Wolfish (Wolfish Book 2) by Matt Ward

Wolfish is the sequel to Cynetic Wolf in the Wolfish series that was sent to me by the author. Still reeling upon the death of his wife and son at the hands of a betrayal, Raek is placed in the role as President. The near impossible task of uniting the immortals, cyborgs, enhancers, and half-animal hybirds (like him) becomes harder with new enemies, terrorist attacks, and a deadly virus. Bringing his brother into the government to help also may not have been the best idea.

The emotional turmoil and depression that Raek suffers after the loss of his wife and son is described amazingly, and makes this story heart-wrenching. This is one of the few books I have read with such genuine pain and grief. Raek is part wolf, so he is not entirely human, but the intensity of his emotions make him more relatable to readers. While science fiction, the dilemmas in the book have strong parallels towards long-standing issues of tyranny, racism and Islamophobia, as well as the coronavirus.

Almost every kid at some point dreams of being President (at least I have), and Wolfish does prove that the job is a lot harder than it looks. Having a high moral standard and setting out to help people is often contradicted and stopped by red tape and other politicians with selfish motives. Mistrust and conspiracy are so common in governments that even Raek, whose goal is only to unite and heal the people, is easily undermined. It was very frustrating to see a man with pure intentions be dragged down by those of tyrannic motives. 

A bonus was how Wolfish also addressed traumatic brain injuries like CTE. Watching how a peaceful, righteous man evolved into someone with an entirely different and opposite personality. I love it when villains are not as simple as they seem.

I highly recommend this book!

See my review of the previous book in this series, Cynetic Wolf.

Title: Wolfish
Author: Matt Ward
Publisher: Myrmani Press
Pages: 277
Series: Yes, Book 2
Rating: 5 Stars
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