There Will Be Wolves

The Crusades Trilogy

by Karleen Bradford

Ursula, condemned as a witch because of her knowledge of healing, escapes being burned to death when she joins her father and thousands of others who follow Peter the Hermit on the first Crusade from Cologne to Jerusalem in 1096. Reprint.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Young Adult, Childrens, Fiction, Historical, Adventure, Middle Grade

195 pages, Paperback

First published December 31, 1969

Reviews

[Frustrated Student · Rating 1 out of 5]

I have to read this book for my English class and it's absolutely terrible. Do not recommend.

[Erin · Rating 5 out of 5]

I first read this book which I received as a gift from a relative. I do believe that it was the first book that I read which related the historical events of the Crusades. I've read this book since and Karleen Bradford always manages to transfer me back to this long forgotten time period

[Jessica · Rating 2 out of 5]

Definitely not the best book. Personally I wouldn't pick this book up and read it. Since I didn't get a say in if I read it or not I had to give it a chance. I thought it would get interesting or better but it didn't. The main character bugged me a lot. Mostly because of her choices. It was an award winner but it was also written in the 19 hundreds. The title doesn't make sense either, There will Be Wolves. There are no wolves in this book, Except for the wolf head hanging up in Ursula's house. It kinda set off a message though, about the crusade and used a teenager as the main character. ....

[There Will · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book is an absolute shitshow. My name is completely right. I have to read this for my English teacher but so far its been a waste if time. He made us read the entire book and then review how Ursala changed and i couldn't give 2 flying fucks. I hate this book. Instead of wasting my time reading this form of torture, I've been playing run on coolmathgames, which is what you should do instead of reading this burning pile of garbage>:(

[Ashley · Rating 4 out of 5]

I could not for the life of me remember the title or author of this book and it was driving me crazy because I remembered loving it as a kid.

What I now find most interesting is that once I found it, I realized it takes place during the First Crusade in 1096, which I had completely forgotten about that until I reread the summary. What's fascinating is that I am still totally obsessed with that time period and just recently (within the last few weeks) finished a research paper for my Perspectives on Globalization class, about the effects of the Crusades on Islam of the Middle Ages, focusing on the Muslim population in the first seige of Jerusalem!! Strange right? Religious discrimination and the violence/dark side of "God's War" are the major themes in this book, that I read at the tender age of 13.... and I would then go on to write a University level paper on the same thing when I returned to school as an adult years later! And THEN, just weeks later, finally remember to research this book that I rememberd loving as a kid, but couldn't really remember what it was about...? Kinda cool. I guess religion and it's history have always been fascinating to me.

I now know that I have to reread this book. Even if it's too young, I just have to do myself the favor, knowing what I know now through my research for my paper, and g through it again to see what I think of it now.

Can't wait.

[EWR · Rating 4 out of 5]

In this book the main character Ursula travels on a journey to free Jerusalem from Islamic rule. She experiences the raiding of villages and the decimation of armies on the battlefield. From the daughter of a healer to what many people considered a holy person, she marches with Peter the Hermit’s army on the Peoples Crusade.

A couple things that I liked about this book was that unlike many books that feature the Dark Ages, the main character is a woman that is confident, smart, and different from everyone from the period. Another thing that I liked was that the author used some terms that I feel would be used back in, with almost no spelling or grammar mistakes which to me is quite impressive. She also made Ursula have the character of many men, while her friend, Bruno is always scared, unsettled, or worried.

Something I did not like about this book is that sometimes I would forget where they were, as it was not mentioned a lot and I would sometimes get confused. The historical reality of this book is quite good, they used the same methods of travel and the challenges and encounters within the book had almost always actually happened.

