Dire Bound Review (The Wolves of Ruin #1) by Sable Sorensen | High Stakes Romantasy with Dark Magic and Royal Secrets…
Synopsis
Dire Bound follows Meryn Cooper, a commoner living in a kingdom where the Bonded are treated like elite warriors because of their mental links with powerful direwolves. Meryn has never wanted that life. She is far more focused on keeping her family safe and surviving in a world that already feels stacked against people like her.
When her younger sister, Saela, is kidnapped and taken across the border, Meryn enlists in the army in the hope of reaching the front and finding her. Instead, she is thrown into the Bonding Trials, a deadly competition where recruits must try to survive long enough to bond with a direwolf.
At the castle, Meryn has to deal with brutal training, dangerous politics, other recruits who do not want her there, a direwolf who refuses to make things easy, a cold instructor in Stark Therion, and the attention of Crown Prince Killian Valtiere. The more she learns, the more it becomes clear that the castle has secrets of its own.
Main and Key Side Character Info
Meryn Cooper
Our FMC - the story is told from her POV.
She comes from poverty and is used to fighting for herself and her family.
Anassa
Anassa is the direwolf Meryn bonds with.
She is very strong willed and does not bend to her bond with Meryn.
Stark Therion
Stark is Meryn’s instructor and one of the key Bonded figures at the castle.
He is harsh, unnerving and difficult to read.
Izabel and Venna
Izabel and Venna are fellow recruits.
They help show how brutal and unfair the trials are, especially for those who have not been trained for this their whole lives.
Review
Completely original? No. A lot of fun and well written? Hell yes!
I had heard a lot about Dire Bound before reading it, as I was a little late to the party. I'll definitely try to be on time for the next one, as this was a very entertaining page turner. I also listened to the audiobook to help with the immersion!
We follow Meryn Cooper, a low born who has gained a reputation as one of the best hand to hand fighters in the city. She lives with her younger sister and mother, who she also provides for. When her sister is kidnapped, it pushes Meryn to join the army so she can fight on the front line, hoping to find her sister, confront the kidnappers and take her vengeance.
I really liked Meryn as our FMC. Shaped by a tough upbringing and learning to fight from an early age, she is a strong and capable leader. As the story progresses, every challenge possible gets thrown at her. If she falls, she gets up; if she doesn't understand something, she strives to find the answer. She has a never give up attitude that doesn’t falters. Can she be a tad "woe is me" at times? Yes! But honestly, I would be too in her situation.
Along the way we learn more about the class divide and how it impacts her journey through the bonded trials. It adds yet another layer of struggle to her character, which makes every win she earns feel all the more satisfying.
My favourite dynamic or "bond," if you will, is between Meryn and her dire wolf , Anessa. It's filled with friction right from the beginning and it isn't immediately obvious why. You learn more as the story progresses and it's handled in a smart, if sometimes frustrating way. There are moments where better communication between them would have avoided a lot of drama...but that's all part of the fun, isn't it?!
As the bonded trials get underway, this is where I started to understand the Fourth Wing and Hunger Games comparisons which to her fair, are quite strong. I won't lie, it did make me internally eye roll a little, as it brought in a heavy predictability factor. There are only so many ways bonded animals, class divides, royal politics and survival competitions can play out. That said, it was still very entertaining and handled really well.
This is a romantasy, so of course you have the usual "hot boyfriend," "hot royals," and "hot villains" parading their way through the story. As soon as someone is described as "hot" in these types of books, it gives you a strong indication of where the relationship might lead. I swear, nobody's love interest is ever based purely on personality in the romantasy world! That said, there are some pretty spicy scenes in this one, but there are genuine connections behind them too.
Despite some obvious predictability, including a few bigger moments along the way, there were still enough twists and turns I didn't see coming to keep me reading. The main side characters also have a key role to play and feel important to the overall story.
The book ends with a bang, again, a little predictable in parts, but it sets up Fury Bound, the second book in the series, very well! It makes me thankful I don't have to wait a year for the next instalment, as Fury Bound, at the time of this review, has only recently been released. I've already got my hands on a copy of both the book and the audiobook and I'll be immersing myself in book two very soon!
Audiobook Review:
I listened to the audiobook alongside the book itself for this one and I'm really glad I did!
Dire Bound uses dual narration so separate male and female narrators which in my opinion is the only way to do an audiobook properly. I genuinely can't stand it when one narrator tries to cover both, so this was a big tick from me straight away! Both voices suited their respective characters really well and the whole thing was very well acted and paced throughout.
It wasn’t a dramatised production so no sound effects, music, or full cast but honestly the dual narration was more than enough.
I would highly recommend the audiobook alongside and even independently to immerse yourself in the Dire Bound world.
Who I’d Recommend This Book To
I’d recommend Dire Bound if you like:
Romantasy stories
Animal bonds with magical abilities
Class divides
Royal politics
Spicy scenes
Books with Fourth Wing and The Hunger Games style plots
Verdict
I get the hype! I finally get the hype! Completely original? No. A lot of fun and well written? Hell yes!
I will start off by saying that if you've read or are familiar with Fourth Wing or The Hunger Games, some of the events in this will feel very same same which adds a layer of predictability. Also some of the major plot "twists' are pretty obvious well before they actually happen.
HOWEVER! The story itself is very strong and enjoyable to read! The characters are well written, there is no heavy world-building with everything being easy to follow and there are enough unpredictable twists and turns to keep you turning the pages.
⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ✨
