A little red riding hood retelling has the makings for a great story, though ultimately this one felt a little rushed for me. I did however like the banter between the Wolf and Red. I do want to try and read some of the other novella's that Jo has written!

Wonderful retailing of the little red riding hood. Love the twist with witches and curses with romance. Enemies to lovers is my favorite and this was perfect. The interaction with Emi and Wolf were prefect and that romance it was so good.

Hunted by Wolves and Shadow by Jo Holloway

💫 Red Riding Hood retelling
💫 short and fast paced novella
💫 part of the Enemies Ever After series (interconnected standalones)
💫 forced proximity
💫 wolf shifter x witch
💫 enemies to lovers
💫 prophecy

I read this book in a day, it was a nice and easy read. The world building was almost non-existent and the magic system was not detailed, but since it's a short novella I didn't expect them to be. It was easy to connect with Emi and Wolf and I loved their romance and character development. I will definitely add the other books in the series to my TBR.

Thank you to the author, the publisher and Netgalley for the eARC!

I was not expecting where this one went though I was happy with it, kind of sad I didn't. Realize it was part of a Standalone style series of short stories.

The Red Riding Hood retelling I never knew I needed in my life.

I really enjoyed this very unique take on the traditional fairy tale. I felt very connected to Emi throughout the story as I resonated with her character so personally. I also enjoyed it even more once we met Wolf and got to see their interactions change and grow over time. A wonderful story and one I will be recommending to others.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC!

This was a fun read. There was plenty of action and spicy romance. I recognized multiple characters that will hopefully be in future books if they don't already have their own.

This is a super unique take on the Red Riding Hood fairy tale, infused with witches, curses, and romance; that was also giving slight Beauty & the Beast vibes! Emi is on her way to visit her grandma who lives out in the cursed woods, when she arrives at her house instead of finding her grandma she finds Wolf, a handsome cursed man. Thus begins their enemies to lovers romance! I didn't connect to the characters that much and it felt very rushed. The highlights of the book instead were the magic system and the retelling part

I haven't read many retellings in my life. Those who know me are aware that I'm quite hesitant, especially when it comes to mythology.

In this case, it’s a reimagining of one of the most well-known fairy tales in the world: Little Red Riding Hood. There are various versions, but the common elements are the girl, the grandmother, and the wolf.

And what if I told you that in "Hunted By Wolves and Shadow," the real villain isn't the wolf, but the grandmother... would you believe me?

Probably not, but then again, neither does Emi, the girl in question.

How could an old woman hide the evil that everyone accuses her of?

Emi's grandma is the only person who shows her any affection, welcoming her when everyone else calls the young woman a "witch."

So, despite the thick fog that covers the forest, Emi travels that path every time she wants to see a familiar and friendly face.

But this time, it’s not the old woman who greets her. Instead, the door is opened by a man with ash-blond hair and a seductive, silvery gaze.

The mysterious, dark mist hides beastly, bloodthirsty creatures, so despite the many questions that naturally arise, Emi decides to take refuge in the little house with this captivating stranger.

From this forced coexistence, many truths come to light, but it's not a symphony that Emi is willing to hear.

She will have to confront a reality she has been kept in the dark about for too long. She must take control of her life and turn the situation around to rediscover the best version of herself, a transformation that a certain character will help her achieve.

This book, which I want to call almost a short story due to its brevity and readability, kept me company on this engaging and thrilling journey.

I became terribly attached to the characters, so much so that it was truly satisfying to read the happy ending, as if I had been the one guiding them in that direction.

Emi is a woman who holds herself back to avoid bothering others, hiding her true self to stay unnoticed in a world that doesn't want her.

Wolf is a man on a mission: to save his family, keep them together, and deal with the damage caused by the fog. He'll do whatever it takes to get the job done.

What neither of them expected was that their meeting would change everything.

They both discover what it means to love and be loved. They learn that beneath the surface, things are different than they seem. And they find in each other the strength to become their best selves.

Read this book; you won't regret it!

