As a member of Book of the Month, every month I do my best to research which book will be the best bang for my buck. I usually base this off the description and reviews on the BOTM site. However, this time I decided to take a look at Goodreads instead. And let me tell you, it did not disappoint. Based on the review on the BOTM site, I was only minorly intrigued by the plot, but over on Goodreads Once There Were Wolves has over a 4.3 star rating on Goodreads. This piqued my interest. Anything above four is amazing, with some classically beloved books not even making the cut. So, I decided I would go with Once There Were Wolves, even though Damnation Spring, another BOTM book, sounded equally interesting.
This books rating I think is highly deserved. The book centers in Inti, a woman tasked with reintroducing wolves to the Scottish highlands. Though not a native, Inti grew up in the wild with her twin sister, Aggie, who has come along with her to escape her past. The deep forests of Scotland feel like home to Inti and she has a deep connection to the wolves in her care. When someone dies in what at first glance looks like a wolf attack, Inti feels she must do anything she can to convince the already skeptical highlanders that the wolves are good for the ecosystem and not a danger to humans. Even if that means that she has to prove the man she is starting to fall for might actually be the culprit. This book has everything. A steamy romance. Small community drama. An intriguing mystery. Incredibly built atmosphere. Beyond the actually storyline, the book is an exposition on how to bring our ever-dying world back from the brink of no return. This book made me want to go buy a cabin in the woods and spend the rest of my days wearing cable knit sweaters and living off the land.
I could not put this book down. I read it in almost one sitting, staying up until 4 in the morning to get through it. While I wouldn’t classify it as a fun beach/summer read, as the content is particularly heavy, it reads really quickly and packs a punch. I would highly recommend you pick up this book!
Dinosaurs and Blueberries 