In a time where every YA book on the shelf is simply a copy/paste of one another, you find yourself looking for that one series that has individuality, that’s different from the rest. Here it is, you’ve found that series. Michelle writes in such a rich descriptive way that you actually feel that you’re walking through the forest of the late stone age. The story and characters make you want to return again and again to this amazing series. I’ve lost count how many times I’ve read Chronicles from back when I was 9 years old to now in my 20’s! These books remind you of the innate connection to nature that we have inside us and rekindles the love of the natural world.

When I was 10, browsing my local bookstore for something to take on a family vacation, Wolf Brother caught my eye. I sat down and started to read right there in the store — I was gripped. That discovery showed me a whole new world. Not only was I transported to the Stone Age realm of Torak and Renn’s adventures, I was also introduced to the magic and wonder that can be discovered between the pages of a book. To this day, I credit the Chronicles of Ancient Darkness with my deep and abiding love of the written word.

Viper’s Daughter is a stunning return to the series, with tight pacing and heart-thumping adventure that will enthrall old fans and new readers alike. I can’t wait to read the sequels!

The Chronicles of Ancient Darkness holds a very special place in my heart, from the age of thirteen I was captivated by the characters, the Clans, the ancient magic and the story which never failed to have my heart racing. I still get scared when I think about the demon bear looking at Renn in the cave with its red eyes! Michelle’s writing is the most immersive and descriptive I have ever experienced. It really feels like you are part of a Clan in the Neolithic. Your senses are full with the smell of pine, the noises of the forest, the coldness of snow and that feeling that you could be being watched by something out there in the dark. It truly feels like you’re living the story with the characters.

Michelle’s books and the world of prehistory have had such a profound impact on me as a teenager and young adult. I did an art degree, where most of my work centred around the theme of ancient past to present, with a focus on rewilding projects and bringing back native animals like lynxes and wolves from Torak’s world to the UK. Although I’m twenty-four now, I’m sure I will jump back into the world of Wolf Brother time and time again, and be reunited with my old friends: Torak, Renn and Wolf. 

Emma de Silva, 24, UK

I’ve read the entire Chronicles series twice, having discovered them two years ago and was thrilled to find out that there would be another three books. Viper’s Daughter is a perfect continuation of the series with the same adventure, magic and fantasy, brilliantly bridging the years after Ghost Hunter and ending in the exact place you want it to, to take up the story in Skin Taker. I can’t wait!

Caroline, aged 10

I’ve read the entire Chronicles series twice, having discovered them two years ago and was thrilled to find out that there would be another three books. Viper’s Daughter is a perfect continuation of the series with the same adventure, magic and fantasy, brilliantly bridging the years after Ghost Hunter and ending in the exact place you want it to, to take up the story in Skin Taker. I can’t wait! Caroline,aged 10

The Chronicles of Ancient Darkness holds a very special place in my heart, from the age of thirteen I was captivated by the characters, the Clans, the ancient magic and the story which never failed to have my heart racing. I still get scared when I think about the demon bear looking at Renn in the cave with its red eyes! Michelle’s writing is the most immersive and descriptive I have ever experienced. It really feels like you are part of a Clan in the Neolithic. Your senses are full with the smell of pine, the noises of the forest, the coldness of snow and that feeling that you could be being watched by something out there in the dark. It truly feels like you’re living the story with the characters.

Michelle’s books and the world of prehistory have had such a profound impact on me as a teenager and young adult. I did an art degree, where most of my work centred around the theme of ancient past to present, with a focus on rewilding projects and bringing back native animals like lynxes and wolves from Torak’s world to the UK. Although I’m twenty-four now, I’m sure I will jump back into the world of Wolf Brother time and time again, and be reunited with my old friends: Torak, Renn and Wolf. 

Emma de Silva, 24, UK

When I picked up Wolf Brother at age eight, I had two to three friends and three to four pets. I lived in a rural area with more trees around our house than we had neighbors, so I could feel a faint tug of the wildness just outside my window, especially in the summertime when, at night, the crickets sang for hours while the leaves chattered in the wind. There were enough similarities between my world and Torak’s that it wasn’t hard for me to imagine Wolf loping next to me through a dense forest, yet the magical realism that infused the characters’ quests was so alluring that I was both happy to escape to their world yet sometimes too nervous to turn the page. As I progressed through grade school, Torak, Wolf, and Renn grew with me: we became bolder, faced greater struggles, learned harder lessons, and, still, forged on. Sinking into this series feels like finding yourself deep in a forest: Eerie and intimidating. Exciting and primal. Now, seventeen laters, I still owe much of my appreciation for nature to Michelle Paver’s vivid and interconnected world of the Chronicles of Ancient Darkness. It really is an ageless tale.

