From Sofie

Just a greeting – from someone who grew up in Sweden with the Wolf Brother books

Just a greeting – from someone who grew up in Sweden with the Wolf Brother books
Sofie Writes…

Sofie writes…

Dear Michelle,

Hello! My name is Sofie, and I just wanted to write and give you my thanks.

My mom gave me the 1st CoAD book for Christmas back in 2011 when I’d turned 12 years old, and we both got hooked – I’m 25 now and I still love your books so, so much. I’ve re-read them now and then over the years and they’re always a thrill, they hold a proud place in my bookshelf. I hope to have my little cousin read them when he’s a bit older, because I think he’d love them just as much as I do. It was so exciting to hear that you’d released 3 new works for the series recently! I know it was a while ago now, but I just found out this winter and my mom and I are both going to read them like we did back in the day. The other week I let a classmate borrow my copy of part five, Oath Breaker, and she was sooo excited to have it, haha. As I understand it she just started reading them for the first time recently, and it’s given us something to be equally enthused about.

Right now I’m a university student who studies ancient religion and archaeology (by Umeå University in Sweden), and having read your books it’s just a little cherry on top to the whole experience. So interesting!! I’ve always been very impressed with the research you did in order to write this series, going out of your way to learn more about wolves for example, but it really is amazing seeing how well you breathe life into these ancient worlds. I love and adore your attention to detail, and the way your writing style makes everything so vivid and captivating without being overly lengthy or complicated. Your works have given me a huge love for culture, nature and art.

The Chronicles of Ancient Darkness will always be a series that’s dear to my heart, and I can’t thank you enough for what a gem you shared with us all. Thank you from me and mine in the past, present and future!

Best wishes to you,
Sofie

Michelle Replies…

Dear Sofie, what a marvellous message to receive!  I loved reading about how both the 12-year-old you and your mother both got hooked by my stories – and that you still enjoy reading them today, as an adult.  I can imagine that when you re-read them now, with insight into archaeology and ancient religions gained from your course, you probably see all sorts of different things in themfrom when you enjoyed them as a child. (I often find that myself, for instance, when I re-read re-retellings of the Norse myths which were my favourites as a ten-year-old.)  Over the years I’ve had many messages from people such as you, who first read the Wolf Brother books as children, and yet still enjoy them as adults.  It’s actually not something I foresaw when I was writing the stories, but I love the fact that it happens.

I wish you every possible success with your University course – which sounds absolutely fascinating – and of course, many more hours with Torak, Renn and Wolf in the Forest! May the guardian run with you.  Michelle


Upcoming Live Events With Michelle

Incredible… Inspiring… In Person!

Only 52 days to grab your ticket!

Wimbledon Book Festival

October 17, 2025
Festival patron and Sunday Times bestselling author Michelle Paver will talk about her latest supernatural fiction in this live recording with Always Take Notes, a podcast for and about writers and writing.

Michelle will discuss her incredible career, from finding inspiration for Wolf Brother on Wimbledon Common to her latest novel Rainforest, which weaves Mayan culture with themes of obsession, gender and rebirth.

Only 55 days to grab your ticket!

The Witching Hour with Bridget Collins, Michelle Paver and Laura Shepherd-Robinson – Waterstones Canterbury

October 20, 2025

Join Bridget Collins, Michelle Paver and Laura Sheperd-Robinson as they discuss their stories in a brand new collection of ghostly tales called The Witching Hour.

In this dazzling collection of original haunted tales, thirteen bestselling and much-loved authors bring the old superstition of the witching hour to new and vivid life.
Transporting you from the smog of London to the freezing mists of Svalbard, from an Irish town riddled with rumour to a sinister English boarding school, these thirteen stories will serve as your spine tingling companion to the long hours of winter.
So curl up, light a candle, and wait for the clock to strike . . .
Only 60 days to grab your ticket!

Yeovil Literary Festival

October 25, 2025

An experience like no other. From a writer like no other...

Successfully published as an adult author, the Chronicles of Ancient Darkness (“Wolf Brother”) were her first books for younger readers, followed by her brilliant 5-part series set in the bronze age, Gods and Warriors. On the adult side, her first ghost story, Dark Matter, was a UK bestseller and won massive praise from reviewers and readers alike, as did her second ghost story, Thin Air.

Oxford Literary Festival 2026

March 29, 2026

The Oxford Literary Festival takes place in venues across central Oxford, such as Blackwell's bookshop, the Bodleian Library, the Sheldonian Theatre, the Weston Library, and Oxford colleges such as Christ Church and Worcester College. The festival includes international authors, journalists, intellectuals, historians, and poets.