Book Review: Touched by the Moon by Lisa M. Airey

Touched by the Moon – Lisa M. Airey

*Warning – may contain spoilers*

Author: Lisa M. Airey

Publisher: Aakenbaaken & Kent

First published: 2015

Edition: Signed paperback. I also love the cover!

Pages: 309

Blurb:   

TAKEN

The timber wolves of Fallston, South Dakota fall       prey to an international ring of fur trappers. Unfortunately, timber wolves are not all they capture. Taken by a savage group of criminals and transported half a world away to Denmark, two young boys must set aside their sibling rivalry to survive the violence that surrounds them.

HAUNTED

Julie Walker is haunted by the loss of her sons and haunted by the reappearance of the one man she never wanted to see again in her lifetime, Hayden Kolding. He has an agenda, and a surprising ally, forcing Julie to confront a side of herself that she has fought long and hard to deny.

HUNTER

But life is seldom simply a matter of black and white. As victim becomes victor and hunter becomes hunted, there is a world of gray. And Gray Walker is out for blood.

History of my copy: I received a signed copy of Touched by the Moon from the author in exchange for an honest review. She also sent a handwritten thankyou card with it, which was a really nice touch.

Werewolves and a pretty cover always make me beeline to a book. Thankfully, I wasn’t disappointed!

At first I was finding Touched by the Moon a little difficult to get into, feeling as if I should already know the characters. Then I found out that it is actually the second book in the Touching the Moon series, oops! That being said, once you were a few chapters in and got used to everyone, it actually works well as a standalone too. I will, however, get around to reading the first in the series eventually.

Plot: Touched by the Moon primarily focuses on the kidnapping of Gray and Julie’s twin boys, Kit and Bear. In a journey that takes both the boys and the reader halfway across the world, we discover just how dangerous the world can be, and that monsters may come in the form of rogue wolves, but not all wolves are monsters.

         Juxtaposing this, we have Julie stuck back home in South Dakota as she comes to terms with her family life and the prospect of another set of twins. We also see her battle her inner demons as Hayden, a man who once kidnapped her, comes back into her life. On top of this, we have some of Julie’s closest friends discover what she is.

         To add yet another dimension to the story, we have the battle of Peter with his memories and beliefs who, with the help of his friends Jens and his family rescue two wolf pups, who just so happen to be the missing boys.

         It’s a story of adventure, survival, family and a whole lot of determination all woven together in a fantastic story.

Setting: Touched by the Moon spans the USA, Canada and Denmark, which is a broad range of areas and a daunting task, but one Airey pulls off brilliantly. Without having been to any of the places, I feel as if they have been portrayed beautifully and it is clear that a large amount of research has gone into the traditions and folklore of the locations.

Characters: No character in Touched by the Moon is badly written. Yes, there is pure evil, especially in Rutger, but each and every character felt unique and had their own personality.

               My least favourite is probably Julie, but I think reading the previous book may change my mind on that as I don’t quite understand what she is and how she has become the woman she is.

               On the other hand, Peter is one of my favourite characters, and Bear and Kit are so adorable, especially as wolf pups! They are brave and daring yet so clearly vulnerable and yearn for home. I think Airey has captured the naivety and nature of young boys wonderfully, and added their lupine twist in a way that seems believable and not overpowering.

To read or not to read: Read. I thoroughly enjoyed Touched by the Moon and would recommend it to many, especially those who love werewolves but want something other than the traditional soppy YA books featuring them. Whilst I think the novel does work well as a stand-alone book, I imagine it is better to read its predecessor first.