Exploring the Land

About forty years after the end of the previous book in this series, it is now 1969 and a group of wolves is always at the Abbey ranch to help their human allies take care of the cattle. While the wolves have become more curious about human ways and vice versa, they are still very different: wilder, more direct since they can detect any lie, and more intent on staying isolated even in the face of technological advances like cars. Some of the current members of the Abbey family like the wolves right back, or are at the very least curious about them, but Colin is not one of them. More is the pity, since recently arrived Thoma is more than a little obsessed with Colin.

Thoma is new to the ranch, but he does not like it there. He is a wolf show more through and through and doesn’t want to accept that he has to behave like a human. Thoma hates clothes with a passion, prefers his meat raw and his vegetables nonexistent, and doesn’t understand why humans lie to each other. His only interest is getting closer to Colin, but the cowboy ignores him half the time and rebuffs any advances the other half. Thoma is determined though, and when Colin goes to a rodeo, having forbidden Thoma to come with him, Thoma secretly follows him.

Colin has some interesting issues with the wolves, and once they are revealed, his attitude makes more sense. Still, being away from the ranch and right after Thoma saves him from a beating, Colin decides to open up a little. The fact that he is attracted to Thoma helps, but the cultural divide between them is significant. Colin is devastated when Thoma is told to go to the wolf village upon their return, but there is a solution. One that neither Thoma nor he could have imagined, but one that points the way toward a future that might just see the wolves of Pike Peak and the Abbey family find a new way of cooperating.

If you want to know how the Wild Lands Ranch is doing now that the story settings are coming closer to the present time, if a curious wolfshifter who doesn’t like humans very much and a human who has issues with wolves sound like an interesting pairing, and if you’re looking for a read that is full of cross-cultural prejudice and discoveries and a slowly developing love story that almost goes wrong, then you will probably like this novella.


NOTE: This book was provided by Extasy Books for the purpose of a review on Rainbow Book Reviews. show less