Winter of the Wolf by Martha Hunt Handler is a deft and balanced meld of sleuth, spirituality, and mystery, a story that follows fifteen-year-old Bean as she undertakes the journey to prove that her brother, Sam, didn’t take his own life. While every available evidence indicates that her brother committed suicide, Bean chooses to listen to her heart and follow her intuition. And with the help of her friend, Julie, can she unravel the mystery surrounding her brother’s death?

Cunningly plotted and expertly executed, Winter of the Wolf features strong spiritual themes, a tale that explores the place of intuition in our connectedness with nature and loved ones. Bean is a young female protagonist that arrests the interest of the reader immediately. She is well-executed and the author allows the pain in her heart as well as the light that guides her to permeate the narrative and infuse it with energy. Her world as a high schooler is depicted with ingenuity and realism.

Martha Hunt Handler is an incredible storyteller who creates unforgettable characters and a world that readers can easily fit into; the plot is twisty, the prose is crisp, and the characters are realistic. Winter of the Wolf is a dizzyingly enticing tale and a kaleidoscopic examination of the prominent place that intuition occupies in our relationships with those we have loved and lost, the elements of nature that surround us, and our perception of the world. Martha Hunt Handler gives proof of a balanced style in composing fiction that is elegant and utterly engaging. This is a propulsive, pulse-pounding, and suspenseful novel that will awaken the souls of readers in unexpected ways.