Strangely steampunk, without ever explicitly saying it was. It's a classic British tale of clever kids outwitting a cruel governess. The only flaw is that the ending is extremely contrived and ends on a bit too schmaltzy of a note, and all the stakes that harrowed the children throughout the book were non-existent in the first place. I like that the vicious wolves are juxtaposed with the adults who bring constant misfortune to the children, and that the title could be referring to them rather than the wolves which at some point are at least simple to understand in their motives and cruelty.