The Wolf of Tebron

The Wolf of Tebron by C.S. Lakin
Living Ink Books, 2010
246 pages
YA; Fantasy; Christian
3/5 stars

Source: Received a free e-galley via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I wanted to read this because I was intrigued about the idea of Christian fantasy, somewhat in the vein of CS Lewis.  However I did not find that to be an accurate comparison.  I remember the first time I read The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe and how I was immediately drawn into the story and identified with the children. And because of how much I love the Narnia books, the memory hung over me and this suffered in comparison.

But with this book, the characters did not do much for me. The main character is Joran, a young blacksmith, who has lost his wife Charris through his anger and despair over his assumption of her infidelity.  He sounded very young despite his marriage and was very childish. A mysterious woman tells him he must set out on a quest to save Charris prompting the events in this book. However Joran also must have some connection to the opening chapter, which prepared me for one story before jarring me into Joran's.  The other main character is the wolf Joran meets, named Ruyah who I thought was going to be like Aslan but who ends up being very different. They were okay but I was annoyed with Joran and I was confused about the wolf's role for too long.

Although the characters didn't really work for me, I thought the writing was absolutely gorgeous. The descriptions of what was happening and the emotions felt-I can't remember the last time I admired prose so much.  Often prose isn't something I care much about but here it made a big difference and helped me keep reading even when it was a bit of a slog. I also enjoyed the discussion questions at the end and Lakin's notes on the works that influenced her.

Consequently this receives 3 out of 5 stars. Although I appreciate the opportunity to review this book, I will not be continuing with the series.