A review by reggiewoods
North Woods by Daniel Mason

dark emotional mysterious reflective relaxing sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

Following the traditional format of the Generational novel, Mason focuses on the area of land that connects the different eras as opposed to sticking strictly to blood ties. Each generation/era has it’s own narrator, narrative voice, style and format (journal, letters, third person, etc.) which is in its own way indicative of its time in history, but it doesn’t feel disjointed because Mason’s style is still present in them all. There are love stories, ghost stories, crime fiction and others, all with a familiar and human touch. I really enjoyed that Mason focused on his characters and their personal trials as opposed to playing up some kind of sinister mysticism about the woods itself. A solid example of modern-day literary novels.