Reviews tagging 'Blood'

Once There Were Wolves by Charlotte McConaghy

190 reviews

fkshg8465's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad slow-paced

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

2.0

I expected more, and I find myself thinking about this book even after finishing it, in the wrongest ways...

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Bullying, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Infertility, Infidelity, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, and Abandonment

mbomersheim's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense slow-paced

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

2.5

I think it’s so fitting that I read this book while in Scotland!

Once There Were Wolves by Charlotte McConaghy is a fiction novel following Inti, a team member for a project that aims to rewild Scotland by reintroducing wolves into the Highlands in an area where the locals are not too pleased with their work. The plot starts picking up when a farmer is found dead and Inti gets swept into the drama of the town and protecting the wolves she released. I don’t think I was the intended audience for this book; it just wasn’t for me. The pacing was slow, and I didn’t care for the characters. Maybe it is because I have been reading a lot of fantasy recently, but I just wanted more plot. This being said, I know many people rate this book highly, so maybe I was just missing something. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Blood, Medical trauma, and Pregnancy

Moderate: Sexual content, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Stalking, Death of parent, and Murder

Minor: Abortion

corncake's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• 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, Death, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Toxic relationship, Pregnancy, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Domestic abuse, Drug use, Gore, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Violence, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Child abuse, Confinement, Gun violence, Medical content, and Abandonment

jazzyinthewild's review against another edition

challenging emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Blood, Murder, Pregnancy, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Dementia, Abortion, and Death of parent

danajoy's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character

4.0

This book is brutal. Set in the cold and hostile Scottish Highlands, Inti is a head Wolf biologist reintroducing wolves to the wild. 

I went into this in a calm mental state, capable of handling what it includes but it definitely worth looking at triggers. The protagonist has mirror-touch synesthesia and feels the sensations she witnesses others experience, this makes any violence particularly confronting.
There is a lot of violence. There are animal deaths/injuries, desecration of an animal  corpse, and beyond that, domestic violence is a major theme. 

I appreciated the atmosphere. Inti was an interesting, intense, character. She made a lot of decisions that I never would.  

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Domestic abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Blood, Pregnancy, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Sexual content, Suicide, Vomit, and Death of parent

allyem_reads's review against another edition

2.5

4.04 CAWPILE 

Meh? Not a great start to the year, but I'll deal. I knew this kind of story was out of my comfort zone anyway, so I'm not completely surprised that it just wasn't the book for me. At least I read it and knocked one more book off of my TBR!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Domestic abuse, Gore, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, and Blood

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Death, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Toxic relationship, Violence, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Sexual harassment, Dysphoria, and Injury/Injury detail

entangled_bookshelf's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional informative mysterious sad tense fast-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Toxic relationship, and Blood

Moderate: Death of parent

cody_crumley's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

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

4.5

“There are languages without words and violence is one of them” 

This book feels longer than the actual page count would indicate, and usually that would mean that the story dragged or felt extremely repetitive. Neither of those are the case with “Once There Were Wolves”. It is a book that I think will sit with me months after I finish it, just to ruminate on the message and meaning behind it. 

The 250ish pages of this book cover a lot of ground. You have the present day that is following Inti who is trying to reintroduce wolves into the moorlands of Scotland while fighting against the local population that is completely against the idea. 

What Charlotte McConaghy does that is extremely interesting is goes back and forth through different time periods in Inti’s life, showing how she became this kinda hard nosed, tough women from the gentle, nature loving kid she started out as. 

The first time period is when her and her twin Aggie were younger and being sent off to live with their father (who is a “live off the land” type) by their mother (a cop/detective who handles domestic violence cases). The father has trouble remembering, and has the signs of dementia. Because of this, he ends up striking Aggie, and this is the first time that violence causes Inti to change how she views things. 

I don’t want to spoil all of the key emotional moments in this book, bit the emotional trauma that is on display resonates throughout the whole story. Whether it is family, violence, emotional, or any other type of trauma and abuse, those moments we go through shape our mind and personality as we grow into adults. While we might be higher on the food chain, humans are not that much different from animals. “Once There Were Wolves” does a fantastic job of showcasing that. 

While I wish there were a few more answers or information (like why does their mom not know about Aggie for example). The overall picture and narrative works really well and is accomplishes what it sets out to do: tell an emotional story to showcase how trauma affects who we become. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual violence and Violence

Moderate: Blood

mekrasts's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional sad fast-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: Death and Domestic abuse

Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Child abuse, and Blood

10stormlight's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, and Pregnancy

Moderate: Animal death, Death, Gore, Blood, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Cursing, Infertility, Infidelity, and Mental illness