Title: In the Woods They Wait
Author: Carrie Lee South
Genre: Mystery/thriller
Rating: 3 out of 5
Fifteen years ago, Audrey Figg’s little brother, Benny, vanished on a family vacation to Devil’s Den state park, a day that split her life in two.
Now, Audrey is a park ranger in the very same woods with expertise in wilderness search and rescue. Audrey has found a rhythm to her training new rangers, tending to injured hikers, protecting the backcountry, and still, searching.
When a little girl, Ivy, suddenly goes missing on the trails, Audrey can’t help but notice the similarities to her own brother’s case. As Audrey widens the scope of her search, she begins to believe Ivy wasn’t merely lost; it looks like she was taken by something—and maybe Benny was too. Yet the closer Audrey comes to answers, the more old memories push to the surface. Audrey is haunted not only by her brother’s loss, but a terrible secret from that day. A secret she has never shared with anyone.
I don’t think this was a terribly good fit for me. I didn’t really like Audrey much. She spent way too much time feeling sorry for herself and being rude to everyone around her because she was so much better than everyone else. She came across as very judge-y. This novel did not make me want to be out in the woods at night, so it had some creepiness going for it, but honestly, I was so annoyed by the stupid things Audrey kept doing that I didn’t really care what happened to her.
Carrie Lee South lives in Arkansas. In the Woods They Wait is her newest novel.
(Galley courtesy of Little, Brown and Company in exchange for an honest review.)
