Reviews tagging 'Alcoholism'

Once There Were Wolves by Charlotte McConaghy

22 reviews

alexisgarcia's review

dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

i absolutely loved this. i had no idea what to expect going in and i think that is the best way to read this. the sisters' relationship was amazing, the plot was well-rounded and fulfilled, and the ending was perfect. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Infidelity, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Grief, Abortion, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail

voxvenati's review against another edition

dark mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Really beautiful book about nature and conservation and people. I cried several times during the book, and very much enjoyed the narrator’s reading of the novel. It does start a little slow, but it picks up in the second half. 

Please read through the trigger warnings before starting if you’re at all concerned, though, because there are some really heavy topics involving DV and death.

Even without the underlying murder mystery surrounding things, this book was engaging and really lovely. In fact, Aggie being the murderer might have been the one storyline that I wasn’t the biggest fan of, and didn’t feel 100% earned to me. This is probably the reason it’s not a full 5 star. 

I love how much time is spent in nature, with the wolves, and talking about conservation. The piece about starting small in your own backyard was just so sweet. 

I normally hate timeline switching, but it was so fluid and easy in this book that it didn’t feel off at all. Very natural progression.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Death, Domestic abuse, Rape, Sexual violence, and Violence

Moderate: Alcoholism, Sexual content, Blood, and Alcohol

Minor: Child abuse, Suicide, Abortion, and Death of parent

jextown's review against another edition

3.0

Conflicted. I really liked the writing of this book, the way the story was told and unfolded. I liked that there were interesting and kind of dreamlike sequences, but I also struggled with the trauma, the brutality of that flashback with her sister was too much, I really had to steady myself, disconnect my emotions best I could. I really enjoyed the twins’ father and mother, just thought they were unique characters. It was a little messy all around but I enjoyed that part too. I found everything with the wolves interesting and as controversial as it may be I did like the conclusion to the murder mystery. I didn’t much care for the romantic relationship in the book at all, thought that dude kinda sucked tbh. But I can also appreciate that he was a flawed person, not all bad definitely not all good. I appreciated the bond of sisters but upon reflection I don’t really like the way Aggie was handled, even if I did enjoy the intrigue of wondering what was going on with her throughout the book. Like I said, conflicted. I liked it and didn’t and would be careful of who I recommend this to. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Domestic abuse, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Violence, Death of parent, Murder, and Pregnancy

Moderate: Ableism, Alcoholism, Suicide, and Dementia

This book includes an intense flashback to a horrific and brutal sexual assault which results in one of the primary characters being a mute, shell of a person unable to care for herself for much of this book.

magdalenak02's review against another edition

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Animal death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Infertility, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, and Murder

pollyhall's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

I liked that the main female characters were strong and could take care of themselves. The descriptions of the wolves and the Scottish Highlands were well done. It felt like I was actually observing them.
I could not suspend my disbelief when it came to the Chief of Police because of how he was described.
With all mysteries, you know that there is a twist coming but this one was a total surprise. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Alcoholism, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Gun violence, Infidelity, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Excrement, Vomit, Dementia, Grief, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Murder, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

lizgo's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Mental illness, Rape, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Violence, Pregnancy, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Alcoholism, Animal death, Death, Blood, and Death of parent

anonymous_blobfish's review

challenging dark emotional informative mysterious sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

3.75/5 ⭐️ 

TW: domestic violence, family violence, sexual assault, animal death

This story started slow but inevitably hooked me. We follow Inti and, indirectly, her twin sister Aggie who have moved to Scotland where Inti is working to reintroduce wolves to the wild highlands. Both have suffered immensely up until this point and carry with them heavy baggage that is slowly unpacked as the story progresses.

We meet many interesting characters in the highlands and deal with their mixed emotional responses to the wolf reintroduction. Along the way, a murder mystery unfolds as well as a delicate power struggle between scared locals and a passionate Inti who is determined to convert them to her brand of wilderness rehabilitation.

I was captivated by this book, sometimes uncomfortably so. I don’t think I particularly liked any of the characters, main or secondary (the latter of which were a bit underdeveloped truth be told) and the story felt a bit formulaic at times (in the “ooooh a mystery, bet you can’t guess, wait you guessed, just kidding - you didn’t, or did you” kinda way). I did however enjoy the depth of emotion painted into these characters which simply flowed off the page. I would love to see this have a movie adaption so that there is room for certain characters to be given more flesh and feeling to them.

I definitely think it’s important to note the TWs in this story as they were quite confronting at times (which may have also dulled the shine for me a little) however it’s still well worth a read.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, and Sexual violence

Moderate: Addiction and Alcoholism

avisreadsandreads's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Violence, Blood, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Alcoholism, Gore, Infidelity, Mental illness, Vomit, Medical content, Grief, Stalking, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, and Abandonment

Minor: Drug use, Infertility, Suicide, Dementia, and Abortion

stephblair's review

dark emotional hopeful informative mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Domestic abuse, Rape, and Sexual violence

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Mental illness, and Blood

Minor: Alcoholism and Abortion

thecriticalreader's review

dark emotional mysterious slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I chose Once There Were Wolves as my Book of the Month because it seemed to be highly rated. 

 

Plot:

Part murder mystery, part wildlife conservation story, Once There Were Wolves has an intriguing, well-executed plot. It was interesting to read a murder mystery where one of the potential culprits is an animal. It added a new dimension to the story, as most characters in the story have a vested interested in either proving it was or was not a wolf. 

 

Although the plot was well-executed, it did feel very literary. It had a layer of melodrama that made suspension of disbelief necessary. At no point did I feel I was reading something that had happened or could have happened. 

 

Characters:

Inti, a traumatized wolf expert with an extreme case of mirror touch synthesia is a unique protagonist. We get to understand her and her sister Aggie’s background through multiple flashbacks. 

 

Similar to the plot, the characters are fascinating and complex but slightly unbelievable. They are all a bit too theatrical and extreme. 

 

Setting:

Once There Were Wolves takes place in rural Scotland. The main character, Inti, is a foreigner visiting to help reintroduce wolves to the area. However, their project faces severe backlash from sheep farmers and townspeople in the area. The setting served the book quite well. It added a murky level of conflict to the murder mystery and rewilding effort. The isolated, gloomy atmosphere provided a feeling of dread and suspicion necessary for the mystery to play out. 

 

Themes:

The main theme of this book is trauma—what it is, what it looks like, and how to deal with. The author parallels the trauma of the environment with personal trauma. Inti’s father is a passionate environmentalist who isolates himself and lives off the land. He represents an idealized but extreme reaction to the climate crisis, living a life unattainable and undesirable for many. Inti’s mother is a pessimistic crime investigator who believes in “toughening up.” Ultimately, the story demonstrates that pain cannot be avoided, but that healing is possible if people open themselves up to scary and uncertain new relationships with the environment and each other. 

 

Writing Style:

McConaghy’s writing style was a bit dramatic for my taste, but skillful. 

 

Conclusion:

I thoroughly enjoyed Once There Were Wolves both as a murder mystery and an environmental commentary even if it was a bit dark and overdramatic for my taste. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Chronic illness, Death, Domestic abuse, Mental illness, Rape, Sexual violence, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Violence, Grief, and Pregnancy

Moderate: Infidelity, Blood, Dementia, Death of parent, Murder, and Abandonment

Minor: Alcoholism