Rating: 
Summary: Intriguing...with an abrupt ending.
Review: I very much enjoyed the book. It was somewhat slow at times but the last two-thirds of the book held my attention quite well. Ms. Borchardt picked a very interesting and not well know part of history that made you look at things from a different perspective. I definitely enjoyed the shape-shifting angle. The main charater, Regeane, was a true heroine willing to give up her freedom to help her closest friends. A very admiral trait. The ending could have been a bit more detailed like the rest of the book. I hope to read more of Ms. Borchardt's novels in the future.
Rating: 
Summary: Some people don't think it's that great -- I do!
Review: I really LOVED this book! It's worth buying it in hardback if you can. I guess it really depends on the kind of person you are when it comes to deciding whether you like it or not. Alice Borchardt combines some of my favorite subjects: the ancient world and fantasy. Not only that, but the characters are great and they really got to me from the start (except for ths villains, of course). At least some people should think about all that action in it -- there was not one boring moment in it for me, and close to the end, your heart starts pounding like crazy. I found myself shrieking at any people who interrupted me during the time I was reading this book. I liked it so much that I read it again. I read pretty fast, and I skip parts all the time. : ) I hope Ms. Borchardt plans to write another book (possibly a sequel or prequel that can happen in another time period?) because if she did, I wouldn't hesitate to by it in hardback...again.
Rating: 
Summary: Fascinating premise, interesting characters, but needs work.
Review: Regeane, distantly related to Charlemagne, is the central character in this book, which takes place in the early Middle Ages. The action lies in Rome, which is no longer the center of the Empire, but fast becoming a political hotbed: who will rule Rome: the princes or the Church? This question subtly circles around the real story: Regeane is a shape-shifter and becomes a wolf at night. The problem is, we never find out why or how. Regeane is not alone, her father was a shape-shifter as well, and so are her future husband and his people. The why and how are tantalizing questions. One of the characters, Madrona, tells us she's existed since the time before time was recorded. Another character tells us that he knew Julius Caesar. So, where did this fascinating existence start? The book reminded me a little of the Cheysuli series by Jennifer Roberson, where her characters changed into various types of animals and whose personalities were like their "animal spirits." But Roberson tells us the how and why, tying it up nicely, although it took seven or eight volumes to do it. Certainly the theme that the natural creatures, or animals, really understand the things important to life is similar in both books. Unfortunately, Borchardt's characters don't seem to learn the lesson. There are some problems with chronology, too. A great deal happens over the course of a few days, and the plot development doesn't flow smoothly. Continuity is also a problem, but is probably more due to inattentive editing than the author's imaginative story-telling abilities. I liked the book and plan to give a copy to a friend as a birthday gift, and I'd read a sequel. But I'd also hope that some of the problems in The Silver Wolf are cured.
Rating:
Summary: An enjoyable read...until the ending
Review: This book drew me in quickly with it's Roman setting, werewolf protagonist, and political intrigue. The romance fell flat, however. Some of the characters were more developed than others (I particularly liked the Madame Lucilla). After reading it, I still don't understand the relationship between the leper Antonius and Pope Hadrian. Not to mention the fact that the ending was rushed. With that in mind, I'd still recommend it.
Rating:
Summary: a wonderful werewolf novel
Review: As anyone that's searched for good werewolf novel knows, they are not easy to come by. This book has all the elements I was looking for in a werewolf story. The conflict of having to decide whether to live in the confinement of human society or free as a wolf is well-defined. Alice Borchardt has a decent start at doing for the werewolf, what her sister, Anne Rice, did for the vampire.
