This is a quick listen with a solid performance from the narrator. Bean is the youngest of four children and the only girl. She's especially close to Sam, her older brother closest in age to her. The book opens with his sudden death - and explores Bean's own variety of mysticism, loosely blended in with Sam's obsession with Inuit traditions and beliefs. Set in a far northern Minnesota town, there's;s not a whole lot that feels very modern about this book (cell phones, computers, social media - it's all pretty absent here) and the mystery of Sam's death doesn't really come as the shock that I think it is intended to be.

Because so much of the book deals with grief, it is definitely a sad book - but I have to admit that I never once reached for the tissue as I listened. The book hovers around the lines of believability. making it difficult to really connect to it. It definitely gets a bit preachy - albeit in a general spiritual way that isn't often presented in this way in YA fiction. But the dialogue itself is where it really gets unbelievable - it rarely sounds authentic - despite the skill of the performer. A lot of the dialogue serves as a repository for information dumping and while there are a lot of actions made of grief - the discussions around this (especially in the aftermath) never strikes a pure chord. People just don't talk this way... I really expected to be more emotionally connected to the character and the story itself, because if there is a sub-genre to this one, I would say that falls under "emotional". The Minnesota police get the worst rap of all here, though in the wake of their "investigation". Maybe younger readers (the intended audience) would be more moved and less hung up on the unbelievable details - although, I am not sure that this will hold much appeal, to be honest.

I read a lot of books but I don’t think I’ve ever read anything like Winter of the Wolf before. The narrator, Bean, is a teenager. The youngest in a family of four and the only girl. When the brother she is closest to, Sam, kills himself after a family disagreement she is understandably devastated but is also clinging to the idea that his death is connected to Inuit beliefs. Alongside her best friend Julie,she attempts to find the answers.

I have to admit that I nothing at all about Inuit customs but it didn’t matter. I was swept along by Bean and her family’s attempts at coping with their loss. The emotions are raw and honest. You could see how they troubled to communicate with each other, through grief, guilt and denial.

You would think that this would be a depressing read but it isn’t. Some of it is everyday teenage life. Boys, friends, families. There are parts that she has to cope with at school that are different, the feeling of being ignored because people don’t know what to say, the comments from others who say they know what she is going through because they have experienced similar.

Alongside the learning to cope there is the description of the local community, the area and its wildlife. So different to life here and much of it sounds magical. I found that the part of the novel that concerns the Inuit customs was quite small but fascinating. Mixing human and animal blood was something I had never even thought about and it reminds the reader that there is a lot to learn about different cultures and beliefs.

A wonderful book that I would happily read again.

Winter of the Wolf is the first audiobook I listened to on NetGalleys new audio review addition! I was super psyched to get this. And the cover is just beautiful! I love Wolves and Pigs and all other animals..lol. But there is something just so regal about a wolf to me.

Bean, who is super close to her older brother Sam has just lost him to what seems like a suicide. Everything points perfectly to suicide from the way he died to some incidents leading up to his death. But something in Beans gut tells her this is not the case. So with the help of her friend Julie they start to sift through his life looking into his strong beliefs in Inuit Culture, his relationship with his recent ex girlfriend and his close friendship with his best friend Skip, who has seemed to pull a disappearing act the day after Sam died. She’s hoping something will provide with her answers as to what really happened and if he did take his own life what was the cause.

This was a very interesting and deeply sad book.
First off the grief that the entire family was going through was so well written and so palpable I caught myself sniffling through the book on more then one occasion. Especially in regards to Bean and her mom. It really was heartbreaking. Beans mom was just so sad and lost and Martha Hunt Handler wrote about her depression very convincingly. And as a reader I truly felt how much the family loved each other even though they were going through their own desperate struggles.
It also was truly a mystery as to what killed Sam. By the looks of everything it pointed to suicide all the way but there were facts brought up about Sams personality and the way he lived his life that I was thinking no way, something sinister MUST have happened that night. So I was hoping Bean would get some real answers and the mystery would be solved. Which it does btw.
It was also really interesting to learn about the Inuit culture which I had never heard of. They have a very strong connection to nature and especially with animals. Sam accidentally kills a deer the night he dies in a car accident and to show respect he mingles his blood with the does. The Inuit never kill animals for sport only to sustain life.
The only problem I had with this book is the way Sam dies when we finally find out. There was all this build up and I just couldn’t believe he would go out like that. There is an author note at the end that explains why and some personal sentiments are attached to this, but the way the story starts out it just didn’t flow well. I guess real life doesn’t exactly either all the time though.

Narration:
Kelley Pruner did a really good job as the narrator. I easily believed the different characters she slipped into. The only thing I didn’t like was her tone when Bean spoke aloud. It was kind of a whiny voice.


Overall extremely interesting and sentimental read of a family trying to get over the grief of a loved one that I highly recommend.

