Wolf by Wolf

Ryan Graudin’s “Wolf by Wolf” doesn’t mess around with the usual alternate history fluff. Instead of the Allies winning, the Axis powers came out on top, and the world is a dark, oppressive place. Enter Yael, a Jewish survivor of a concentration camp who has a bizarre and dangerous skill: she can “skinshift,” meaning she can physically transform into any woman she’s seen. This isn’t just a neat party trick—it's a weapon and a shield in her quest to infiltrate the Axis Tour, a brutal motorcycle race spanning from Germany to Japan, designed to showcase the regime’s dominance.

Yael’s mission is as clear as it is insane: assassinate Adolf Hitler. But Graudin doesn’t hand us a straightforward revenge fantasy. Instead, the story wrestles with what it means to wear someone else’s face—and identity. Yael adopts the persona of Adele Wolfe, the original Axis Tour champion who died mysteriously. That means not just mastering the race but convincing Adele’s family, especially her suspicious brother Felix, and dealing with competitors like Luka Löwe, a former champion and Yael’s rival on and off the track.

The tension is relentless. Yael’s internal struggle—balancing her mission against the moral quagmires of deception and the ghosts of her past—runs parallel to the physical dangers of the race and the ever-present threat of exposure. Graudin’s narrative style keeps the pace tight and immersive, flipping between Yael’s past trauma and present challenges in a way that never feels gimmicky. You’re pulled into a world that’s grim but vibrantly imagined, where every twist of the throttle could be your last.

But “Wolf by Wolf” isn’t just a high-octane thriller. It digs into heavier themes like the fluidity of identity in a world that demands conformity, the scars war leaves on individuals and societies, and the brutal costs of resistance. Yael’s ability to change faces becomes a metaphor for survival and the loss of self, raising uncomfortable questions about what we’re willing to sacrifice to fight tyranny.

The characters aren’t just chess pieces either. Yael is a compelling protagonist—tough but vulnerable, driven but haunted. Her growing feelings for Luka add layers of complexity to her mission, complicating what could have been a simple revenge plot. Meanwhile, Felix’s suspicion adds a slow-burning tension that keeps Yael—and the reader—on edge.

Graudin’s world-building is sharp, blending historical details with speculative twists without drowning the story in exposition. The Axis Tour itself is a brutal, fascinating backdrop that feels like a character in its own right—dangerous, unpredictable, and a showcase of the regime’s twisted spectacle.

That said, the novel sometimes leans hard on YA tropes, especially in its romantic subplot, which might feel a bit conventional compared to the otherwise gritty premise. Some readers might find the pacing uneven, with moments where the story slows down just when the stakes demand full throttle. But these hiccups don’t overshadow the novel’s strengths.

Overall, “Wolf by Wolf” offers a fresh spin on alternate history and dystopian fiction, with a protagonist who’s as complex as the world she navigates. It’s a story about survival, identity, and the messy, often painful fight against evil—not wrapped in neat resolutions but delivered with grit and heart.