"Of Wolf and Man" by Christopher Andrews

Outstanding sequel! -- 5 Stars

I discovered Christopher Andrews when I read his first Triumvirate novel, “Pandora’s Game,” a very original cautionary tale about playing games with the unknown. This book introduced us to vampire Alastaire and his werewolf partner Sean, and ended with the story wide open for a sequel. I am pleased to see that Andrews took the plunge!

(I should admit here that I have not read the short story, “Connexion,” that came between these two novels. I am not a fan of short stories in general, so although I’ve been tempted to pick up Andrews’ collection “Darkness Within,” I have not gotten around to doing so. I think I was able to figure out the missing bits all right to read “Of Wolf and Man,” but I will almost definitely go back and check out the story now.)

“Of Wolf and Man” is everything that a sequel should be. Andrews revisits the familiar characters, but the plot is completely different from the first book, unlike so many other sequels (especially in movies) which are nothing more than rehashes of the predecessor. Sean the werewolf gets the spot light this time around, and the story involves dangerous werewolves loose in Alaska. The action gets rolling in the prologue and keeps momentum until the epilogue!

One of my only complaints about “Pandora’s Game” was that some of the other world chapters felt stretched out, to keep a back and forth pattern going through the whole book. That problem has been corrected in “Of Wolf and Man,” as the flashbacks don’t begin until specifically prompted by the plot. After that, Andrews uses them with his familiar style.

Trey the zombie, who was absent through large portions of “Pandora’s Game,” is given more attention here. I have never been a fan of traditional zombies, but Andrews puts an interesting spin on Trey, giving him a muted, handicapped personality rather than stripping him of all intelligence.

Another character I liked was the white wolf. While the alpha is technically the main villain, Andrews uses the white wolf with greater depth. He’s sort of like Darth Vadar to the Emperor in the “Star Wars” movies. The white wolf was successfully interesting and creepy in all the right places.

Andrews DOES address one particular plot thread that carries over directly from “Pandora’s Game” -- Sean’s cryptic relationship with his sister. As such, Andrews addresses some bold issues, and does so very well.

Like the first Triumvirate novel, “Of Wolf and Man” ends with a sequel clearly in mind. I, for one, await it with baited breath! The adjustment to the flashback chapters is just what I needed to bump this book from “Pandora’s Game’s” 4-1/2 stars up to 5 stars! In the meantime, I think I’ll finally get off my lazy butt and pick up a copy of “Darkness Within.”