The narrator of this audiobook was perfectly sufficient but not especially noteworthy.

I enjoyed the plot, but struggled with the characters. One of the major themes in this story is that we are all the protagonist in our adventures, but we also exist in the world together. This is an incredibly valuable lesson for everyone to learn and relearn. As an educator, I especially value books that reinforce this theme. As a reader, I respect the author's attempts, but cringed at some of the dialogue to this effect. Much of it felt oddly wooden and unnatural. I also cynically question the breakthroughs this family makes independently and together.

Part of me appreciates the author's note at the end, but the rest of me was simply not prepared for it. The ending of this book was a little odd and the author's note hammered it in. Maybe it is because there were so many deep, heavy topics covered that adding another one seemingly out of no where and then ending on it was just difficult for me as a reader/listener.

Overall, this was not a bad book. It has solid, well-developed themes and ideas. The author clearly had strong messages throughout. Unfortunately, these are all marred by awful dialogue and character/relationship development.

I really enjoyed this book, although at times I felt the dialogue between characters was a little far-fetched. I felt like the main character bounced from extreme maturity to somewhat ditzy. Perhaps being a young girl dealing with the death of her brother & soul mate would cause this type of behavior though. I enjoyed the subtle sprinkle of Inuit culture and beliefs spread throughout the book. I would put this book in the YA mystery category. I believe that teens could truly benefit from reading it as there are some deep lessons routed throughout.

A fifteen-year-old girl, Bean, has recently lost her beloved older brother Sam, a teenager who was outdoorsy, sensitive, and felt really connected to the Inuit's philosophy. He apparently committed suicide, but it is hard for her to accept that because he seemed to love life. Also, the idea of not knowing him that well hunts her. According to the summary in Goodreads and NetGalley, this is a "twisting novel" that combines spirituality and mystery since Bean and her best friend Julie try to discover what really happened to Sam. However, I would say this book tells the story of how Bean and her family dealt with Sam's death.

The narration: I did not enjoy the story and the narration was not my favorite either. Actually, the only reason why I finished it was that I listen to audiobooks while I am working on my cross-stitch, and this activity made the experience a little better. I found the narrator's voice annoying (maybe because of the main character, I am not sure) and I hated the robot voice she made every time she said "Julie says" or similar phrases during dialogues. But, the pace, speed, and intonation were good, and the narration was not confusing at all.

What I liked: I think that the strongest element of this book is the way each member of Sam's family dealt with his death and how this horrible loss transformed their family relationships. I liked the characters' development and how grief is explored from different perspectives. If the author had focused more on this part of the story, I believe the book could have been a lot better. Also, I appreciate that the author wrote this book to raise awareness about a certain issue that can be dangerous but is not usually acknowledged.

What I did not like: I found Bean really hard to like, especially for the main character. I get that she was a teenager, but she was entitled, annoying, and selfish. For example, when she called Skip's mom asking for him and this woman explained to her that her son was having a really hard time after his best friend died, Bean literally yelled at her saying "but what about me?". Her inner dialogue was sarcastic even when she was explaining that her brother died the night before, which was disturbing for me. I understand that characters have flaws that make them more human, but the other characters were always praising her about how selfless, spiritual, mature, and special she was, which confused me a lot because apparently, the author intended to create a better character than the one I got as a reader. Also, some parts of the book were very long and slow, like the introduction of the story or that conversation between Bean and Julie in which Bean changed her mind around seven times about whether or not they could be best friends again. However, the biggest disappointment for me as an anthropologist was the superficial way indigenous spirituality was presented, especially because this was a white family that read a couple of books about Inuits and magic and that was it. I mean, everyone can (and should) learn about other cultures' philosophies, but these beliefs could have been treated with more respect by acknowledging their complexities.

(I want to thank NetGalley, Greenleaf Book Group Press, and the author for this ARC, which I received in exchange for an honest review.)

This book follows the apparent suicide of Bean's older brother (Sam) and how the whole family grieves, processes and comes to terms with his death.

This book delves into love and loss, promises tragedy and heartwarming moments...but most of all...I felt annoyed.

And I felt annoyed that I felt annoyed.

It's not that it's a terrible book...but this is definitely one of those books where I'm mildly peeved throughout and by the end of it, I'm left holding the book and going, "That's it? That's really how it all went down? Seriously??"

Ultimately there are a few things that really pulled me out of the book and affected my rating.

