Review: Werewolf Nights by Mari Hamill

Title: Werewolf Nights by Mari Hamill

Publisher: Dog Ear Publishing

Release Date: May 19th, 2014

Genres: Paranormal, Fantasy, Horror, Drama

Medium: Paperback, Recieved for Review via author

Werewolf Nights is an interesting read that mixes multiple genres, including fantasy, horror, drama, romance, and of course, the paranormal. It's an exciting new twist on werewolves, one that is full of unexpected twists and turns, and a multitude of exciting characters.

I have to say that in the beginning, I wasn't very sure of this novel. The beginning is slow and a little confusing. Some of the writing is generic and parts of the plot were very predictable. In this sense, some parts of the werewolf lore used in this novel were very stereotypical and could have been better reinvented. I feel as if she focused more on a historic retelling of werewolf lore, rather than creating her own, and at times, the mixing of various werewolf tales was too much and created confusion, which clouded the overall plot of the story. However, aside from this, I liked the plot well enough. I thoroughly enjoyed the filmmaking aspect that was thrown in (as I work in filmmaking myself) but there was an inconsistency here. Sometimes, the filmmaking was simplified (which was a good thing, so that those unfamiliar with the industry could still understand the story) but sometimes this aspect was overdone and over the top. Other than that, I felt that the plot flowed quite nicely, and there was a good amount of unexpected plot twists.

The writing was also very nice. Hamill writes with obvious skill, and can easily project a scene into the reader's mind with just a few chosen words. Her writing flows nicely, but lacks description. 

I feel that one thing could have improved this novel immensely, is to have "fleshed out" the plot and the writing. I rarely say this, as usually, authors use too much filler in their stories, trying to fill up pages. That is not the case with this novel, as I needed more. I needed more description and more added to the plot in general. If this had been dragged out a bit more, some of the story wouldn't have been so sudden and confusing. I also would have liked to have seen more character development. The majority of the cast of interesting characters (including the main protagonist) felt very one dimensional. They lacked emotional connect to the reader. They rarely had anything to base their actions of words upon. It just seemed very mechanical. But I did enjoy the ending (which was a big plot twists, and one that I loved) and it left us with a fantastic cliff hanger.

Besides all the negatives, I do see potentional. Her writing was very nice and her storytelling-vibe matched the story's overall feel. Eventually, I could see this novel becoming a favorite of paranormal-fans. It's there, but it needs some work. But I really did enjoy it, and I look forward to seeing what she does next.