Trigger warnings: Death of a father, near-death experiences
Note that I got this book for free and now I own it.

7/10, not long after I read the previous book before this called Soul Eater I decided to read this since this was a library giveaway and I headed in with high expectations considering I've enjoyed the instalment published before this and again I enjoyed this just as much as the last and that just might convince me to read the entire series. Where do I begin? It starts or rather continues with the main character Torak and now Renn is becoming a more critical part of the book, I still like some of the aspects this book shares with the last and I felt the author just built upon that and made this slightly more enjoyable. For starters this is a much more impactful story not to mention more action-packed and I liked the inclusion of multiple POVs that I saw in the last book, not all books can execute this device well; this was one of them. The characters are just as likable as ever and that being said the plot had a satisfying ending which I gladly sighed relief to, Torak now has the mark of the Soul Eater and so the other clan members outcast him by sentencing him to death and erasing his presence and now he is all alone but only for a brief moment. Renn and Wolf were still there from last time and they helped him on his journey which ended with a battle with the Viper Mage and even a change in the clan law letting Torak return to his clan. Great. ( )

[This is a review I wrote in 2008]

Another brilliant read in the Chronicles of Ancient Darkness series. This one had me gripped from page 1, and wouldn't let me go until I'd finished it!. Michelle Paver draws you back into the ancient world, first created in 'Wolf Brother', into a hunter-gatherer society of survival, and here we find Torak (now 14) struggling not only to find his way through the forest, but also to find his way through to adulthood as well.

Torak now has some difficult paths ahead. He already knows his destiny lies in destroying the power of the spirit-walkers, the fire opal, but as he now bears the horrible brand of the spirit-walkers on his chest, can he free himself from their control? A number of events conspire against Torak in this book to make his journey a particularly tough one. However, he has the ever-faithful Wolf by his side, and his friends Renn and Bale want to help too... if he'll let them.

The other books in the series are 'Wolf Brother', 'Spirit Walker', and 'Soul Eater'. ( )

This book is probably my least favorite of the Chronicles of Ancient Darkness books so far. It felt like Paver tried to cram a whole lot of action into a small space, and as a result, it lacked depth and was a little confusing in sections (it was difficult to tell who was where in each scene sometimes). And some of the interactions were oversimplified almost to the point of being cringe-inducing. The closing scene in particular seemed more like the ending of a sitcom than the ending of a novel.

In my review of Soul Eater, I said that I hoped the series would turn into a coming-of-age story. Well, based on the last few chapters of Outcast, it looks like I might get my wish. That's a consolation, at least. I think it would have been a pity if Paver had missed out on the chance to let Torak and Renn grow up.

Two more books to go, and I'm done with this series. I'm still enjoying the story (especially the sections from Wolf's point of view) and looking forward to seeing where Paver takes it, but I think I'll be somewhat relieved when it's done. ( )

This is a tricky situation for Torak, but Renn still believes in him. The most challenging of the series as it introduces concepts of relationships, love, right and wrong and decision making. ( )

This book is all about Torak and how he tries to survive after he becomes an outcast. He has a tattoo of the soul eaters on his chest, and he finds out that his mother declared him clan-less. He leaves the other clans and is some hunted by Aki, the son of the Boar Clan leader. Torak starts to turn bad. He cant remember how to hunt, track, and cant remember some animals. Torak gets mad at Wolf and Wolf finds a new back. Renn finds Torak and helps him get the tattoo out. Torak starts to get better and Wolf is now friends with him again. Then the Viper Mage gets him, and uses him to attack Renn and Bale. He fights back and gets away. Torak finds Renn and Bale and takes them to safety,but the Viper Mage finds them. Viper Mage tells Torak that Renn is her daughter. Torak then leaves Renn and finds out that a flood is coming. He tells the clans and they take him back.
I think this book had a lot of less action. There was much more talking, but a lot of learning about people. It was very interesting to see what Torak was thinking about and how he was changing. I like that Bale was back because he makes the book a little more interesting. It was cool to see all the clans and learn about them at the meeting. The Otter people where very interesting because they are so weird. There was a lot to take in about all the people in the book. ( )