Sometimes the Wolf - by Urban Waite (Paperback)

About the Book

Set in the Pacific Northwest, a spellbinding story of family, violence, and unintended consequences that showcases the searing prose, soulful characters, and vivid sense of place of an acclaimed writer in the tradition of Cormac McCarthy, Dennis Lehane, and Elmore Leonard.

Sheriff Patrick Drake tried to lead an upstanding life and maintain some financial stability until his wife passed away. He did okay for a while, singlehandedly raising his family in a small mountain town. Then he was hit with money troubles, fell in with some unsavory men, and ended up convicted of one of the biggest crimes in local history.

Twelve years later Patrick is on parole under the watchful eye of his son Bobby, who just happens to be a deputy sheriff in his father s old department. Bobby hasn t had it easy, either. He s carried the weight of his father s guilt, forsaking his own dreams, and put off the knowledge that his own marriage could be stronger and more hopeful. Yet no matter how much distance he s tried to put between himself, his father, his grandfather, and the past, small town minds can have very long memories.

But trouble isn t done with the Drakes and a terrifying threat boils up from Patrick s old life. And this time, no one will be spared. . . ."

Book Synopsis

Set in the Pacific Northwest, a spellbinding story of family, violence, and unintended consequences that showcases the searing prose, soulful characters, and vivid sense of place of an acclaimed writer in the tradition of Cormac McCarthy, Dennis Lehane, and Elmore Leonard.

Sheriff Patrick Drake tried to lead an upstanding life and maintain some financial stability until his wife passed away. He did okay for a while, singlehandedly raising his family in a small mountain town. Then he was hit with money troubles, fell in with some unsavory men, and ended up convicted of one of the biggest crimes in local history.

Twelve years later Patrick is on parole under the watchful eye of his son Bobby, who just happens to be a deputy sheriff in his father's old department. Bobby hasn't had it easy, either. He's carried the weight of his father's guilt, forsaking his own dreams, and put off the knowledge that his own marriage could be stronger and more hopeful. Yet no matter how much distance he's tried to put between himself, his father, his grandfather, and the past, small town minds can have very long memories.

But trouble isn't done with the Drakes--and a terrifying threat boils up from Patrick's old life. And this time, no one will be spared. . . .

From the Back Cover

Sheriff Patrick Drake tried to lead an upstanding life until his wife grew ill and they were in danger of losing everything they'd worked for. Single-handedly raising his family in a small mountain town, he was soon hit with money troubles, fell in with some unsavory men---and then was caught and convicted of one of the biggest crimes in local history.

Twelve years later Patrick is out on parole under the watchful eye of his son, Bobby, who just happens to be a deputy sheriff. Bobby has carried the weight of his father's guilt, yet no matter how much distance he's tried to put between himself, his father, and the past, trouble isn't done with the Drakes. Not too long after Patrick's release, a terrifying threat from his old life reappears, and this time, no one will be spared.

