Review: What She Found in the Woods

Author: Josephine Angelini

Started reading: July 29th 2021

Finished the book: July 30th 2021

Pages: 400

Genres: YA, Mystery, Thriller

Published: December 1st 2020

Source: Netgalley

Goodreads score: 3.96

My score:

Synopsis

This is Magda's last chance. Recovering from a scandal at her elite New York City private school that threw life into a tailspin, she is shipped off to live with her grandparents in the Pacific Northwest for the summer.
Medicated and uninspired, Magda spends her days in a fog wandering the forest behind the house. But then she stumbles upon Bo. He's wild and free, and he can see the real her. Magda starts believing she might be able to move on from her past and feel something again.

But there's more to this sleepy town than she thought. And what Magda finds in the woods near Bo's forest home is the beginning of a whole new nightmare...

My thoughts

This book is definitely a thriller! And as you can see, I rushed through in a DAY. That always means that the author did something right. I don't read that many books in a day, that are above a 100 pages long. I definitely recommend this book if you're looking for a good thriller. 

Pros

• Easy to read: This book was so easy to read. I was rushing through and that was also because there are short sentences in this book and the choice of words was easy. Since English is not my native language, it can sometimes take away my speed of reading if the sentences are too long or if the words in the book are to hard. But not in this book!
• Thrilling: This book is definitely a mysterious thriller. It's so fast paced, I couldn't put it away! There are a lot of questions that I had while reading. Slowly and gradually you're getting more and more answers, but you also keep guessing and have a little doubt, because of the main character.
• Unreliable: The main character is a bit unreliable. I always love it when you have to doubt everything that's happening, because even the main character doubts herself. This makes it an even bigger mystery; what is truth and what is not?
• Ending: In the end I got all the answers I needed. I think that's very important in a book  that raises a lot of questions. And since it's a standalone, you will WANT and NEED those answers. It's pretty tricky for an author to raise so many questions; gotta make sure you answer them all!

Cons

• Little things: There were some little things that I was a bit sad about while reading. Some of the side characters don't appear anymore after 70% in, and I was a bit taken aback about that, since they played a part in the book as well. I also thought that some things were just too good to be true. Or explained away a bit too easy. (not gonna spoil)

Overall

You know a book is good if I've read it within 2 days. I rushed through this book and I thought it was easy to read. The book is thrilling, mysterious and at the end does give you all the answers you need. If you're a fan of unreliable main characters, which I am, this is definitely a book you want to pick up!

Other opinions on this book

"Teems with heart-punding action and suspense. Angelini intersperses Magda's first-person voice with flashbacks of her past to create a riveting portrait of an unreliable and cunning narrator."

- Publishers Weekly

"A thoughtful, engaging YA thriller that touches upon mental health, social issues, and how words are used to manipulate reality."

- School Library Journal

Thanks for reading!

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