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insincerelycait's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Vomit, and Grief
Moderate: Addiction
Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Rape, and Sexual assault
joliebean's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-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? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Addiction, Animal death, Body horror, Bullying, Child death, Death, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, Stalking, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail
cleot's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Bullying, Child abuse, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Pedophilia, Sexual assault, Torture, Violence, Kidnapping, Fire/Fire injury, and Gaslighting
Moderate: Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Body horror and Religious bigotry
Wilderness therapy,kammitrout's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Someone says creepy woods and I’m there.
This book was a rollercoaster of emotions: I laughed, I cried, I wanted to hit something, I wanted to hide. All in all, a book to really think about long after the last page.
This book was a rollercoaster of emotions: I laughed, I cried, I wanted to hit something, I wanted to hide. All in all, a book to really think about long after the last page.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death and Violence
Minor: Child abuse and Sexual assault
gueniverefey's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Animal death, Child abuse, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Violence, Vomit, Kidnapping, Abortion, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, and Fire/Fire injury
dougyounkin's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Emotional abuse, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, and Violence
horrorandscience's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Devin Green is a foster child in Portland, Oregon. One night, she's taken from her foster parents' home and placed in the care of REVIVE, a troubled teen wilderness therapy group. She tries several times to run, but knows she has no other option. She meets Ollie on the way there, and Aidan, Hannah, and Sheridan at the woods. Coaches Ethan and Liv are supposed to be their guardians for this 50 day long expedition, but only a few days in, they both go missing. Strange things happen while the kids try to navigate the woods using their limited skills, and eventually Coach Liv reappears... but something is wrong, very wrong.
I requested this book from NetGalley originally because I thought it would be a fun thriller with some mental health elements intertwined. I was highly surprised when there were creatures and monsters in the forest. And I was hooked. The novel was very easy to read, and although there were several characters who shared the spotlight, it was easy to tell them apart and get into their own personal stories. They all came from different backgrounds, and showed that no matter where you come from, life can be horrible for a young adult with mental illness.
I'm not usually a big fan of YA novels, but the characters were older in this book, and I was able to connect with them pretty well. They did things teenagers would do, and I think having the coaches disappear mid-book helped solidify that.
The troubled teen industry is a very real thing, and I've heard so many horror stories that don't involve monsters. Courtney Gould was able to construct a novel on a real topic that provided a spotlight to these horrible wilderness programs, while also delving into the issues involving teen mental health.
Thank you to NetGalley for the chance to read this advanced review copy. All opinions are my own.
I requested this book from NetGalley originally because I thought it would be a fun thriller with some mental health elements intertwined. I was highly surprised when there were creatures and monsters in the forest. And I was hooked. The novel was very easy to read, and although there were several characters who shared the spotlight, it was easy to tell them apart and get into their own personal stories. They all came from different backgrounds, and showed that no matter where you come from, life can be horrible for a young adult with mental illness.
I'm not usually a big fan of YA novels, but the characters were older in this book, and I was able to connect with them pretty well. They did things teenagers would do, and I think having the coaches disappear mid-book helped solidify that.
The troubled teen industry is a very real thing, and I've heard so many horror stories that don't involve monsters. Courtney Gould was able to construct a novel on a real topic that provided a spotlight to these horrible wilderness programs, while also delving into the issues involving teen mental health.
Thank you to NetGalley for the chance to read this advanced review copy. All opinions are my own.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and Violence
Moderate: Drug abuse, Gore, Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, Blood, Kidnapping, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Child abuse and Suicide
sonyagale's review
challenging
dark
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This book may be a little triggering for some, but it was absolutely fantastic and very well worth reading about the hard topics covered. It didn’t exactly go into much detail but there is a lot of mention of abuse, drug use, etc. that has a lot to do with the main plot of the book. That doesn’t give away anything by the way, just wanted to mention it!
Content Warnings
Minor: Addiction, Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, Medical trauma, Fire/Fire injury, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail
soobooksalot's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
What The Woods Took went into the unexpected.
Thank you to St. Martin's Press for my eARC for review!
Teenagers Devin, Ollie, Sheridan, Hannah, and Aiden have been labelled as "troubled". They have been forceably sent to the Revive Teen Rehabilitation Program to hike, camp, and survive their way to better life choices.
I was expecting a straightforward plot with an inside look at the TTI and wildnerness programs for struggling youth.
What The Woods Took started out that way, but veered in a whole other direction.
The Idaho forests have an eerie, unnatural quality to them - void even of animal sounds. Sights from the teen's past traumas emerge from the shadows. I was constantly second-guessing as to who - or what - could be trusted.
This was my first read from author Courtney Gould, and I easily enjoyed her writing style and the elements incorporated.
Released Dec. 10.
Thank you to St. Martin's Press for my eARC for review!
Teenagers Devin, Ollie, Sheridan, Hannah, and Aiden have been labelled as "troubled". They have been forceably sent to the Revive Teen Rehabilitation Program to hike, camp, and survive their way to better life choices.
I was expecting a straightforward plot with an inside look at the TTI and wildnerness programs for struggling youth.
What The Woods Took started out that way, but veered in a whole other direction.
The Idaho forests have an eerie, unnatural quality to them - void even of animal sounds. Sights from the teen's past traumas emerge from the shadows. I was constantly second-guessing as to who - or what - could be trusted.
This was my first read from author Courtney Gould, and I easily enjoyed her writing style and the elements incorporated.
Released Dec. 10.
