Can a Welsh legend, born in the 15th century, still be relevant in the 21st century? ALPHA BY JO PILSWORTH

"I have walked this world for 410 years, with 170 years having passed since I assumed the role of Alpha of the Cŵn Annwn. In that time, I have seen the world change dramatically from an agrarian society to one where common words include terms like ‘global warming’ due to the pollution levels engendered by mankind’s activities in less than a couple of centuries. I have found my Mate, I have lost close family, and throughout, I have remained true to my promise to my Goddess."

"I harvest souls."

"My duty lies with my Goddess, who has tasked me with bringing her the souls of evil-doers. Strange how they seem a tad reluctant to pay for their evil. But there is more to my role than that. For all the evil in the world, there are innocents, and as the gatekeeper to the Underworld, not the Hell that modern religions would suggest, but a place of rest, my Goddess has charged me to bring those for whom a reward for their suffering is due. For them, there is the choice of rest, or rebirth. Most choose rest, and paradise for each is different."

"I was born Gabriel Black, although for the last few centuries, I have been known as Gavril Negrescu. These are our tales of my Mate and my Pack, our sorrows and our triumphs. Perhaps one day, evil will be no more. I am not holding my breath."

“Alpha” is the first volume in “The Diaries of the Cwn Annwn” series and may be read as a stand-alone novel. Gavril and his Mate must lead their Pack throu

A. J. Kohler

4.0 out of 5 stars Obey your Goddess -- but carefully

Reviewed in the United States on September 18, 2019

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Before I began Alpha, I’d never heard of the Cŵn Annwn. Looking at a legend, though, as though it is real life inevitably produces a view entirely different from the impression one gets of a legend.

Alpha, other than a gratuitous (and erroneous) descent into politics and sexual relationships, is a well-paced story of a colony of shifters forced to move several times while caring for the humans and the souls of humans – a superhuman task indeed. It doesn’t wrap up many of the story lines in it, but that just leaves the reader eager for the next book.

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gh an ever changing world. Has mankind evolved enough that they are no longer needed?