DNF Diaries: The Wolf of Oren-Yaro

I’d heard good things about The Wolf of Oren-Yaro, but it just didn’t work for me. Let’s talk about it.

Synopsis

“They called me the Bitch Queen, the she-wolf, because I murdered a man and exiled my king the night before they crowned me.”

Born under the crumbling towers of her kingdom, Queen Talyien was the shining jewel and legacy of the bloody War of the Wolves. It nearly tore her nation apart. But her arranged marriage to the son of a rival clan heralds peace.

However, he suddenly disappears before their reign can begin, and the kingdom is fractured beyond repair.

Years later, he sends a mysterious invitation to meet. Talyien journeys across the sea in hopes of reconciling their past. An assassination attempt quickly dashes those dreams. Stranded in a land she doesn’t know, with no idea whom she can trust, Talyien will have to embrace her namesake.

Why I DNFED

I am a fan of having an ending first, normally. I love when a major devasting event starts the story. It didn’t work for me in The Wolf of Oren-Yaro though. There was too much confusion and not enough explanation for my taste. I knew our main character killed a man on her coronation day and her husband left her before receiving his crown. That’s in the first chapter. But when the story jumps forward to present day it feels like a totally different character. I expected the “bitch queen” to be wise and hardened but instead the character depicted was naive to the point of being annoying. Her actions didn’t make sense and there weren’t enough answers to bridge the gap from then to now. I wanted something a little more politically motivated and the first part of this was focused more on the romance. And honestly, I don’t know why she wanted her husband back. He wasn’t exactly a great catch. Overall, there wasn’t enough substance to keep my attention.

Will I Try It Again

Probably not. I just didn’t connect with the main character or her story. I didn’t understand her motivations.