From Kai

Thank You for the Wolf Brother books (*Spoiler Alert* to those who haven’t read Wolfbane!)

Thank You for the Wolf Brother books (*Spoiler Alert* to those who haven’t read Wolfbane!)
Kai Writes…

Hi Michelle, this isn't a question, but a sincere thank you. I read COAD for the first time as a nine-year-old, and while I'd always loved playing in the woods and had an interest in bushcraft (and wolves!), your series got me truly obsessed. In large part because of your books, I have learned over the last 15 years as many ancestral skills and primitive technologies as I can get my hands on. I now brain tan deer hides, knap flint, practice archery, build friction fires, and practice many other methods Torak and Renn would have used. It kicked off my wolf obsession, which led me to volunteer at Mission:Wolf in Westcliffe, Colorado, a captive bred wolf sanctuary very similar to its Berkshire cousin. I would write my undergraduate thesis on wolf reintroduction in the American West, and interned at University College Dublin's Center for Experimental Archaeology and Material Culture to learn about Irish bushcraft and archaeology. If you happen to know Dr. Theresa Emmerich Kamper at University of Exeter, she taught me how to make buckskin when I was a teenager. Today at work, I tracked snakes and minks through my employer's horse pastures and thought of Torak's tracking trance. Adulthood is wonderful, but hard, and reading your books brings me back to the primal joy of being a human in the forest. I can't tell you what an influence COAD has been, and continues to be, on me as a writer, person, and practitioner of ancestral skills. These books are part of me. Thank you for sharing them with the world.
I also want to thank you and celebrate you for giving Dark a mate in Kujai. First off, I love Dark and was so happy to see him get a happy ending! But more importantly, thank you for making their relationship just like any other in the COAD universe. I'm American and queer, and my current government is actively trying to demonize my community as an aberrant thing, as are plenty of other backwards people in this world. But as you, I and countless indigenous cultures worldwide know, queer people have always existed, even in the Stone Age, and always will. Thank you for representing that truth in print, especially during such dark times. It means a lot.
I could gush about these stories until the wolves come home, so I'll leave by saying I hope I can meet you in person some day and thank you face to face. In the meantime, thank you for these wonderful books that have helped make me who I am.

Michelle Replies…

Dear Kai, thank you so much for this wonderful message.  I’m delighted that the Wolf Brother stories inspired your wolf studies – not to mention your pursuit of bushcraft, archaeology and conservation – all of which are truly impressive for one still so young! And thank you for sharing that gorgeous picture!  The black wolf strongly reminds me of one I got to know well during my research at the Wolf Trust in Berkshire (apart from the different eye colour, that is); and it’s such a vivid close-up that I want to reach out and stroke her paw!  Finally, I’m really pleased that you liked the storyline of Dark and Kujai.  You’re not alone in this.  I can well understand that these feel like dark times, particularly given how some are trying to demonise different parts of society.  But personally, I take heart from the fact that since I was a child back in the 1960s, things have, in the main, improved for those in the LGBTQ+  community – although not worldwide, of course.  And I hope and trust that this improvement won’t prove easy to turn back.  But enough of that.  Thank you again for getting in touch – and may your studies and your wolf work go from strength to strength!  With very best wishes, Michelle


Upcoming Live Events With Michelle

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Hay Festival Book Club – Dark Matter

October 14, 2025

Michelle in conversation with Danny Robins - this is a FREE online event!

Timeless titles to offer you a break from the day to day. Can't decide what to read next? Follow your curiosity and join Hay Festival on a journey to imagine the world anew through great literature. Unconstrained by genre or form these are our monthly picks of great books worth reading (or re-reading) right now.

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Tuesday 14 October, 7–8pm BST

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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.

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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 . . .
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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.

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Toppings Bookshop, Ely

October 29, 2025

It’s nearly Halloween! Where better to get in the Gothic mood than with Michelle’s spine-chilling world of the supernatural? Come along if you’re in the Ely area (book your place first) and enjoy a thrilling evening of shadows!

Venue: St Peter's Church
Broad Street,
Ely
Cambridgeshire CB7 4BB

Doors Open 6.40pm Start Time 7pm

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Shadows and Spirits: Writing the Unseen

October 30, 2025

Step into the shadows with three masters of modern Gothic and supernatural fiction - Michelle, Syd Moore and CJ Cooke - as they explore why dark stories continue to captivate us. From haunted coastlines to Arctic wastelands, and from age-old folklore to the secrets of the human psyche, these acclaimed authors weave tales that blur the boundaries between the real and the uncanny. In this compelling conversation, they’ll discuss the enduring appeal of the Gothic, the influence of myth and landscape, and why stories of ghosts, spirits, and things unseen still resonate in today’s world. Expect insights, chills, and a celebration of fiction that thrives in the shadows. Tickets are limited so get them while you can!

Goldsboro Books
23-27 Cecil Court
London WC2N 4EZ
Time: 6.30pm (doors from 6pm)

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Women in Horror Weekend

November 1, 2025

Come and celebrate Women in Horror Weekend with Waterstones Nottingham! Including author talks from the some of the best women writers in horror, a classic film screening and spooky goody bags and workshops from Lush Nottingham! Michelle will be in conversation with Julia Armfield on Saturday from 5;15pm onwards... See you there!

Waterstones Nottingham
1/5 Bridlesmith Gate
Nottingham NG1 2GR
Te. 0115 9470069

Only 42 days to grab your ticket!

WINTER HAUNTS 2025

November 15, 2025

Online event! Ghost story, gothic and supernatural fiction day 10:30am - 6:30pm GMT... Michelle with Lucy Rose, Jess Kidd, Emilia Hart, CJ Cooke, Hollie Starling, Emma Glass. Connect with fellow fans of the strange, the eerie, and the otherworldly!

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.