A REASON FOR BEING

In Andrews’ first novel, the post-apocalyptic struggle between humans and lycanthropes reaches new heights as each threatens to vanquish the other.

Following nuclear devastation, the only habitable place on Earth is Japan, now known as Ikigai. Sora Sakurai is one of the human Keepers, a police force that monitors the country’s different Sectors. She’s also secretly a wolf, though some believe wolves are extinct. After Sora rescues Kaze Hayashi, a young wolf, from a Keepers patrol, she rejects his father’s offer to join the family’s pack, preferring her lone wolf status. But in a dream, her late brother, Iki, tells Sora that she’s “the Saviour” who, according to a prophetic poem, “will rise.” And Ikigai may need a rescuer when Jougen, a “cult of wolves,” takes Sector Six by force. In response, humans are determined to exterminate the wolves once and for all. While Sora strives to protect her wolf kind, she has human friends as well, including Keeper Ted Yew. Making matters even more dire is Jougen leader Taiyo, who boasts a power that puts all beings in mortal danger. Though she wants peace, Sora may have to fight to save everyone. Andrews excels at organically introducing her characters, starting with a relative few and gradually adding more. The characters are appealingly diverse, from Ted’s Sector Five chancellor father, Aki, to Matsu Moriko, a wolf who learns that his close friend Sora is still alive. The author develops a grand dilemma: Both the wolf and human groups have valiant individuals as well as ruthless ones. Readers, however, may crave further details on topics for which they’re meager, such as wolf-human transformations and whether characters speak the same language(s), which isn’t clear. After an action-packed final act, the somewhat vague, open ending suggests both a definitive conclusion and the possibility of sequels.

A diverting, dystopian tale with an action-oriented story and first-rate characterization.