A really creepy and angry book from the view point of a girl accused of being a witch. It said somewhere that this is a unique witchy book and it is. Not about the witch trials but the reality of a girl at the mercy of the men around her. There are scenes of violence and fear but this was so raw that it felt real at times. A very unique spin on the witchery kind of novels. The poison garden and the way she buries her mother at the start. This is fascinating stuff.
Not set anywhere in particular but it is in medieval times and since the author mentions Finland and Sweden in her author notes, I imagine it's somewhere here....more
The chilling cover made me wnat to read. It didn’t take me long to get freaked out either.
The cabin in the woods turns out to be a refuge when a woman named Rose goes there to escape. She’s got plenty to escape – namely a bad relationship, fear, danger and so much more. The novel flits between the now, and the then, when we see how Rose came to be where she is today and why. She had quite a good life before it would seem. She had money, a high-class life and a charming character. Ryan makes her feel special. Well, at first.
There’s darkness in this novel and it’s not just what goes on in the cabin in the woods. There are bad things in Rose’s past and indeed present, and there’s traces of abuse of many kinds in the novel, The author drip feeds you with snippets from Rose’s past and background and it keeps the tension going. You’re never sure what is going to happen. Sometimes things are a bit unlikely shall we say, but that’s the fun part of this novel. Things like this could happen. Unlikely but still could happen.
Just what has Rose got into? Well that would be telling but it was a blast finding out. Tell you what, by the time you have been in the cabin in the woods with Rose, you really feel as the tension rising, the suspense making you feel faint and the ending just…..well. What a blast....more
I do enjoy these locked room type mysteries and this is no exception. This is a character based novel where seven Discover the locations in the novel
I do enjoy these locked room type mysteries and this is no exception. This is a character based novel where seven 'friends' are in a nature reserve on Boxing Day on a nature hunt. They are bird watching and spending time in this vast wilderness. No-one else should be on the site. But then a shot rings out..
This was good. The scene setting excellent as even this is set in a fictional nature reserve, we have all been somewhere similar and it was easy to imagine the visitor centre, hides and wooded areas. One of the characters is deaf and this was a particularly interesting thread to the story. How she coped losing her hearing aid, what insight she had on the others as she could read lips and body language better than them....
The author drip feeds information about the group slowly but surely and each chapter is a different character talking about what they see, what they hear and what secrets they are hiding. There's lots of interesting threads weaving around the group as you read. Then, at the end, the author invites you to pull that thread, and one character comes closer and closer...
I really enjoyed this. Good writing, excellent pacing and insightful characterisation. The ending was twisty! Oh what a tangled web they weave these people.
That cover is just perfect for the story within....more
This book is quite a journey! One where I laughed, cried and laughed some more. I travelled all the way from England to Australia and then on New Caledonia. Margery is the woman who sets off to look for a golden beetle. Not just any beetle mind you – that’s the magic of the story you’ll have to discover on your own. It’s also a journey of discovery for Margery herself
Never has a book made me chuckle and cry in quite the same amounts at the same time. There are some really laugh out loud moments here. Margery is one of my favourite character I have come across in a long time. She’s quirky, a bit ditsy, socially awkward and often made fun of.. It’s not until she meets perhaps someone even more unusual than she is, does she come into her own.
The characterisation is so strong here to the point you can almost touch these people. Just listen:
“She was a sweet person, but her intelligence was saved for special occasions.”
Rachel Joyce can carve real people with feelings and wonderment just from words. Characters who smile, laugh and cry with you.
Margery and her assistant Edith are wonderful in every sense of the world. The banter and camaraderie between them, having only just met is a delight to behold. I wanted to go on this journey with them for real. Such warmth and love, wit and humour. Margery’s passion for this beetle shines through. We know some of her story but not much about Edith. That works really well as the two find out about each other.
Their journey takes over from their search for the beetle although I was still very keen to find out if they found it or not. The book started as one journey and ended up as quite another.
The travelling to New Caledonia was a background to the unfolding story but it was beautifully done. Weaving its tropical magic throughout until a very unique and fitting ending.
Aah Margery! Someone needs to write a song about you....more
Eve Chase has written a novel of fairytale-esque imagery and an ethereal, timeless quality to it. It’s set in the Forest of Dean which takes on a whole fairytale, gothic quality to it and it’s so vivid, dark and immersive that you are soon drawn in a world of wonder.
Three narrators and two timelines give you a bird’s eye view of the forest and those within. There’s the present day story which takes you back to that of the past; the time when a body was found in the forest. A family took a holiday in the Forest of Dean. The mother of the family was in particular need of a rest and some relaxation if not recuperation from her life at that time.
The story is at once gothic, timeless and of the Brothers Grimm variety. You see if unravel in front of you and it’s a whirl of a read. Think of that terrarium on the cover – think of the novel taking place inside and you, the reader, looking straight inside it. Then you get to see inside both the forest and the house, the characters within.
What goes on in that house and in the forest over the years is interesting. Add to that a mix of characters who have many problems with their mental health that weren’t recognised at the time, real trauma, and you have a fascinating story on all sides. The novel contains a few ‘domestic noir’ images here and it was easy to feel for the well-developed characters with their various dramas. Together with the world of that dark forest and you have a wonderful multilayered read.
The nature of the dual timelines and the three voices were like a fern in that forest, unraveling and going in different directions at the same time.Great use of plot, technique and atmosphere I thought. It felt like a play unfolding on a stage with that forest as a backdrop which could hold its own as a character where they themselves were just ‘anon’
A reading experience set in a magical setting and I’m now off to buy one of those terrariums...more
Turn up the creep factor with this one! I wanted to read something set in the woods as woods are often the creepiest place you can go - at least in a Turn up the creep factor with this one! I wanted to read something set in the woods as woods are often the creepiest place you can go - at least in a crime novel - and this is no exception. The Memory wood luckily is not a real place - well, it's several places although it's loosely set in Wales.
A cat and mouse game between an abductor and their victim. Characterisation and mind games are what drive this novel and it's a head twist to read.
Weirdly compelling but also a bit weird in the normal sense of the word. There's twists and turns later on and that 13 year old victim has to try and outwit whoever took her. ...more
This is an early review I know but put this on your lists to be read NOW. It’s one of my best books of the year. Oh sweet all that is good in the bookshop – this is a brilliant read from start to finish. And what a finish! Totally taken aback. Didn’t see that coming at all!
The Six Stories is one of the best series I’ve read in a long time and this is my favourite yet. I read it in daylight hours just to be on the safe side. Just as well – this book is creepy and then some. That forest might be fictional but it felt real, let me tell you! It’s all so beautifully crafted – the woods, the noises , the darkness, the fear, the unknown and those legends of changelings, fairy folk and the Wentshire witch.
Read each of the podcast stories slowly and soak it all in – it’s hauntingly good and superbly atmospheric. The writing is as top notch as ever and I really think Matt has surpassed himself this time. Wentshire Woods certainly felt very creep and real to me. Hauntingly atmospheric and lyrically pitch perfect.
Advice from the BookTrail? Put this on your wish list and buy the other two in the series. You might not be able to travel there for real but in your mind and heart and the deepest pit of fear in your chest, you can…...more
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