in exchange for an honest review.

This Wolfsong reprinting will be released July 4, 2023.

Another incredible story by TJ Klune. This book will break you and fix you all at the same time. It's incredible what Klune can do with words. The characters, the writing style, the tone, the everything. This is definitely a book I would recommend to the moon and back.

Firstly thank you to Tor and TJ Klune for allowing me to read and review Wolfsong for its reprinting in July.

If you like werewolves, found family, slow burn romance, suspense, and enough drama that can break your heart in two then you would enjoy this first book of the Green Creek series.

Klune has a way of building character relationships where you are wholly invested. The romance is slowly built up over time, and at moments the book focuses more on the growth of the individual characters.

Watching Ox turn from a young boy who was bullied for being slow to the amazing man he is when he is older surrounded by a pack that cherishes him for who he is is so heartwarming and epic and awesome.

This is definitely a romance for adults as the steamy scenes are graphic in nature. I enjoyed this so much. I cannot wait to purchase the reprinted versions of this series when they hit shelves this year.

“𝙎𝙤 𝙝𝙚 𝙥𝙧𝙚𝙨𝙨𝙚𝙙 𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙛𝙤𝙧𝙚𝙝𝙚𝙖𝙙 𝙖𝙜𝙖𝙞𝙣𝙨𝙩 𝙢𝙞𝙣𝙚 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙗𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙙 𝙢𝙚 𝙞𝙣 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚 𝙬𝙖𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙨𝙪𝙣, 𝙤𝙠𝙖𝙮? 𝙏𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙨𝙪𝙣 𝙗𝙚𝙩𝙬𝙚𝙚𝙣 𝙪𝙨, 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙗𝙤𝙣𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙗𝙪𝙧𝙣𝙚𝙙 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙗𝙪𝙧𝙣𝙚𝙙 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙗𝙪𝙧𝙣𝙚𝙙 𝙗𝙚𝙘𝙖𝙪𝙨𝙚 𝙝𝙚’𝙙 𝙜𝙞𝙫𝙚𝙣 𝙞𝙩 𝙩𝙤 𝙢𝙚. 𝘽𝙚𝙘𝙖𝙪𝙨𝙚 𝙝𝙚’𝙙 𝙘𝙝𝙤𝙨𝙚𝙣 𝙢𝙚.
𝘼𝙣𝙙 𝙄 𝙜𝙤𝙩 𝙩𝙤 𝙘𝙝𝙤𝙤𝙨𝙚 𝙝𝙞𝙢 𝙗𝙖𝙘𝙠.”

You ever stumble upon a book that’s not your usual genre, but the blurb pulls you in? So you add it to your “maybe read someday” list. While going through a slump, you take a gander at your maybe list and decide to give this new genre a chance…and then it absolutely consumes you. That’s Wolfsong and the entire Green Creek Series for me.

Wolfsong is a paranormal romance based on wolf shapeshifters. It starts with 12 year old Ox, whose dad leaves and tells him he’s going to get shit. Ox quickly becomes a man to help provide and take care of his mother and himself. When Ox is 16, he meets his new neighbors who moved into the abandoned house down the road, The Bennett’s, more specifically, he meets 10 year old, Joe. A little blonde tornado who rocks Ox’s world, and will never let him go.

When Ox is 23, tragedy hits, and causes Joe to leave Ox and the town behind. Three years later, Joe is back, and even though Ox is still hurt from him leaving, he can’t deny the connection and love between them.

𝙥𝙖𝙘𝙠𝙥𝙖𝙘𝙠𝙥𝙖𝙘𝙠

This book (and series) is beautifully written and will literally consume you! You watch Joe, Ox, and the rest of the pack grow throughout the entire series. I love that while each book deals with a different couple, the interconnected story continues. So much happens in each book. You’ll laugh, cry, love, and smile right along with the characters.

There’s only one way to describe this book, 𝙘𝙖𝙣𝙙𝙮 𝙘𝙖𝙣𝙚𝙨 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙥𝙞𝙣𝙚𝙘𝙤𝙣𝙚𝙨 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙚𝙥𝙞𝙘 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙖𝙬𝙚𝙨𝙤𝙢𝙚.

DNF at 33 pages

This is partly my fault for requesting this book without first reading the synopsis. It’s definitely not my usual type of book. I decided to give it a try nonetheless, but after 33 pages I'm out. The book has one of my biggest pet peeves -authors having no idea how kids act at different ages. No 10 year old in the world would act the way this one does- like he’s about 5 years old instead. Also it’s used the word “retarded” twice which is a major deal breaker. This is not an acceptable word to use ever and promotes an ableist mindset.

Thanks to NetGalley and Tor for the E-arc.

This is a fantastic re-release of an earlier TJ Klune novel and while I did love it, I do want to warn other readers.

There are depictions of child physical and emotional abuse in this book, while they aren't super graphic in nature, they could still be difficult to read.

I don't want to spoil too much with my review. We have our precious cinnamon roll Ox and the werewolves literally next-door, the Bennetts. I would say hijinks ensue, but that would do a great disservice to the story Klune has weaved. I did really enjoy this book, it was heartbreaking and beautiful. However, the writing was almost immature. I felt like I was reading the same sentence rephrased several times. I though maybe it's because Ox was 16 at the beginning of the story, but it never really progressed. I just felt like it was stunted.

Check out my blog for a fuller review with minor spoilers.

I can't wait to continue on with the story.

As with all TJ Klune books, I wasn't able to put Wolfsong down!

The writing style in this book was a little different than what I'm used to, it felt a bit more like poetry, but it was still a really enjoyable read. He has such a way of writing about found family and love, that always makes my heart ache in the best way. I can't wait to read the rest of the series.