The Passion

It's not easy to do for werewolves what Anne Rice did for vampires, but Boyd seems determined to try in her romantic saga about the hidden world of the loup-garou. After the violent murder of three werewolves in Manhattan, Alexander Devoncroix realizes he must tell his son--heir to his leadership of the pack--the story of his own disastrous love for a human. In a flashback to 1897 Paris, 28-year-old Tessa LeGuerre attempts to kill Alexander in revenge for his having let her father die on an expedition in the American wilderness. She fails and falls in love with Alexander, while he introduces her to the world of werewolves--who, neither half-wolf nor half-human, are superior animals who designed the pyramids, live hundred of years and secretly control human civilization. As Tessa comes to appreciate werewolf arrogance toward mere humanity, Alexander introduces her to the werewolf queen Elise, and Tessa becomes enmeshed in the evil plots of Alexander's brother Denis--with terrible consequences for everyone involved. There is as much of Beauty and the Beast in this story as there is of Rice's vampire world, but the Passion itself (the werewolf's greatest pleasure and weakness) provides a strong erotic punch. Readers will crave another novel set in this magical realm. (Apr.)