The atmosphere of this novel is so dark, and foreboding, her writing so incredibly detailed.

Soon, Maija discovers the true cost of survival under the mountain, and what it will take to make it to spring. Scarce resources and the never-ending darkness force them to come together, but Maija, not knowing who to trust and who may betray her, is determined to find the answers for herself. As the snow gathers, the settlers' secrets are increasingly laid bare. Young Frederika finds herself pulled towards the mountain as well, feeling something none of the adults around her seem to notice.Īs the seasons change, and the 'wolf winter,' the harshest winter in memory, descends upon the settlers, Paavo travels to find work, and Maija finds herself struggling for her family's survival in this land of winter-long darkness. Compelled to investigate despite her neighbors' strange disinterest in the death and the fate of Eriksson's widow, Maija is drawn into the dark history of tragedies and betrayals that have taken place on Blackåsen. The death is dismissed as a wolf attack, but Maija feels certain that the wounds could only have been inflicted by another man. While herding the family's goats on the mountain, Frederika happens upon the mutilated body of one of their neighbors, Eriksson. Above them looms Blackåsen, a mountain whose foreboding presence looms over the valley and whose dark history seems to haunt the lives of those who live in its shadow. Maija, her husband Paavo and her daughters Frederika and Dorotea arrive from their native Finland, hoping to forget the traumas of their past and put down new roots in this harsh but beautiful land. 'It's the kind of winter that will remind us we are mortal,' he said.

'Wolf winter,'' she said, her voice small. 'Visually acute, skillfully written it won't easily erase its tracks in the reader's mind.' 'Exquisitely suspenseful, beautifully written, and highly recommended.' A compelling historical thriller set in 1700s Sweden from an exciting new literary talent.

Wolf Winter by Cecilia Ekbäck