Sean is so unlikeable but so relatable and it genuinely made me uncomfortable. From the beginning to the very end of the book, she is desperately yearning to fix her troubled marriage by creating a closer relationship with her wife, Riya. She talks about wanting to climb into Riya’s mind (in the same way that she does with the wolf, Kate), daydreams about literally tasting her skin because she’s so desperate to be close to her, yet she makes no efforts with opening lines of communication with her wife or even compromising in their relationship in a way that pleases Riya enough to make her want to stay. Rather than simply not wanting to get closer to her partner, Sean is presented as being wholly incapable of doing so. She puts work first, puts herself first, yet continues to lament about the bridge she’s failing to cross for her wife. She’s desperate for a love that she, herself, can’t maintain. It’s fucking tragic.  

I do think the pacing of this book is far from perfect. I think it would’ve benefited from being longer, and from spending more time on the dysfunctional marriage. The opportunity to explore the parallels between Sean’s relationship with humans (especially her wife, and her briefly mentioned mother) and the wolf pack wasn’t used to its full potential which was a shame imo.