Wolf Hunt

Jeff Strand’s Wolf Hunt has been described to me as a horror comedy. Well, I don’t like horror comedies. With me it’s either or. Therefore, my first instinct was to pass over Jeff Strand’s Offering. But then I remembered having enjoyed reading Strand’s “Blisters” and decided to give this a chance. Within minutes I was hooked. Its comedic elements are delicate and well placed witticisms owned by the characters themselves; fortunately, the plot itself is kept free of parody or satire. From start to end, the protagonists, a duo of charming thugs, crank out a cornucopia of taunting remarks towards each other and their supernatural antagonist who skillfully returns the favor with character fitting ripostes of the macabre kind show more that are no less funny. For all of this, the author doesn’t forget to inject the plot with just the right amount of deadly seriousness. After all, our thuggish yet lovable heroes have to make it their business to hunt a werewolf whose razor-sharp claws and quips are equally vicious.Summa summarum, this is a solid hands-on werewolf story sans over the top fantasy elements that so often plague the genre; its noir-style dry humor only adds to it. show less

This fun, demented little book concerns two semi-friendly thugs who have to transport a man trapped in a cage four hours away to Florida. The man in question, Ivan, is reputed to be a werewolf, which of course George and Lon don't believe. As long as they get paid, games on, until Ivan shows how much he enjoys mentally screwing with the men.

The characters rocked for Wolf Hunt. George and Lon are constantly indulging in silly conversations that border on ridiculous. They reminded me of a pair you'd see in a cheesy comedy movie, but it works here. I can tell Ivan is amused by the duo, which I would also be, but Ivan is amused by general by people, especially when he sets out to kill them. Apparently Ivan didn't need the werewolf show more reputation because he's always been a serial killer. Enter a plot twist.

Knock aside the funny times that left me seriously grinning with their dialogue and amusing situations, and you see this book is also filled with plenty of violence. The death count is mega when Ivan goes on a killing spree. Jeff Strand is clearly talented, especially with the ironic situations and coming up with how everything can go wrong for poor George and Lon. The steady dialogue is what fills most of the book, and it's a breeze to read through.

I really need to read more werewolf fiction that's horror-focused, it's a back-burner plan this year, and Wolf Hunt was a fun visit into the furry fiction. It's not like other shifter fiction I've read. show less

Gotta love me some horror/humor!

I can totally see myself watching this as a low-budget horror! Two thugs, a hapless girl, and a truly monstrous werewolf. Make it a road trip. Add tons of cool quips and sassy dialogue and make sure everything that can go wrong, does.

Simple? Hell yeah. Trashy? Hell yeah. But I should point out that it's also funny as hell and when it gets bloody, it's just as delicious. I can't believe that Ivan the Werewolf can be so damn evil! Like, utterly nasty. Such a relief from Team Jacob. (Of which there was a reference.) :)

*hoooooooowl*

Why haven't I ever read Strand before? It takes a certain kind of genius to write B-Movie madness so well off the screen. This novel zipped by real quick, dirty, and fun. :) Total show more mindcandy. I mean, what else can you expect when you throw two idiot bounty hunters at a werewolf? They're completely unprepared!

Time to claw out some eyeballs for fun! :) Truly delightful. :) show less

George and Lou made their living as criminals. Usually they were hired to rough up someone who owes a mobster money or something along those lines. This time the job they were given seems pretty easy, they have to drive across Florida and deliver a man in a cage to a mob boss. There is a catch, the man in the cage is a werewolf, but who would believe in something like that?

It’s a simple job, they just have to follow the instructions: don’t open the cage, don’t reach into the cage and don’t throw anything into the cage. Surprisingly enough things don’t go according to planned, the werewolf escapes and goes on a killing spree. This werewolf named Ivan can change from human to wolf at will and he has an insatiable blood lust. show more George and Lou never believed in werewolves but they do now and they may be the only ones who can stop the carnage.

Wolf Hunt by Jeff Strand is everything you could ask for in a horror novel, it’s a simple story that’s carried by great dialogue, dark humor and moments of nail-biting horror. What really sets this book apart from other horror novels is how the story is told, it doesn’t rely on bloody action packed scenes (even though it does have that) to keep the reader interested, it holds your attention by how the characters interact with each other.

After reading this book I was looking at reviews for it and one bad review that I saw said that the characters were boring and there wasn’t much information given on them. This person must not have paid attention to the writing and probably didn’t read the whole book. There’s lots of detail given on what makes the characters tick. It’s just revealed through dialogue rather than having a third person description on what the character is like. As I was reading this book I found myself thinking that Quentin Tarantino could make an excellent movie out of this since I always thought the best parts of his work was the dialogue.

Another thing I liked about this book is how the story gets more complex as it moves along. We start with three main characters, we then add more characters including a woman named Michelle who gets into the action by accident but then decides she wants to go along for the ride. My favorite scene in this book was when Lou and George meet Ivan in a bar to work out a deal and things don’t go well. In particular I liked how Ivan gives one of the people in the bar an ultimatum and what happens when the person makes his decision. Ivan may be insane and evil but even he seems to have a moral code.

While I had some issues with this story which I can’t talk about because it would spoil the book, I thought it was a pretty solid read. I love how Jeff Strand’s books combine humor and horror and Wolf Hunt is no exception. I love werewolf stories and I’m happy to see that there is a sequel to this book. I just hope Mr. Strand can recapture everything what made the first book so much fun. show less

I can see this being made into a very decent b-movie. This is the first Jeff Strand book I have read and I must say I'm please that I took a chance on his work. While the dialogue between George & Lou can sometimes be a little meh, the overall story is very good. Plenty of werewolf mayhem that is both dark and sometimes humorous. I didn't want to put this story down.

Reviewed for MonsterLibrarian.com

Ivan is a total bad guy, a complete jerk who can calmly and sinisterly point out everyone's stupidity while gleefully killing them. Luckily he's also the cargo of two stone cold, no-nonsense mafia transport men who are taking him across Florida to...well they don't get paid to ask questions. Too bad Ivan just got loose and is now roaming suburban neighborhoods slaughtering people.
Strand's Wolf Hunt is a wild ride, full of characters who don't fall for all the typical horror novel tropes and face their circumstances with casual sensibility. Definitely a stand out in horror, much less werewolf tales, this is the story for people disillusioned with all the other werewolves out there, especially the thinly show more veiled alpha male stereotypes. Highly recommended for private and public collections.
Contains: Language, violence, gore show less

This is a story about a caged werewolf in human form and the two men who are charged with taking him on a 5 hour drive.
Sounds simple, right? Especially if you don't believe in werewolves.
Of course, all hell, and the werewolf, breaks loose.
This book had some gore and a completely psychotic werewolf, even when he was in human form.
The two drivers were hilarious and with all the action going on, it was very hard to put this book down.
Highly recommended for those with a twisted sense of humor and a love of the horror genre.