The Fire Wolves is out!!!

[mattmanw54301]

No, that's not a grammar error. The latest entry in the Hellboy prose novel series, Hellboy: The Fire Wolves, has been RELEASED, although not all stores may have it yet. My LCBS didn't get it. However, TFAW and CCGArmory have it IN STOCK and READY TO SHIP!!!

I'm prolly gonna read this over the course of several hours, so feel free to come back here and discuss!!!! (spoiler free, plz).

[THE REAL kirk]

I saw this at TFAW and wondered why there hadn't been any hoopla yet. Then I checked the local dregs and it wasn't there (surprise). For some reason I didn't even know this was coming out. Nice surprise, now I just need to locate one. I always enjoy the various Hellboy novels, though some more than others.

Let us know your impression, Matt.

[mattmanw54301]

My LCBS says it comes out on the 8th, even tho it's not on Diamond's shipping list. I ordered it online from CCG Armory, and just got the shipping notice today. They said they were not allowed to ship it before April 1, the official release date. So TFAW had it on the 25 of March, according to them, and CCG Armory wouldn't ship it before the 1st of April. If only its release date were as cut and dry as the comic ship dates. Oh well. I paid for fast shipping, so it will be here by Wed. Review to come shortly after.

[St August]

I see Fire Wolves is listed on this weeks Diamond Ship list so LCS's should have it tomorrow. :-)
Amazon is showing release of April 8 as well, but it will probably take them a week or so to ship it out to me.

[Jr. Wormwood]

Good news!
I've been needing a new book.

[mattmanw54301]

Mattman's review:

Well, this book hammers home again and again one big difference between the movie Hellboy universe and the comic Hellboy universe (in which this book takes place, methinks, unless it is in a FOURTH separate Hellboy universe, which would be news to me). Hellboy in this book is not fireproof.

Tim Lebbon returns to Hellboy prose fiction with his second effort, following Unnatural Selection. How does it fair? Well, pretty good, IMO. We get a more personal story, an intense mystery that Hellboy must rely on his own wits to solve. No real backup from the BPRD this time out.

As a young Italian girl's 18th birthday approaches, she becomes convinced that she will be the next victim in what she believes to be a family curse. Fleeing to her cousin for help, they decide to call in Hellboy. Is it just a paranoid delusion? Or is there merit to this curse? And what does it have to do with Mount Vesuvius? As the saying goes, where there's smoke, there's fire (wolves).

There are some pretty good action scenes here, with HB trying to punch the crap out of a being that is entirely composed of flames. Not too easy. What cool Mafia-esque secrets does this family hold? Can Hellboy save the day in time? What will this curse unravel about Vesuvius? Will Hellboy ever get tired of authentic Italian pizza?

The plot unravels pretty well, with Hellboy stubbornly trying to 'save' the family, whether they want to be saved or not. Something very bad is happening in Italy, and some people would rather it just be left alone, asleep. But the rumbling and the grumbling from Vesuvius are getting stronger, and something's got to give. Innocents are hanging in the balance, and Hellboy will stop at nothing to hunt this evil down and destroy it. But how far will he go? What would he give up for the greater good? This is the dilemma he faces as his own ideas of right and wrong are put to the test.

When we get to a book like this, the 9th in the series, we tend to judge it not just on its own merits, but put it in a frame of reference by comparing it to the other books in the series. So once again, here is my (constantly changing) ranking of all 9 Hellboy novels so far. Once again, I absolutely love all these books, but some lit my fire (wolves) more than others. So here we go:

1. The God Machine
2. On Earth As It Is In Hell
3. Emerald Hell
4. The Bones of Giants
5. The Fire Wolves
6. The Lost Army
7. The Dragon Pool
8. Unnatural Selection
9. The All Seeing Eye

In conclusion, pick this one up. Good action, a great plot, likeable charcters. Solid all around.

[THE REAL kirk]

Thanks, Matt, I will keep an eye for it.

[The Lobster]

I saw it at my LCBS, but passed out on it. Might get it later though.

[Jr. Wormwood]

Thanks for the review, Matt.
Judging by your ranking list, it seems we have pretty similar taste in these novels. Will definitely be picking this up come payday.

[Poe Ghostal]

Mattman's review:

Well, this book hammers home again and again one big difference between the movie Hellboy universe and the comic Hellboy universe (in which this book takes place, methinks, unless it is in a FOURTH separate Hellboy universe, which would be news to me). Hellboy in this book is not fireproof.

