Reviews

Once There Were Wolves by Charlotte McConaghy

gillimax's review

4.0

It’s going to take me some time to process this book. It was beautifully written, but haunting and thought-provoking. I felt cold the entire time I read it- could never get warm. The relationships- people, wolves, land, country. It’s heavy, but worth the read.

alexmorton's review against another edition

adventurous emotional hopeful mysterious 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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault

Moderate: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Murder, Pregnancy, and Injury/Injury detail

emmyremy's review

dark emotional mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

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

4.25

Jesus Christ. Read this whole book in 3 hours and it made me cry.



This story was far more than I expected. McConaghy crafts characters you can't help but feel for, despite them being heavy and distant, and they reel you into a story that's way more branched out. Would definitely recommend reading her work.

scrk2006's review

4.0

3.5-4

danita's review against another edition

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

4.25

krob1020's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad tense slow-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

3.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal cruelty and Animal death

ginkgo_reads's review

3.0

3.5/5 stars -- An atmospheric, dark introspective tale of conservation, survival, and love. Inti Flynn is head of a rewilding effort to bring wolves back to Scotland and she has to learn how to navigate the backlash from the locals about the project.

I really liked the writing in this and the message of conservation. The characters were multilayered and gritty even though it’s a relatively short read. As an experience, this book felt like walking lost in the woods through a dense fog but you’re still hopeful that all will be okay because the forest will take care of you... This book is hard to describe but it’s raw and thought provoking for sure. It deals with a lot of themes and I would suggest checking the trigger warnings if you pick it up!

kaitcetera's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful informative reflective sad 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

4.75

vanmeter's review against another edition

5.0

4.5 stars

doramary's review

3.0

Interesting blend of environmental literature with suspense! Not sure the suspense part was required - the description of nature and the wolves' perspective was terrific on its own merit.