Thanks to both the author and NetGalley for letting me read and review a free copy of this book. This has not altered my opinion on the book in any way.

The first thing I want to say in this review is that Emi and her backstory really resonated with me. As someone who had to take care of others when they were younger, I understood Emi's struggle and appreciated the author's exploration of her feelings in regards to her family and her town. I also loved how she worried about subconciously picking up on her family's bad behavior, an anxiety that is rarely depicted in literature--especially among female protagonists. I also loved the gemstone witches and their powers because it made the book feel very whimsical and fairytale like. The story about Emi finding her power and learning how to use it was very strong, and it was a plotline I deeply appreciated.

I feel like this book could have benefitted from having another round of editing, because certain plotlines, such as the overall nature of the curse and the setting, felt weak. I had no idea what time period this book was set in, and there was very little description of the world around the characters. This lack of worldbuilding made it challenging for me to get invested in the story because in fantasy novels especially, the setting needs to act almost like a character in order to feel believable. The relationship between Emi and Wolf also went from 0 to 60 with very little build-up. In order for their relationship to have depth, they needed to do something besides wander around Emi's grandmother's cottage. The book being longer could have helped remedy some of these issues, since I felt like the author didn't give herself enough space to fully explore her idea.

A wonderful story about Emi and Wolf! This was so heartfelt, pulled on my heartstrings! Emi found out certain things that she should have been told. Emi learns so much, and the love story , so good! Can't wait to read more from #joholloway #Netgalley

This was a great book, but I feel like calling it a retelling may be a bit misleading. There are a few elements that hint to the original story and the main characters are there (mostly), but it's more like Red Riding Hood is not the grandma and we get to read the story of her granddaughter.

I liked the story, but the chemistry between the MC and the love interest could be better. I really loved the artwork we got at the end of the book, but since it is listed in the table of contents, I feel like it's a slight spoiler.

What really impressed me, is the transformation the FMC goes through and how she eventually discovers herself and what she really wanted to do, making the ending really heartwarming.

Thank you for allowing me to read this as an ARC for my honest review.

OK - So the PG swearing - really! 'for cloud sake!', I know this is a YA but it really made me laugh every time I saw this on the page, and was actually quite distracting at times.
The pacing was very hit and miss - sometimes it was very fast and I needed to know what was going to happen or what was happening at times as it was that quick, whereas others, it was so slow I was easily distracted by the smallest things and my mind was wandering, if this was sorted out and more even then this would have been a higher star rating for me.

The enemies-to-lovers between Emi and Wolf was good, a bit spicy in places but not forced, which was appropriate.

I couldn't really get into this story. The pacing was all over the place, and the characters were unlikable. Some scenes dragged on without any resolution, and the main character's personality switched from childish to mature, making it hard to understand her.

Maybe others would enjoy it, but this book just wasn't for me.

Hunted by Wolves and Shadows was an amazing read. I enjoyed Holloway's take on the fairytale an enemies-to-lovers with witches, shifters, magic, and more. It was very entertaining and left me craving even more retellings. There was some mild spice. The few spicy scenes are well written. You can feel the chemistry between Emi & Wolf.

I felt that the story moved at a great pace and kept me enthralled. This was a unique take on the story of little red riding hood and it was highly enjoyable.

Emi and Wolf: the BANTER! ☠️ threats as flirting. Yes. I just love them both and their individual growth too. Emi really comes so far in this book.
There were a lot of aspects that were recognizable from the original fairy tale, but the changes the author made it into its own unique story as well.

Here are some of the goodies to expect:
🌹 Little Red Riding Hood Retelling
🌹 Witch x Shifter Romance
🌹 Enemies-to-Lovers
🌹 Forced Proximity
🌹 Found Family

Thank you to NetGalley and Jo Holloway for the opportunity to read this book.

<i>Shimmering sunbeams</i> and <i>sunny skies</i> I’m just not 100% sold on this one <i>for cloud’s sake.</i> (Yes those are some real examples of swear words used in this book).