Thus far, each of the Hellboy novels appears to take place in the comic universe--and more to the point, they appear to be canonical, unless something's changed on the editorial level. But I'm sure at least both the Anastasia Bransfield novels are canon, since they're mentioned in The Hellboy Companion.

However, The Fire Wolves includes a few things, such as the mention of a kid playing a Nintendo DS, that don't work in the comic universe. When the Nintendo DS came out in 2004, Hellboy had been out of the B.P.R.D. for three years and was floating at the bottom of the sea.

There's also the mention of one of the (younger) characters remembering seeing Hellboy when he investigated a Nazi lab in Brazil--obviously a reference to Hellboy's fight with von Klempt, which--according to the "official" chronology--took place in the late 1950s. So either that's another continuity error or we have to imagine it was some other Nazi mad scientist's lab in Brazil.

1. The God Machine
2. On Earth As It Is In Hell
3. Emerald Hell
4. The Bones of Giants
5. The Fire Wolves
6. The Lost Army
7. The Dragon Pool
8. Unnatural Selection
9. The All Seeing Eye


Your list matches up almost exactly with my thoughts, although I'd swap the first two titles.

[THE REAL kirk]

FINALLY got around to picking this up and am reading it now.

My impressions: I love this one!

While I am only about 75 pages in I am really enjoying not only the more personal, single character Hellboy story but also the more leisurely pacing. Tim has really captured Hellboy in this story and I am loving each tiny nuance. This book is a joy to read. I don't remember this feeling at Tim's first Hellboy outing (Unnatural Selection) and I think it is due to that being a group story and Tim keeping this one mostly narrowed to Hellboy only. This gives him a lot more room to bring the reader into a world where Hellboy exists.

After reading the somewhat disappointing Lobster Johnson novel this one is magic. Tim manages to sketch out Hellboy as a real person while not explaining a lot of background.

Granted, I am not done with the book, but after reading along today I decided I needed to post something about it. I will give it a final verdict when I complete it but I have a feeling this may be my favorite of all the Hellboy books. :D

[SpydaWeb]

I will give it a final verdict when I complete it but I have a feeling this may be my favorite of all the Hellboy books. :D

Really? Clearly I should pick it up then.

[Todd H]

Clearly my tastes are all backwardafied! I had a rough time getting through this one while I thought LoJo was great. Ahhh!

[SpydaWeb]

Clearly my tastes are all backwardafied! I had a rough time getting through this one while I thought LoJo was great. Ahhh!

I enjoyed LoJo, as well. Wonder if I'll have the same reaction to this book as you did Todd.

[THE REAL kirk]

I enjoyed LoJo, as well. Wonder if I'll have the same reaction to this book as you did Todd.

I don't have a good consensus to draw from here in this thread but I may be amongst the minority on this book. I say this because the book is very slow and most Hellboy fans look to Hellboy for action. Not a lot of action. I liken it to "Emerald Hell" book-wise. But there is something to be said for a book that is well written and draws characters not with long broad strokes but with fine inked lines. Please don't think I am saying I enjoy it because I am a connoisseur of fine literature. Quite the opposite mostly. But there is just something about the dialog, the descriptions, and the subtle details Tim places in the story that play to my own preconceived imaginings of Hellboy in the real world. I just felt this book may be overlooked by some fans (I was kind of dreading it as it just didn't sound interesting) and it may well be worth a less casual glance.

Like I said, I'll give a final critique when I finish but for now...I need to get back to it though I hate to read it too much in fear it will end. That, to me, is a really good book.

[SpydaWeb]

The story and characters are more important to me than action or spectacle. If it's well written, I'm there.

[THE REAL kirk]

I have finished the book and I thought it was great. The last couple of chapters didn't seem as strong as the rest but it was a satisfying ending and a very good read. I like the insight into Hellboy as a real world figure and the perceptions of others regarding him. It is not an action packed book and I enjoyed it more for this. In fact, the end of the book is primarily action oreinted which is why I enjoyed it less. I don't know if this book would be everyone's cup of tea but for me, it was one of the best.

[SpydaWeb]

Just finished Fire Wolves. Quite a fun read. Unexpected turn of events with Carlotta. Didn't see that coming. Is it just me or does Hellboy know how to take a lot of damage. He just keeps on chugging.