pbanditp's review
3.0
Pastoral is a self sufficient settlement in a remote forest. The people who live there are trapped due to a sickness in the trees so they can not cross their boarders because the tree sickness can transmit to them and cause them to rot away within a few days.
When a baby is born and needs urgent medical care a few people start to question what they’ve been told.
Do they dare go get help and threaten the entire village? Or do they let the baby die?
Great idea but I didn’t connect with the characters. We were introduced to a couple people and then didn’t hear anything about them. At that point I was invested in a character and thought other characters were secondary and never connected with anybody else. That is all on me and I am sure others will enjoy the book because it is well written
When a baby is born and needs urgent medical care a few people start to question what they’ve been told.
Do they dare go get help and threaten the entire village? Or do they let the baby die?
Great idea but I didn’t connect with the characters. We were introduced to a couple people and then didn’t hear anything about them. At that point I was invested in a character and thought other characters were secondary and never connected with anybody else. That is all on me and I am sure others will enjoy the book because it is well written
bhart416's review
3.0
What a fucking TRIP. Dark fairytale meets true crime meets thriller meets....David Blaine? I thought I knew where this book was going until about 70% through, and then I realized I didn’t know anything at all. The story is original, but warning, it is a slow burn. I couldn’t get into it at first, but around the middle of part 2 it takes off. I had to deduct 2 stars just simply because I don’t feel like writing style matched up with the mood of the story, and I also felt like there was enough difference between voices.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC!
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC!
books_and_beers's review
3.0
Slight spoiler but I really need to stop reading books with commune cults who are stuck in the lifestyle of the 1800s. I get so annoyed at the stupidity of the people there. It started out with a creepy vibe but unfortunately that vibe fell apart pretty quickly.
readingundertheradar's review
5.0
Excellent book that combined contemporary fiction with a mystery story line and a well-paced unfolding of events. The characters were also fully developed with complex thoughts and feelings, flaws, and individual issues.
The ending:
Spoiler
I do see how people may be frustrated by the ending, like "Oh, he was just able to hypnotize them?" But the power of suggestion is extremely realistic, and this is exactly how many people end up in cults, dangerous situations, or victims of domestic violence stuck in those relationships. I did appreciate the book and how it showed how one person could manipulate people like that and the devastating effects it could have.
CW: manipulation, illness of an infant, public execution, difficult parental relationships (particularly between a mother and daughter), gun violence, death on page, emotional & verbal abuse
kelseyestep93's review
emotional
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
amkago2008's review
4.0
I really enjoyed the atmosphere of this book. It was a slow moving story and I did not see the ending coming. I felt like everything came together nicely and I liked the hint of magic. Some parts were a little too slow and the characters were sometimes irritating but the ending made it all make sense and helped redeem them.
kirstensviews's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0