Review Quotes

"[A] searing western noir. Three people face terrifying moral choices as they each wish for what they can't have: life as it was before their small border town . . . was doomed by its dying oil economy." - Publishers Weekly (starred review) on The Carrion Birds
"[Ray] opens a Pandora's box of chain reactions that wreak havoc on a small southwestern town, havoc that is described in such graphically poetic prose that it occasionally makes the hair on even a cynical noir fan's head stand on end. . . . [The Carrion Birds] is an even purer distillation of noir. . . . the finale will remind readers of the equally inevitable end to Robert Stone's Dog Soldiers." - Booklist (starred review) on The Carrion Birds
Praise for The Carrion Birds: "The Carrion Birds is as muscular and laconic as anything by Cormac McCarthy, yet it crackles with humanity. A-" - Entertainment Weekly on The Carrion Birds
"The Terror of Living is a smart, swiftly-paced and bloody Western for our moment. Urban Waite is a writer who won't let a reader wander away--he keeps you reading, and reading, and rewards all your attention with a powerhouse story and prose to match." - Daniel Woodrell, author of Winter's Bone on The Terror of Living
"Better than Cormac McCarthy. . . . Waite's story about ex-con Dads, dangerous friends, and family loyalties peers into the same dark corners of the human psyche, but has a glimmer of warmth and humanity at its core which is lacking from a substantial portion of the noir genre." - LitReactor.com
"It's a rare thing to balance a thriller plot on characters with such stooped shoulders, but Waite manages the feat with surprising dexterity. Another emotionally rich novel from a very special writer." - Booklist (starred review)
"Waite . . . encourages you . . . to find out what happens while simultaneously forcing you to slow and admire the language. . . . Waite throws us into a rush of suspense and danger that tests the limits of the bond between father and son." - James Scott, author of The Kept on Sometimes the Wolf
"Urban Waite keeps raising his own standards with each new novel and surpassing them with his next. His latest, SOMETIMES THE WOLF, is one of those books that is totally engrossing as you are reading it and haunts your thoughts when you are not.... A beauteous and frightening joy to read from beginning to end... It is violent and unsettling in spots, quiet and heartbreaking in others... Waite is a marvel." - Bookreporter.com
"Waite keeps raising his own standards with each new novel and surpassing them with his next. . . . A beauteous and frightening joy to read from beginning to end. . . . It is violent and unsettling in spots, quiet and heartbreaking in others... Waite is a marvel." - Bookreporter.com
"A father-and-son relationship, perhaps broken beyond repair, fuels Urban Waite's engrossing novel that skillfully exposes the complicated emotions that can stymie a once close family while also working as a superb action-adventure tale." - Lisa Ko, author of The Leavers
"I never thought I'd type the sentence 'better than Cormac McCarthy' but, oops, I just went and did. Waite's story about ex-con Dads, dangerous friends, and family loyalties peers into the same dark corners of the human psyche, but has a glimmer of warmth and humanity at its core which is lacking from a substantial portion of the noir genre." - LitReactor.com
Two somewhat spectral killers. . . . Giv[e] the story a wildness that only gradually comes into focus. But when it does, you start to see the masterful construction of the novel, as - one-by-one - the strands of the plot create a tense and memorable net. - The Oregonian (Portland)
"Urban Waite has been getting some buzz as a writer to watch, often being compared to Cormac McCarthy, Dennis Lehane, and Elmore Leonard, and his latest novel, SOMETIMES THE WOLF, shows why.... Taut dialogue, language that borders on poetry even as it describes murders and mayhem, artfully drawn settings, gripping tension, and believable, complicated characters... Atmospheric, poetic, and hard to classify, SOMETIMES THE WOLF is a page-turning thriller that invites the reader to savor the language and contemplate deeper issues than those on the surface of the plot. But with all its literary leanings, it's still a great story well told." - ReviewingTheEvidence.com
"Taut dialogue, language that borders on poetry even as it describes murders and mayhem, artfully drawn settings, gripping tension, and believable, complicated characters. . . . Atmospheric, poetic, and hard to classify, SOMETIMES THE WOLF is a page-turning thriller. . . . A great story well told." - ReviewingTheEvidence.com
"A tremendous novel by a rising powerhouse of a writer. Waite tells tense, thrilling stories with thoughtfulness and emotional clarity, and his prose is simply astonishing. Anyone who is late to the party couldn't ask for a better entry point than this hybrid of crime drama and father-son story." - Michael Koryta, New York Times bestselling author of Those Who Wish Me Dead on Sometimes the Wolf
"Urban Waite is the rarest of writers: one who encourages you to turn the page to find out what happens while simultaneously forcing you to slow and admire the language and the tone he creates. In Sometimes the Wolf, Waite throws us into a rush of suspense and danger that tests the limits of the bond between father and son, and takes us on a thrilling trek through the Pacific Northwest he evokes so well. This is a book to read straight through." - James Scott, author of The Kept, on Sometimes the Wolf
"Powerful . . . Ray and Tom are well-developed, red-blooded characters, each with a full load of flaws and ambiguities. Each has deep regrets, and each yearns for a shot at redemption. . . . The Carrion Birds is a bracing ride, and it's a pleasure to see new changes rung on classic themes, especially when they're done this well." - Seattle Times on The Carrion Birds
"A brisk plot, well-developed characters, thoughtful reflections on the ebb and flow of family ties, and - most of all - Waite's eloquent language describing his setting's untamed beauty." - Seattle Times
"Riveting... An engrossing, adventure-packed ride." - Publishers Weekly
"Is the literary thriller a dying genre?... Fortunately...there are still thrillers like Urban Waite's "Sometimes the Wolf," which seems to care - and care deeply, smartly - about the way it is written... The book's engine moves quickly, fired on, in part, by two somewhat spectral killers. They haunt the margins of the text, giving the story a wildness that only gradually comes into focus. But when it does, you start to see the masterful construction of the novel, as - one-by-one - the strands of the plot create a tense and memorable net." - The Oregonian (Portland)
Praise for The Terror of Living: "A hell of a good novel, relentlessly paced and beautifully narrated. There's just no let-up. Waite's style is tight and taut. . . . Strong narrative voice, auspicious debut. . . . Awfully glad I read this one." - Stephen King on The Terror of Living
"A lean and mean, modern-day noir western filled with complex characters and situations . . . hauntingly dark and elegiac writing . . . a candidate for best crime book of 2013." - New York Journal of Books on The Carrion Birds
"One fine specimen . . . with more artistry than would seem possible in a conventional thriller." - New York Times Book Review on The Terror of Living