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Wild Dark Shore

Longlisted for the Women's Prize for Fiction 2026

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Wild Dark Shore

By: Charlotte McConaghy
Narrated by: Cooper Mortlock, Katherine Littrell, Saskia Maarleveld, Steve West
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THE INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER
'Breathtaking' HANNAH KENT
'Spellbinding' Washington Post
'A wildly talented writer' EMILY ST JOHN MANDEL
A family on a remote island. A mysterious woman washed ashore. A storm gathering force.

Dominic Salt and his three children are caretakers of Shearwater, a tiny weather-lashed island that is home to the world’s largest seed bank. As Shearwater risks being lost to rising sea levels, the island’s researchers have fled, and only the Salts remain.

Until, during the worst storm in living memory, a stranger washes ashore. The family nurse the woman, Rowan, back to strength, but it seems she isn’t telling the whole truth about why she’s there. And when Rowan stumbles upon sabotaged radios and a recently dug grave, she realises that she’s not the only one on the island with a secret.

A novel of breathtaking twists, dizzying beauty and ferocious love, Wild Dark Shore is about the impossible choices we make to protect the people we love. Psychological Thriller & Suspense Exciting Heartfelt
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Critic reviews

Spellbinding . . . Captivating . . . McConaghy keeps the novel moving at a blustery pace, thanks to her deft plotting and shared point of view . . . To read this exceptionally imagined, thoroughly humane novel feels like following the last people on Earth as they prepare to leave some part of their souls to the most beautiful place they'll ever know
Vivid . . . Moving . . . Wild Dark Shore abounds with evocative nature writing . . . We're shown why a person might withdraw from the messiness of life after tragedy and trauma . . . The novel also offers its injured characters a path back to connection and community, a risk McConaghy argues must be worth taking, no matter how fraught the future
At once a gripping mystery, an exquisitely written ode to the natural world, and a taut, psychological thriller, Wild Dark Shore is a triumph. Charlotte McConaghy is masterful in her ability to show the intricate connections between place and the human heart, and Wild Dark Shore shows her at the height of her powers. Breathtaking (HANNAH KENT)
A gripping tale . . . With a breathtaking setting and characters you'll love, Wild Dark Shore is a suspenseful and moving must-read
Look no further if you're searching for a thriller that reads like top-class literary fiction. Written in sparse, haunting prose, Wild Dark Shore features characters so clearly drawn, you'll feel as if you're stuck on fictional Shearwater Island with them
A suspenseful, rushing read, full of short chapters, emotional twists, and a landscape it's all too easy to sink into and live in. Wild Dark Shore is an exceptional book that hands readers a bittersweet helping of sorrow and joy, sounding a clarifying call towards a symbiotic survival that prioritizes our need to do more than simply subsist: to put trust in each other and in the nature that surrounds us
Riveting . . . McConaghy's descriptions of nature's glory and terror are galvanic, the psychological struggles wrenching, the suspenseful action spectacularly choreographed. McConaghy has attained new heights of intensity and lacerating ecological conviction in this complexly plotted, tragic, and all-consuming tale of the battle to survive
[A] terrific thriller . . . McConaghy keeps readers guessing . . . McConaghy writes about both nature and human frailty with eloquent generosity. Readers won't want to leave behind the imagined world of pain and beauty that McConaghy has conjured
Urgent . . . McConaghy ratchets up the tension as the characters' paranoia and mutual suspicion increases and their motives are revealed . . . McConaghy blends entertainment with a sobering message about conservation and the impacts of geographic isolation
Praise for Once There Were Wolves: Blazing . . . Visceral . . . As McConaghy shows in this stunning book, the limits of language lead us to the limits of empathy
All stars
Most relevant
This book is just breathtaking.

The narration is superb.

The story is delightfully unpredictable, the descriptions of the wildlife and landscape are breathtaking. The writing is subtle yet so thoughtful, the penguins, the whales, the seed stores, the Salt Family, the ocean and the waves, the seals, everything all so well written.

A masterpiece.

Utterly superb - what a brilliant book!

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Sad? Feeling hopeless about the state of the world? If you’re not already depressed. After reading this, you soon will be.

Cheerful

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The actor reading for Dom is too melodramatic and breathy. He’s channelling Karl Urban (who I know is Kiwi!!) to laughable affect, sounding like ‘hard Aussie guy’ caricature.

I like the story, the intrigue & tension but this guys voice takes me out of it and my eyes hurts from rolling so much. I’m going to stop the audio and read the book instead. The other actors are good, what a pity.

Male narrator ruined it for me

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At first I wasn’t sure. It’s not my usual book, but I’ve seen a lot of recommendations for it. So I gave it a go, and so glad I did. The story was beautiful. With the different voices reading the story I could really imagine them, and the things they were explaining.
I cried a few times!

First book of 2026

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Best book iv read of 2026. Great listen! Highly recommend, you won’t be disappointed at all.

Best book of the year

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