Breakaway Books

Authored by Charlotte McConaghy; Published 2021; Thriller

⭐️⭐️⭐️ / 🏖️🏖️

Do wolves scare you? Or do you think they’ve been demonized for being what nature made them to be? You might think that Once There Were Wolves is about this question, but it’s just as much about humanity’s issues.

Once There Were Wolves follows Inti, a conservationist, and her twin sister Aggie, as Inti spearheads an initiative to re-introduce wolves into Scotland and restore the ecosystem. The people of Scotland are not fans of the initiative, and following the disappearance of a farmer, Inti and her wolves fall under suspicion for his (as yet undiscovered) murder. The social conflict that rages in this novel was tough to read, because it rang a little too true to what my country is experiencing now: heated debate over political issues that transforms into life and death struggle, tearing a community apart. 

Inti’s love for wolves comes through with passion in this novel, and it taught me a thing or two about the importance of predators to an ecosystem. In the suite of environmental thrillers I’ve read, this one stood out for its clear picture of the controversies environmentalism can cause. It was easy to understand just why the wolves weren’t welcome, and equally easy to understand why they had to be in Scotland. I hope that in the real world, it wouldn’t take a murder to get to reconciliation and dialogue between the two sides, but I appreciate the note of hope the novel ends with all the same.

The novel certainly had some disquieting elements that lent it an eery air: the twins’ father, who walks off into the forest never to be seen again; the maniacally abusive ex-husband for Aggie; even the inexplicable (but a little creepy) bond between Inti and her twin. All of it contributed to a sort of unease when reading the novel. Inti, a complex heroine, rubbed me the wrong way with her aggression and lack of regard for her eventual pregnancy—but her personality is clearly the product of much trauma, adding to the dark tones of the novel.

Once There Were Wolves is a novel I would read only in the daylight, particularly if you fear wolves howling into the night.