~~Bean's Attitude~~

Bean is a typical me-teenager (the kind which interprets the world as how it relates to them)...which in and of itself wasn't too bad...but after a while it really grated on me.

Her mom is numb from grief? LIFE FREAKING SUCKS CAUSE MOM IS TOO WEAK TO MAKE BREAKFAST. MOM USED TO BE STRONG BUT NOW SHE DOESN'T DO THE LAUNDRY.

Her dad asks her to help with chores? LET ME COMPLAIN BUT NEVER CONFRONT THE ISSUE SO THERE'S A RESOLUTION. STUPID LAUNDRY. IF ONLY MOM WASN'T SO PATHETIC.

And so on. Bean just constantly dumped on her mom for not cooking, cleaning and caring for their family.

I get that it would be nice for the mom to snap right out of things and whip up a four-course meal and bleach the socks biweekly...but Bean is fifteen, has an older brother still living at home plus her dad.

~~Bean and Sam's appreciation-appropriation?~~

Maybe it's just me, but I did feel like there should have been more sensitivity readers for this one.

Throughout this book there's a running theme of Inuit people and how Sam was obsessed with their culture...which in and of itself isn't the worst I read.

It kinda hit like when kids are first getting into anime and Japanese culture - where it's all they talk about and they start adopting all these customs that are pretty out there (compared to their suburban lifestyle).

For example, the book mentioned the mom wanting a totem pole for the family to honor Sam's death and that he wanted a natural burial just like the Inuit - both of those were just kinda mentioned and dropped.

They weren't followed through nor were they really discussed. Which made me wonder why they were brought up at all.

After the car crash that killed a deer, Sam just bursts into the house with a knife wound down his chest (apparently Inuit culture demands a self-inflicted blood wound if you kill an animal?) and his family just shrugs it off?

Like what family looks at their kid and go, "Yup. Two foot knife wound. He's stumbling through the living room. Wow. He just loves the Inuit culture." and lets him carry on?

Why in the world wasn't there any concern for this kid's mental well-being when he first began cutting himself when he went fishing (and killed the fish)?

~~ The Actual Cause of Death ~~

So, we eventually find out that the actual cause of death was auto-erotic asphyxiation.

And then the book ends.

Ok, not totally.

There's some poetic at the end about appreciating life and how he had already lived his life to the fullest and how he would always be watching over them. And the author mentions that it is a dangerous process and places like youtube are making it seem more and more popular but to not ever try it cause it looks like a suicide when you die.

But that's it.

It left me feeling disappointed with the book.

I was really expecting the grand reveal to be...well...a bit more impactful? To have some sort of negative reaction from the family.

Maybe I'm just jaded but I have a hard time believing not one of the the family members goes, "What the f*ck? He just wanted to get high?"

I can't imagine Bean not reeling back and questioning everything she's ever known. To have that perfect mental image of her brother absolutely shattered because he killed himself to get a high.

But nope. She's just so happy and grateful that it wasn't a suicide. And she kept emphasizing that he had already achieved his life and he'll forever be watching over her.

I was holding the book and just kinda going...oh. So that's it. He liked to get high and went too far. Got it.

With the way it's written, it just feels so much less gut-wrenching than it could have been. It flatlined for me opposed to that emotional plunge I was expecting.

Overall, there were elements that worked but it didn't for me.

Winter of The Wolf is aimed at teen readers/listeners, but even as an adult who hasn’t been a teen for decades, I was pulled right into the story. The book kept my interest for most of the way, but as the story got more and more improbable, my interest waned. The main character is a 15-year-old girl, Bean, whose 17-year-old brother Sam has apparently committed suicide. The impact of this event is huge for the family (parents and two additional older brothers), but seems to have particularly affected Bean, as she and Sam were very close. She’s not convinced that Sam committed suicide and part of the book covers her efforts to reconnect with Sam’s spirit and to uncover what really happened.

I appreciate the author trying to illuminate a disturbing and dangerous thing that affects some young people and that affected someone dear to her, but the “solution” to the mystery just came out of nowhere. (No spoilers so I can’t say more.)

I won the ebook via a Goodreads giveaway and then I saw the audiobook was available on NetGalley, so I wound up listening to the audiobook instead. The narrator, Kelly Pruner, did a fine job vocalizing Bean as well as the other people in the story. Thank you to NetGalley, Goodreads and Greenleaf Book Group for the opportunity to read and listen to this story.