[Karyn Huenemann · Rating 5 out of 5]

Karleen Bradford has recreated the People’s Crusade with a careful attention to historicity: her characters are believable and stay true to their medieval sensibilities. Even in the end, Ursula’s view of her world remains consistent. It is a monumental achievement on the part of the author; creating believable characters from such a harsh, unforgiving period of history is no easy task. The plot itself skims over much of the actual pilgrimage, focusing on essential points to help the reader understand the changes that occurred in the atmosphere of the Crusade and the attitudes of the People Crusaders. I would recommend this far before Karen Cushman’s Catherine, Called Birdy in terms of representation of this period; it lies between the comfort of Cushman’s novel and the graphic warfare of John Wilson’s Heretic series (also exceptional). For the more sensitive reader, Bradford is perfect: the reality is reflected, the horror is portrayed, but the graphic details are minimized.

[Tori Stapells · Rating 2 out of 5]

There will be wolves was somewhat boring, but during boring times there was some interesting things that happened, like when Ursula ran for her life. I didn't like this book that much, I did like, however, when entertaining things happened or when there was a change to the boring parts. It mostly describes a boring journey of a girl surviving the crusade. The book was poorly written with a boring plot and very boring descriptions.I like how it goes so far back to the past to describe a crusade though.

[Kellyn · Rating 2 out of 5]

The three main characters in this story join Peter the Hermit and Count Emil on the first Crusade in 1096. Bradford describes the conditions of traveling with thousands on this journey and the deaths and destruction wrecked on the way. The details are very graphic and not appropriate for younger readers.

The ending was disappointing; still, this is a good resource for fiction set during this little-known time.

[Katie · Rating 2 out of 5]

"...the adventure is gripping, the insights into human nature are uncompromising." (Quill & Quire)

They aren't kidding. It puts the "adult" in young adult fiction by describing looting, kidnapping, slaughter, theft, drug addiction, child abuse and rape. The book, however, is factually accurate, and helps explain why "crusader" is an epithet in Muslim countries.

I found the description of the journey more interesting than characters which are two-dimensional at best.

[Gerald Smith · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book looked interesting.. at first. A couple pages in I was knew it was going to be terrible. Unfortunately I continued reading and was very disappointed; bland characters, terrible story, bad writing, below my reading level, and not even historically accurate. Absolute waste of time. Avoid this book at all costs.

[Joe · Rating 1 out of 5]

have to read this shit for school
kinda lame

[Nathaniel pissed · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book was absolute shit. Had to read it for school. Was a waste of my time. Thanks a lot Mr. Tann.

[Amara · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have to read this for English and I thought I would hate it but I just finished it and I loved it, the plot was awesome and the characters had amazing layers to them. If you like historical fiction novels I would definitely recommend because I don’t usually and I loved this book.

[Debi Robertson · Rating 3 out of 5]

A young adult book with an interesting perspective of the crusades. Well written.

[Awallens · Rating 2 out of 5]

Round up to 2.5 stars.

[Manethraen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Six word reviews:

Great young adult read, simple characters

[Kristy McRae · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very interesting YA story that takes place during the Crusades. Gritty and disturbing at times, but that's completely accurate for the subject matter.

[Lynne Page · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not sure why this was recommended to me, as it's really not my kind of reading. But it was good writing nonetheless.

[Emmaline · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5
Ursula was a bit annoying with her pride but other than that I liked it

[I Like · Rating 1 out of 5]

Who the fucks name is Ursula

[Willow Polson · Rating 4 out of 5]

a book i read for school! very good, a little slow to get through, confusing at the end

[Allie · Rating 2 out of 5]

I remember reading this in middle school and it may not have held up as well I remembered but damn was it easy to read

