| Howl of the Werewolf (Fighting Fantasy) | 
 enlarge | Authors: Steve Jackson, Ian Livingstone
Publisher: Wizard Books
Category: Book
List Price: £5.99
Buy New: £2.10
You Save: £3.89 (65%)
New (17) Used (2) from £2.10
Avg. Customer Rating:  4 reviews
Sales Rank: 88876
Media: Paperback
Pages: 320
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.6
Dimensions (in): 6.8 x 4.3 x 1
ISBN: 1840468386
EAN: 9781840468380
ASIN: 1840468386
Publication Date: September 6, 2007
Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days
Condition: Brand New. Shipped from UK Mainland. Delivery is usually 2 - 3 working days from order by Royal Mail, International Delivery is by Airmail.
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| Customer Reviews:
A wonderful mix of originality and deja vu July 5, 2008
When I was younger I loved the Fighting Fantasy books, so it was a shame that they were out of print for most of the Noughties. Now reprints of the originals are available along with some new tomes, this one among them. And what a thrill it was that the central theme was werewolves, creatures that have always scared me even though I love them to bits.
In this book a lot of the normal FF rules apply; you use skill, stamina and luck scores to determine how you fare in various situations and in combat with other people or various creatures. Other factors determine how you fare too, and not just possessions you pick up. You can also pick up certain codewords through being in specific situations or gaining facets of knowledge. This can affect what route you take further on through the book. There is also the fact you are carrying the eponymous curse and your Change score determines how lycanthropic you are. How this affects things is quite complex, but pick up the book and you'll see!
Most of the action takes place in a land called Lupravia, which is much like the Transylvannia of Universal and Hammer horror movies, with a fantastical spin on it. There are other werewolves there, along with other were-creatures, vampires, ghosts, mutated versions of various animals and magical creatures. You will certainly have some fun spotting nods to various other stories; The Wolfman, Frankenstein, Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, The Legend of Sleepy Hollow and The Hound of the Baskervilles. Take particular routes and there are even times you might be tempted to think of Van Helsing, or Metz's Judderman commercial!
Punctuating the text are brilliant illustrations, as always. Some of them are bound to bring shudders - the illustration for paragraph 172 is positively stomach-churning. Going back to references, the illustration for paragraph 442 will give Dr Who fans a laugh.
What's best about this book is that you can complete your quest successfully (as I have) and then play the quest all over again and find a whole new route to take. A must for any gaming or horror nuts.
 The FF Series raises the bar... October 21, 2007
Warning! Potential spoilers ahead:
I heard about this book some months before it came out. Being a fan of werewolf matters (as well as FF books), I was glad that someone had decided to turn the spotlight onto an under-used monster/concept.
As the player in this gamebook, your character becomes infected by a werewolf bite, and so has to seek a cure - which involves steering a course through the Hammer Horror-influenced land of Lupravia, and fighting the dangers present. Unfortunately, the concept of your character using the gradual werewolf infection as an advantage isn't taken far enough (why can't you have a heroic fully-fledged werewolf, Mr Green? (the author)) Also, 515 references is overdoing it somewhat.
The vermin dangers at the abbey were repulsive, yes - but felt out of step with the Hammer horror film background theme. Your character also has to kill a LOT of monsters in order to acquire all five... Well, I'll keep that secret. Just as well that treasure hunt isn't essential for success!
What I like most about this book:
1) The Hammer horror film themes - plus 'Sleep Hollow' and 'Hound Of The Baskervilles'/a phantom 'British' Black Dog.
2) The Tower of Maun.
3) Vereticus, and Katya (she should have been used more!).
4) The carriage sequence with the Werebeast, after identifying who it is!
In summary, a strong addition to the FF series. I hope one of the series authors returns to the theme. Keith Martin wrote two 'vampire' books, after all! Maybe we could have a future book where the hero is already a vampire or werewolf, hiding amongst humans, in order to fight a more evil enemy? Perhaps the hero could track down suitable humans to convert, to build up an army against the opposition?
One of the best ever October 16, 2007
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
This is one of the best Fighting Fantasy books I have read (and I have read all of the `new' ones and nearly all of the `old' ones). Why?
The story and plot are good - always a good sign, but some Fighting Fantasy books have barely any plot at all (not necessarily a criticism) - and it is well written. Jon Green (the author; this wasn't written by Jackson and Livingstone) does a good job, as always, of evoking the atmosphere of the gothic fantasy world in which this is set.
The combat is fair - you won't face a load of puny goblins to start off with and then have to face a completely unbeatable boss at the end. Although each combat itself can be dangerous, they are all well matched to your abilities.
There are many different ways through the book, increasing the re-playability (is that a word?). There are many different side-quests that you can do as you progress through the adventure. Also, the book doesn't rely on you having found a lot of items in order to finish. Certainly, there are some helpful items to be found, but they are not essential. To accommodate the wider scope the book is a lot bigger than most other Fighting Fantasy titles - 515 rather than 400 (this probably explains the higher cost).
Overall, I would rate this as good as Legend of Zagor and Deathtrap Dungeon.
A howling good time! September 10, 2007
4 out of 4 found this review helpful
This is by far one of the best fighting fantasy books I have read/played in a long time.You play the role of a famous adventurer who has been bitten by a werewolf and must seek a cure before the next full moon.There are plenty of forests, moors, castles, towns and caves for you to explore and a huge variety of supernatural monsters for you to slay on your perilous journey to rid yourself of lycanthropy.What makes this fighting fantasy book better than most is that it is also a race against time as the longer you take to complete your quest the more wolf like you become. The combat in this book is also a lot fairer than in most other fighting fantasy books so you don't need a ridiculously high skill level in order to complete it. It is also slightly longer than most other fighting fantasy books with 515 paragraphs instead of the standard 400.It's a brilliant gothic horror adventure and a must have for all fighting fantasy fans.
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