I received this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. The writing was good, and was a quick easy read. But ultimately it was a misleading book. This was ultimately about a white boy who appropriates the Inuit culture. There wasn’t any actual Inuit people in the book. Just white people stealing parts of their culture that interests them. It also comes off as a mystery who done it book, but the ending calls flat. Ultimately the ending left me wanting to throw my book for waisted so much time on an ending that didn’t pay off.

This is the story of a young girl by the name of Bean who is trying to deal with the loss of her brother. Sam is gone and Bean can't believe he would do what everyone is saying. She decides along with her best friend Julie to look more into his death. This book has a few trigger warnings so be prepared but it also deals with issues out there that need to be talked about and discussed with our young people. I learned so much while reading this book and would like to thank the author for bringing these issues out in the form of this story.

I just could not get past the main character's awful personality and had to quit 35% in. "Bean" used depression as an excuse to be an awful person, but then got mad at her mother for having depression and not being Bean's personal slave. Also the mother said she stopped taking her antidepressants because she "didn't fell like she needed them" and this attitude may change latter on in the book but I'm not here for people not taking literal neuronal death seriously because they don't want the medication to "change them" when that is the point of literally any medication whether it be for the brain, pancreas, heart, everything.
I read some reviews that discussed the ending and I'm not interested in finishing.

I was pleasently surprised at how good this book was!!! So thank you very much to netgalley for supplying us with a copy of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review!

This book dealt with grief in the most truest of ways. The story was about a young woman (Bean) who is processing the reported suicide of her brother (Sam). However, she is determined, through grief, to prove that her brother wasn't one to die by suicide and that there had to be more to the story of his death. With the help of her best friend, they uncover the sad truth behind her brother's death.

Things I loved about this book:
1. I loved how the wolf that Bean would see represented the spirit of her brother. It was so beautifully done and I actually learned a lot of the amazing animal that is The Wolf!
2. I also loved how the ending of this book turned out to be one really well done PSA about the dangers of a cause of death that many people SHOULD know about--especially parents with sexually active teens who hear and see things online that they don't understand the dangers of. I don't want to notate here what the cause of death was because that would ruin the book, but just know, it's so honest and real, and the author does such a great job with providing enough information about this cause of death, and still blending it in with making the story effective, but satisfying (in terms of storytelling).
3. As someone who recently lost a sibling, the way Bean experiences grief is legit. I felt like I was able to relate to Bean SO MUCH because of what she was going through, thinking, doing, and even saying. The way her friendship with her best friend was affected was so right on and the fact that the two of them worked it out in order to investigate Sam's death together was so inspirational. Grief is a mental state of mind and it affects not only the person who lost someone, but also everyone around them. Some people don't know how to help their grieving friend and that's okay. It's just so important to KEEP TRYING as much as you can, which is what Bean's best friend did. I loved it!
4. I also really just enjoyed the writing style of this novel and the narrator for the audiobook was PERFECT! Love the narration!

Reasons I didn't give it a complete 5 star--I found the story to take a little longer than I'd like to get to the main point. I felt like there were a lot of repetive moments and thoughts coming from Bean. There was a moment I was like, "okay, Bean, we get it. You don't think Sam killed himself intentionally. Let's figure it out and stop talking about it!"

Overall, I think you NEED to try this book, especially the audiobook. I think you'll be pleasently surprised as well!

Heartbreaking but full of hope. Haunting yet beautiful, this is the story of Bean and her family's journey to heal from the unthinkable.

The narrator does one of the best jobs I have heard in a long while of giving each character their own voice and cadence.

A lovely emotional listen.

This is both a heartbreaking and beautiful book all in one go.

Bean is a 15-year-old bright and intelligent girl whose life is completely turned upside down when her brother Sam suddenly commits suicide.

Her life and that of her family are completely broken apart, but for Bean it’s more than just coping with the loss of her brother, who died too young, too soon and in a way that she cannot comprehend.

She refuses to accept that Sam, who was so in love with life, with nature and such a spiritual teenager, with strong Innuit beliefs, would just suddenly take his own life.

So, she begins a quest for answers.
Because there has to be a justifiable reason for what happened, right? Did he really kill himself? Was someone else responsible?

