Wolfpack

by Amelia Brunskill

Overview

This shocking, suspenseful novel about a group of teenage girls living in a cult reveals the terrifying paranoia and suspicion that emerges when one of them goes missing– perfect for fans of We Were Liars.

Nine girls bound together
in beautiful, virtuous Havenwood,
a refuge from an unsafe world.

Then there are eight
one of them gone — 
departed with no warning.
Did this member of their pack
stray willingly,
or did something more sinister occur?

The girls seek answers
not knowing if they should be angry
or frightened
or perhaps,
they should be both.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780316494557
Publisher:	Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Publication date:	06/13/2023
Pages:	272
Sales rank:	1,046,391
Product dimensions:	5.60(w) x 8.40(h) x 1.20(d)
Age Range:	14 - 18 Years

About the Author

Amelia Brunskill is a writer and a librarian.  She drinks a lot of tea, tries to befriend most animals, enjoys a good cable knit sweater, and her neighbors would probably guess that she writes sweet stories about bunnies and unicorns. She was born under sunny Australian skies, but now lives in Illinois. She is also the author of The Window. She invites you to visit her online at ameliabrunskill.com

Editorial Reviews

04/17/2023

Brunskill (The Window) employs absorbing verse and a keen grasp on the teen voice in this stirring psychological thriller about nine teenage girls raised in a cult. Havenwood is supposed to be just that—a haven for those devoted to charming and kind leader Joseph and his teachings. Despite having grown up at Havenwood, when nine young women are forced together by happenstance, they endeavor to “be loyal/ not just to Havenwood/ but also to one another,” establishing an unwavering bond that guides them through conflicts both interpersonal and within Havenwood’s strident society. Alongside their individual public passions, such as apiculture, baking, and foraging, the girls embark on private endeavors. Some of these ventures, including a sexually intimate relationship between two of the teens, are forbidden in Havenwood. When one of them goes missing, the others search for her and, in doing so, begin to unearth the corrupted underpinnings of their perceived utopia. Though the characters are minimally described, intricately detailed alternating third-person POVs that center individual perspectives as well as a lush, collective voice spin an eerie recounting that fluidly connects familiar themes of maturation, love, and chosen family with Havenwood’s unusual, highly insular religious movement. Ages 14–up. Agent: Jim McCarthy, Dystel, Goderich & Bourret. (June)

Publishers Weekly

07/01/2023

Gr 9 Up—A novel in verse for fans of mystery and suspense. A group of nine girls are living in Havenwood, a religious cult that feels similar to a summer camp, except no one is allowed to leave or communicate with the outside world. The group goes to breakfast one morning to find that one of them, Rose, is missing. As time goes on, it is clear Rose isn't coming back. The girls wonder if she left Havenwood or if something bad happened to her—especially because the elders don't comment on Rose's absence. Four days after the disappearance, the girls begin to find clues that lead them to believe Rose did not leave them of her own accord. But in a place as perfect as Havenwood, who would make someone disappear? And why? This novel, told in mostly alternating perspectives, starts off slowly but has an air of mystery about it that will keep readers turning the pages. Once the clues to Rose's whereabouts start to appear, the story is so captivating that it is difficult to put down. Few details are included about the characters, but it doesn't detract from the story. Race of characters is not included. VERDICT With so few mystery verse novels in print, Brunskill's tale is a welcome addition to the genre. Recommended.—Lisa Buffi

School Library Journal

2023-03-29
What does it mean to be complicit?

Nine young women are being raised in a cult—though that’s a word they never use—the kind with a handsome male leader and strictly proscribed roles based on gender. We may think we know what’s coming, but these girls have carved out a safe, even happy, space at Havenwood. They share their own cabin with a door that locks, and in some ways their home really is a haven; the girls have lived in this bucolic setting since childhood, have the freedom to focus on skills they love (beekeeping, foraging, baking), and believe in their community. Two of them share a monthslong clandestine romance despite strictures against sex; all of them collude to hide this and other transgressions from themselves as much as the larger community. Alternating between a collective first person (“The nine of us were not always as we are now”) and multiple close third-person perspectives, the text allows readers to glimpse the girls as individuals while seeing how they subsume that individuality to maintain their group identity. While the poetry is more prose with line breaks than flowing verse, the brevity effectively keeps the pages turning as the discomfort builds and the answer to the underlying mystery—one of the girls has vanished—slowly becomes clear. The limited physical descriptions included point to a White default.

A disquieting read sure to linger. (Verse thriller. 13-18)

Kirkus Reviews

"Haunting and lyrical, Wolfpack will grab you by the throat."—April Henry, NYT bestselling author of Two Truths and a Lie

"Held me breathless as I raced through the pages.... Such a spellbinding read!"—Kip Wilson, author of White Rose

“This is a missing girl mystery wrought by a poet, a haunting story of girlhood inside the coercive confines of a cult.”—Kit Frick, author of I Killed Zoe Spanos

“Gutsy and visceral, Wolfpack will haunt you long after you’ve turned the last page.”—Joy McCullough, author of Blood Water Paint

"Elegant and unsettling, Wolfpack is a spellbinding thriller unlike any other you’ll read this year."—Caleb Roehrig, author of Last Seen Leaving

“Wolfpack weaves a sharp, beguiling tale of secrets and their unraveling.”—Kate Alice Marshall, author of I Am Still Alive

“Stunning in every sense of the word. Gorgeous and unsettling.”—Dane Mele, author of People Like Us

“Brunskill’s prose takes hold from the opening stanza and holds the reader tight like grim death throughout. Highly recommended!”—Javier Ramirez, bookseller, Exile in Bookville

"A disquieting read sure to linger."—Kirkus Reviews

"This novel-in-verse brilliantly develops layers of intrigue."—BCCB

"Intricately detailed alternating third-person POVs ... as well as a lush, collective voice spin an eerie recounting that fluidly connects familiar themes of maturation, love, and chosen family."—Publishers Weekly

"This novel, told in mostly alternating perspectives,...has an air of mystery about it that will keep readers turning the pages... Brunskill’s tale is a welcome addition to the genre."—School Library Journal

From the Publisher