[Jaimie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was one of my all time favourites when I was younger - it had adventure, a sassy heroine, an interesting historical setting, and just a touch of romance, so it really hit all the marks back then. Reading the book now, there’s still a lot of appeal here, even if the language and narrative is simplified for a younger audience. Bradford gets her readers into the thick of one of history’s most important events, the People’s Crusade, alongside protagonist Ursula, a young German girl who travels alongside her father who has been hired to act as Count Emil’s personal healer. Ursula’s father is swept up in the holy mania of the Crusade, but his choice to go along is also to save Ursula’s life; she has been accused and found guilty of witchcraft for practising her father’s healing arts, and going on the Crusade to Jerusalem will cleanse her of her perceived sins. To modern readers, the concept of these holy wars seems kind of insane, considering that we know in hindsight that the Crusades did very little to “save” the Holy Lands, so we automatically sympathize with Ursula’s viewpoint that religious mania should at least be questioned, but Bradford makes an effort to show us how religion really was a driving factor in the lives of the general population at the time. Some, like Ursula and her father, went along not just to fulfill a religious obligation, but also as a practical means to an end to support themselves - or were just thrown into the situation, as can happen. While Bradford’s narrative was a bit choppy at times, I found the characters well-developed and believable, which goes a long way to opening up historical stories.

[Georgia W · Rating 1 out of 5]

An Apothecary's daughter embarks on a journey after being accused of witchery, a Crusade said to relieve her of her sins. On the way, she discovers a darker truth about the Crusade yet perseveres on the dangerous mission.
One thing I enjoyed about this book is it is very historically accurate and taught me about the Crusades. However, I feel this book was lacking in emotion. I found the description very poor and the characters seemed rather bland and without feelings. I also feel this book was very long in the lower, anti-climactic parts and when something very important happened with would be over in a few sentences.
This book was very historically accurate. It follows Ursula, the Apothecary's daughter as she marches with the first Peoples Crusade and meets new people along the way.
Overall, I would rate this book a 2.5 out of 5. Personally, I found it quite dull and I didn't feel any connection with the characters.

[Elizabeth · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a great book for any child or adult to read about the Peoples’ Crusade. A fictional book filled with details of the days of the Crusades.

The story of Ursala, the daughter of an apothecary, is put on trial for witchcraft when she is caught with a secret book and a dog who’s broken bone she mended.

An epic tale of one girls’ journey to “free” herself of her sin or so the archbishop said. She loses her father on the way to Jerusalem and buries her only family member.

She returns to her home city after most of the people were killed by the villagers and Muslims. The only ones that return with her are Bruno a man she has fallen in love with and Verity an orphan she has adopted as her own.

She rebuilds her life and starts her own apothecary shop.

[Liana · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reading this book was an adventure! Many times it had me sitting tensely in my seat, eyes glued to the pages. Other times it had me a teeeeny bit bored too, but it made up for it! (It did, it did, it really did!)

The whole plot was very enjoyable. My favorite parts were actually near the beginning though, when Ursula is accused of being a witch, and near the end with that satisfying ending!

The characters were good. I personally really liked Ursula, the main character. I don't normally favor main characters, but I really liked her development the most!

I'll have to read this book again when I get the chance. I think those who like stories about crusades will really enjoy this book!

[Sula · Rating 2 out of 5]

I found this book alright and probably would have given it three stars but I just didn't really enjoy it at any point. It reminded me a bit of those 'educational historical fiction books' that always seem to be lacking something somewhere and a bit flat. The sort that only gets read once or twice when there's nothing better to read. Almost all the characters could be divided pretty much into 'bland good' or 'stereotypical nasty' - there was little nuance and they did not feel like real people.
However, the writing itself wasn't too bad (unlike most 'educational historical books') and it makes a change to read a book set in the Crusades. So probably 2.5 stars.

[Marianne · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a great historical novel. I knew general things about the Crusades, but his brought them to life in a more personal manner. What tragic events she portrayed them to be. Bruno and the foil and doubter of the Crusades merit put a whole new light on the idea for me. I had known that any went for adventure and many went because they had no choice, but I hadn't thought of those civilians caught up in the fervor and circumstance. I can't wait for Mary to read it and see what she thinks.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was overall a great book, I read it in English class for Literary Circles and I thought it was amazing. The story really had my full attention from the start. Only thing I didn't really like was the ending. SPOILER ALERT! With Ursula's marriage, the secret door, the sack of coins... It was too rushed. I feel like the author could've done a better job for the ending. Otherwise, excellent read.