For half-elven Pathfinder Varian Jeggare and his devil-blooded bodyguard Radovan, things are rarely as they seem. Yet not even the notorious crime-solving duo is prepared for what they find when a search for a missing Pathfinder takes them into the gothic and mist-shrouded mountains of Ustalav. Beset on all sides by noble intrigue, mysterious locals, and the deadly creatures of the night, Varian and Radovan must use both sword and spell to track the strange rumors to their source and uncover a secret of unimaginable proportions, aided in their quest by a pack of sinister werewolves and a mysterious mute priestess. But it'll take more than merely solving the mystery to finish this job. For shadowy figures have taken note of the pair's investigations, and the forces of darkness are set on making sure neither man gets out of Ustalav alive...
From fan-favorite author Dave Gross comes a new fantastical mystery set in the award-winning world of the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game.
300-page mass market paperback
ISBN–13: 978-1-60125-287-6
ePub ISBN-13: 978-1-60125-331-6
Prince of Wolves is also available as a digital edition on the following sites:
There was just something about this book that did not grab my interest. I don't know if it was just the first person writing style, since I am use to 3rd person, or if it was just that the characters seemed so bland. Although I could not force myself past the first couple of chapters, I may have to try and read it again to make sure it just was not my mood at the time.
WARNING: *** I have attempted to keep spoilers out of this text, but... ***
Up front, I need to state that I don't have a love or even a like affair with undead, gothic concepts, settings, or characters. I wanted to read a book from the pathfinder tales line, and I selected this book specifically because I felt that if they could please me with the story despite the setting and the gothic components (werewolves are gothic in my opinion, right or wrong), then it would be a great deed. Fortunately for me, this wasn't a traditional gothic story.
Prince of Wolves is a mystery story, although its pretty opaque to what the mystery is about. It appears to be Pathfinder investigation, but that is only a small part of it. Its told through the point of view of two separate and very different characters, is reasonably easy to follow, and keeps just enough detail out of reach to keep the tension and interest properly perked.
The characters are wildly varied, interesting, and deep enough to be believable without being overbearing. I actually looked forward to the stories switch of point of view to see what the other factor was up to. Even the tertiary characters were interesting and believable. This was possible simply because there weren't too many characters introduced.
The story was never boring, tiring, or running down rabbit holes now and again. Sure there were side treks for the characters, but the characters were experiencing them, not the reader. I never came back from the story to say to myself "What was that all about?" or "Is this a future story seed?" or "Not enough words, huh?"
To sum it up, the book was extremely pleasant to read. It fit in the Pathfinder universe as I expected, told the tales of characters I cared about, and left me wanting more. I was never confused or frustrated, nor did I feel belaboured or obligated to finish the story, I honestly wanted to. This is the kind of book I would want to take with me when its important that I enjoy myself and fill the time with pleasant relaxation.
Prince of Wolves stands as a strong fantasy novel even without the Pathfinder label, Golarion setting, or underlying adherence to game rules and effects. It stands as an excellent first book for the Pathfinder Tales series, as all that is required to enjoy it is a desire to read a well-written fantasy.
I felt the slightly experimental style was handled excellently, and came off as a requirement for the drama of the narrative rather than any kind of gimmick. Alternating the point of view between the main characters allowed us to explore them more thoroughly, and highlighted the differences between them and how that made them a better team. I feel it went above and beyond what is normally found in standard 'buddy' fiction.
I would recommend this book to anyone looking for a good fantasy read, and eagerly await Dave Gross' next installment.
I want more from Arnisant! I loved the attention and character development he got in Master of Devils and was sad to see him back in an ancillary role during Queen of Thorns.
BTW, have you seen this contest? An Arnisant entry would be very interesting.
Pathfinder Battles Case Subscriber; Pathfinder Maps, Pathfinder Accessories Subscriber; Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Charter Superscriber; Starfinder Charter Superscriber
Deidre Tiriel wrote:
Is there ever going to be a PFS chronicle for Prince of Wolves? It's the only Pathfinder Tales without one, as far as I can tell.
I am rereading Prince of Wolves. Well, I'm rereading the entire Varian Jeggare/ Radovan series, and I'm currently in Prince of Wolves.
I really enjoy the way that Dave Gross writes Radovan. Some of what I like is embodied in this line that I just encountered:
"Despite their frightening appearances, not a one of [the villagers] tried to bury me alive or set me on fire. That made them my favorite villagers in all of Ustalav, so far."
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