The Wolf and His King

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What to expect

'Howlingly good' THE BOOKSELLER
'Quiet, meditative, powerful' LOCUS
'Will sink its teeth into you' V. V. JAMES
'With prose that flows off the page like honey' CRISTIN WILLIAMS
'Filled with loyalty and betrayal, dark secrets, and oh, so much yearning' KIMBERLY BEA
'Finn Longman is a master of their craft' WREN JAMES

Step into the resplendent courts and forests of medieval Brittany in this spellbinding retelling of the 12th-century tale of Bisclavret the werewolf . . .

The wolf-sickness strikes always without warning, stealing Bisclavret's body and confusing his mind. Since boyhood, he hasn't dared leave his isolated holdings - not to beg the return of his father's lost estate, not to seek brotherhood among the court, not even to win the knighthood he yearns for. But when a new king ascends, Bisclavret must deliver his kiss of fealty or answer for the failure.

Half an exile himself, the young king is intrigued by this uneasy, rough-hewn nobleman. Bisclavret seems a perfect knight: bold, strong, and merciful. But he keeps his secrets close, and the king's longings are not for counsel alone. As his fascination grows, the barriers between them multiply, until one day Bisclavret vanishes beyond reach. Battling desperation and grief, the king stands alone to face the greatest threats to his kingdom, with only duty to his people between him and ruin - duty, and the steadfast loyalty of the strangest wolf . . .

Steeped in the texture of its source material and rendered with a precision of language that feels intimate and timeless, The Wolf and His King will transport you to a fireside - unmissable for fans of Samantha Shannon and Madeline Miller.

Critics Review

Enter the shady forests of medieval Brittany and smell the hot wolf fur and hear the beat of yearning hearts in this gorgeous love story. Historian and wordsmith Finn Longman's atmospheric retelling of Bisclavret will sink its teeth into you
V. V. James, Sunday Times-bestselling author of Sanctuary
Blending the pageantry of medieval romance with a heart wrenching queer love story, The Wolf and His King is filled with loyalty and betrayal, dark secrets, and oh, so much yearning. I couldn't put it down!
Kimberly Bea, author of The Changeling Queen
Beautiful and devastating, with prose that flows off the page like honey. This book is ambitious in form and deeply romantic, infused with the ache of yearning and the healing balm of being truly seen and embraced
Cristin Williams, author of The Whisper of Stars
The perfect book to feast upon this winter, wrapped in fur blankets, with a rich mug of cocoa. This lyrical, rich retelling elevates queer voices while still honouring the original medieval folklore. Finn Longman is a master of their craft
Wren James, Carnegie-longlisted author of The Loneliest Girl in the Universe
The Wolf and His King is a novel about the isolating power of shame and fear of judgement: quiet, meditative, powerful, and suffused with a deep affection for and knowledge of aspects of the medieval world, from boar hunts to bliauts . . . I greatly enjoyed this novel. It feels deeply thought, in a way that I have encountered in fantasy far less often than I would like
Locus
Howlingly good. Finn Longman's adult fantasy debut breathes new life into a medieval werewolf . . . The Wolf and His King will enchant readers with its nuanced exploration of bodies, kinship and love. This may be a tale about a fearsome wolf, but it is not a story about a monster
The Bookseller

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