Wolf brother was, and is my favourite book of all time. It launched my passion for reading, and my love of story telling!

I was only about ten years old when, for some reason, my mother bought Spirit Walker. The language was still too difficult for me then, and I didn’t understand a thing of the plot. I didn’t have any idea that it was the follow-up to Wolf Brother, so I soon stopped reading. The series only came to my attention several years later, when Oath Breaker had just been released and I had just started showing a new interest in books, after not having read for some years.

The CoAD series is definitely one of the reasons why I picked up reading again: I was baffled by the quality of the storytelling, I devoured the books and waited very impatiently for the release of Ghost Hunter. Since then, I’ve re-read the books many times. Torak, Renn and Wolf live in one of the most vividly written books I have ever come across. Michelle Paver not only weaves together a story full of action, excitement, discovery, friendship, loyalty, and coming of age, she also succeeds in adding wonderful descriptions and explanations of how people lived in the Stone Age: what animals did they hunt, how did they do that, what kind of plants did they use for what purposes, how did they experience and explain their surroundings and important events, how did they all link that with their religion, and so on. I’ve always felt that the CoAD books are the children’s version of Jean M. Auel’s Earth’s Children.

Apart from the fact that they’ve made me read more, it’s also the first series of which I was more or less aware that there was an entire fanbase, and that I wasn’t reading the books in a vacuum, so to speak, without having any idea who else might read them. Although I wasn’t a member, I do remember spending countless hours online on the websites of The Clan and the wiki The Clan had made for CoAD, and I also remember how big it was, how it explained the entire world and the events and characters in the books in so much detail. I loved that. Back then, I didn’t think of it because I was too young, but CoAD was probably the first series of which I was, in a way, part of what we now call the ‘fandom’. And I still am – it’s still one of my best-loved book series ever.

And although I have never been someone who immediately wants some sequels to appear after a series has finished – in my opinion, sequels mostly don’t succeed in capturing the magic of the original books –, I’ve always made an exception for CoAD. I never doubted that it was possible to go back to Torak, Renn, Wolf and the others and let them have all kinds of other adventures with a quality that is equal to the original series, so I was beyond excited when Viper’s Daughter finally appeared, eleven years after Ghost Hunter. It was a long wait – almost half my life, literally –, but it’s been worth it. Torak and Renn are some of the most well-rounded characters I’ve ever come across, and their relationship, together with its evolution, throughout the books, is one of the most beautiful ever as well. There aren’t many perfect books out there, but the CoAD books are one of the exceptions.

I remember when a friend and I both spotted Wolf Brother on the library shelf. Our class was visiting in the afternoon and we were each supposed to choose a book to take home and read. I wasn’t exactly sure what I was hoping to find, but it wasn’t long before Wolf Brother jumped out at me and I could tell just by the hardback cover I was going to love it. My friend and I – 8 or 9 at the time – both read the inside blurb and even argued a little over who would get to read it first, but in the end I was lucky enough to take it home.

I stayed up for ages that night and the bear terrified me as a kid, but it was such an engrossing story I couldn’t put it down. Torak and Renn were both relatable in their own ways despite the wildly different time period, and the idea of clans basing themselves around different animal guardians was fascinating to read about. Wolf’s perspective and the unique way he described things were especially charming.

I later read the rest of the books as soon as I could, and a couple of years after the first, my family even took me to the UKWCT to meet Michelle and the wolves around the time of Outcast’s impending release. It was great to hear about her experiences that inspired events in the book and it’s one of the most memorable days from when I was younger.

As someone who aspires to one day also publish a story worth reading, Michelle’s wonderful storytelling and worldbuilding have always been an inspiration to me. Over the years, I’ve introduced several of my family and friends of varying ages to the series and everyone so far has loved it. Even now – 15 or 16 years since I first read Wolf Brother – the timeless appeal remains much like it does with my other childhood favourites such as Harry Potter and Narnia, and I find that Wolf Brother is one of those rare stories where you just can’t help but immerse yourself in the world time and time again.

I was only seven or eight years old when my mother introduced me to Wolf Brother in the mid-2000s… And let’s just say, at that young age, the book really made an impression on me. It ignited the fire I still have to this day of reading (and now writing!) and expressing my love for wolves as my favourite animal. I didn’t start writing until I was fifteen or so but I will always be grateful to my mother for introducing me to these books and Michelle for writing them in the first place.

