Trial by Fire: A Raised by Wolves Novel [Hardcover]

Jennifer Lynn Barnes (Author)

Book Description

Release date: June 14, 2011 | Series: Raised by Wolves Novel

There can only be one alpha.
 
Bryn is finally settling into her position as alpha of the Cedar Ridge Pack—or at least, her own version of what it means to be alpha when you’re a human leading a band of werewolves. Then she finds a teenage boy bleeding on her front porch. Before collapsing, he tells her his name is Lucas, he’s a Were, and Bryn’s protection is his only hope.
 
But Lucas isn’t part of Bryn’s pack, and she has no right to claim another alpha’s Were.  With threats—old and new—looming, and danger closing in from all sides, Bryn will have to accept what her guardian Callum knew all along. To be alpha, she will have to give in to her own animal instincts and become less human. And, she’s going to have to do it alone.
 
Bryn faces both the costs, and the rewards, of love and loyalty, in this thrilling sequel to Raised by Wolves.

Editorial Reviews

Review

'a very good book and I can't wait to continue on with Bryn's journey' Book Life. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

About the Author

Jennifer Lynn Barnes has been writing for as long as she can remember and published her first novel when she was nineteen. In addition to being an author, Jen has been a competitive cheerleader, a teen model, a dancer, and a comic book geek.
 
After graduating from Yale College with a degree in cognitive science, she spent a year doing autism research at the University of Cambridge. Jen is now pursuing her PhD in developmental psychology at Yale. She divides her time between New Haven and Tulsa.
 
You can visit her online at www.jenniferlynnbarnes.com.

Product Details

• Age Range: 12 and up
  
• Hardcover: 368 pages
• Publisher: EgmontUSA (June 14, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1606841688
• ISBN-13: 978-1606841686
• Product Dimensions: 6.1 x 1.3 x 8.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (51 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #334,993 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

I'm a Jennifer who goes mostly by Jen, an Oklahoma girl who's also lived in Connecticut and England, and a writer who has a not-so-secret double life as a cognitive scientist. I love pop culture, mythology, science, superheroes, Joss Whedon, guacamole, television targeted at teenagers, and any song that I know the lyrics to. I have no sense of direction, but can read a book and shower at the same time. As is probably obvious, I do not particularly excel at writing my own bios.

I started writing professionally when I was a teenager and completed my first four published novels while I was in college. Since then, I've split my time between various graduate programs and writing books. In May 2012, I graduated from Yale University with a PhD in Developmental Psychology, which basically means I spent a lot of time thinking about the way the mind works and designing and running experiments that probe the way that young children and non-human primates view the world. My background in the psychological sciences has a habit of working its way into the books I write, sometimes in unexpected ways.

As a reader, I love strong female characters, books that blend emotional depth with sarcasm and humor, and supernatural stories that feel real. I'm a sucker for romance and search out authors who can write action sequences and violence without pulling their punches.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Bryn: Alpha of Cedar Ridge Pack June 14, 2011

By Jessie Potts TOP 1000 REVIEWERVINE™ VOICE

Format:Hardcover

When I read Jennifer Barnes' novel Raised by Wolves I was blown away. She created the fiercest, most loyal and amazing heroine then threw her to the wolves (haha) and we the readers anxiously awaited the next page, wondering what Bryn would do, how she would persevere. I was so amazingly happy when I found out that Trial by Fire was coming out. I wanted to see what Bryn would do with her small pack; she is now an alpha, and very powerful in her own right.

Trial by Fire is the honing of Bryn and her pack. It's about going through the flames and coming out the other side better, wiser and sharper, even harder. Barnes puts Bryn's pack against not only rouge wolves, but also a coven of psychics. Then of course we must remember that Bryn is like no alpha before her... not only is she a female, but also human. Certain rules don't apply to her, while others apply more strictly. But as we learned from the last book, Bryn is nothing if not brilliant, and has lived to find a way to bend the rules, or loopholes around them. Certain dynamics of the pack change when she finds a hurt were and brings him in, Chase doesn't trust him, and Bryn doesn't know what to do about not only the new were, but her bond with Chase.

I have to say though that Raised by Wolves and Trial by Fire is not for the young. It's also not for readers who are uncomfortable with some brutality. I feel this is important to point out because in the first book Callum was brutal to Bryn in fact she was beaten raw after she went against pack and her alpha's orders. A lot of readers really hated that part, though I felt it was necessary. To be in the Were world Bryn will have to have discipline, she will have to be able to tame the animal part of her pack and animals respect dominance and yes a certain level of brutality. Older readers will understand this (most) while younger ones might just think it's about abuse, and the fact that we are emotionally invested in the `abuser' might make things a little trickier for immature readers.

