Book 69 of 2010: Wolf's Bluff by W.D. Gagliani

Wolf’s Bluff is the third installment in W.D. Gagliani’s Wolf Cycle series. Homicide cop/werewolf Nick Lupo is back again and facing off against Wolfpaw Security. He is starting to believe it may very well consist of a full staff of werewolves. Lupo knows that getting himself involved in this case also puts his closest friends, including his girlfriend Jessie, at risk of harm as well. While looking into the Wolfpaw case, Lupo also gets wind of a series of “animal attacks” that are taking place in Wausau. Could the two be connected? It’s up to Lupo to find out. Will Lupo be able to take down this shifty group (no pun intended) before anyone else gets hurt?


Once again Gagliani has created a wonderful addition to the werewolf subgenre. Fans of this subgenre will definitely want to check out this novel, along with the two previous books in the series, as Gagliani puts a bit of a spin on werewolves. Most werewolf novels tend to either have all good werewolves or all bad, but Gagliani mixes things up. Lupo is an all-around good guy and does everything he can to control the “creature” within him. Unfortunately, he runs into a lot of people that can’t control their own “creatures”, and feels he’s the only one truly capable of getting things back under control. Due to this and the relationships he makes throughout, readers can’t help but sympathize and grow attached to Lupo’s character. He’s very likable, despite some of the “mistakes” he makes within this particular book. Everyone within the story better hope that nothing ever happens to him, because I tend to agree with him… if he can’t take down the bad guys, I don’t think anybody can!


This book would make a great addition to any library looking to expand its horror and/or werewolf sections.


Contains: Adult Language, Adult Situations, Gore, Sex

Book 57 of 2009: Wolf's Gambit by W.D. Gagliani

The second book in Gagliani's Wolf Cycle series is a bit different than the first, Wolf's Trap, as there is more than one bad guy involved. In the opening scene a man is actually killed by three werewolves near Eagle River, where Nick Lupo's girlfriend, Jessie, resides. When Lupo comes out to visit Jessie, she tells him of the attack that has just taken place, and the two of them attempt to help out Arnow, the new sheriff. Nick and Jessie suspect werewolves are involved, but Arnow is obviously in the dark. What they don't know is that a man who calls himself Mr. XYZ is controlling this pack of werewolves. Somehow, Lupo needs to take down the whole pack without getting himself killed in the process.

Wolf's Gambit takes on a whole new angle from Wolf's Trap with the multi-killer aspect. In the first book, Lupo only had to contend with one human killer, but in this novel he is up against a whole pack of militant werewolves that appear to be stronger than him. It's like one man against an army! I liked how Gagliani added in the emotions going on in Lupo's head when he was struggling with the doubts of those he thought trusted him. I felt it truly gave me a more personal look into Lupo. That's just one example of character development- Gagliani showed several examples of that as well with some of the other recurring characters. This is truly shaping out to be a great series and I'm greatly anticipating book three. Highly recommended!

Contains: Adult Language, Adult Situations, Gore, Rape, Sex

Review also posted at MonsterLibrarian.com

Book 54 of 2009: Wolf's Trap by W.D. Gagliani

The main character of Wolf's Trap, the start of a new series of interconnected novels, is Nick Lupo, a good cop who also happens to be a werewolf. In Lupo's first adventure, he is involved in tracking down a serial killer that seems to have some kind of strange obsession with lipstick. To make matters worse, Lupo senses that the killer is gunning for him specifically by some of the messages he is leaving behind at the scenes of his crimes. This puts a fear in Lupo that those he gets close to might also be in danger. He has been struggling with his werewolf side for years, and now with a competitor on the loose he fears that it may prove to be too much of a challenge to keep his inner wolf under control.

Gagliani had me hooked from page one with this first novel. He takes a different writing style from most authors in that he chops his chapters up based on who the main focus is and labels them as such. This made the book an extremely fast-paced read and had me flying through it! Gagliani juggles lots of interrelated storylines to clue readers into past events in the lives of many of the characters as they were growing up- events which, of course, shape the future. Gagliani uses flashback scenes throughout the book. In some novels this can seem confusing and troublesome, but in Wolf's Trap this fit well. The past triggered much of what happened in the present, so without the flashbacks, the novel wouldn't have been nearly as strong. All in all, this was an addictive read and much different from your typical werewolf attack books... for once the werewolf is the "good guy". Highly recommended!

Contains: Adult Language, Adult Situations, Gore, Rape, Sex, Child Abuse

Review also posted at MonsterLibrarian.com