What Lies in the Woods What Lies in the Woods

What Lies in the Woods

A Novel

    • 4.3 • 324 Ratings
    • $11.99
    • $11.99

Publisher Description

They were eleven when they sent a killer to prison. They were heroes . . . but they were liars.

Kate Alice Marshall's What Lies in the Woods is a thrilling novel about friendship, secrets, betrayal, and lies - and having the courage to face the past.

"Clever and deliciously dark.” —Alice Feeney, bestselling author of Rock Paper Scissors
“Unexpected plot twists, deep psychological perspicacity, and an endlessly interesting dance between past and present...evokes the dread and intensity of Gillian Flynn’s Sharp Objects.” —New York Times Book Review

Naomi Shaw used to believe in magic. Twenty-two years ago, she and her two best friends, Cassidy and Olivia, spent the summer roaming the woods, imagining a world of ceremony and wonder. They called it the Goddess Game. The summer ended suddenly when Naomi was attacked. Miraculously, she survived her seventeen stab wounds and lived to identify the man who had hurt her. The girls’ testimony put away a serial killer, wanted for murdering six women. They were heroes.

And they were liars.

For decades, the friends have kept a secret worth killing for. But now Olivia wants to tell, and Naomi sets out to find out what really happened in the woods—no matter how dangerous the truth turns out to be.

What Lies In the Woods is a gorgeous fever dream of a novel about the dangers lurking in the hearts and imaginations of little girls. Kate Alice Marshall deftly charts a winding path through her creepy woods, doubling back and changing course to build a labyrinth of secrets and lies in which I was delighted to lose myself for hours. Hands down, it's the best thriller I've read in a long, long time.”—Chandler Baker, bestselling author of The Husbands

“Shines an incisive light on the secrets of a small-town community...Great writing and boldly drawn characters bring a terrifying tale to all-too-vivid life.” Kirkus, starred review

GENRE
Mysteries & Thrillers
RELEASED
2023
January 17
LANGUAGE
EN
English
LENGTH
431
Pages
PUBLISHER
Flatiron Books
SELLER
Macmillan
SIZE
3.1
MB

Customer Reviews

SLE1996 ,

Complex Characters

I enjoyed this book greatly! The character creation was complex and the interwoven intricately between individuals. I spent the whole time deciphering the mystery based on the interactions between characters; a great story overall!

Sometimes the characters fell to a bit of stereotype, but overall, I felt they were well-written and their interactions all made sense. The world building of the childhoods was also admirable and left me feeling a sense of magic as well!

I typically try to guess the twist or surprises in the book immediately when reading, and (barring some details), I was able to guess what I thought the twist would turn out to be in the first hour of reading or so. That being said, this author absolutely lead me down a couple of possible paths and I considered each one as they became more or less probable. It was a good mix between twists, surprises, and detective work.

Great book and would recommend others to read!

nigel loganber ,

Slow…

I really wanted to like this book but I found it to be very slow. I sensed it was building but took forever to get there.

girlguts ,

Not bad

This book has a strong beginning and decent (although predictable) ending. A good portion of the middle is intolerably long winded. I eventually just skipped over page after page of word salad to reach the dang point. Reminds me of trying to make word count on a high school essay.

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