Content Warnings
Minor: Addiction, Child abuse, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Violence, and Death of parent
bookishmillennial's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
disclaimer: I don’t really give starred reviews. I hope my reviews provide enough information to let you know if a book is for you or not. Find me here: https://linktr.ee/bookishmillennial
WHEW, this took me on a JOURNEY! This is actually the first book I've read by Courtney Gould and I am now set on reading her backlist because I am really impressed. My booksta/booktok friend Laurel (https://www.instagram.com/laurelreads17/) first recommended this author to me, so I gotta give her a lil shoutout :)
Devin is taken from her foster home to a wilderness therapy camp with two super young camp counselors Ethan & Laura, (they're like ~21, barely older than these teens) and a few other kids: Aiden, Sheridan, Hannah, Ollie. The teenagers are all clearly unimpressed by this program and can't wait for it to be over (it's a 50 day hike through the woods, this is truly absurd and what kills me is that these programs really do exist). After crossing a river, Ethan & Laura are nowhere to be found the following morning, leaving these kids to fare on their own & decide to either wait for their counselors to return, to seek out help, or to simply continue on with the trail, since they know it will end after 50 days if they follow their map. As if this isn't a hard enough decision, the kids feel like they are being watched by something in the woods.
This book was SO creepy. I should not have read it by myself at night, and yet, I'm happy I did lol. It set the tone for Gould's incredibly atmospheric and eerie forest setting, and I was left at the edge of my seat for the entirety of the novel. I also absolutely loved getting to know each of the characters. I really enjoy interpersonal conflict in any story, but especially high-stakes conflict in a horror novel because you get to see how people respond to danger, and how they react and aim to resolve conflicts in groups or 1:1 settings. It makes it even more interesting when they're practically strangers and are forced to rely on each other purely for survival.
As a rape survivor myself, I could tell from the beginning that Devin was fighting demons deeper than the others knew about, and I really felt for her when she finally told Sheridan about it. I recognize this was painful for her to revisit those memories, but what a tiny bit of relief she could feel in finally disclosing this to someone, after years of having to carry it all by herself. Devin's journey was not easy, but I'm so proud of her.
The monsters were very well done; I was so thoroughly entertained by their motivations in wanting to become human and to leave the forest. The forest was their domain, where they remained the most powerful, and yet, they yearned to have a human experience? I know we're supposed to hate these monsters for wreaking havoc on these literal children, but the sensitive sweetie pie in me is like, 'omg????? all this to be human? I'm so grateful to be human and living on this garbage floating rock in space! monsters would KILL to have MY life. that's unreal?!?!?!?'
I also just loved this parallel to the kids, because they were mostly sent to this wilderness therapy camp to otherwise "get their shit together" by their parents/foster parents. However, when you're faced with the possibility of actually losing your life or someone taking it, you're forced to reconcile with the fact that uhhh actually yeah, I DO WANT MY LIFE AND I WILL FIGHT FOR IT! I'm not condoning wilderness therapy camps; I'm just saying it was powerful how these kids named that they DID want to live, and they worked together to get out of that forest so they could begin the next chapter of their lives. No matter what these kids have done in the past, they deserved another chance to try again.
The ending made me happy as far as the kids who got out alive, and it was so easy to root for them, even as the messy, angry, angsty kids they acted like (because underneath that, I knew they just needed to feel seen/valued/listened to. They're allowed to be imperfect humans too.)
I undoubtedly enjoyed this and would highly recommend it!
WHEW, this took me on a JOURNEY! This is actually the first book I've read by Courtney Gould and I am now set on reading her backlist because I am really impressed. My booksta/booktok friend Laurel (https://www.instagram.com/laurelreads17/) first recommended this author to me, so I gotta give her a lil shoutout :)
Devin is taken from her foster home to a wilderness therapy camp with two super young camp counselors Ethan & Laura, (they're like ~21, barely older than these teens) and a few other kids: Aiden, Sheridan, Hannah, Ollie. The teenagers are all clearly unimpressed by this program and can't wait for it to be over (it's a 50 day hike through the woods, this is truly absurd and what kills me is that these programs really do exist). After crossing a river, Ethan & Laura are nowhere to be found the following morning, leaving these kids to fare on their own & decide to either wait for their counselors to return, to seek out help, or to simply continue on with the trail, since they know it will end after 50 days if they follow their map. As if this isn't a hard enough decision, the kids feel like they are being watched by something in the woods.
This book was SO creepy. I should not have read it by myself at night, and yet, I'm happy I did lol. It set the tone for Gould's incredibly atmospheric and eerie forest setting, and I was left at the edge of my seat for the entirety of the novel. I also absolutely loved getting to know each of the characters. I really enjoy interpersonal conflict in any story, but especially high-stakes conflict in a horror novel because you get to see how people respond to danger, and how they react and aim to resolve conflicts in groups or 1:1 settings. It makes it even more interesting when they're practically strangers and are forced to rely on each other purely for survival.
I also just loved this parallel to the kids, because they were mostly sent to this wilderness therapy camp to otherwise "get their shit together" by their parents/foster parents. However, when you're faced with the possibility of actually losing your life or someone taking it, you're forced to reconcile with the fact that uhhh actually yeah, I DO WANT MY LIFE AND I WILL FIGHT FOR IT! I'm not condoning wilderness therapy camps; I'm just saying it was powerful how these kids named that they DID want to live, and they worked together to get out of that forest so they could begin the next chapter of their lives. No matter what these kids have done in the past, they deserved another chance to try again.
The ending made me happy as far as the kids who got out alive, and it was so easy to root for them, even as the messy, angry, angsty kids they acted like (because underneath that, I knew they just needed to feel seen/valued/listened to. They're allowed to be imperfect humans too.)
I undoubtedly enjoyed this and would highly recommend it!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Violence, Blood, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Drug use, Suicidal thoughts, and Suicide attempt
Minor: Child abuse, Drug abuse, and Sexual assault