In The Shadow Of The Wolf Queen (Geomancer 1)

By Kiran Millwood Hargrave
Fantasy/Orion/Paperback/320 pages/$28.85/Amazon SG (amzn.to/3rvsHfb)
3 stars

Ysolda’s idyllic village life in Glaw Wood is shattered when her elder sister Hari is abducted by Ryders, who are knights of Seren, the Wolf Queen.

Hari is just one of the many “gifted” who are kidnapped by the queen, who intends to use their ability to communicate and connect with nature as a means to achieving her goal of locating the fabled Anchorite.

Some believe the Anchorite to be a spirit, an entity – a girl – with some sort of power who resides in the End-World Wood.

Others, like Ysolda, think it is just an origin story of how the world came to be.

Hari’s kidnapping kick-starts a series of events that opens Ysolda’s eyes to the world around her.

Forced to venture beyond Glaw Wood for the first time in her life to find her sister, Ysolda has to use her wits to survive and save her sister when she, too, is caught by the Ryders and taken to the Wolf Queen.

British author Kiran Millwood Hargrave, 33, is a productive novelist, having written and published at least one book a year since her award-winning 2016 debut children’s book, The Girl Of Ink And Stars. 

Her novels run the gamut from enthralling mysteries and charming illustrated tales for children to stories for young adults (The Deathless Girls, 2019) and adults (The Mercies, 2020, and The Dance Tree, 2022).

She is also an accomplished poet and playwright.

This latest book, the first part of the Geomancer series, marks her first foray into a trilogy.

Like her previous works, Hargrave weaves in her Indian heritage and culture – her characters pepper their speech with Hindi.

The Wolf Queen and her Ryders, all described as dark-skinned, snack on dosa, peas puri and achar.

There are big themes here: the ultimate truth versus one’s own beliefs; trust and betrayal; the innocent suffering due to the actions of a more powerful instigator; and fear and power.

Hargrave tells it skilfully without coming off as preachy, and her characters, particularly the “villains”, are nuanced.

Who is deemed to be good and bad is not so black and white.

“It is worse for the world” should the Wolf Queen fail in her quest to find the Anchorite, “but best for us”, says a fellow prisoner to Ysolda during her short stay in the dungeons.

The prisoner claims: “The Wolf Queen may be a monster, but she is our monster. We need her to triumph.”

Ysolda, however, seems somewhat constant and dull in the book, driven by the singular goal of saving her elder sister and returning to her old life.

Rather unexpectedly, she does not rise to the occasion as the hero despite a prophecy marking her as special, and her knowing there is a possibility of a terrible outcome for everyone should “bad people” come into power with the Anchorite.

It could be that her time to shine has not yet come. For now, she is more focused on surviving in the face of doomsday, which is understandable and relatable.

The story picks up pace in the middle with more action as Hargrave unexpectedly kills off certain characters. More villains are introduced, delightfully coupled with unexpected twists and turns.

The ending of this first instalment is an expected set-up for the next book, with some plot holes and questions left unresolved, such as the true motivation of Seren’s young daughter Eira, who befriends Ysolda.

This works to draw readers in further to find out who the villain here really is, and the truth everyone seeks to find.

It is a pleasurable read, with Hargrave adding just enough spice to keep it from becoming too predictable.

This reviewer has higher expectations for the next two instalments.

If you like it, read: Children Of Blood And Bone by Tomi Adeyemi (Macmillan, 2018, $18, Amazon SG, go to amzn.to/46E2Ro1). It follows heroine Zelie Adebola as she attempts to restore powerful magic and diviners to the Orisha kingdom. The themes of oppression and discrimination has resulted in frequent comparisons with the Hunger Games and Harry Potter series, and a film adaptation is in the works.