Beasts of Extraordinary Circumstance

This was a book I wasn't expecting to love. The premise wasn't grabbing, too quirky to be set in this world, too realistic to take place in a fantasy one.

But Lang made it work beautifully. The plot spans Weylyn's lifetime, introducing and carrying several characters through the story. I have to applaud the author's ability to give each minor character body and emotional complexion.

By the end, I was rooting for the world where animal-telepathic Weylyn and magic-pig Merlin exist.

Cute. However, I find that for my personal tastes magical realism is rarely as magical nor as realistic as I would like it to be. This book ultimately felt like it lacked something essential.

This is a fascinating story told from the POV of many different characters as they interact with our main character Weylyn. There's something different about Weylyn mysterious things around him...not to mention the part where he's literally raised by wolves. I found this book beautifully written. I love the storyline. Sometimes I got a little overwhelmed by the change of voice that occurs between all these different characters but they come together to create a beautiful story.