The Werewolf who loved me? The werewolf in romance novels

Yay, it's Halloween time again. Ghosts, Witches, Zombies, Vampires and Werewolves are in vogue again.

Last year in October, I spent a whole month chatting up the virtues of Vampire romance.  This time, I'm looking at the werewolf cult in romance.  And, as one of my works in progress ( The Gypy's Curse) is a werewolf romance, I thought I might like to give that side of horror romance a chance.

Normally, I'm not into the whole werewolf as a lover idea.  A line from a movie sticks out in my head,  "Why does it smell like wet dog in here?" It's from the movie Van Helsing, starring Hugh Jackman. It was a fun story and had monsters in it, Vampires and Werewolves. The line was said when one of the characters walked into a room that a werewolf had just vacated, and smelled the air. The werewolf had just come in from the rain.  It's funny, and if you have dogs, big dogs, you totally get that line!

The movie is campy, not really a serious horror movies. But, Hugh Jackman is lovely in this role as the monster fighting machine, Van Helsing. The monsters are funny, not scary. The vampires especially are silly and melodramatic, but that's the appeal of this mock horror adventure.  Check it out.

All kidding aside, however, America seems to be in love with werewolf heroes.  Look at the popularity of Twilight, and Trueblood. We have teen werewolves and adult werewolves, and the female population drooling over them.

Jacob from Twilight was enough to make the girls swoon, and add to that the Native American legends about being in the wolf clan, and the werewolf as a romance hero was reborn. Remember the whole Team Edward vs. Team Jacob thing a few years back? I do, as I worked at a local library and it was something my young teen patrons would bring up when checking out the series. I'd ask them which team they were on, and they'd happily tell me.

 

Teen wolf updated for a new generation!

Jacob Black was noble to a fault. He loved Bella, but her heart belonged to Edward. I felt sad for him, and the storyline intensified as he began to brood and become a deeper character.  In the book, he does go off on his own for a time, goes totally wolf and disappears off grid.  Then he comes back, after sort of making peace with himself and his wolf side. My only complaint is the ending, where he is in love with Bella's kid. That was a weird twist that I don't care for. But . . . moving along. 


The allure isn't just in the young adult movies, it's also in the hot very Adult series Trublood, as they added some werewolves to the mix fairly quickly in the typically all vampire series.   If you haven't met Alcide, here you go . . . . he's a hottie, and has the southern Louisana charm you can't resist. Like Jacob in Twilight, Alcide is completely noble and honorable. He is Sooki's friend at first, and then they become lovers. He protects her.  She could hardly resist him. Could you?

Now then,  fantasy aside, I'm a little confused by the werewolf love cult.   When I think of a big hairy man beast coming at me, I'm not exactly turned on. More like, I'm going . . .  eeew! This image below is the werewolf from Van Helsing, a sort of mix between the man and beast, and it's not really appealing as a romantic figure.  What do you think?

 

This isn't sexy, not really. It's sort of scary. Get an eyeful of those teeth, ladies. French kiss anyone. And if you thought your present boyfriend was hairy, this dude is hardly an improvement. This is a Man-Beast.  Half man, half wolf.  I don't find it at all romantic.  

So, what's the allure here?  I think, with the Werewolf romance genre, we are more in love with the idea of a man transforming into a wolf . . . . yes, as in walks on four legs, is majestic looking and beautiful, dangerous . . . 

This image is definately more of a romanticized ideal for a werewolf hero, don't you think?
A wolf is mysterious, strong, dangerous, and feral. He'll kill the enemy, attack, not slink away like a wuss. We liken them to our pet dogs, who are faithful and loyal, even though they are wild. The idea of taming such a magnificent creature is part of the appeal. The werewolf as hero trope in literature has morphed into a romanticized version that lovers of the paranormal romance genre adore.  And with this handsome animal at your side, you feel safe, protected, and loved. When you want to kiss him and be intimate, he can always morph back into his human form  .  . . . and it's all good......

 Werewolf love.  It's a mysterious affliction, being loved by a man who can transform into an animal, a very hairy animal.  It's Halloween, so let's let our fantasies loose, and enjoy a good Werewolf love story.  

I was introduced to the werewolf as romance hero several years ago, and here are a few of my favorite werewolf romance reads. Ronda Thompson had a series called The Wild Wulfs of London, a trilogy about three brothers who were cursed to become wolves.  It was set in the regency period, and it was my first introduction to the werewolf love stories.  They are delightful stories, and they are on my desert island keeper shelf. I bought the print copies in 2006-2007. They are rare finds, unusual stories, and worth keeping!

I'll talk more about the werewolf romance genre, and these delish lads the Wild Wulfs of London, in the next week's  Tuesday post. Its Halloween, let's celebrate Supernatural love!

 

If you are curious about this wonderful, well written series by Ronda Thompson, here is the buy link for Amazon. I dare you, fall in love with a noble werewolf!  The Dark One on Amazon.com

Next time, I'll talk more about these three brothers, Armond, Jackson and Gabe, and the werewolf romance genre. I'll also talk about the original wolf man a little bit. So, until then, happy reading!