Reviews with content warning for Injury/Injury detail - A History of Wild Places

Reviews tagging 'Injury/Injury detail'

A History of Wild Places by Shea Ernshaw

22 reviews

mateoj's review

dark mysterious reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

1.0

oooooookay. where do I start.
this is really badly written—not just the plot construction (which wasn't good, either) but the writing itself. I call it "fanfic voice" and I legitimately have not read something written this way since middle school. first person present tense. short, abrupt sentence fragments. italicizing the narrator's thoughts. multiple narrators with identical voices. I'm sorry, it was truly so bad. also, there were multiple typos and grammar/punctuation issues in my library ebook copy, which... come on. that's embarrassing.
the other big issue: using blindness as a plot device, ESPECIALLY

curing the character of their blindness as part of said plot device

is really shitty, and even if this author doesn't feel embarrassed about her writing, I hope she feels ashamed of that narrative decision.

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jademrosas's review

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adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.75

A History of Wild Things is atmospheric, mysterious and engaging. I really enjoyed the book overall because I believe Ernshaw was able to take the reader into the minds of the characters but also into Pastoral. I will say that, for me, the downside was how predictable it was. The reveals weren’t entirely revealing since I was able to see them pretty early on in the book and I did feel like the ending was slightly rushed. However, despite it being predictable, I still felt the story and writing was compelling enough to keep reading.

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tormerritt's review

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dark mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

Have you ever had a book hangover?
Where you can't start another book because you are still living in the most recent book you read? You constantly think about it even after the last page is finished? The emotions you experienced while reading it still remain... That is what I am feeling currently over, A History of Wild Places by Shea Ernshaw.

I had to take a while to think about this review because I know anything that I write, won't give justice to this incredible book.

A History of Wild Places is about a man named Travis Wren who is hired as a last ditch effort to find Maggie St James, a children's author who has gone missing. Travis is known for his psychic abilities and is able to see "after images" or memories of another person with a touch of an object that belonged to them. Travis starts on a quest to find Maggie, but ends up finding a lot more than expected. I don't want to go into too much more detail and give away the book.

Ernshaw has such a rich and beautiful writing style, you feel mesmerized by the words on the page and transported in to this confusing, but also, enchanting and wild place. With this gorgeous prose, she invokes a sense of dread and darkness throughout this book. This story completely enveloped me and I've never felt so immersed or lost within a book. What a phenomenal, thrilling, and unique experience this was.

If you are fascinated with commune living/cults, nature, the PNW wilderness you should go pick this up ASAP. If you want a tense, atmospheric, and mysterious read.... GO BUY THIS BOOK! I will never stop reccomending this one. As with all of the books I read, please check TW!

I'm sad that it is over and need so much more of this book. I want to read it over and over again. It is absolutely a new five-star favorite and it will remain displayed on my shelf, as it is truly a work of art.

Thank you Shea Ernshaw for creating a truly amazing reading experience for me. You are a new favorite author and I have purchased all of your other books immediately after reading A History of Wild Places. I cannot wait to dive into them! (I am most excited for Long Live the Pumpkin Queen coming out in July!) ❤

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foldingthepage_kayleigh's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

The History of Wild Places gave me Twin Peaks meets The Sun Down Motel and Tana French. Not my favourite, I thought there would be more flashes through time. Instead, this book mostly focused on the setting of Pastoral. But even the purpose of focusing so much on a setting, such as building a sense of dread, or even giving us time to connect with the characters and community, were missing. If you enjoy cultish elements and slow burn plot-focused books, then this is for you!

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ehm's review against another edition

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dark mysterious slow-paced

5.0

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brittishliterature's review

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dark emotional mysterious relaxing tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Wow, this book wasn't quite what I expected and I thoroughly enjoyed it. I was hesitant to read it, but I'd seen good reviews and wanted to branch out a bit from my usual genres. This was an atmospheric, emotional, reflective, slow-paced thriller set in a rural/forest landscape. At first, I was worried it might get too creepy/disturbing for me, but it never did and I liked that (I'm not much for media that leaves me scared to be home alone at night in the dark or constantly thinking someone's gonna be in my house to murder me lol).

It was dark and twisty with a touch of magical realism and beautiful imagery. I thought some of the plot twists were more clarifying than shocking but still very good. I enjoyed the flow of the narrative and where the journey took me as a reader from beginning to end. I definitely would recommend this book.

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