Inspect Wolfsangel (The Wolfsangel Cycle #1) Designed By M.D. Lachlan Available In PDF

was not at all what I expected from a fantasy "werewolf" novel, But one of the reasons why I did pick it up was for the mythology and its Viking/Norse setting, and knowing that it was going to have a dark and brutal story.
None of that teen paranormal romance stuff for me, thanks!

Wolfsangel begins with a Viking raid on a small village, the leader a king who has seen in a prophecy that he was to kidnap a child to be his heir.
But what he finds is not one but two infants twin boys whose origins and fates are entwined with the gods, Vali grows up as a Viking prince, while his twin Feileg is raised in the wilds with wolves to be the protector of a witch, Years later, the abduction of a simple farmer's daughter is the link between them that draws them together in this tale of savage adventure,

It was really difficult for me to rate this book, At first, I was taken with the story, It's easy to be drawn in right away, especially given the style of the writing which I felt was perfect for the novel's theme and background, I loved the Norse mythology and fantasy elements, as well as the imagery the writing invoked, The plot started in a pretty straightforward way, which I didn't have a problem with,

However, the further I got, the more lost I became, The author does have a way with words, but towards the end I felt all of it was getting needlessly confusing and complicated, All the subplots and characters that I had felt had supported each other so well near the beginning began unraveling, which made everything feel less coherent, more random and difficult to follow.


In sum great opening and set up, but unfortunately starts losing its steam as it goes on,


sitelinkWolfsangel is the fantasy debut of sitelinkMark Barrowcliffe, under the nom de plume sitelinkM, D. Lachlan, and boy did he deliver! This novel takes a unique view of werewolf folklore, and ties it up neatly with Norse mythology to give a brilliantly fresh story.


We start with Authun the Pitiless, a ruthless and successful Viking king, who has yet to sire an heir, He follows the advice of Gullveig, the witch queen, in raiding an AngloSaxon village in the search for a promised child to take his throne, However, rather than one child he finds two: one, Vali, is kept to live as his heir the other, Feileg, is raised under the view of the witch queen in the ancient arts of the wolfpeople.


Vali is brought up in a small village to learn under the guidance of another ruling king, Forkbeard, while also being betrothed to his daughter, However, the simple life ensnares him and he falls for a peasant girl, Adisla, instead of the princess he is promised to, Vali has shown himself to be more at home at the hearth than with a sword, and for this reason Forkbeard wants Vali removed without incurring the legendary wrath of Authun.
To prove his loyalty, he forces the prince to hunt and capture a werewolf, in the hope he will die in the process, Surprisingly, he is triumphant, and returns unknown to him with his twin brother Feileg, now a true wolfman,

Soon after, the village is raided by Danes who take Adisla hostage, Upon finding this was not an accident, Vali, with the help of Feileg, sets out to claim her back and discover more about the mysterious raid,

sitelinkLachlan has clearly done his research for this novel, It begins as a historical Viking story and segues into a battle of Gods and magic, Let's be clear, the book isn't particularly happy, You feel real empathy for Vali and Feileg, even when they are ruthless and destructive, It fits in perfectly with the dark atmosphere of the Viking lifestyle, and the sense of helplessness and doom felt by the characters as the novel progresses,

The magic system was also clever, well thought through, and reminiscent of how I feel magic usage should be portrayed, The use of magic is not simple or easy, but must be gained through extreme sacrifice and pain, This is particularly in the witch queen, who has had her growth stunted by the constant torture of its use, It does involve a large number of human sacrifices even children, that many readers may be uncomfortable with, However, these are not meaningless but logical, in an attempt to stay true to the sadistic traditions of Norse witches,

The only drawback is the novel can be extremely complicated, Many parts of the book had to be reread many times before I began fully understanding what was happening, This may also be a product of me trying to understand every little detail, however some may find this offputting if looking for a simle, easytoread book, I quite enjoyed this however, and it didn't stop the book being fastpaced and enjoyable,

I would highly recommend this book to any fantasy reader, particularly those interested in Norse mythology, It is dark and brutal, and blends reality and mythology in a wonderful way, A truly engaging read, but probably not for the faint of heart! My thoughts:
I heard some buzz about this book and got intrigued, Vikings, magic and werewolves, that sure caught my attention.
It isn't the easiest book to describe it is a strange book, like a dream or a tale told long ago by the people living in the North, There Lachlan succeeded, I did feel the Norse Sagas over this story,

