"The Howling 2" by Gary Brandner

Decent sequel. -- 3 Stars (Originally written January 5, 2006)

After finally finishing the pile of books I'd picked up on my splurge, I had to wait until the holidays were over (buying your kids gifts taps the old wallet), but after Christmas I returned to the used bookstore (and Ebay) for more of my most recent favorite authors: Dean R. Koontz, Christopher Andrews, and Gary Brandner.

"The Howling II" was a decent sequel. And that pretty much sums it up. It did a respectable job continuing the story of Karen and Chris, and Roy and Marcia. One of my few complaints about the original was that the ending had seemed to abrupt, and this book replaced some of that frustration with satisfaction of knowing what happened next.

But, sadly, the strength of the first book was not as evident here. Karen continues to intrigue me, dealing with her situation realistically, thinking that she is crazy first, and then deciding to believe in herself and DO something about her situation. But the book as a whole just didn't stand up as well as the first.

Another complaint: The time line does not make sense. We are shown that a couple of years have passed, Karen has gotten remarried, and so on. But then, when we're with Roy and Marcia, there's talk of her having been terribly ill for "months," and she's just now getting better. So ... what happened to the missing months before, or after, or during? It didn't track.

Overall, an entertaining, but not enthralling, book. I must admit to some disappointment, as I really enjoyed "The Howling," but no real regret. My only decision now is whether to read Koontz's "Velocity" or Andrews' "Dream Parlor" next.