Diving Into Sub-Genres: Werewolf Horror

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We each have our own preferred genres of choice. Kate loves horrors and thrillers, really anything that will keep her up at night! And Serena enjoys escaping through hidden doors into realms of magic and adventure. We also read mysteries, historical fiction, graphic novels, etc. etc. And that’s not even counting the multitude of sub-genres contained within each greater genre. In this series, one of us will present a list of our favorites from within a given sub-genre of one of our greater preferred genres.

This past year I read a few werewolf horror novels. As I was reading them it occurred to me that I really haven’t read THAT MANY werewolf books over the years, probably because I’ve always been more of a vampire girl (what can I say? I’m basic). But when it was my turn to take on another sub-genre deep dive, I decided that I should take a look at werewolf horror. Because it’s not really a sub-genre in horror that gets as much attention as other monster tales.

Werewolf and shapeshifter mythology has been around for hundreds and hundreds of years. Whether it’s the story of Romulus and Remus being raised by a she wolf, or medieval trials of supposed werewolves being prosecuted and executed, or pre-Christian belief systems speaking of people who could turn into wolves, the werewolf has been with various cultures since the dawn of modern time. I’m far more familiar with werewolf movies than books, with films like “The Wolfman”, “The Howling”, “An American Werewolf in Paris”, and “Ginger Snaps” all being well loved by the horror movie community. And now I shift my attention to books, to promote the sub-genre of a monster who needs a little bit more attention! Vampires can’t have all the fun.

“The Werewolf of Paris” by Guy Endore

As mentioned above, Guy Endore’s “The Werewolf of Paris” is considered to be the “Dracula” of werewolf novels. It centers on Bertrand Caillet, a soldier during the Franco-Prussian War whose journal is found by a researcher years later, detailing his existence as a werewolf. It details his early life as a werewolf born into a werewolf family, and follows him through his adolescence and into his time in the military, where his violent urges could be used in a more constructive manner… until he is discovered. Told in a similar epistolary style as “Dracula” through journal and confession entries, “The Werewolf of Paris” hasn’t had the same staying power in the mainstream as the Count. But it’s still considered the start of the modern werewolf tale.

“Cycle of the Werewolf” by Stephen King

You know my boy Stephen was going to make this list. His novella “Cycle of the Werewolf” was a short but effective werewolf story about a small town being terrorized over the course of nine months by a mysterious wild animal, and a kid who is trying to solve what is going on. King loves having kid protagonists who are trying to solve a mystery, and he’s quite good at it, and “Cycle of the Werewolf” has Marty at the center, a disabled boy in a wheelchair who is on the hunt for the werewolf over the nine months of murders and fear, trying to figure out who in town has to be the lycanthrope menace. It was adapted into a movie called “Silver Bullet”, starring Corey Haim as Marty (may his memory be a blessing), Megan Follows as his sister (the best Anne Shirley), and Gary Busey as the wild and crazy Uncle Al (uh…. life imitates art I guess?). It’s a quick werewolf read that’s pretty straightforward, and it has the King flavor behind it.

“Mongrels” by Stephen Graham Jones

I love Stephen Graham Jones, and while it wasn’t my first read of his, it was the first one I heard of due to a friend really enjoying it. And Jones has such a unique perspective and voice in his horror stories that it’s no shock that his werewolf tale “Mongrels” is on this list. It follows an Indigenous family of werewolves that have had to stay ahead of their pasts and had to stay incognito as best they can, but the youngest member of the family is about to hit the age where they will be able to tell if he has inherited the wolf aspect of the family line. It’s part werewolf tale, part family drama, part coming of age, and Jones combines the themes to make a heartfelt and eerie tale of family and identity. But he also has some really interesting and sometimes fun werewolf lore, creating a fun mythology in a way that only Jones can.

“Such Sharp Teeth” by Rachel Harrison

I love Rachel Harrison and basically every take on a supernatural foe that she has (look for my review of her latest novel “Play Nice” during Horrorpalooza!), and her werewolf book “Such Sharp Teeth” is so on brand for her feminist and somewhat cozy horror style. “Such Sharp Teeth” follows Rory, a somewhat aimless woman who has reluctantly returned to her hometown to support her pregnant twin sister Scarlett. While there she is attacked by an unknown creature, and then as she approaches the full moon her body goes through some changes. This werewolf story does have the body horror that we come to expect from the sub-genre, but Harrison brings her personal touch to it by also exploring feminine rage, the lack of control over a body going through strange and unhinged changes, and the way that trauma can make a festering monster in all of us that will eventually have to come out.

“The Last Werewolf” by Glen Duncan

This is probably one of the more literary books on this list, and I remember when it was a pretty hot commodity at my library, being checked out a lot. I know that it is also a bit of a polarizing read, as some people thought that it was TOO literary. But I think that while we shouldn’t turn our noses up at genre fiction, it’s also cool to see a more literary authors take on more genre associated themes, so I say good on you, “The Last Werewolf”! Jake has been wandering the Earth in solitude for centuries, a werewolf with no pack, no connections, and a terrible affliction that he wishes to be rid of. While he plans his suicide, he suddenly gets pulled into the orbit of a person that he could actually find himself connecting with… Oh, and also a murder. I actually haven’t read this one, but I have read other books by Duncan (using another name) and I’m sure he did a lot of interesting stuff with it!

“The Devourers” by Indra Das

I’m ending the list with what is, to me, the most unique werewolf story on the list, taking from Indian mythology and folklore and creating a historical and present day werewolf story. A modern day college professor named Alok is living in Kolkata, India, and one night he is approached by a strange person who has quite the story to tell, and who is desperate to tell it, cobbled together from ancient parchments, notebooks, and even skins. As Alok hears the tale of a woman who is raped and impregnated by a shapeshifter from another place, and as she searches for answers and for retribution, she finds a world of monsters, shapeshifters, different cultures and societies. Alok takes down the story for the stranger, and learns of things he never thought could be true. It takes from mythologies that many Western readers may not be familiar with, and it’s relentless, gory, and unapologetic with how it tackles werewolves and shifters.

What werewolf books have you enjoyed over the years? Let us know in the comments!