Blood for Blood by Ryan Graudin

Title: Blood for Blood (Wolf by Wolf 2)
Authors: Ryan Graudin
Genre: Alternative History, Historical Novel, Young Adult
Publisher: Orion Children’s Books (6th October 2016)
Blurb:

There would be blood.

Blood for blood.

Blood to pay.

An entire world of it.

The war might be over, but the fight has just begun.

For the resistance in post-war Germany, blood must be paid with blood.

For seventeen-year-old Yael and her unlikely comrades, there is no alternative but to see their mission through to the end, whatever the cost.

But dark secrets reveal dark truths and one question hangs over them all – how far can you go for the ones you love?

The thrilling conclusion to WOLF BY WOLF.

Rating:⭐️⭐️⭐️ ⭐️ (4 stars)
Review:

BLOOD FOR BLOOD by Ryan Graudin is the sequel to the brilliant WOLF BY WOLF, concluding the story. It continues the story of seventeen-year-old Yael, resistant fighter and shape-shifter. After the events of the previous book, the world stands on a precipice; dangerous secrets have been revealed, and events set in motion that cannot be stopped. Yael is left reeling, but her mission for the resistance must be completed. The fight to regain control has begun, though not everything is as it appears. The future of the world hangs in the balance. BLOOD FOR BLOOD brings Yael’s story, and that of the resistance, to a thrilling conclusion.

I have been looking forward to getting my hands on BLOOD FOR BLOOD since I finished WOLF BY WOLF: I had to know how Yael’s story ended. BLOOD FOR BLOOD was just what I wanted from a sequel to WOLF BY WOLF – Graudin did a brilliant job in concluding the story. I found it easy to fall back into Yael’s world and watch events unfold. The story was a little slow at times, but for me the overall story more than made up for that. I can honestly say that this duology is one of my favourite reads of 2016 and I totally recommend it if you want to give an alternative history a try, with a few fantastical elements.

The main plot of BLOOD FOR BLOOD continues on from the conclusion of WOLF BY WOLF. I really enjoyed watching events unfold for Yael and the resistance. I thought it seemed pretty realistic, and the plot kept me guessing. Graudin breaks up this plot with a series of interludes set in different time periods, which give an insight into both the world and the characters. I found these both interesting and frustrating. I liked the fact that these interludes allowed us to gain a bigger picture of the world, and to learn more about the characters. However, I did find some of them frustrating, as I just wanted to know what was going to happen next in the main plot.

Yael is, of course, the main character and narrator of BLOOD FOR BLOOD: with Luka and Felix also providing some narration. This use of different voices in the narration works well to build a larger picture of what is going on, but I think it worked well that Luka and Felix were only occasional narrators as this meant that BLOOD FOR BLOOD was still very much Yael’s story.

One of the things I really enjoyed about this series is the fact that it’s a duology. Graudin tells a compelling and believable story, which left me wanting to know what happens next. The ending of BLOOD FOR BLOOD was brilliantly written. I don’t want to say too much about it because of spoilers, but I will say that I thought it was a fitting ending to the story. I really enjoyed following this twist on WW2, and if you’re looking to try an alternative history then you should definitely check this series out.