Reviews tagging 'Grief'

Once There Were Wolves by Charlotte McConaghy

95 reviews

danidamico's review

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

4.0

"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".

Once There Were Wolves es una novela hermosa. Últimamente estoy muy interesada en libros que tengan que ver con animales, un aspecto que en este caso no solo aparece, sino que lo hace de una manera tremenda y conmovedora. La novela cuenta la historia de Inti y Aggie, dos hermanas gemelas que pasaron gran parte de su infancia y adolescencia siendo criadas en un bosque junto a su padre. Ambas sienten una gran conexión con el mundo natural, pero Inti especialmente, dedicándose a estudiar el comportamiento de los lobos. El libro comienza cuando la protagonista viaja a Escocia junto a un equipo de especialistas para llevar a cabo su proyecto de devolver la población de lobos a las Highlands de Escocia, cientos de años después de haber sido masacrados por los humanos. A lo largo del relato vamos presenciando las tensiones que se generan con los locales de la región, sobre todo cuando comienzan a aparecer animales asesinados, y también a su vez descubrimos los profundos traumas del pasado de las hermanas.

"I pressed my cheek to one of the tender, elegant trunks. Wind whispered through it's naked branches and against my eyelids, my lips. A kiss. I could almost feel its heartbeat beneath and around and above me, the oldest language of all".

La escritura de Charlotte McConaghy es bella, evocativa y accesible. Utiliza los recursos justos y necesarios para describir el paisaje escocés y su atmósfera sin perder la tensión ni el ritmo del relato. Me encantó el modo en el que retrata el vínculo que Inti mantiene con la naturaleza y los animales, captura muy bien la complejidad de las emociones. De hecho, es una novela con personajes complejos que habitan zonas de grises y no siempre logran ser "buenas personas", sea lo que sea eso. Fue una lectura muy compulsiva, cada vez que terminaba un capítulo quería saber qué ocurriría en el siguiente. 

Ahora, podría haber sido una lectura de 5 estrellas para mí, pero hay un par de cositas que no me terminaron de convencer. Primero y principal, todo el tema de la sinestesia que experimenta Inti me pareció algo innecesario. La protagonista tiene un tipo de sinestesia que le permite sentir lo que ve, es decir, cuando ve que golpean a una persona puede sentir el golpe en su propio cuerpo. A simple vista resulta un recurso interesante, pero sinceramente creo que está historia podría haber sido literalmente la misma sin este detalle. No termino de entender qué le aporta al libro más que un dato curioso que puede atraer a un potencial lector. Para decirlo de manera vulgar: me pareció al pedo. Esa es mi razón principal para no darle 5 estrellas. Otra razón, aunque en menor medida, es que yo no soy muy fan de los plot twists entonces algunas cosas que suceden al final me parecieron un poco rebuscadas, hubiera preferido más simpleza. Sin embargo, más allá de estos detalles, disfrute muchísimo de esta novela casi perfecta, que tiene las dosis justas de oscuridad, belleza y emoción. Definitivamente quiero leer la otra novela de la autora.

"I dream again, but this time not of monsters. I dream of wolves. Of running with them into the shadow of the mountain".

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alexisgarcia's review

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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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carolinefran's review

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adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense fast-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

4.5


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maccamac's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional mysterious medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25


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jjreads331's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional hopeful 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

3.75


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noveltay's review

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

4.75

The literal ONLY reason this isn’t getting 5 stars, is because I think the vocabulary of Scottish people was not used correctly. Lots of research into wolves, climate change, etc just to have slang from locals botched up.

That being said, the rest of this book was phenomenal. I read Migrations by this author first, and both live up to the “hype”. I like how she uses flashbacks in her stories to keep a mystery.

I caught on to the twist early on, but it has nothing to do with the writing. I think the writing actually had me second guessing my thoughts on multiple occasions.

If you are planning on reading this, check content warnings prior!

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manonh90's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional informative mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0


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jes_imagine's review

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adventurous dark informative mysterious sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0


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lindsayerin's review

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dark mysterious tense fast-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

4.25


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archaicrobin's review

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adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful mysterious reflective sad tense fast-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

5.0

Inti loves her wolves and her sister and not much else until she begins a project in the Scottish Highlands to re-forest the area by introducing wolves. Two stories are going at once as Inti alternates between the present time, dealing with angry locals and the past about her sister’s abusive husband and the terror he caused them both. 

This was beautifully written and powerful. I loved this one, even when I had to put it down because it can be a lot.

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