Rating: 
Summary: Praise for The Silver Wolf
Review: "A daring and vibrant new voice on the female literary frontier, a writer with the vision and scope to conjure up her own thrilling mythos and the craftsmanship to render it in breathtaking, shimmering prose. . . . In this hypnotic novel, the decadence and splendor of ancient Rome comes vividly to life through a character as enigmatic as my very own Lestat. . . Peopled with characters that beckon to the deepest reaches of our souls, The Silver Wolf is a stunning initiation into a dark and dazzling realm." --Anne Rice "A very vividly written story -- I really got into it." -- Marion Zimmer Bradley "The third and best yet by Anne Rice's older sister . . . . This time however, Borchardt enters bona fide Rice territory, centering her tale on the rise of a werewolf clan during the last gasp of the Roman empire and the rise of Charlemagne. . . . Borchardt's version of the immortal city includes sewage systems, glass factories, thieves' markets, and much more. Adding an extra fillip to her tale, Borchardt's teenage female werewolf, Regeane, has an animal nature perpetually simmering at the surface of her character (like many an adolescent) while she goes about her daily life in human form. . . . Borchardt reaches descriptive and dramatic peaks with Regeane's vulpine supersenses as she noses about Rome by night, reading the dead city's skin and air. Top-flight fantasy." --Kirkus Reviews "A fascinating tale -- brutal, ribald, engrossing, poignantly beautiful." --Johanna Lindsey
Rating: 
Summary: The book, though interesting, was not very well written.
Review: The Silver Wolf was not as good as I thought it was going to be. The beginning seemed to be very dragged out, and because of this the end appeared to be somewhat rushed. None of Alice Borchardt's characters were very well developed at all, and the some of the grammar was very poor. I would not recommend this book;although it was interesting and had a great story line, it was poorly developed. However this is just my opinion.
Rating:
Summary: A beguiling novel to please historical fatasy lovers
Review: Majestic Rome is in deep decline by the time Charlemagne rules. Living in the once great Eternal City is Regeane, a woman with royal blood flowing through her veins. Regeane is a special person because she has also inherited from her deceased sire the ability to physically change her human shape to that of a wolf. In other words, Regeane is a werewolf. Even possessing special powers beyond that of a normal mortal does not stop Regeane from being used by everyone in her circle. Charlemagne plans to have her wed to some barbarian as a political bride. Her uncle and cousin are abusive and blackmail her by threatening to reveal her lycanthropic secret to the Church, who would kill her as witch. Finally, a strange but pleasant scent is activating her sexual needs. With her world crumbling faster than Rome's, it appears that Regeane has an uphill fight just to survive. THE SILVER WOLF is one of the all time great werewolf novels. The story line is fast paced and readers need to be prepared to set aside several hours for this one sitting read. The characters are all wonderful as they bring to life ancient Rome on the threshold between antiquity and the modern ages. Blended within all that is a beautifully told romantic fantasy that in of itself makes for a great novel. Alice Borchardt beguiles her devoted audiences with one of the years best fantasy stories. Harriet Klausner
Rating:
Summary: The Wolf Is Among Us...
Review: This book focuses on Regeane, a misunderstood and orphaned noblewoman, mistreated by her relatives, who happens to be a werewolf. She has fought the wolf part of herself and has not really come into her power. She is a pawn in a huge powerplay which could effect the entire Empire or at least what's left of it. She meets Maeniel from Night of the Wolf. In human form, neither knows at first that the other is a wolf. The book goes from there and sees justice for Regeane as well as happiness.
Rating: 
Summary: A chick-book set in post-empire Rome
Review: Borchardt has clearly written a book intended for a female audience. Her novel left me constantly hungering for more. The female protagonist, with her duel psyches of the wolf and the human, is a power figure both figuratively and literally, as she transforms into a creature of the wild. Borchardt's exploration of the sensuality of the protagonist, as both wolf and woman, is delicious.
Yet there is description merely for description's sake. It is as if Borchardt is showing off her knowledge of the period. The heroine's antagonists are typecast as cunning, and possessing a power over the heroine far exceeding what they really have. This left me wondering whether it was their immoral power, or the heroine's own stupid, that causes her to wind up every night in chains.
A comparable text set in the Middle Ages is Lady Hawk. While Silver Wolf is a lot more romantic and sentimental, Lady Hawk possesses strong central characters that we like and laugh with, and secondary characters created for our benefit not just for the central character's development.
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