A review by voxvenati
Once There Were Wolves by Charlotte McConaghy

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

4.5

Really beautiful book about nature and conservation and people. I cried several times during the book, and very much enjoyed the narrator’s reading of the novel. It does start a little slow, but it picks up in the second half. 

Please read through the trigger warnings before starting if you’re at all concerned, though, because there are some really heavy topics involving DV and death.

Even without the underlying murder mystery surrounding things, this book was engaging and really lovely. In fact, Aggie being the murderer might have been the one storyline that I wasn’t the biggest fan of, and didn’t feel 100% earned to me. This is probably the reason it’s not a full 5 star. 

I love how much time is spent in nature, with the wolves, and talking about conservation. The piece about starting small in your own backyard was just so sweet. 

I normally hate timeline switching, but it was so fluid and easy in this book that it didn’t feel off at all. Very natural progression.
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