What Lies in the Woods by Kate Alice Marshall Published by Flatiron Books (1.17.2023)
Genres: Young Adult, Thriller, Mystery
Format: Audiobook, 322 pages
Length: 11 hours, 16 minutes
Narrator: Karissa Vacker
Source: Library
They were eleven when they sent a killer to prison. They were heroes . . . but they were liars.
Naomi Shaw used to believe in magic. Twenty-two years ago, she and her two best friends, Cassidy and Olivia, spent the summer roaming the woods, imagining a world of ceremony and wonder. They called it the Goddess Game. The summer ended suddenly when Naomi was attacked. Miraculously, she survived her seventeen stab wounds and lived to identify the man who had hurt her. The girls’ testimony put away a serial killer, wanted for murdering six women. They were heroes.
And they were liars.
For decades, the friends have kept a secret worth killing for. But now Olivia wants to tell, and Naomi sets out to find out what really happened in the woods―no matter how dangerous the truth turns out to be.
My thoughts
This was an atmospheric and entertaining read! I don’t have much to say about it other than I enjoyed it. The narration was really good – I found the narrator to be engaging and she did a great job bringing the story to life. The air of mystery kept me invested, and there were plenty of twists along the way to keep me on my toes. I like that things were revealed slowly, giving just enough to keep you intrigued and wondering what would happen next.
The ending was not at all what I expected. Every time I thought I’d figured out where things were going, this book surprised me! The ending was pretty wild though…not something I would have guessed in a million years. This book isn’t one that will necessarily stick with me, but it was worth the read and I would definitely recommend it to anyone open to thrillers!
Overall assessment
Plot: 3.5/5
Premise: 4/5
Writing style: 4/5
Originality: 4/5
Characters: 3/5
World-building: 4/5
Pace: 4/5
Feels: 2/5
Narration: 4/5
Cover: 3/5
Overall rating: 4/5
A Flicker in the Dark by Stacy Willingham Published by Minotaur Books (1.11.2022)
Genres: Adult, Mystery, Thriller
Format: Audiobook, 357 pages
Length: 11 hours, 6 minutes
Narrator: Karissa Vacker
Source: Library
When Chloe Davis was twelve, six teenage girls went missing in her small Louisiana town. By the end of the summer, Chloe’s father had been arrested as a serial killer and promptly put in prison. Chloe and the rest of her family were left to grapple with the truth and try to move forward while dealing with the aftermath.
Now 20 years later, Chloe is a psychologist in private practice in Baton Rouge and getting ready for her wedding. She finally has a fragile grasp on the happiness she’s worked so hard to get. Sometimes, though, she feels as out of control of her own life as the troubled teens who are her patients. And then a local teenage girl goes missing, and then another, and that terrifying summer comes crashing back. Is she paranoid, and seeing parallels that aren't really there, or for the second time in her life, is she about to unmask a killer?
In a debut novel that has already been optioned for a limited series by actress Emma Stone and sold to a dozen countries around the world, Stacy Willingham has created an unforgettable character in a spellbinding thriller that will appeal equally to fans of Gillian Flynn and Karin Slaughter.
My thoughts
This was good, not great. I mostly enjoyed it while listening because I liked the narrator, but overall it wasn’t a memorable read. I had to look up a recap to even remember what had happened because I’d already forgotten everything. I do remember that I didn’t like any of the characters very much. Even the MC wasn’t very likable and I didn’t really connect to the story. I also found it to be predictable – the red herrings were WAY too obvious, in my opinion. I remember thinking, Wow, these signs are OBVIOUSLY pointing to x person, so it’s definitely not them seeing as how it’s barely halfway through. I’ve only just begun to scratch the surface of the mystery/thriller genre, and even I felt like this was a pretty generic, run-of-the-mill thriller. It wasn’t bad or anything, it’s just one of those books that you enjoy while reading and then never think about again.
Overall assessment
Plot: 3/5
Premise: 3.5/5
Writing style: 3/5
Originality: 3.5/5
Characters: 2/5
Pace: 4/5
Feels: 1/5
Narration: 4/5
Cover: 2/5
Overall rating: 3/5
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