Winter of the Wolf is about a tragic loss, and how a family copes with it. Bean and her brother Sam are close, and share more with each other than they do anyone else in the family. When Sam dies of apparent suicide, Bean, her parents, and her remaining brothers struggle to cope. Bean cannot accept that Sam would kill himself, so she starts an investigation. What she finds is a deeper understanding of her own family, and eventually the truth.

What I loved about this book is the true way it deals with an apparent suicide and the family's reaction to it. Unfortunately I have experience with this situation. Each member blames themselves, which is very true to life, and each individual grieves in different ways. The person or person who finds the family member is haunted forever because they cannot unsee that image. Everyone in the family cannot help to think of how they might have been able to stop it. The author describes this so realistically. Some family members break and retreat, some try to act as if everything is normal, and some reach out to others. In this book, Bean's mother falls into depression and retreats to her room. Sometimes when a parent retreats in grief, a child takes over as parent, and that happens in this book in some ways.

There are some things I felt were not completed and left hanging in this book. Sam admired, studied, and emulated the Inuit people, and this was brought up often in the book, but was not fully realized. There were no Inuit characters and no communication with Inuit characters other than Bean reading some books. Towards the last third of the book, I began to wonder why the Inuit people were brought up at all. In addition, Sam's wishes for a green burial were raised, but not honored. A totem pole was brought up, but not fully realized. And most importantly, when Sam's parents learned the exact reason for his death, their response was pretty underwhelming and unrealistic for the situation.

Although this book was told from the perspective of a 15 - 17 year old girl, this is not a YA book. There are adult themes that need adult supervision such as suicide, sex, drugs, and the occult.

The audiobook is read by Kelly Pruner, who does a good job as the grieving teenage girl, Bean.

I received a free copy of this audiobook from the publishers and Netgalley. My review is optional.

This book evoked a lot of strong emotions. It was heart wrenching going through the grieving process with this family. Sam, one of 4 children is found dead, the police and the rest of the family believes that it was a suicide but Bean who was closest to her brother thinks it was something else. As she struggles with what happened and tries to process through the grief she enlist the help of her best friend. Through interviews with Sams friends Bean learns more about Sam but she still doesn't believe he committed suicide. Sam had strong Inuit beliefs and she can't reconcile them with what happened.

Bean's family is also struggling, her father who freaked out on both Sam and Bean right before this happened is trying to push everything away, her mother won't get out of bed and isn't taking the medication she was prescribed, her brothers seem to be going about their lives. During her investigation Bean learns more about her family and this builds a stronger bond between them all.

Through investigating Sam and learning more about his beliefs and other spiritual practices the girls decide to perform a shamanic ritual that they believe will help them know if Sam is still with them. This ceremony is beautiful and the aftermath brings the family even closer.

I really liked this book and the big reveal at the end. While I didn't see it coming I agree it is a very under reported problem. If you have a teen who is going to read this book I would suggest reading it first or at least at the same time so that a conversation can happen about this reveal. Regardless of how difficult that conversation may be it is important.

I guess I thought this book was more a fantasy type of book but it is not. It kept my interest and the narrator was good but it got a little weird. I guess the whole idea is to bring awareness to people. I get it. I just wasn't expecting that. Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for my audiobook copy. I also received the e-book from a Goodreads Giveaway.

I couldn't get into this one. I truly feel that it has nothing to do with the book itself. I think it was the audio that made it hard for me to stay connected with the book.
I did not like that narrator of this book. She was too flat for me. There was no feeling in her voice. I think I will try and read the actual book when this one come out, cause the topic really did interest me.

Bean is closest to her brother Sam. When Sam is found dead by apparent hanging her world is turned upside down. She has to deal with her own grief but also the overwhelming grief of her mother who has given up. Bean does not believe that Sam would kill himself and is determined to find out what really happened. She and her best friend talk to everyone that had contact with Sam on his last day and explore mystical paths to explain his death and to find comfort.

This was a sobering story of loss and grief from a young person's point of view. It had me gripped through the first part of the book, then it veered down a path that explores different mystical religions and beliefs that were a little too distracting from the storyline. Overall I liked this book. It shared some good lessons and showed the power of family.

The book was pretty good! I felt like it had a lot of different things going on and I think I just lost interest towards the end. It seemed like more of a contemporary ya book than a mystery. It was also very sad. Overall though, the writing was good and and the narrator (Kelly Pruner) was great!

This was such a sad, difficult, and heartbreaking story. I loved the narrator. The end was a little confusing but overall I really enjoyed this book. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to listen to this beautiful audio.