Although I do think Ghost Hunter was a fantastic end to the Chronicles of Ancient Darkness series, I was over the moon to find out the series was to continue… And WHAT A RETURN! I pre-ordered and everything and even got the pre-order package (thank you for that as well by the way!).

On one last final note I just want to thank you again for the books if you do read this Michelle, and although I can’t read your ghost stories as those kind of books terrify me, please don’t ever stop writing as long as you’re able to write!

I read the wolf brother when I was just starting 3rd grade. My friend Sophie and I were so obsessed with it, we would pretend we lived in the Stone Age at recess and we would dress like Torak and Renn.
In 5th grade we were still obsessed with it, I got a Ouiji board, and we “contacted” Torak and Renn. We honestly thought it was real and he led us on many adventures to defeat the “Bad-Bad” which was an evil being trying to hurt Renn and Torak. They even told us about Avalon which apparently is the afterlife. I really loved this series and Michelle did a great job of bringing these characters to life:)

I read the wolf brother when I was just starting 3rd grade. My friend Sophie and I were so obsessed with it, we would pretend we lived in the Stone Age at recess and we would dress like Torak and Renn.
In 5th grade we were still obsessed with it, I got a Ouiji board, and we “contacted” Torak and Renn. We honestly thought it was real and he led us on many adventures to defeat the “Bad-Bad” which was an evil being trying to hurt Renn and Torak. They even told us about Avalon which apparently is the afterlife. I really loved this series and Michelle did a great job of bringing these characters to life:)

I was only 11 years old when I was asked to pick a book in the airport before going abroad with my family. I was immediately drawn to one book in particular, Spirit Walker, it was almost as if it was calling me to it. That was when I first fell in love with the captivating world that Michelle Paver had created.
Despite this book being the 2nd in the series, I was introduced carefully to the characters and didn’t feel that something was missing, but I was hooked and did some research to find that this story had a true beginning. I told my parents and they got me Wolf Brother as soon as we arrived back home! And what a beginning it was. Still now, the first chapter sends chills through my spine.

Reading The Chronicles of Ancient Darkness strengthened the ever growing passion I had for the natural world, history and the thought that everything has a spirit, wether it be a tree, rock, mountain or river.

Michelle’s writing is so immersive and intimate that you can’t help but feel like it’s being read to you, sat around a campfire, hearing the crackling of the wood, smelling the smoke and feeling the stars in the night sky watching over you, you really do fall into the world she has created.

The series is a part of me, and I’m certain that I wouldn’t be the woman I am today without it (now 26 years old).

I watch Michelle LIVE every time and eagerly await for the opportunity to meet her again.

I am forever grateful to Michelle for her endless talents as a writer and everyone who made it possible for me and others to share Torak, Renn and Wolf’s adventures!

Thank you so much Peter for this opportunity to share with you how The Chronicles of Ancient Darkness has impacted my life.

Beth Williams, an OG Clan Member.

By Mike Amos

A stunning return to this wonderful series that changed my life so many years ago. As a person with dyslexia, who struggled with reading for many years, I discovered ‘Wolf Brother’ when I was 16, as a last-ditch attempt to try reading an interesting looking book, and I couldn’t put it down. I eagerly awaited each new release in this engrossing series. The stunning writings of Michelle Paver and the fantastic world she has created have set the course of my life ever since – marking important chapters in my life and encouraging me to become an avid reader. I would strongly recommend diving into this fantastically addictive series and, in fact, have done so many times over the years – you will not be disappointed.

I just love the chronicles. I first found them in my language, swedish, and I’ve read them several times. Now I have them in English two and I listen to them on audiobook. I must say that the audiobooks are amazing. Be prepared, there is a lot of emotions going on when you read these. Ones I even found my self cry out NO! These books takes me and my fury friend too adventures we long for.

Please Michelle, never stop writing

I discovered the Wolf Brother series also called Chronicles of Ancient Darkness when I was in fifth grade at the school book fair and the whole reason I got interested in the series was due the summary on the back of the cover  which left you wondering what the main characters Torak and Wolf would face. I also had a main interest in the series because I enjoyed and still do learning about native tribes. But the best part starting the series was the fact I could share this with my dad who isn’t the biggest reader in the world but also like native tribes and wolfs who fell in love with series too.  So since I first found Wolf Brother we both have been eagerly awaiting the next release in the series and youtube videos of new information from Michelle Paver  it something we both can bond over and trade theories about different things. The hardest part about starting this series is waiting for the next book and stopping myself from reveling spoilers from my dad since i claim dibs on reading the newest book first.

Erica Wilhelm Scottsboro, AL reader age 23