Shadow Wolf — “Wolves of the Beyond” Series

In Lone Wolf, a young, pack-less wolf named Faolan became a member of the MacDuncan clan. As a malcadh, or a wolf born with an imperfection, Faolan is now relegated to the lowly position of gnaw wolf. Gnaw wolves gnaw (sculpt) tribal stories into bones. They also must perform submissive tasks for other clan members and rarely get anything but scraps after the rest of the tribe has eaten.

The strict patterns and rules of pack life are difficult for Faolan to accept and remember. When the wolves go on a hunt, Faolan chases the herd the way he might have as a lone wolf, without considering the pack’s hierarchy. His rogue behavior angers the pack and makes them lose the animals they were tracking. A young she-wolf named Mhairie is particularly angry. She had hoped this hunt would be her opportunity to shine.

Faolan is forced to apologize to all of the clans for his rebellious behavior. This punishment includes whining submissively, crawling on his belly and listening as each clan reads the story bone about his insubordination. He gains a bit of hope when the dying clan leader, Duncan MacDuncan, orders a gaddergnaw.

This is a contest in which gnaw wolves compete to be Watchers at the Ring of the Sacred Volcano. Watchers guard the precious Ember of Hoole, which is embedded in one of the craters. Duncan believes Faolan possesses the necessary skills to win. He dies, and the wolves howl him up the star ladder to the Cave of Souls.

Faolan watches the common ritual of an Obea wolf taking a malcadh pup from the camp and leaving her to die. He thinks about trying to rescue the pup, but he doesn’t. He knows this practice ensures the clan will remain strong. He recalls how an Obea left him to die because of his splayed paw, and how the great bear Thunderheart nursed him back to health.

He begins to wonder again about his birth mother and how she must have felt when he was taken from her. Faolan visits a wolf witch called the Sark of the Slough to see if she knows anything about his mother. The Sark makes potions to help grieving she-wolves forget their malcadh pups. The mother of the pup Faolan was watching is recovering in the Sark’s cave. The Sark doesn’t give Faolan any information, but seeing the grieving she-wolf makes him even more anxious to find his mother.

An owl named Gwynneth, who helped Faolan rejoin the wolves in the first book, also sees the abandoned pup. As she gets closer, she senses a wolf. It is brutally killing the pup, causing great agony. By the time Gwynneth arrives, the pup is dead. While she knows these pups are supposed to die, compassionate animals wish to see malcadhs die quickly and painlessly. Only an evil creature kills like this.

A she-wolf named Morag is Faolan’s mother. She now has a new mate and pups. She has tried to forget the silver malcadh who was taken from her. Nevertheless, the memories of him have started to return. She is also growing weaker, and her sight is failing. She tells her new mate about her malcadh pup and the painful memories.

He agrees to go with her to visit the Sark, hoping the witch can heal Morag. Even though the Sark knows Faolan, she makes no attempt to reunite him with Morag. She feels it is better for each of them not to know about the other.

Faolan returns to the place he’d seen the pup and finds evidence of a horrific death. He begins to gnaw on one of the pup’s bones, hoping to record the story of the young life cut short. He stops when he realizes he can’t tell the whole story yet. He starts to carry the pup’s bones to put them safely with Thunderheart’s paw bone. When he returns, the bone on which he had begun gnawing the story is gone.

Gwynneth goes to the Sark to tell her about the murdered pup. Together, they strive to solve the crime. The Gaddergnaw Games begin. Faolan and the other contestants participate in competitions — hunting and gnawing stories on bones. A falsely humble wolf named Heep is determined to destroy Faolan’s chances of joining the Watch. When Heep discovers a gnawing sound he makes with his teeth drives Faolan crazy, he uses it to throw Faolan off in competitions. Mhairie and her sister, Dearlea, become Faolan’s allies as he progresses in the contest.

Heep strives to secure his position and destroy Faolan by accusing Faolan of killing the malcadh pup. He even produces the story bone Faolan had begun to gnaw for the pup. Faolan begins his rebuttal, but the angry wolves are prepared to tear him apart for such an evil act. The Sark arrives and proves Faolan’s innocence. She also shows that Heep himself was the murderer.

Heep escapes. As the tribal leaders are awarding Faolan and another wolf positions on the Watch, Gwynneth sees Heep and two other wolves sniffing near where Faolan has buried Thunderheart’s paw bone. She knows how much the bone means to Faolan and hurries back to let him know. The wolves organize to capture Heep, but Faolan runs ahead.

He exchanges words with Heep. Then the spirits of important wolves from long ago appear to support him. Terrified, Heep and the other two wolves run to the far country known as the Outermost.