All around this book was better than Raised by Wolves; the readers become more vested in the characters, all the characters, and keep rooting for Bryn. We get a back story on Ali, we see more of Callum, and we get to see each member of her pack grow a little more. The best part of this story was that each thread that tied the pack together, the violent history, the past blood, the healing, the growth, it all ties them closer together and I enjoyed reading every second of it. Barnes has topped her last book (which I thought was amazing anyway) and I am looking forward to more installments of Bryn's Pack. Enjoy!

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A brilliant sequel July 8, 2011

By Supernatural Snark

Format:Hardcover

Trial By Fire is a stunningly beautiful and deliciously complex story, fascinating us with the challenge of harnessing our own conflicting emotions as we read, and keeping us on edge as to what we'll be made to feel next. We're often both comfortable with Bryn and her pack and, at the same time, acutely uncomfortable as we wait with breath held for the inevitable trouble to come knocking. We also both love the unpredictability and uncertainty as to exactly what is going to happen while cursing it at the same time for tying our stomachs knots and pulling our heartstrings dangerously taut. Reading Ms. Barnes's characters and her world is a decadent indulgence, her story a spectacular blend of rich characters, layered plot, and breathtaking emotional connections that truly makes us sit back and remember why we love to pick up a book in the first place.

Bryn has a maturity that exceeds her young years, making difficult decisions that affect an entire group of people who rely on her for their mental and emotional strength. She is a character who exists in nuances, new facets of her personality revealed with every threat she faces both outside and within the pack, and each test reinforces our bond with her until we can't possibly feel any closer. Her relationship with Chase is anything but a typical teen romance, and she struggles to deal with his absolute certainty of his priorities when she knows her own must differ from his due to her position. He has to be second to her first in his life-her duty to the pack resolute and unwavering-and their quiet and often brief exchanges are all the more interesting for this dynamic. Nothing is simple for them but nor are things unnecessarily complex, it's just them and the exquisiteness of their individual natures as they deal with a species barrier, a hierarchy barrier, and the multiple mental barriers erected as coping mechanisms against shared difficult pasts.

In addition to the brilliance of Bryn and Chase, Ms. Barnes has written one of the most enigmatic and captivating characters in alpha and father-figure Callum. He is a werewolf nearly impossible to label in terms of our exact feelings for him, we can only settle for taking his measure in terms of how we want to feel as he proves himself to be an utterly foreign being for all that he is recognizable to our minds as both human and wolf. Though he is both, there's absolutely no separating the two, being so firmly ensconced in werewolf politics and life we can't possibly judge him by the standards to which we might hold a human man, instead we can only watch mesmerized as his methods of teaching Bryn to grow as an alpha often hurt and help in equal measure. We want so badly to know how he truly feels about the incredible young woman he helped raise, wishing for a definitive action or gesture instead of cryptic gifts and the occasional flash of the eyes or twitch of the facial muscles to telegraph his emotional response to her. Frustratingly and admirably however, he always remains steadfastly Callum, neither man nor wolf but indisputably and irrevocably both.

Raised by Wolves and Trial by Fire are not to be missed, they are books to be savored rather than devoured quickly as Ms. Barnes has layered her story with details and subtleties that only reveal themselves if we take the time to linger. She has an uncanny ability to create tension in even the simplest moments, keeping us constantly on our toes by setting up numerous different outcomes and possibilities that sometimes force us to walk away in a moment of emotional self-preservation before returning almost immediately, gluttons for the most delectable of punishments.

Rating: 5/5

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing! July 19, 2011

By Jennifer Rummel - YABookNerd

Format:Hardcover

Bryn loves her new life with her pack until a wolf enters her territory. He's badly hurt and he's asking for protection. With Shay as his Alpha, he's been used as a punching bag, until Shay gave him to a group of psychics.

Bryn doesn't know what to do. She doesn't want to turn him away, but she neither can she help him within the rules of the werewolves. She desperately tries to find a loophole in the rules.

Before she can figure out a solution, the psychics show up in town. A new girl starts school. Bryn knows she's a threat. Caroline isn't normal. She's a hunter. She can't be tracked and she never misses a target. She had the ability to take out Bryn's entire pack.

The psychics hate werewolves. Each time Bryn meets them, she learns more about them. With the psychics and Shay looking for a fight, Bryn needs to watch her back very carefully. She's knows what's at stake and she's not about to give in or give up her pack for anything.

My Thoughts: I couldn't WAIT to read this book as I LOVED Raised By Wolves. Trial by Fire was simply amazing. I love the power of Bryn. I love how her pack's different and how she as a human is different from the other Alphas. I love how she tries to see the loop holes in dangerous situations. I love how she doesn't ever want to play by the rules. I love her sense of justice. Mostly there isn't anything I don't love about Bryn. I love Lake, Chase, and Dev too. I laughed, I cried, I had to re-read the ending twice to understand it. The ending blew me away. A very different werewolf series that makes me anxious for the next one. (And there is a next one I checked!)