And being a boy with strong Innuit beliefs, is he now coming back to show signs to Bean through spirit animals, such as a wolf that she keeps seeing in broad daylight? Is he really gone or just re-incarnated in his spirit animal?

Bean needs answers, and she will not rest until she gets them… no matter the cost and no matter how much finding out the truth may hurt.

I won’t go into spoiler details of what actually happened and the path that this search for answers led Bean on, but I will say that this was a sad but also heartwarming story, because it’s also about finding peace with things that we have no control over and learning to move on without ever forgetting those that we lose.


This book became even more heartbreaking due to the fact that this was based on the real story of the author’s best friend losing her son in the exact same way as Sam dies in this book.

It’s not a happy book, but it was beautifully written and I do recommend both young readers and adults read it, and to pay very close attention to the ending and explanation of what happened, because so many more deaths can be prevented if people just pay a little bit more attention to these situations.


I think this book will stay with me for a very long time and I will likely re-read it from time to time, as I do believe you can learn something from it with each re-read and paying attention to certain details you may miss on a first read.

** TRIGGER WARNINGS: Suicide, Grief/Loss of a Loved One


#WinteroftheWolf #NetGalley

Thank you to NetGalley, Greenleaf Audiobooks and, of course, the author Martha Hunt Handler for allowing me to listen to this story and experience.

TRIGGER WARNINGS: suicide, death of a loved one, death of an animal.

One of my goals for 2020 was to make my TBR more diverse. I began to realise how important it is to give the minorities more media representation and to normalise their existence. This book was a great pick, and I will tell you why.

As I wanted to start a new sewing project, I was looking for a short, yet compelling audiobook that can keep my mind occupied while my hands were working. Winter of the Wolf did just that. The audiobook had only six and a half hours, and it made me realise how important it is to try to seek the truth, even if it might seem as if it has to stay buried.

One of the best things about this book was the main character, Bean. Right from the very first page, you meet her, and you connect with her. She is devastated because of her brother's death, and she wants to find the answers that can lead her to the cause of his death. Everybody thinks Sam committed suicide, but Bean is sure he didn't. She knows him too well to believe that he did such a thing. The story is all about her and how she is searching for answers while learning about the Inuit culture.

FULL REVIEW ON MY BLOG: https://dailydooseofbooks.wordpress.com

In a day where people are more wary of the Planet and the danger the Human Race is to it, it’s always interesting to discover new cultures. The mystery is kept really well and the many twists keep you wanting to know what happened to the brother. Sad but realistic, this is a good story where they all find their way back to each other.

Despite swimming in grief, Bean is trying to solve the mystery behind her brother's suicide. It was completely out of character for him, and Bean is convinced he could not have taken his own life because of his Inuit beliefs. She also sees a lone wolf for months. Could this be her beloved brother?

I have received this ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Winter of the Wolf was an okay book. It will take you on an emotional ride and you will definitely learn some interesting things alone the way. In it, you will meet Bean and you will also find out that her brother Sam has died. No one knows what exactly happened but all signs lead to suicide at the moment. Of course, Bean doesn't think that's the truth and she is very determined to find out what really happened to her brother.

I will admit, learning about Sam along the way was pretty interesting. He was into a lot of things and hearing about how his family and friends could potentially feel or see his presence in an animal. It also made me pretty happy that they were talking about making him a totem pole just to honor him.

Then I got to the ending, and honestly - wow. I didn't know that whatever he was doing was a real thing. I'm also shocked with how many people have died doing this as well. I wasn't expecting this kind of ending at all but I am happy that they found out the truth.

Winter of the Wolf by Martha Hunt Handler and narrated by Kelly Pruner is a unique book.

Bean’s brother, Sam dies. Everyone believes it is suicide except Bean who tries to find out what actually happened. Sam was very interesting in Inuit culture, and I enjoyed learning a little about Inuit culture.

Winter of the Wolf is a very emotional and tragic story. I enjoyed hearing about Bean interacting with her family and friends and how that changes throughout the book. Bean makes a lot of assumptions about others relationship with Sam and discovers she her opinions are not always correct. I really liked Bean.

I listened to the audiobook and enjoyed Martha Hunt Handler’s narration.

Thank you NetGalley and Greenleaf Audiobooks for Winter of the Wolf.

