Title: Once There Were Wolves
Author: Charlotte McConaghy
Genre: Fiction/ Mystery
Published: 2021
Description: Inti Flynn arrives in the Scottish Highlands with
fourteen grey wolves, a traumatized sister and fierce tenacity.
As a biologist, she knows the animals are the best hope for rewilding
the ruined landscapes and she cares little for local opposition. As a sister,
she hopes the remote project will offer her twin, Aggie, a chance to heal after
the horrific events that drive them both out of Alaska.
But violence dogs their footsteps and one night Inti stumbles over the
body of a farmer. Unable to accept that her wolves could be responsible, she
makes a reckless decision to protect them. But if the wolves didn’t make the kill,
then who did? And can she trust the man she is beginning to love when he
becomes the main suspect?
Review: Australian biologist Inti Flynn and her twin sister Aggie travel to the
Scottish Highlands as projects leaders of an international environmental
project to rewild landscapes by introducing specially bred wolves, in order to
rebuild a healthy ecosystem and save the devastated Highlands. The local populations,
who live off agriculture and livestock farming, are not all that happy about
the reintroduction of 14 wolves and are putting up fierce resistance. But it’s
not only the wolves who have build a new life. Inti must also change and create
a new life for herself. Due to her upbringing, broken childhood, and events
involving her sister Aggie, Inti has lost her trust in people and has become
withdrawn and closed off. As she observes the wolves and follow their actions
to claim a place in the world, she slowly but surely notices that her high walls
are beginning to crumble. And she becomes even more involved with the local
community when one of the farmers is murdered and Inti, fearing that her wolves
will be blamed, makes a far-reaching decision.
Charlotte McConaghy has written a very complex book with “Once There
Were Wolves”. It is not just a story about an environmental project and nature
conservation, a psychological novel about a troubled woman, or a murder
mystery. Not is it just a love story. It is a combination of all these things.
And it makes the story so fascinating. The story grabs you and doesn’t let go.
McConaghy has a clear, vivid, and lively writing style, with strong
characters and interesting, in-depth storylines that slowly but surely
intertwine and come together to form a strong plot. It never becomes sentimental
or vague, despite the depth and emotion that come to surface. “Once There Were
Wolves” remains mysterious, captivating and exciting. An absolute must-read and
a new all-time favorite for me.
Rating: 5/ 5
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