I watched the movie adaptation of this book last year as of writing this review, and really liked it. So let's check out the book it's based on. Spoilers ahead.
Carag is a Woodwalker, a human-animal shapeshifter, who grew up with humans. He has to keep his true identity a secret for his human family. But then one day he enrolls in a school for Woodwalkers, where he learns more about his kind. Carag soon befriends some of the students, but also makes enemies. Meanwhile, a rich man named Andrew Milling seems almost creepily obsessed with Carag. Carag will have to decide who his friends and who is enemies are in the end.
Yeah, a solid book, pretty much as good as the movie. Honestly, outside of the climax, the movie follows the book pretty closely. But I really want to talk about the book here, not the movie (you can read the movie review on my other blog).
This is honestly a rather decent first installment in this series. It does a lot of establishing about Woodwalker society, but it never feels too exposition-heavy or boring. I was quite invested in the journey the characters were on and especially Carag's development was nice to see, as we start to see him grow more comfortable with himself as a Woodwalker and his friends.
I also thought the subplot with Milling was well-executed. From the moment we meet him we kinda get icky vibes from this guy as he, a complete stranger (and an adult, mind you) starts to show a lot of borderline obsessive interest in Carag. Carag isn't really sure what to think of him at first, but grows more and more uncomfortable as the story goes on. But also, Milling has a sympathetic backstory, his motivations aren't always clear, and he has a lot to promise Carag (becoming his mentor, possibly making him rich, and of course finding his Woodwalker family again). But I was glad that, just like in the movie, Carag eventually decides where his loyalties lie, and that he isn't going to take any of Milling's creepy bullshit anymore. Good for him, and the development was well-written.
I also quite enjoyed the side characters, whether it's the teachers at the school, or Carag's friends, or even the bullies. There was never a dull moment in this book, but the characters really made the story and the author did overall a good job of writing them. I especially liked Holly, as well as Brandon's arc of learning to stand up for himself.
I guess if I do have a minor criticism, it's that this book overall isn't super exciting or anything. Don't get me wrong, I was never bored and I think it did a good job with what it had going, but outside of a few fight scenes and the climax there isn't a lot of thrills to be found here and it's mostly just doing character and world-building. So if you're going into this looking for a whole lot of excitement, look elsewhere. Again, not bad, but I can see this maybe being a bit too slow and world/character-building heavy for some younger readers.
Overall not a bad first installment, though, I look forward to the next.
Rating: 4/5
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