I feel extremely silly writing this today. I feel like I’m floating in fog; I don’t know what I’m supposed to be doing or what to focus on. I am not surprised by the results of the election last night. I stopped being surprised by how many people are motivated by bigotry when Obama was elected. He won, but the response from people I knew and even considered friends in 2008 let me know that I had underestimated how insidious white supremacy is, and that people will support whatever position will keep them in power, or at least, approximate enough to power to reap some benefit. Racism won’t just die out, we won’t evolve out of misogyny. At least, that’s all I can assume based on the fact that so many white women and men of color voted for Trump in the end. I feel so angry I could combust. I feel hollowed out by how many times I’ve lit up inside with rage and I’m burning myself out.
But, if there’s anything I’ve learned about people (and myself), it’s that we are resilient. I’m not sure it will be ok, but I’m still alive and I’m very dedicated to trying to have a good time if I’m going to be here anyway. I do not have much hope, currently, but I do have access to a lot of cannabis, a Libro.fm subscription and two library cards, so I will be escaping reality as often as possible. This week, I’m going to cover the Big Bad Wolves series, because it’s my newsletter and I can do whatever I want, and reading all the books got me through an exhausting October.
Big Bad Wolf, by Charlie Adhara 🎧
Includes:
The Wolf at the Door, which I wrote about last month.
The Wolf at Bay
Thrown to the Wolves
Wolf in Sheep’s Clothing
Cry Wolf
Genre: paranormal romance, suspense
What’s it about: This series is set in a world where werewolves are a separate species that live among us, with their own culture and government. Cooper Dayton is an FBI agent who is gutted by a werewolf on a case, and after he recovers, he’s drafted into a secret agency called the Bureau of Special Investigations that investigates werewolf crimes. He is paired with a werewolf partner as part of an attempt to improve relations between humans and werewolves. Oliver Park has a mysterious agenda of his own as they work to solve their first case together. Over the course of the first book, Dayton and Park struggle to trust each other, and they also struggle to stay away from each other. As the series goes on, the template is much the same: Dayton and Park are floundering in a new stage of their relationship. Dayton is anxious and irritable and has issues around vulnerability. Park has a traumatic past where he was groomed to be a violent pack enforcer for his grandfather after being abandoned by his parents. They must work through these issues to reaffirm their love for each other…all while they solve a tricky murder!
Was it any good: Yeah. I couldn’t help but love it. It’s well written, or at least, much better written than a lot of paranormal romance I’ve read. The central murder of the book is always genuinely mysterious and interesting. The world building is very thorough, and I am fascinated by the politics within the werewolf groups and how they navigate the world as we know it. And the development of Dayton and Park’s relationship is really sweet and satisfying. There are genuine moments of vulnerability and growth between the two men, and together they navigate issues of masculinity, coming out to your family, toxic exes and abusive parental figures. I didn’t get tired of reading about them. Also…the sex scenes were really hot, there are several per book, and they are not all exclusively about penetration, which I think is great. (PSA: Penetration isn’t necessary to have sex if you don’t want to do that! It’s still fun either way!)
Highlights:
There are so many good side characters, like a flirty ex-boyfriend-turned-best-friend, beleaguered owner of an inn, a wacky and villainous wolf scientist, and more!
Dayton and Park are based in D.C., which I enjoy because I used to live there, but they are often traveling to small forest towns, which adds some cozy whimsy to the mix.
The boys occasionally switch, which is important! And Cooper Dayton is a slutty bottom, which I also love. I’m sorry, you all have to know that now.
I appreciate a story where the central romance is not full of toxic garbage. Just two broken people trying to understand each other and be open to love 🥹.
Bonus
I learned about Charlie Adhara when I was scrolling through available audiobooks on Libby. The first book I read from the author is technically the beginning of a spin off series. Pack of Lies has many of the same elements as the Big Bad Wolf series, except the central couple is Eli Smith (Oliver Park’s ex-boyfriend), a glamorous sexy werewolf who runs a retreat for his kind and Julien Doran, an aging Hollywood actor looking for answers after his brother’s death. It’s cute and hot.
love u