It didn’t quite hit home for me or blow me away in any way. For the right fairytale-loving person though, I would recommend this. It was a cute, loose re-telling of Little Red Riding Hood that brought in more magical elements and had a witchy twist to it.

The world building has a darkish, spooky feel with mystical creatures and a deadly mist that strung me along for the first bit.

The magic system was really unique with all the witches labelled by gemstones and each of them had their own varying types of powers.

<b>Now to get into a few nit-picky details of what I felt went wrong: </b>

It just felt a bit lacking in emotions and super lacking in maturity. I would have loved a <b>MUCH darker</b> vibe, but instead it felt very YA and childish.

The way they acted didn’t feel realistic. Half the book is Emi’s pathetic attempts to kill Wolf. It just wasn’t intense or emotionally charged enough for me to be believable. She acted like a child throwing a temper tantrum.

And the banter they had was so immature. <b>It read more like the movie Elf</b> when he calls someone a <i>Cotton Headed Ninny Muggens./</i> Not the darkish vibes I was expecting.

Our FMC says things like:

<I>"Sour-faced moldworp"

"Liar. Killer. Swine."

"You cream-brained loon." </I>

And then she proceeds to just burn his food because trying to kill him isn't working. Legit full toddler-meltdown mode.

It was all just a bit cringe to me. I’m sure others would find that kind of talk endearing but it definitely was not my jam.

I’m also all for cute pet names but the pet name he uses for her - <b>“kitten”</b> - gave me the ick and at one point he even calls her HONEY BUNNY <b>ahhhh no no nooooo </b> This is not the <i>alpha-male, big, bad wolf energy I came here for. </i>

Again it’s just super immature for a darkish romance. I need something hotter than “kitten” and “honey bunny” pleeeeeease!

Okay so saying alllllllll of that we now get some open-door smut thrown in. I’m all for smut - but given this was reading like a super YA novel, the spicy scenes felt like they came out of left field and were very shocking. For this book, I feel like they definitely needed to be kept closed door or fade to black to keep the book feeling consistent.

Those are just some of my rambling thoughts. Of course don’t let this deter you from checking it out for yourself. I didn’t hate it but I just didn’t love it either ya know?

If you love fairytales and Little Red Riding Hood spinoffs... check this one out for sure!

Thanks so much NetGalley and the author for the copy of this one in exchange for my honest review

Hunted by Wolves and Shadow is a Red Riding Hood romantacy retelling. The story we all know was flipped on its head, steering away from the original interpretation and into something darker, deeper and more compelling. I loved how the dialogue was written with their own versions of cuss words relating to their world, I thought these were a very charming touch to the book! And cloudy skies don’t get me started on the banter! I find something many books lack is real and genuinely funny banter but mother of sunshine did I get it in this book! I often caught myself chuckling away until I was caught back into Wolfs spell every time he called her ‘kitten’! The characters were lovable and relatable as they battled both their inner demons and the curses that controlled their lives. Hunted by Wolves and Shadow is an enemies to lovers, slow burn romantacy with forced proximity and sizzling spice. If you are looking for something with all your favourite tropes but is just a bit different, then this is your next read! I felt as though some of the characters were being set up for their own books so I will be very interested to see how they piece together in this very enjoyable fantasy world!
#bookreview #netgalley #huntedbywolvesandshadow #joholloway #romantacy #enemiestolovers #redridinghood #retelling

Firstly, thank you to NetGalley for this ARC copy in exchange for my honest review.

I really wanted to love this, and I did like it, but it didn’t grip me like I was hoping.

It was a really unique take on Little Red Riding Hood, completely reimagined and I liked the little cameo of other well-known story names like Jacks and Juliet. The voices in the dual POVs were well written too.

The pacing was very slow, and there was an awful lot of time spent in the cottage with Emi just trying to kill Wolf non-stop and in constant denial, which I ended up skimming much of. I was a little disappointed with how they broke the curse too, just needing her magic to release it.

The characters were likeable, I wish there was more focus on the other enclave people – I would have liked the found family trope and more camaraderie in there.

