The Tenderness of Wolves (2006)

An amazing story of search and mystery in the days when Canada was nothing but wilderness, ruled by the Hudson Bay Company and travelled by fur traders and Natives.

Searchers follow searches, all trying to unravel various mysteries about murder, codes, and disappearances. There are many POVs, which allow the reader clues to the story as it slowly, artfully unravels. It's both good and bad that the various different story lines are not all neatly tied up at the end, but they are in a (mostly) satisfactory way.

If you liked [book:The Last Crossing] by [author:Guy Vanderhaeghe] you should read this book! (Or vice versa) ( )

The Tenderness of Wolves is a good, plot-driven novel, which won the Costa Book of the Year award in 2006. The title is probably the best aspect of the novel, but that isn’t meant to disparage Penney’s book. I really enjoyed the story, which has pace and interesting plot twists. The writing is strong without being exceptional, and the characters are clearly delineated. There were a few too many of them, however, and some of them get lost (figuratively, though several get literally lost as well) towards the end of the book.

It is 1867. A trapper is brutally murdered in rural Canada, and a young man from the same community goes missing. Suspicions immediately fall on the missing man, but things are not all that they seem. The young man’s mother, desperate to find her son and prove his innocence, sets off into the wilderness on his trail. The book’s other characters get embroiled in this story, as they either assist or block her attempts to find her son. The plot also involves the discovery of a Native American written language and stolen furs.

As I mentioned, I enjoyed the story. I thought it could have been more streamlined, but as it was Penney’s debut, I guess that’s forgivable. I’m not much for thrillers, but I’m not sure that this really was a thriller or crime novel. It is much more of a human drama, though it certainly has elements of the abovementioned genres.

I should mention that I read the book a few weeks ago, and the characters have already grown dim in my memory – I cannot even recall the name of the main character (the mother). Whether this is because of bad memory, or because the book is forgettable, I don’t know. I can recall the details of the plot, however.

So, an enjoyable book, but not a great one. I’m not sure I’ll be reading more of Penney’s. I guess it’ll depend on the subject matter of her newer books. ( )

During the winter of 1867, in the backwoods of Canada, Maria Ross finds the scalped body of independent fur trader Laurent Jammet. Maria has gone to Jammet’s cabin to discuss his relationship with her adopted son, Francis, who has gone missing. The Company men from nearby Fort Edgar arrive to investigate and soon a number of suspects are offered for the reader to think about. There is Francis, the missing boy; Parker, a Native American; and Thomas Sturrock, an east coast Yankee who claims that Jammet had an artefact that had gone missing. Soon different groups of people set out in search of Francis, those who think he has murdered Jammet, those who think he is hiding from the real murderer, and those whose motives for finding the boy are unclear. The murder investigation is also a back drop for quite a few secondary plots of hidden love, jealousy and greed, inter-racial relationships and the unsolved disappearance of two young girls.

THE TENDERNESS OF WOLVES is a massive debut novel. The story is very complex, with so many sub-plots and relationships’ going on that it was almost as if the author, Steff Penney, threw all of the sub-plots in the air and juggled them frantically to keep them up until she was ready to bring them down to their individual conclusions. Most story lines had a satisfactory outcome, but I did find that once or twice the story seemed to stretch out more than it needed to; however, this was balanced with superb prose and vivid evocation of the Canadian landscape. There was a huge cast of characters, and at the very beginning I got lost as to who was who and what was what, because so much was being introduced to the reader at once. However, all the pieces started coming together very quickly and the story settled down and became easier to follow, and the pace less frantic. Despite these criticisms, and they are tiny when compared to the size of the book, this was a well balanced, compelling story and, taken as a whole, this is must read book and I thoroughly recommend it.

Laurent Jammett is a French trapper living in a little Canadian community in 1867. He mostly keeps to himself, so everyone is surprised when his neighbor, Mrs. Ross, finds him murdered. Since he worked for them occasionally, the Hudson Bay Company is called in to investigate. When the Hudson Bay officials find out that Mrs. Ross's teenage son vanished around the same time that Jammett was killed, they're naturally curious and start looking for him. Mrs. Ross is worried too and sets out to find her son first and prove his innocence.

There is so much more to this book than I could write in the synopsis without spoiling anything. It's much more than just a murder mystery. In fact, the mystery felt sort of secondary to me. I was more interested in reading what I can only call the mini character studies. The story is told from many shifting points of view, but it works. I was never confused as to who I was following in each chapter. That's probably because the story only follows one character in the first person point of view--Mrs. Ross. So, in addition to furthering the mystery, we get to read a little about many different characters, how they think, what their lives have been like, etc. That was probably the most interesting part. I was left hungry for more backstory. I mostly mean that in a good way. Had every character's backstory been explored, the book would have been impossibly long. As it was, there were only a couple of loose ends that I really wish had been tied up that weren't. Not bad.

There is such a strong sense of place in this book that the setting could almost be a character in itself. The Canadian winter is written about so well that the whole book feels sort of cold, bleak, desolate, and harsh. It's a force that every character, good or bad, has to contend with. This was a perfect read for December.

The mystery seemed a little weak to me. I felt like the author had been pointing at who did it all along, the only thing I wasn't too sure of was why. That was explained, but by then there were so many other things going on that I didn't really care.

Here's my favorite quote: "He smiled to show he meant no offense, but Scott takes offense like it is going out of fashion, and bristled." I think that stood out to me because it struck me as funny in a book that really wasn't. Also, I just like that line, and I'll probably start throwing it around in conversation. "He takes offense like it's going out of style." I can definitely see myself saying that.

Overall, I recommend it, especially if you've got a cold, snowy day and time to sit inside under a blanket a read. ( )

Here is another one of those relatively rare books that is distinctive for its setting and strong because of its characters. The understated suspense is controlled by a measured pace; the author feeds out just enough line at a time. On top of that, gorgeous writing and some interesting choices (Mrs. Ross the only character who has a first-person narrative, etc.). ( )