Breeds (Breeds #1) is a 2014 supernatural horror audiobook written by Keith C. Blackmore, narrated by Sean Runnette, and published by Podium Publishing. The story follows two werewolf wardens who are sent to an isolated Canadian town to take down an aged werewolf who’s building an “army” of dogs infected with lycanthropy.

Positives:

• Violent and brutal
• Great main cast
• Strong atmosphere
• Terrific writing
• Great reading by narrator
• Original story

Negatives:

• Lackluster supporting cast
• Overly vulgar language

Plot:  Set in the near deserted and isolated coastal town of Amherst Cove in Newfoundland a storm is brewing.  The town recluse, a werewolf named Borland, is a warden of the werewolf hierarchy and he’s not too keen on following the rules.  As a response to their targeting him, he begins kidnapping all the stray dogs in the area, infecting them with the werewolf curse.  Two werewolves, Kirk and Morris, are dispatched to deal with Borland, however, when Borland’s new breeds escape the small town of Amherst Cove becomes a battleground made worst by the raging blizzard.

The story itself is pretty original filled with tons of suspense and action.  This isn’t the typical werewolves are sexy loners cruising through life and this isn’t the main protagonist getting infected while camping or hiking.  The story is dark, the story is chaotic, and the story is absolutely awesome.  And the plot twists are actually handled really well.  There are some jaw dropping moments.  The climax is bloody and brutal and the violence is extreme. (5 out of 5)

Characters:  The characters are pretty good.  The main characters are Ross, werewolves Kirk and Morris.  I like Ross.  He’s a normal guy living a normal life when he’s thrust into this situation, trying to survive against the elements and the supernatural with all his friends and neighbors dropping like flies.  I liked Kirk and Morris though I wished Morris would’ve had more “screen time”.  He seemed like a nice character though he’s out for most of the book.  Kirk was just great.  I like that he cared about saving lives.

The main antagonists are werewolf Borland and new breed Bruno and his pack.  Borland is one of those characters who’re written to be just badass.  He’s smart, sadistic, and cruel beyond words.  His ability to transform into a hybrid makes him quite a formidable opponent and he’s made it clear he’s not taking crap from no one.  Including the werewolf hierarchy.  And the new breed Bruno is just a beast.  The new breed dogs fall in line behind him and humans cower in front of him.  And he’s just as dangerous as his progenitor.

I will admit that many of the other characters felt cookie cutter.  Outside of the one man with the oxygen machine, the other characters are hard to differentiate.  Wished there could’ve been something to help flesh them out. (4 out of 5)

Audio:  An audiobook is just as good with its reading as it is with its writing and damnit if Sean Runnette didn’t do a damn good job.  I really enjoyed the level of depth and emotion he put into the reading.  He always has this really cool way of emphasizing words that makes them that much more intense. (5 out of 5)

Writing:  The writing is pretty brutal with a lot of vulgarity and focus on gore, which is handled effectively.  Blackmore’s talent for description is pretty diverse, being able to relate a number of circumstances.  He also has a pretty strong understanding of characterization.  Not only does he give good depth to the characters but he also manages to give an interesting take on the werewolves.  It’s not the run around and kill everything bit.  Werewolves are organized and have their rules and regulations. Despite negative reviews, the 2004 Van Helsing movie got a few things right and the werewolves were at the top of the list.  They’re fast and ferocious and that’s what we get here.  Blackmore does a fantastic job of establishing how dark his story is.  The pacing is just great.  When the storm kicks in and the new breed gets loose, the story just takes off with people dying in the most brutal ways.  Love how much the weather was such a driving force. I will admit that the dialogue does suffer from an overuse of vulgarity that really affects the dialogue.  Every other word doesn’t need to be a curse word. (5 out of 5)

The Verdict:  In the end, Breeds (Breeds #1) is both a book for horror fans and werewolf fans.  Really the only problems with the book are the lack of depth of the supporting characters and the overuse of vulgarity with the dialogue.  However, the book is freakin’ awesome in other way.  The main characters are great, the writing is great, the reading is great, the atmosphere and brutality is great.  Breeds (Breeds #1) gets 5 out of 5.