The book is dark and brutal, It tells the story of two boys, Vale who grows up not wanting to fight, and falling for a farmgirl, He is to become the Big Bad Wolf that can bring down a God, But in the beginning he is nice, and righteous, He does not want to look up to the Gods of War and instead he looks to Loki the trickster who laughs at the Gods, Even when he is plummeting into darkness I like him, and when I say dark, I mean pitchblack, crazy and lost, His brother is raised by Berserks and then by Wolfmen, he is also a Wolf, A bit crazy, also lost, and seems to be the violent one, This is a tale in which you do not know what will happen,

The magic in this one is true to its origin, runes, witches, and people nearing drowning for a glimpse of the future, It's

magic that is real, but at the same time you just do not know, perhaps it is all a coincidence

The book itself is about growing up, finding yourself, doing the right thing, and in the end, being a mere plaything for gods, or should we say the destroyer of them.
Because at the end of time Ragnarök will come, the last battle where Odin is killed by the Fenris wolf, And in this book we meet the Fenris wolf, Odin, and Loki who fathered the wolf, But this book does not end the way you think it will, because there is a second book, though at the same time there is an end, Why Well you will just have to read to find out,

Conclusion:
It was a good book, and if you like adventure, vikings, magic, and fighting then this is the book for you, It is fantasy dipped in reality, a strange dream and a time when Gods were real and present, A time where a new religion started to emerge in the North, And it's the story of the werewolf, It is the Norse sagas told with modern language, and with a totally new spin to things,

Rating
I actually have no idea how to rate this book, Because it was just so different, He sure has a way of words, So to the point, a good book

/
A good choice for a Halloween read: real scary and brutal, with a bodycount to rival the Rambo movies.
Don't be misled by the angel in the title, the book is about the Norse pantheon, a bloodthirsty bunch with a feeble grasp on sanity, who treat humans as insignificant ants to be crushed underfoot for fun.
There is a romance angle to the story, a good one that sends me back to some classical tales of doomed lovers like Tristan and Isolde, also some political developments between several Norse and Danish kingdoms, but the major tonality of the novel is the myth infused horror of said ants trying to break free of the Fate the Gods have already written for them.


I would use again the word "classic" to describe the love triangle between the main actors : Adisla is a peasant girl with an independent spirit, daughter of a healer, trying to decide between twin brothers who both love her truly.
Vali is a king's son sent as hostage / knight in training to a rival kingdom where he shows a dislike for feats of arms and a predilection for learning and housekeeping, following the skirts of Adisla instead of drinking and brawling with berserkers.
In the beginning I liked the way he used his brains to stay ahead of trouble and some flashes of humor that will not resist long in a story filled with pillaging and the slaughter of innocents.
Feileg is the brother Vali got separated from at birth, who was left by his adoptive family to grow up among wolves, learning to kill with his bare hands and teeth, forgetting human language and customs.
A witch hidden inside a mountain who has the power of prophecy and an elderly king who sacrificed everything in order to get an heir complete the list of major characters on the gameboard Loki and Odin throw their dice.


Things I really liked about the book:
the actual plot: this is a darn good story, with some clever twists and good pacing leading to a big confrontation at the end
the setting is very well researched both in terms of Vikings lifestyle and Norse mythology
the main characters start out easy to relate to: young, likable, real fighters.

the general dark atmosphere and understated romantic subplot,
the werewolf and the witch are well constructed, disturbing and scary

Things that could have gone down better:
the writing: hesitant in the first chapters, with some awkard jumps in the timeline when switching POV's, it delivers the story but it doesn't impress, doesn't have that extra "wow" ingredient or that deft touch at metaphor, at dialogue or at highly charged emotional scenes.

prophecy: It's one of my major turnoffs when it is used to excess, and I felt this story is written around a predetermined path, that leaves very little room to the heroes for freewill, and ends up feeling just a tad contrived and predictable.

the magic system involving runes, shamanism and human sacrifice isn't very well explained,

I am trying to develop a system when in doubt aboutorreviews: would I want to reread the book or to jump right in to the next book in the series In this case: not really, but I still recommend Wolfsangel as a solid story, well worth a try for fans of dark fantasy and horror.
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