Book Review: Heart of Scars

Heart of Scars by Brian P. Easton

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Heart of Scars, Easton’s sequel to When the Autumn Moon is Bright: Autobiography of a Werewolf Hunter, is easily one of the most action-packed, tour de force, dark urban fantasy novels I’ve ever read. This epic werewolf saga is non-stop action from start to finish with unflinching violence so well-crafted the pages practically turn themselves. Readers with faint hearts need not apply.



The voice of the novel differs sharply from its autobiographical predecessor, less a hindsight account of events than an as-it’s-happening report. The first installment was written from the vantage point of a man reexamining his life, and Logan’s introspective chronicle of his actions from orphaned childhood to Reydosnin warrior to hardened werewolf hunter during his self-destructive war on the Beast were peppered with hindsight wisdom. Heart of Scars conveys no such wisdom as readers follow Logan’s dark descent of the human soul while his hatred for the Beast consumes him.



Heart of Scars focuses more heavily on Logan’s clandestine employment for the Canadian government and various missions utilizing his assassination skills (a la James Bond) forcing his werewolf obsession to the back burner. This departure from fanatical werewolf-killing that was so integral to the first book may be off-putting for some reader, but there are still numerous encounters along the way in which Logan dispatches the Beast or its various hosts. Persevere with the story and you will be rewarded with an Odyssey of trials Logan is forced to undergo in order to come to terms with his hatred for the Beast in his quest for redemption.



Among Logan's action-packed adventures are sadistic fight scenes with human and animal predators described in vivid, gore-soaked detail, explosive confrontations with agents of Jabberwocky—the global criminal organization dealing in such murky business as slave trading, organ harvesting, fetus sales, occult sacrifice—and a disturbing twist as Logan is possessed by the Windigo spirit whose presence infuses him with creepy cannibalistic urges coupled by freaky hallucinations and aberrant sexual fantasies while lending the physical strength to go head-to-head with Peter Stubbe, an ancient boxenwulf and Logan’s chief nemesis as he contends with legacy werewolves of the Gandillion line.



Like its predecessor, this novel is well-written, clever, and very intelligent. Easton’s vocabulary coupled with the minutiae of details sprinkled casually throughout the story showcase his talent for page-turning prose that engulfs readers in Logan’s world – dark and dangerous as it may be. The research Easton must have put into this novel is evident in both his vivid narrative descriptions and clever dialogue. Many new and interesting characters make an appearance in the novel and the running list of new colleagues and villains is challenging to keep straight. Former characters make walk-on appearances but are less involved in new storylines. A closer examination of Logan’s family results in an unforeseen twist that paves the way for a third novel in this engrossing series.



I’m an avid reader of werewolf fiction, and Easton’s Autobiography of a Werewolf Hunter series is easily one of the most gritty, hardboiled, creative dark urban fantasy worlds I’ve ever read. I found myself thoroughly absorbed by this book and reluctant to finish. Now I am eagerly awaiting the next installment. If you haven’t checked out this series, I highly recommend it. You won’t be disappointed.







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