Benighted

Starred review from July 31, 2006
In this impressive werewolf novel with a detective story twist, first-time British author Whitfield imagines a contemporary world whose majority are people who "fur up" at full moon; the scorned minority—called barebacks by their wolven, "lycanthropic" peers—are permanently clad in their human skin. Whitfield's bareback protagonist, Lola Galley, is a lawyer with DORLA (Department for the Ongoing Regulation of Lycanthropic Activity), an unpopular organization necessary to maintaining order in a civilized world. Lola's full-moon duties include "dogcatching," or chasing down stray "lunes," lycos in vicious, canine form. When a bareback friend loses a hand to the snapping jaws of a lune—and then turns up shot dead a few days later—it's Lola's job to defend the mauler who becomes a murder suspect. In the process of her investigation, Lola must face her own biases as a minority and unearth the secret behind the divide in her society. A nuanced exploration of prejudice, this deftly written, absorbing debut deserves a crossover literary and fantasy readership.

Starred review from September 15, 2006
Whitfield lives in London and has a varied life as a publisher, web editor, and masseuse. Her terrific first novel introduces readers to a fantastic world much like our own, except that a majority of the population are lunes, or lycanthropes, who -fur up - during a full moon. The one percent who remain human, -barebacks, - are treated as second-class citizens. When a bareback is attacked by a lune and later murdered, Lola Galley, a bareback lawyer for a department that regulates the activities of lycanthropes, seeks justice for her friend. Her quest sends readers on an emotional, social, and historical journey through the trials of discrimination and prejudice. Tackling a major social issue, this thought-provoking novel is recommended for readers who enjoy intelligent, literate fantasy. [Warner Bros. Pictures has obtained the film rights. -Ed.]" -April Davis, Librarian, Chantilly, VA"

Copyright 2006 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

August 1, 2006
The world of " Benighted" is familiar, but not its populace. The vast majority is lycanthropic; its members "fur up" under the full moon and become unreasoning beasts. A small minority is disdainfully called "barebacks" and despised as "cripples." The laws are strict about luning, or roaming freely, while transformed, however, and all non-lycos are conscripted into the Department for the Ongoing Regulation of Lycanthropic Activities (DORLA), which enforces the full-moon curfew by hunting roamers and bringing them to justice. Whitfield's well-limned protagonist is angst-ridden DORLA attorney Lola Galley. After a friend's hand is bitten off in a lyco hunt, and he is subsequently murdered, she takes a course of action that leads to extreme danger and shocking discoveries about herself and society at large. In the appended author interview, Whitfield states she didn't begin the book with a message in mind. The narrative feels teacherly, however, and the interview and accompanying reading-group questions and topics for discussion bolster the impression. Despite that, this disturbing thriller should appeal to more readers than just genre mavens.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2006, American Library Association.)