Through Wolf's Eyes

I'm reading a book right now that I just love. My preferred genre is science fiction and fantasy. I tend to lean towards the fantasy aspect more than SF, but will try anything once. As I'm a voracious reader, I've gone through many, many authors. Some of my favorites include Mercedes Lackey, David Eddings, Anne McCaffery, Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman, Robin Hobb, and Piers Anthony. I've read almost every book each of these authors has written. Every now and then, I exhaust the selection available at Barnes and Noble and must search for a new author. So in scanning the shelves last weekend, I came across "Through Wolf's Eyes" by Jane Lindskold.

When I look for a new fantasy book, I tend to shy away from ones that describe "a classic battle between good and evil" or "an intriguing political web of mysteries." I prefer books that don't follow a typical formula, that instead focus on character development. I also tend to get lost in battle scenes or political maneuverings. So when I read "She's not your standard-issue princess--and this is not your standard-issue fairy tale" on the back of "Through Wolf's Eyes" I decided to give it a shot.

Briefly (since I've been so long winded thus far) a girl is raised by Royal wolves, bigger, stronger, and wiser than regular wolves. She is found as a teenager and believed to be the long lost heir to the throne. The story follows her learning how to behave more like a lady and less like a wolf, and how she fits into her human heritage. It is very well written, and I want to keep reading to discover how she will handle the next situation. I'm only about halfway through, but can't wait to finish!

Here's an excerpt of one of my favorite parts. Firekeeper is travelling with the humans and their pack train. The animals are wary of her, as she smells and acts like a wolf. She decides to "help" out with one of the reluctant mules.

From the corner of her eye, Firekeeper saw Derian approaching, lightly swinging the stick he used to swat the mules across their hindquarters. Determined to move the animal herself, she considered her options.

To this point, she had not tried talking with the animals the two-legs had brought with them. She rarely had bothered speaking with herbivores in any case, finding it uncomfortable to talk with those she might later eat. Now, however, she stood on her toes, rising just high enough that her lips were close to one of the mule's brown-haired, dark-tipped ears.

"Move!" she snarled. "Or I'll eat you for supper!"

Any doubts she had that the mule would understand her vanished as he threw back his head and brayed in naked terror.