Archive for the ‘Charlotte McConaghy’ Tag
As in her subsequent novel, Wild Dark Shore (reviewed here earlier this year) , Charlotte McConaghy integrates climate change and intrigue but this time it’s Once there Were Wolves. Both works also include challenging romantic relationships.
Inte Flynn, a biologist, is part of a group charged with reintroducing 14 wolves to the Scottish Highlands. The locals are not happy with the possibility of their livestock becoming prey and have little interest in hearing what value the wolves have for the environment. This leads to distrust between the scientists and residents.
It’s not long before a man is murdered, which many attribute to the wolves. Inte has her doubts. While she works to disprove the townspeople’s fears she becomes romantically involved with the local police chief. Both are mysterious about their pasts.
Inte has brought her twin sister, Aggie, with her to Scotland and their past slowly unfolds, with the novel’s main focus remaining on the town’s reaction to the wolves and the murder. There’s heartache in each element of the narrative, particularly involving Aggie.
McConaghy’s pacing, the alternating chapters of past and present events make this an engaging work. It’s a tense, beautiful and haunting story about different types of relationships, the environment and what it means to trust. The landscape is sorrowful and richly described. This is historical fiction with the potential to serve as a wake-up call regarding our environment.
Once There Were Wolves
Four bookmarks
Flatiron Books, 2021
256 pages
Grief, isolation, broken relationships and climate change are beautifully and tragically addressed in Wild Dark Shore by Charlotte McConaghy.
Dominick Salt and his three children are the caretakers and lone residents of Shearwater Island, near Antarctica. They’re organizing and packing the contents of a seed bank awaiting a ship to return them to the mainland. Rising tides, harsher weather conditions and the island’s isolation make it uninhabitable or a viable environment for continued study. Shearwater is a critical element of the story.
When a barely-alive woman washes ashore during a severe storm there’s an immediate sense of foreboding. Rowan’s reasons for traveling to Shearwater are suspect given Shearwater’s remoteness; when she reveals that she’s looking for her husband who had been in charge of the seed bank, the Salts’ reticence makes her suspicious.
As Rowan’s wounds heal she gets to know each of the children, while remaining mistrustful of Dom. The five characters are richly portrayed, each nearly eclipsed by grief and none able to communicate their feelings.
McConaughy’s writing maintains a palpable sense of tension throughout the narrative. It’s nerve-wracking and impressively captivating with numerous unanswered questions: what happened to the other members of the research team; how will the Salts adjust from their extremely secluded life; can their brokenness be mended; and more.
First person voice tells Rowan and Dom’s side of the story, while third person voice is used for the children. Short chapters further heighten a sense of dread, but also offer occasional glimmers of hope.
Wild Dark Shore
Five Bookmarks
Flatiron Books, 2025
302 pages, includes acknowledgements
