Once There Were Wolves

Historical fiction is my go-to, but I try something different every once in a while. This was one of the few that did not disappoint! I love wolves and love Scotland. This had a solid plot line, a little romance, and a little mystery. I usually avoid mystery novels because I find them confusing, hard to follow, and full of holes in the plot line. But this author did a nice job not getting totally absorbed in the mystery and remembering to tell a full and complete story. And it had a solid ending to boot! Happy to add it to my book shelf!

I read quite a few mixed reviews before I decided to add this book to my kindle library. I’m so glad I didn’t listen to the negatives.There is a lot of controversy around topics of grey wolves and climate change in the real world, so it would be possible to see this story as an agenda I suppose. But, if you read it just for the pleasure of getting lost in a story filled with interesting and well developed characters, a fascinating landscape, a page-turning plot…then I don’t think you would be disappointed. There were parts I thought the writing was beautiful.The twist is fairly obvious if you’re paying attention, but it was still clever, and figuring it out didn’t make the story less intriguing.I really enjoyed this book. I would read it again in the future, and I would recommend it to other readers, which are my requirements for 4 and 5 star reviews.**mild spoiler alert/trigger warning**There is a rape. It’s brutal, however, it’s not very detailed- as in the description is not very graphic.

I loved this book. It was so emotional, filled with aching and beauty all through it. From the very first this book got me. I couldn't put it down and yet it was so aching and that it was also hard to pick up. This author so beautifully writes the story in a way the story and these characters, especially In it's that you feel what she feels. You are feeling everything she feels, you experience everything she does. The pain of this world and life and of brokenness. You feel the pain and inhumanity we cause each other and to our world...nature and the creatures who share our planet. She beautifully lets us into the nature of the wolves comparing their world to ours as the story unfolds. You are left loving these creatures as much as she does and as aching and emotional this story is you are left feeling ultimately love and hope. I will read anything this author writes. She is masterful.

“The forest has a beating heart we can’t see. It’s here, beneath us. This is how the trees speak with and care for each other. Their roots tangle together, dozens of trees with dozens more in a web that reaches on forever, and they whisper to each other through their roots. They warn of danger and they share sustenance. They’re like us, a family. Stronger together. Nothing gets through this life alone.”Meet Inti Flynn and her twin sister Aggie (inseparable from birth). They grew up in a split home, spending time with their nature loving dad in British Columbia and the rest of their time with their detective mum in Sydney, Australia (talk about two different worlds). Fast forward to present day, and Inti is a part of a team of biologists that have come to Scotland with a mission to reintroduce 14 wolves into the wild in order to help the ecosystem restore to its natural state.However, the people are not welcoming to say the least. At town meetings they express fear for the safety of their families, livestock, and themselves. Soon enough, a farmer ends of dead. Are the wolves responsible or was it murder?The writing in this book is absolutely BEAUTIFUL, the type that you want to savor. It brings more light to the significant work that conservationists do, especially in this day and age. I was nostalgic reading the descriptions Charlotte McConaghy portrays that are so vivid. Her words brought me back to thoughts of when I was child, running around barefoot through the woods near my home (minus the wolves), ending up with poison ivy in-between my toes and coming home covered with mud from head to toe, with either a jar full of fireflies or a can full of crawfish. I was the kid holding up “Save the Whales” signs or “Hug A Tree”. So, yeah….CALLING ALL NATURE LOVERS!!!! You are going to LOVE this book.As if that wasn’t enough, you also get a murder mystery mixed in. That worked well for me because I love nature and I love mysteries. GENIUS Ms. McConaghy. I loved the fact that both of these were intertwined. Also, I learned something new…whoop, whoop. I had never heard of mirror-touch synesthesia which Inti has. It is a condition that causes a person to feel a sensation of touch when they see someone else being touched…WHAT? So interesting! Inti mirrors just about any sensation throughout the book.However, do proceed with caution. Trigger warnings for this book include domestic violence, and rape. Inti and Aggie’s past is traumatic from things that they have endured. It is fitting in a way that Inti is trying to help save Scotland’s ecosystem, but she is also trying to save her and Aggie’s lives from their past. It is a reminder of how our choices can be detrimental or how they can be beneficial and how we should not get in the way of the circle of life.Magnificent, beautiful, exquisite!!!!

This is not to post a review of the book, which I actually liked quite well and it arrived in good condition & very timely. My complaint is about the packaging it was sent in. The package was basically a very tight form-fit cardboard of some sort. The only way to open the package was to cut it open with a scissors. The only viable cut had to be so close to the form fit with the book itself that in cutting it, I cut the entire front cover of the book. Not good! No reason to go to those packaging extremes!

Really enjoyed

This is a thorouhly gripping tale about rewilding the Cairngorms by reintroducing wolves. The locals are hostile to the idea fearing for their sheep and children. Inti, the wolf girl, is in charge of the project, she feels a special empathy for all living creatures she sees as she has a medical condition (mirror touch synthesia) if she sees an animal or human hurt she feels pain herself.The book is part ecological thriller, part whodunnit, part wildlife adventure. It should come with trigger warnings for domestic abuse and violence against animals. The writing is beautiful, dark and spellbinding.

This is a story more than worth reading. It's a wake up call to care for our environment and the creatures in it. The author's writing style is easy and accessible.

These days I only write a review when I feel a book is exceptional. Ths book IS exceptional, compelling writing, wolves (love wolves), how re-introducing apex predators that should be there benefits the whole eco system, but also domestic violence and it's effects, love in different forms, and choices - we all have a choice how we respond to things. At the same really gripping thriller story that keeps you reading to find out what happens. Just read it,

I read this book as a recommendation from a friend. It is in the top 10 best books I've read in 2023. The story is beautiful and touching. There is a good description of the forest - nature atmosphere. In my opinion is really well written and It caught me since page 1.

I can't begin to express how much I loved this book, if possible, even more than the author's new book, "Migrations". Extremely well-written and full of surprises. Couldn't put it down!

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and felt very connected to the main character. I went straight out and bought her other book which was also brilliant. Highly recommend.

Truly a book I didn't want to put down. The story was intriguing although sometimes it felt a little disconnected and distant from the actual story but perhaps that was the way the main female protagonist was meant to be. I have not read any of Charlotte McConaghy's previous books but this one was overall good and engaging. I desperately wanted to know how the protagonist was going to navigate the conflicts and I found her ability to feel what others felt intriguing.