Reviews

"There is no history in a place until we make it, until you live a life worth remembering."

This book consumed me, in the best way possible. I was thinking about it when I wasn't listening to it; I talked to my people about it, I wondered what was going on. It was just that good.

Travis Wren has been hired to find Maggie St. James, a children's book author who has gone missing. He treks deep into the northern California woods to try to find any trace of her, going only by the hint of "Pastoral". Later, in that exact commune deep in the forest, Calla and Theo and Bea are living their lives, told never to leave the boundaries of the town for fear of the rot that will seep into their skin if they do. But Theo has secretly been leaving, going a little further each day, and he discovers a truck not far from the boundary, making him start to question everything he lives by.

I adored The Wicked Deep, but was lukewarm on Winterwood. I love Shea's writing style and the *~vibes~* because when they work together, boy, do they work. And I was thrilled to find that this book showcased her at her best, with beautiful writing, creepy vibes galore, and wonderful, compelling characters.

Right from the start, I was gripped by this story. Travis sees the echoes of things when he touches them, who has touched them before, that kind of thing, and following him as he searches for Maggie drew me in instantly. And the cliffhanger at the end of his initial chapters left me absolutely clamoring for more - where the heck did he go? What did he find? Who was coming towards him on that isolated road in the middle of nowhere?

Once we skipped into Pastoral proper, I wondered if we'd go back and forth in time, how we'd get back to Travis and Maggie. I was constantly wondering where they went, how it happened, why we spent so much time with Travis and Calla and Bea. It was so fun finding out what was really going on.

Bea is the best part of this book for me. Her journey is so, SO satisfying. Theo and Calla and everyone in Pastoral had such vivid personalities, and the audiobook narrators were wonderful too. They brought them to life so well and brought out what made them, them. A few characters were just masterfully written; Levi had me eating out of the palm of his hand for a while there.

The ending also came as a surprise, but of the best kind. Despite everything, I now want to run away and join a forest commune. So, there's that.

This book just has everything I love. Compelling characters, unpredictable plot, beautiful writing. I highly, highly recommend it.