Aaron Rosenberg (1) (1969–)

I won this book back in January 2023. For some reason, I never received it. I messaged the publisher who was kind enough to resend a copy.

Wylie is not human. He is a Yeti. But, despite being reared as a a Yeti, and trained to avoid humans, stay hidden he discovers a new path.

Instead of surviving in the cold remote wilderness, he resides in a cozy, one room cabin. He is quite content to fish, swim and watch old shows on the tv. He trades his fish for food staples, beer and TP.

He is literally hiding in plain sight when he has to flee suddenly. A Hunter is looking for him. A Hunter is someone who seeks out and kills the supernatural

He flees to Minneapolis. His plan is to lay low for awhile and hopefully return to his home. Instead, he finds friends, mundane and supernatural alike. He has never had friends and it feels good.

The supernatural all live in the city. Most have real jobs. For some reason, humans can't see their differences. Even a 7 foot tall Yeti. Much of the book explores his experiences in a big city. It is heart warming and the comraderie he encounters is sweet. There are bad supernatural elements that cause problems but

Except, there have also been horrific deaths in the nature parks. Wylie is having weird dreams that worry him.

I look forward to a,sequel… (more)

It was fun to get the backstory / origin story of so many big people and events, but it was a lot more tell than show in terms of the style.

See the full review and more at baileysbooks.home.blog!

Recommended: Yes!
For fantasy/epic adventure fans, for those who have already played World of Warcraft games (or similar ones)

Thoughts:
WELL. This was fun because I got a lot of origin stories that I hadn't heard before. "What are death knights?" is something I've definitely asked my S.O. before, and he said he wouldn't tell me because it would ruin some moments in the lore (which he knows I care very much about!). Plus, the origin of Paladins?! And Alleria, and Lothar, and Turalyon... and Gul'dan, my god, I swear this dude has died ten times and JUST KEEPS COMING BACK!

Writing style was pretty basic, and could have made the story far more epic by spicing up descriptions a bit and being more sensory. The moments themselves are incredible, though, so it's hard not to get some good stuff from this. I love getting into the lore of the world, and this is such a defining moment in Horde/Alliance building. I mean, what else is there to say? If you like WoW, or something similar like LOTR, then go for it. Although this isn't really a standalone, because there's a lot of past moments that will make no sense to you if you haven't read the previous books. That said, I liked some of the little callbacks, like Khadgar riding a gryphon and commenting "Well, good thing I remember how!"… (more)

I received this book as part of the Early Reviewers Program.

This is my first cozy fantasy read. Following our main character Wiley Kang, a Yeti. Wiley lives in the deep woods of Minnesota, but after some gruesome murders are discovered nearby, with a cryptid hunter tracking him, he moves to Minneapolis. Wiley’s not quite used to big city living, but with a little help from fellow supernatural beings he bumps into and befriends, he quickly grows to like his new environment. Unfortunately the hunter is still searching for him.

As this is my first fantasy with supernatural creatures, or cryptids, I was a little hesitant as we were introduced to the other beings. However the author does a fantastic job of quickly giving a bit of a rundown of the basics of the new cryptid specie, as it arises.

I’ve previously only read cozy mysteries, and this still has some of those “cozy” elements to the story, like mouth watering food descriptions, the small town setting, and the easy-to-read plot line.

I really enjoyed Wylie’s character development. When we first meet him, he is a solitary being, rarely even venturing into his small town for supplies for than a few times a month. Not even having any close relationships with other Yetis. But with the move to the big city, Wylie has to change and create and develop friendships, finding that in fact he likes having these relationships and realizing this was something that he had missed in his life previously.

I have my fingers crossed that this will become a series and there will be plenty more to Wylie Kang’s adventure.

Thanks to LibraryThing for hosting the giveaway for this book. I was so excited to have won my first giveaway for such a fun book premise. I will definitely keep an eye out for future books from the author.… (more)