Gifted sisters investigate a mystery with wideimplications in the involving novel The Wolf of Ennerdale.In Warren Cabral’s thrilling family mystery novel TheWolf of Ennerdale, two detective-minded sisters are wrapped up in aninternational conspiracy when their uncle comes to town.Mae and Isla have a penchant for investigating mysteries, aswell as the supernatural ability to communicate with one another via thought.Although their uncanny awareness of what the other is thinking or doing throwsoff their parents and teachers, their Uncle Bill recognizes it as an old familylegacy.When Uncle Bill arrives at the girls’ home for one of hismany impromptu visits, danger follows him. A violent motorcyclist purported tobe a Russian terrorist appears in town, along with a stable of other unsavorycharacters who express suspicious interest in the nuclear power station whereIsla and Mae’s parents work.As Mae and Isla attempt to understand what’s happening intheir town, the story alternates between sharp jumps forward, as when suddenacts of violence occur, and slower moments when the sisters research thestrangeness unfurling around them, including why Juliet, their mother’s newfriend, seems to know Bill and carries an esoteric Russian cross. Other symbolsand clues include mechanical bugs, bicycles with hidden compartments, and eeriemessages written on foggy windows.The sisters also pretend to do schoolwork under theirteachers’ noses while investigating and chatting back and forth throughtelepathy. While it strains credulity that an ordinary internet search usinggeneric keywords would have hyperspecific results, the sense that the girls areclose to far bigger discoveries generates ongoing interest.Uncle Bill is the sisters’ excellent foil: A jovial andfunny man, he appears wearing short running shorts and falls down a hill ofsheep dung. However, the gullibility and confusion of characters including Maeand Isla’s parents is sometimes overplayed. Further, the illustrations areinconsistent in both quality and style. Some are large-scale watercolors thatcomplement the characterizations, as with a closeup of Uncle Bill gripping atable and laughing toward tears. Others are small and imprecise.The lively prose helps flesh out the inquisitiveness of thesisters, who enjoy figuring out puzzles and scratching their intellectualitches. They explore clues with an endearing sense of fun, poring over maps andwatching political news even as malevolent forces stalk them. Surprising comedyresults too, as when local vernacular words like “pong,” describing Bill’s foulsmell, interrupt tense moments.As the book continues and the mystery tests the sisters’detective skills, it also yields truths that have far-reaching implications forthe safety of their community and their family. In resolving the high-stakescriminal plot, the sisters lean on Bill and other close relations in a way thatis satisfying, evoking a sense of their intimate family lives beside largerworld events.In the high-stakes mystery novel The Wolf ofEnnerdale, exceptional sisters investigate an international conspiracy thatthreatens their hometown.Reviewed for Foreword Clarion by WillemMarxNovember 2, 2025"The bright illustrations and monochromatic accents alongside the text once again bring the key moments of the plot to life." LoveReading4Kids
