Review: What Lies in the Woods

What Lies in the Woods by Kate Alice Marshall
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I received an ARC of this book.
I enjoyed this book. It was a gripping mystery with a flawed heroine who made me root for her as she worked to uncover the truth about what happened to her and her friends when they were young girls and how that tragic event led to more mystery and tragedy in the present day.
Naomi returns to her hometown after the death of the man she helped put in prison decades ago. He was convicted of several counts of murder as well as the brutal stabbing of Naomi herself. Naomi and the friends who were with her that fateful day know there was some ambiguity about whether or not Naomi actually saw man they sent to jail commit the crime, and one of the friends wants to tell the truth. When she ends up dead Naomi sets about trying to find out what her friend knew, and whether or not that could have led to her death.
Naomi was a very flawed character who made some poor decisions, but it was easy for me to see her motivation and root for her to not only find the truth, but find a way to heal from her past. The mystery was very well done and the plot moved along with uncanny tension, pulling the reader deep into the story.  The hint of creepy magic added to the feeling of suspense and I did not want to put the book down. I did guess one big "twist" about half-way through, and when it was revealed about 70% in, I will admit I was a bit disappointed. But the story moved on at a great pace and when even more twists and turns came along I was very pleasantly surprised. I can't say that the final twist shocked me, but I also can't say that I shouldn't have seen it coming. I also really liked the way the author shed some light on society's obsession with true crime and how that obsession can affect those who were involved in those events.
I would recommend this book to anyone who likes mystery and suspense with a bit of creepiness thrown in.

View all my reviews