#BookReview: WOLF BY WOLF by Ryan Graudin

WOLF BY WOLF

Summary:
The year is 1956, and the Axis powers of the Third Reich and Imperial Japan rule the world. To commemorate their Great Victory over Britain and Russia, Hitler and Emperor Hirohito host the Axis Tour: an annual motorcycle race across their conjoined continents. The victor is awarded an audience with the highly reclusive Adolf Hitler at the Victor's ball.

Yael, who escaped from a death camp, has one goal: Win the race and kill Hitler. A survivor of painful human experimentation, Yael has the power to skinshift and must complete her mission by impersonating last year's only female victor, Adele Wolfe. This deception becomes more difficult when Felix, Adele twin's brother, and Luka, her former love interest, enter the race and watch Yael's every move. But as Yael begins to get closer to the other competitors, can she bring herself to be as ruthless as she needs to be to avoid discovery and complete her mission?

Title: WOLF BY WOLF

Author: Ryan Graudin

Series: Wolf by Wolf #1

Source: In my OwlCrate!

Publisher: Little, Brown Books For Young Readers

Publication Date: October 20, 2015

Rating: 2.5/5 stars 

Purchase:

Amazon | Chapters | TBD

It's Good but not Great or Excellent. Just in the middle. I found it really difficult to believe that this could happen. Not so much that Hitler could have won WW2, but the actual motorcycle race thing was not plausible to me. It seemed out of place in this world and seemed more like a reason to get from Point A to Point B. It was kinda hokey in my opinion. And was so glossed over in the actual story that it felt like a moot point.



I don't even know what to say really because the writing was good, but the plot didn't feel plausible. I really liked the characters but I felt like everything moved way too quickly for me to get a feel for who the secondary characters were. But I liked Yael. I thought her story was one I could get behind. I also really enjoyed the history stories about her wolves. But I thought that those were glossed over as well. We got one story for why they were important, but it felt like they should have had a bit more to them. The tattoos -- or rather the people behind them -- fell flat because they had one story, one glimpse into their life. And it was not enough for me to feel like they were real people.

I liked the experiment aspect and that Yael had this special ability. THIS didn't feel out of place, even though it was very convenient for Yael to have it. But I liked the explanation, I liked the way it was incorporated into the story. I also really liked that this was just another way for Yael to figure out who she was. But being Adele did not make sense to me once we learned more about her past. I feel like once things were said and discovered, it didn't make sense for Yael to even be in the position she was in.

If you're looking for a quick read, this is for you. There is minimal romance and it is all about Yael learning who she is. So I was okay with it. I don't know if I recommend buying it though, maybe just borrowing it from the library. Or, maybe, if it goes on sale for like $1.99 you can buy it. But IDK, I have seen such rave reviews and lots of friends have really enjoyed this, but it just wasn't the book for me.