Reviews tagging 'Grief'

Once There Were Wolves by Charlotte McConaghy

96 reviews

rachelwierick's review

adventurous dark emotional hopeful informative mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• 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 cruelty, Animal death, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Torture, Violence, Blood, Grief, Stalking, Pregnancy, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Drug abuse and Drug use

sirissacgluten's review

challenging dark emotional reflective sad medium-paced

• Loveable characters? It's complicated

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Domestic abuse, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Grief, Murder, and Pregnancy

Moderate: Emotional abuse, Suicide, Blood, Vomit, Medical trauma, Stalking, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Animal cruelty and Alcohol

hyac1nthgirl's review

challenging dark emotional reflective tense medium-paced

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

5.0

i was totally blindsided by this book. I'm literally typing this through tears. a beautifully written story about destruction, violence, trauma, & death, & all the wildly human ways we heal from them. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Death, Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Rape, Suicide, Blood, Grief, and Murder

gondorgirl's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring sad tense slow-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Domestic abuse, and Physical abuse

Moderate: Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Violence, Blood, Grief, Stalking, Murder, and Pregnancy

alinwonderland's review

dark 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? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Death, Mental illness, Sexual violence, Violence, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Domestic abuse, Infidelity, Physical abuse, Suicide, Grief, Death of parent, and Alcohol

Minor: Cursing, Drug use, Blood, and Vomit

alimoo511's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense slow-paced

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

5.0

This is such a deep book. None of these characters are likable and the only man I love in this book is a wolf and he is dead so. 

I highly recommend this book though it has an amazing balance of talk between conservationism and women's struggles. 

Inti is such a complex character and her deep love of nature and Wolves is so relatable, but is so beautifully contrasted with the love she has for her sister and her resentment towards society and men. 

Because of her character she is forced to be so empathetic and yet she wants to be anything but. She wishes she could do all these things, but for better or for worse she can't. Her heart belonging to the forest in connection to her neurodivergency is also SO GOOD. 

Honestly Read this now if you haven't it is remarkable. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Infertility, Infidelity, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Police brutality, Medical content, Dementia, Grief, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail

ronan_lesh's review

challenging emotional mysterious sad tense medium-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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, Dementia, Grief, Medical trauma, and Murder

Moderate: Rape, Sexual assault, Violence, and Death of parent

nehashtyle's review

dark informative inspiring tense medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

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

Moderate: Misogyny, Grief, Death of parent, and Pregnancy

hmatt's review against another edition

dark mysterious fast-paced

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

4.0

Definitely a book that is suitable to its shorter length. I think some of the storytelling would fall short if the narrative was longer, but it worked in this length for me for the most part. It really suited the fairytale-esque vibes the book has.

I do wish the author had played a bit more into "real or imagined" moments - they're touched on, but I thought these moments were really powerful and I wish there was a bit more focus on them. Also, throughout the story, I didn't feel as if I were getting any closer to the main character. I figure this could be intentional or not and, again, is an aspect that works fine for a book of this length in my opinion.

I listened to the audiobook, and found the narration fantastic. It might have been easier for me to keep track of which wolves were which if I were physically reading the book, though.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Death, Domestic abuse, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Pregnancy, and Gaslighting

Moderate: Gun violence, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, and Alcohol

Minor: Suicide

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