Gilmore Girls Meets Twilight In Dark New Release From Global Bestselling Author
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When the author Laurie Gilmore comes to mind, generally the Fantasy genre and books like Twilight aren't your first thought. Known for her incredibly popular Dream Harbor series, particularly the TikTok phenomenon The Pumpkin Spice Café, she does a wonderful job with cozy romance books. Her latest release still brings romance and lovable small-town vibes, but alongside those cozy feelings there's a much darker paranormal plot.
Since the release of The Pumpkin Spice Café in 2023, Laurie Gilmore's endearing Dream Harbor series, filled with charming characters and a warm, Gilmore Girls-like atmosphere, has taken the world by storm. Pumpkin Spice Café was the first in its ever-growing series, and the autumn-coded cozy romance continues to top the charts of best fall romances each year, with many fans re-reading it year after year. Now, she's stretching into another genre with yet another fall book that's perfect for the spooky season.
Big Bad Wolf Is The Start Of A Paranormal Series By Laurie Gilmore
Maple Hollow's Second Book Is Expected Next Month
If you're looking for a sweet little romance, Big Bad Wolf might throw you for a loop. This book takes on a much darker feeling right from the beginning, with spooky tales of impossibly giant wolves circulating in Maple Hollow's bar and a dark forest full of secrets.
Our FMC, Ruby Bellerose, works at the bar in the town where she and her twin sister, Lena, grew up. Having been raised by their eccentric and now-deceased great-aunt, the two sisters still live together in the cabin in the woods that they were raised in. Unfortunately, recently Lena has developed a very strange illness that has curious tendencies of giving hauntingly possessed vibes.
When the hulking, reclusive woodworker, Rafe, comes into town and spots Ruby at the bar, sparks immediately fly, but Rafe is hiding secrets of his own that keep him from allowing himself to get too close. However, after Ruby is attacked on her walk home through the woods late at night, Rafe may be the only one able to save the sisters.
Werewolves, Witches, And More
You Never Know Who Is Hiding A Secret
Like how the paranormal characters of Twilight walk around without regular mortals knowing anything is different about them, the cozy town of Maple Hollow seems to be hiding a lot without regular humans knowing any different. Werewolves take center stage in this story, with Rafe and his lycanthropic family history being a central plot right from the start.
Of course, what's going on with Lena, and why Ruby was attacked in the woods could end up unraveling much more than anyone expected. And trying to keep it all quiet from the quirky gossips of the town is another problem entirely.
Red Riding Hood Takes A Steamy And Dark Turn
Not Much Story Connection To Red Riding Hood, But A Fun Concept
Big Bad Wolf is marketed as a Little Red Riding Hood paranormal retelling, but any actual correlations to that fairy tale are slim. Yes, there are subtle connections such as Ruby wearing a red cape, and the werewolf Rafe being a woodworker, but generally speaking, the story is vastly different.
In fact, if the big, bad wolf of this story is, in fact, our MMC Rafe, then he's really only the bad wolf in his own mind. He definitely sees himself as a monster who Ruby needs to avoid, but his actions strongly point to him being more of a sweet puppy than a terrifying lycanthrope.
The tone of the book tries to stay somewhat light with the Dream Harbor-like feeling of the charming town, Maple Hollow, yet the spooky and occasionally downright scary mysteries and paranormal experiences certainly challenge that atmosphere. It's far from being a horror novel, but the darker themes certainly lend themselves well to easing a cozy romance lover into a bit of witchy, spooky season reading.
This Book Has Been Released Before With A Different Name
Melissa McTiernan Is Laurie Gilmore's "Other Persona"
If this book sounds familiar, chances are good you've already read it. A Curse of Blood and Wolves was released in 2024 under the author name of Melissa McTernan, a name which Laurie Gilmore calls her other persona. A second book that was listed as being titled A Curse of Fate and Wolves is now expected to release later this year with Laurie Gilmore's name on it under the new title of Wild Wicked Mate.
If you look under the name Melissa McTernan, you can also see other books that tie into Big Bad Wolf's characters, particularly Bewitched By My Best Friend, which appears to tell the story of Ruby's best friend Callie. It's likely this will also be re-released under Laurie Gilmore's name in the future, though that has not been confirmed.
In the author's note at the beginning of Big Bad Wolf, she states that she was lucky enough to get the chance to rewrite and edit A Curse of Blood and Wolves for this reprint. She adds that it features many of the same plot lines and characters, but for Big Bad Wolf, she "introduced the whole new quirky small-town of Maple Hollow."
Big Bad Wolf Is The Same Universe As Pumpkin Spice Café
Could There Be Werewolves Hiding In Dream Harbor?
Maple Hollow not only draws a lot of inspiration from the Dream Harbor series and characters, but there's also an interesting connection between the two towns that proves this is the same universe. Without giving away too much, I will say that there is a small Easter Egg in Big Bad Wolf that reveals one of the characters in this book is a relative of the mayor of Dream Harbor.
This means that, in theory, there are paranormal characters behind the scenes in the Dream Harbor series as well, although those certainly don't come up in those books. It's fun to think about, however, and wonder just how much fantasy and paranormal happenings are in that cozy community, or in the world around us as well.
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