Review & Giveaway: A Whisper of Wolves - Kris Humphrey

A Whisper of Wolves (Guardians of the Wild #1) - Kris Humphrey

ISBN - 9781847155962

Publisher - Stripes Publishing

Release date - March 2 2015

Find - Goodreads | Book Depository 

When a raven drops a white feather at the doorstep on the day of your birth, it is a symbol of your destiny. You are a Whisperer – a guardian of the wild. After many years of peace in the kingdom of Meridina, rumours are spreading of a planned invasion – could the demonic Narlaw be returning from the darklands? It is up to the Whisperers and their animal companions to defend Meridina, protect Princess Ona and stop the Narlaw from destroying their world.

When hunters from her village disappear without a trace, Alice suspects that something sinister is at work. With the help of Storm, her wolf companion, Alice fights to save her village. The Narlaw are on the attack and it’s up to the Whisperers to stop them…

When a postman drops a parcel with a white feather through your letterbox it is a symbol of a great read! I was lucky enough to be part of the cover reveal for A Whisper of Wolves back in January and I've been looking forward to reading the book for quite some time.

Once upon a time a band of demons were banished by Queen Amina, the Whisperer people still talk about one hundred years later. But the Narlaw have returned... Alice, along with her mentor and another young Whisperer, may be all that stand between the demons and the people. Whisperer's are those with magic. Taken from their homes at an early age they become apprentices and gain an animal companion who they 'whisper' with to communicate.

The story is the first in a planned quartet and is mostly the story of Alice and her fight to save the local village from the Narlaw. We're also introduced to Dawn, the chief Whisperer in the royal palace even though she's just a young girl. The story weaves between the two girls where it becomes apparent that Dawn is practised at everything Alice is struggling with and desperately needs to know in her battle.

The plot moves along at a fast pace, with only 213 pages it has to really, and Kris Humphrey's writing is simply wonderful. He paints quite a vivid picture of Alice's world and I loved that we got to see things from the Whisperer's animals point of view. Alice has a wolf, Storm, and Dawn a raven named Ebony. There are also more unexpected animals as companions including an owl belonging to Alice's mentor, Moraine. The bond between Whisperer and animal was amazing, especially during the battle scenes with Alice where Storm was there in her mind giving her the confidence to do what was needed.

An exciting read for the middle grade crowd A Whisper of Wolves is a great story. There are parts which could have done with some more detail such as the history of the Whisperer's, more about the Narlaw and where they came from and more back story about both the girls but to me these are minor niggles that I suspect may well be ironed out in further books. If you like adventure, fantasy and animals then definitely give A Whisper of Wolves a go. I'm now eagerly waiting the second book, Warning Cry, as I can't wait to see what happens next, meet more Whisperers and see more of the fantastic world Kris has created.

One lucky person can win their own copy of A Whisper of Wolves, simply leave a comment on this post and you'll be eligible to win. It's an international giveaway and will be open until Saturday 21 2015.