This all being said, I would recommend for casual readers and fans of unique fairytale retellings!

I was so nervous and excited about reading “Hunted by Wolves and Shadows”, and I gotta say, the book DID NOT disappoint. I wasn’t familiar with Jo Holloway or her writing style, but whichever witch got me and Jo’s paths crossing, I’m eternally grateful.

I simply loved the retelling, going in to the book, I had some preconceived idea what could the retelling be like, but it still did surprise me. There were a few “mysteries” that were left mysteries, like the whereabouts of Emi’s mom, or why grandma Ruby did , what she did (spoiler alert, wink wink) but by the end of the book, that didn’t really matter as such and it didn’t take away from the story telling.

Now the characters, I liked Emi but at times she got on my nerves, and in hindsight, I realised that I saw a lot of myself in her; being naive to the world around her, thinking all was well and never questioning everything that went about in life. BUT she finally broke through, and not just from her naivety but also from the clutches of societal pressure and the toxic relations, and I simply loved her for that. And it also showed that how, even in a fantastical backdrop, a character can hold such resemblance to real life (as I said, I saw myself in her). As for Wolf, well I adored him from the start, he became my “Pookie”, he could do no wrong! He too had realisations along the way, and developed more as a person, which I was all for. The side characters also had my heart. The banters and the intimacy, everything felt organic.

I’d like to thank Jo and Netgalley for providing me with an ARC for the book, I thoroughly enjoyed reading it and hope to read more and more and more from Jo in future ❤️.

[**Click here to watch my reading vlog that includes Hunted by Wolves and Shadow.*](https://youtu.be/L_GgbgBjZBY)

I have never read any books by Jo before so I went into this pretty blind. At first I thought it was reading like a novella due to it jumping right into the story with minimal world building. However, on reflection that makes sense since it is a retelling of a fairy tale and we have a basic understanding of the premise.

The plot kept surprising me! I thought I knew what would happen but the way she wove new characters into the story was really cool and allowed for the pacing of the book to stay consistent. She also allowed the romance to build between Wolf and Emi slowly (not too slowly) but also naturally. Yes, it is fantasy, but the emotions she went through felt consistent with how a real human might act.

I was also surprised by the spice level being much lower than anticipated. I just assumed that because it was a retelling it might have a higher amount of scenes, but it didn’t! I was pleasantly surprised that spice was used sparingly and in context to the story. Really well done!

The only thing that was odd for me was the use of very whimsical words in place of cuss words. At first I didn’t like it but by the end it felt natural to the story and it fit well in the “fairy tale” world.

Oh and can we talk about the art work at the end? OMG! Gorgeous. It really brought the characters to life.

★ 4/5

Thank you to Jo Holloway and NetGalley for giving me my first ARC!

Jo Holloway is a master of crafting authentic characters. This Red Riding Hood retelling has creative and nuanced characters who cope with guilt, leadership, and the realization that their world isn’t what it seems. This was an incredible fast-paced, action-packed, enemies-to-lovers story, with a stabby heroine and snarky Wolf. The banter! The flirting!

The story begins with Emi, our FMC, entering the mist-covered forest to visit her grandmother. She arrives at her grandma’s cottage and finds a handsome man there instead. Wolf is on a mission to end the curse of the mist and becomes trapped with Emi at her grandmother’s cottage. They have to trust each other enough to figure out how to escape the mist and the dangers of the forest.

What I loved most about this book is how complex the characters are. They all grew and evolved, facing their fears and the unknown, to help those around them. I always enjoy Holloway’s main characters—they aren’t special snowflakes where power comes naturally to them. Emi, for example, is a very realistic, young woman, who deals with insecurities about herself. She has to work hard to become strong, let go of her insecurities, and learn to trust others. In the process, she grows to love herself.

This beautiful book will speak to those who deal with insecurities and want to grow into the person they dream of becoming. It is also a fantastic romantasy, fairy-tale retelling! Thank you to NetGalley and Jo Holloway Books for the ARC! I hope to see more of Emi and Wolf!