I need to start by saying I am not in the age rage of the target audience, but have read and enjoyed a few other YA books. I was drawn to this firstly by the cover then the description.
A lovely comforting story that follows a girl and her family struggling through the grief process with the loss of her soul mate older brother by suicide. It handles all the emotions of grief realistically, and with real feeling.
I engaged with Bean as she tries to help the family while dealing with her own grief. Also her best friend Julie, as She tries to help and support Bean.
I liked the way they explore spirituality for coming to terms with their loss, despite not being a spiritual person myself. The description of Inuit beliefs was very dry. The shaman ceremony and the totem pole with the animals having meanings was very Sam and moving.
It sensitively reveals and deals with a subject that still isn’t widely talked about.
The narrator is good adding emotion to story. I felt quite emotional at the end.
It leaves an educational message behind which I hope will help others.

This audio book has a narrator who's voice is quite warm and crisp yet intriguing. The novel itself is indeed fascinating. The story is relatable and easy to connect with. I personally have lost my brother , most of the family are turning towards suicide however I knew him intimately so I know for sure that this was not a suicide that it was murder. Certain things that happened around the time and the people who were furious with him for exposing their fraud to the customers... needless to say I know the truth. So when I read this book I could quite easily relate and for this reason I really connected to the novel itself.
The author has done a wonderful job with this Novel and i hope it prospers beautifully. I am also a spiritual person and open minded to the supernatural. It ticks al the boxes for me.

Kelly Pruner did a great job narrating the audiobook Winter of the Wolf. Most of her voices were distinct which made for easy listening. I believe that high school students will like the book, however, I will forewarn them that I’ll want their opinions about the Inuit connections. Do they feel that the culture was appropriated or respected?

Overall, I was completely engaged in the tale and could envision a grief stricken sister working to prove her beloved brother’s death was not a suicide. The steps Bean (sister) took to try to figure out what really happened were believable as a 15 year old. The family’s grief was believable. I deeply appreciated the strong ties to nature and preserving the environment.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the chance to read this arc in exchange for an honest review.

Did her teenage older brother really commit suicide? Everyone else seems to think so, but 15-year-old Bean believes otherwise. Yet proving this requires research on Inuit beliefs, questioning neighbors and her BFF. The crisp details and dialog drew me in - from the description of the car crash to the mourning by her parents and brothers. I hoped for Bean as she coped with her own depression, love interests, and her expanding perspective. If you question life and relationships, this could be the book for you. Contains contemporary language, including profanity, and wonderings about death. Note: Cover illustration and title are somewhat misleading, although reflective of Sam’s reverence and beliefs about nature.

I have quite mixed feelings about this audio/book. While I really enjoyed the story and the general vibe of Inuit folklore, much of it was also quite fragmented and confusing.

Let me start by explaining that overall, I think this was a gripping YA mystery. For a young reader or listener, this novel is certainly a relatable and compelling story in which Bean, a fifteen-year-old girl trying to understand her brother Sam's death: was it a suicide or an even more tragic event? This mystery is well written and highly emotional, and it is incredibly important that there are such YA books dealing with grief, loos of a sibling and suicide.

In addition, I think that amidst the modern, increasingly atheist and globalized culture, it is wonderful to read about Sam's spirituality and Inuit beliefs. However, it could have been done better. For one, the descriptions of these beliefs are very fragmented and therefore confusing, taking away much of the educational factor of this novel. In addition, to avoid spoilers, some of Sam's actions just didn't add up, considering his strong belief system. Not to mention that the mystery itself wasn't very good.

But then again, I felt so inspired after listening to this book, and immediately went on to learn more about the Inuits.... That I just don't know how to process my feelings about this book. It's great, but it could have been better.

*Thank you to the Publisher for a free copy of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

I had to stop listening with an hour 45 minutes left. When two white teen girls made an alter and thought they could be shamans of the Inuit tradition, I had to stop. The whole book had steadily upped the cringe factor and that hit my personal limit.

While the beginning started off well portraying the intricacies of a family's grief, the book quickly went down hill with its wannabe spiritualism and poor mystery.

When I say wannabe spiritualism, the main character sounds exactly like an idiot teenager when she talks about spiritualism and its elements. It's like you could dress in a dark cloak, meet her at midnight, and sell her a bottle of vinegar that she thinks is magic juice. Spiritualism is an interesting subject when handled right. Even skeptics like me can read with interest when the topic isn't approached like a teen in Earthbound.

The mystery the book claims to have is understandably intriguing to the main character, but the book fails to bring in any sense of tension or suspense when she begins solving the mystery.

As far as the audiobook narration, I think the publisher would do well to recast, or at least have the narrator do some vocal training. The main character's voice was alright, but it's not a great voice for audiobooks. It came off a little flat and whiny. The voice the narrator takes on for the friend Julia is atrocious. It's like valley girl with a cold.

The publisher should also have a sensitivity reader cover the book to make sure the Inuit stereotypes portrayed aren't too generalizing or offensive, and that the claiming of Inuit traditions by these characters isn't straight up appropriation.

Overall, the book should have focused on what it did well- portraying a teen's grief and how that affected her relationships with the rest of her family.