Customer Reviews

Return Of The Wolf Man

5 star:		(22)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Corny, but I liked it a lot. Also like Harry Shannon's wonderful 2003 novel "Night of the Werewolf," 'Return of the WOlf Man' is a fun homage to the genre packed with inside jokes (Shannon's terrifying romp uses the names of horror authors as characters, Jeff Rovin features the people in and around the great Universal monster films as characters). Worth tracking down.

I had to force myself to finish this one. Good idea, bad execution. I can't believe anyone would buy this for $18.00 as shown above.

I have always been a huge Universal classic horror fan. ...Picking up where we last saw the Wolf Man, Dracula, and the Frankenstein Monster, Rovin continues the legendary saga and carries it into present day Florida. The Wolf Man and the Monster are revived by accident when the heir to Mornay Castle attempts to discover what is in the sealed off basement. Dracula, who has been in hiding for 50 years, learns of this, and is determined to give the Monster a pliable brain he can control, as well as eliminate his nemesis :the Wolf Man. The result is an amazing adventure filled with thrills and chills. Rovin's writing is superb, and his characterizations of his monster characters are exactly what monster fans will expect. The most intriguing scenes are between Dracula and Talbot/the Wolf Man. The book is also wrought with inside jokes, and some character names are taken from the movies. There is also an amusing parody of Lugosi's immortal Dracula line," I never drink - wine." Talbot says " I never eat - chicken." I have read this book three times already, and it never gets tiring. If you love the classic monster films of Universal or are simply interested, buy this book. Trust me, you won't regret it!

Anyone who's seen Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein knows it trampled a bit on tradition by letting Dracula's reflection show in a mirror and allowing vampire and werewolf to die by drowning. If Universal hadn't been so cheap not to continue the series with both of the groups that took them out of receiver's shift, the Universal Monsters and A&C, Wolfie, Drac and Frankie would have picked right back up in 1949. But alas, they all ended as soon as WWII did. But thanks to longtime Universal Monsters afficianado Jeff Rovin, the story picks up in La Mirada, Florida in June of 1998.

The story begins with a prologue where the Wolf Man's human counterpart Lawrence Talbot, meets back up with Joan Raymond, the insurance investigator from the previous film. Together, they defeat Dracula and the Monster again, and it picks up fifty years later with Miss Raymond's passing and revelations that she was a horror novelist prior to her death. Her great-niece Dr. Caroline Cooke, accidentally uncovers Larry and the others and befriends Talbot. Unlike all the other scientists in the pictures, she tries to help him against his rivals and promises once and for all she will rid him of his curse and help him enjoy the rest of his natural life. It's also kind of humorous the passages Rovin puts about Chick Young and Wilbur Grey (A&C's characters) coming back and telling stories of monsters and Talbot's amazement learning about answering machines, microwave ovens, cell-phones, mini-skirts and boom boxes that play rap music.

The author, Jeff Rovin, like my twenty-year old self, is a true Universal Monsters fan, and I felt like I was watching an old Universal with Karloff, Lugosi and Chaney the whole time I read this. Now, how about a movie Universal?

For all of you "40 and 50-somethings" who enjoyed the Universal Movies Monster "Series", this book will be a treat! Jeff Rovin has succeeded in reproducing all the camp, scariness, and fun that the 1950's and 60's movies about Dracula, Frankenstein, and the Wolf Man contained.

I first stumbled on to Rovin by reading his excellent story of bats taking over the city of New York in "Vespers" (highly recommended). Checking through the list of his books, I found "Return of the Wolf Man". After reading a number of the reviews listed here with Amazon, I decided to give the book a try. I was not disappointed. Rovin has captured all the pathos and anguish that Larry Talbot carries with him as the Wolf Man. Just like in the movies the reader can't help but feel the conflicting emotions of sympathy and shock over Talbot's deeds as the Wolf Man.

Depictions of Count Dracula and Frankenstein's monster are true to legend and these monsters play active roles in this novel. And, as with the Universal Pictures movies about these characters, this book doesn't really end, but rather fades away to where a sequel can later pick up the action.

Even if you weren't a fan of those old monster films, Rovin's story is strong enough to stand alone on it's own merits. It has generous amounts of chills, surprises, and gore. Characterization is somewhat weak, but Rovin makes up for this shortcoming with terrific story-telling and vivid word pictures.

"Return of the Wolf Man" is a solid page-turner and one book that horror fans won't be disappointed with !

I mean, it COULD be a good movie, but I think a follow up to a 1948 movie may have limited appeal. The monsters in the book, however, still have a strong appeal, so maybe it would work. He starts at the end of the Abbott and Costello spoof, which is a difficult place to start from, and he brings it back to all out horror without ignoring the characters Wilbur and Chick. That's impressive. This is well worth buying. He ties it in with some Universal Movies that never were part of the Wolfman series, and makes it work with few inconsistencies. Rovin has an enthusiastic style that seems slightly immature, but that only means his best work is ahead of him, and "Return of the Wolfman" is as good of a novel as any out there in the last several years anyway. Find a way to get a copy.

What a fabulous book! It's a shame that it's out of print (I own two copies)as any fan of the Universal Monster Movies will enjoy this tremendously.It begins at the climax of the movie "Abbott & Costello meet Frankenstein" (a favorite of mine)but does not dwell on A&C. Explanations of the so-called "demise" of the Wolfman and Dracula are given as well as why there is an old castle on an "island" off Florida's coast. Although the story centers on the Wolfman, a great deal of coverage is given to Dracula, with Dr. Morney (Sandra) and the Monster given ample coverage. It is also a shame that Ken Jacobs took over what had been a great start to a promising series. He went off in a different direction and lost the atmosphere of the would-be series. Hopefully Mr. Rovin will return to the subject matter and use other characters in Universal's menagerie as well as he did with the BIG THREE (Frankenstein, Dracula & the Wolfman).

I love the Universal Monsters, and it's obvious from "Return of the Wolf Man" that Jeff Rovin does too. Almost every page contains a veiled reference or in-joke, and yet the whole tells a compelling story, one which treats the characters with respect, rather than reducing them to charicatures (as the follow-on books by David Jacobs have done). Rovin is a skilled storyteller, and his passion for the classic movies shines out of every page. I continually found myself laughing in delight at finding a new movie reference or joke, and found my imagination fired by Rovin's pacing, drama and deft prose. The story is very self-contained, so even though this is part of a series, there is no need to buy the sequels (and believe me, you don't want to). If you love the old movies, do yourself a tremendous favour and buy this book. You won't regret it for an instant.

Rovin captures brilliantly the feel of the original Universal Classics. He ties together all original tales and brings them forward into the present time with plausible explanations. He solves some of the unexplained mysteries from the original tales (ex. why Bela turned into an actual wolf rather than a wolf man in the original film). It does get a little gory towards the end. Rovin brings everything to a satisfactory close but gives some tidbits at the end for a sequel. Hopefully the demand will be there for one.

Growing up with the classic Universal monsters on late night TV I grew to love them as part of a large, if very strange, family. I always wondered how their adventures would have been continued had they kept the films rolling. This novel captures the flavor and, more importantly, the spirit of those classic films. I, for one, am anxiously awaiting the next installment hinted at in the epilogue. Jeff...Get Writing!