I enjoyed listening to the audiobook version of Winter If the Wolf. The story mainly focuses on the teenage sister, Bean, who lives with her parents and her three brothers. Sadly, her favorite brother is discovered hanging from a belt pulled tightly around his neck. I think the author does a fine job of dealing with death and grief. While the story mostly focused on Bean, I appreciated how the author also depicted the ways tragedy can affect all members in the family in ways not expected. I’ve heard it said, that everyone deals with grief in their own way. I think this story was written appropriately for the teens age group.

Fifteen-year-old Bean’s brother dies in an apparent suicide and their family is left shattered. Bean is convinced that because of Sam’s Inuit beliefs he would never have killed himself. In the aftermath, Bean tries to hold the family together while also trying to find out why her brother died.

What this book did well was to explore Bean’s bereavement and spiritual journey, which eventually leads her to peace. It is a very personal book for the author as it was written following the death of her best friend’s son and obviously deals with a sensitive issue. However, I think this is a book that will be enjoyed best by those who have lost someone and may take comfort from the spiritualism and positive messages.

I’m confused as to why this book is labelled as adult fiction and thriller – it is very firmly YA (and not really the kind of YA that appeals to older audiences) and there is a mystery but thriller is pushing it a bit. In a way, I saw this book as a kind of fictionalised self-help book; the kind of book for young people to be able to see themselves in and hopefully overcome a similar problem.

What I liked less about this book was that I never really felt like I knew the characters and the dialogue often felt stilted and forced. Perhaps this is what made me feel that the book was more of a self-help journey through bereavement than a novel.

Given the title and cover, I was waiting a long time for the wolf to make more of an appearance than it does. This particular mystery was solved when I discovered at the end that Martha Hunt Handler is president of the Wolf Conservation Center. This is not a criticism, but the wolf felt shoe-horned in; I wish the wolf had had a bigger part! Not only to do the title and cover (which is great) justice but for the Wolf Conservation Center.

Narration: I found the narrator to be average. Not the worst I’ve heard, but not the best. I had some trouble sometimes distinguishing between characters, especially in the dialogue between Bean and Julie.

In conclusion: I think this book could be a valuable tool for young people or families who have experienced loss and are open to spirituality. However, if you’re simply looking for a mystery or YA novel, this might not be the right fit for you.

Thank you #NetGalley for this Audio ARC of #WinterofTheWolf

*received audiobook from netgalley for honest review* .....well. if there was ever a book i could give 0 stars to, it would be this one. truly horrible just all the way round.

First off, the amount of gross appropriation that's just, so constant in this book is horrid. Why even out that it talks about Inuit Culture in the blurb when it really doesn't? this "Weird" white kid finds some books on their culture, appropriates it, like ALOT, like thats all he seems to do? Dies, and the whole rest of the book is about his sister, who is ngl using some weird words to describe her relationship with him, then doing the SAME thing to try to contact his spirit, shes helped by her best friend (who refers to herself as a witch tho jokingly i suppose) and her mother, who gives her a book of "Shaman rituals" for her daughter and friend to basically have a slumber party and "try it out" and try to talk to her dead brother. It very clear this book is wildly full of this, like its literally the main theme of the book, even with word choices thru the book, and its really annoying that what? no one who read this before it was published and said anything?! (but lets face it they probs didnt ask/ignored the ppl who said thing soo)


I also found the authors note very odd, ive read books with similar authors notes and it was always clear that like thats what the book was about? it was very unclear in this book and even when you found out how he really died its like a footnote? they family is like "oh. huh. no way. im at peace with it now tho bc like i seen his spirit animal" like wtf.


The author also repeated full sentences what seems like way too often. specifically the ones that end with "becasuse i dont want my mother to backtrack" or whatever, it took me 2hrs to finish this book (thank satan if it was longer i couldnt have done it tbh) and it was still annoying me.


Overall this book is nonstop culture appropriation, 0 stars, would not recommend.

I really enjoyed the book, right until the last two chapters. The writing was beautiful, even though the pace seemed slow at times, it didn't seem like much. But when I did reach the end I just couldn't get it off my mind, how Sam died and how everyone easily forgave Skip. I do get it why they did it but I couldn't feel like them and it bugged me a lot.

I get that the point of the good was to forgive and move on like Sam wanted but, it just seemed to easy I guess. Also, I loved how magic realism is part of the book but never quite hits the mark exclusively so it doesn't git in the genre.

The audiobook experience was really good, not only could I picture these characters better but also understood them easily.