Becky Bookworm Book Review: Hybrid by Nick Stead (Debut Horror/Werewolf Author)

Hybrid by Nick Stead

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

From a debut horror author this werewolf tale takes a pinch of inspiration from Interview with a Vampire, a dollop of teenager issues from BBC Wolfblood and all the raw gore from every decent horror film possible. It is also what some may call a personal fantasy reliving of someones life to a degree or two.
There is a teenage with the usual problems of family feuds, bully fights and GCSEs and then there is the teenager werewolf who has a horid passion for meat both cooked and raw and a dual of minds and wills with the Inner Wolf inside. Oh and the extra challenge in that he is the last of his kind and is being hunted by a mysterious secret faction call Demon Slayers who know its more than werewolves that go bump in the night.
The reader gets on a truly wild ride with this story that I think really rewrites the image of the werewolf. You enter the story literally in the prologue with a direct 2nd person narrative. From Chap 1 it's all about Nick the teenager with a fascination of wolves and then following the bite which comes the reader gets to know the Wolf within Nick and that is a refreshing non-human twist on the myth. That Werewolve are in fact homosapien and lupine blended together in a freakish mental combination.
I particularly liked one chapter, after the discovery of a horrific and devestating murder (there is a lot of violent deaths in this book so readers had best have a strong stomach) Nick out of anger mentally attacks and argues with his Inner Wolf and the argument is really quite insightful into how a predator sees and acts when compared with that of humanity.
The first half of the book is all about a teenager adjusting to a very unusual sudden set of conditions but as the body count rises and his normal life becomes more and more fragmented by the impact of his actions under the full moon the second half leads into a savage and viscous mindset where Nick may have to loose his idea of humanity to stay alive as the Slayers pose an ever increasing threat.
Although I would have preffered more action and bloody drama from the go the slow first half does help as a poignant reminder of the boy Nick no longer is by the end of the book.

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