leahthebooklover 's review for:

Heartwood by Amity Gaige

4.0

adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

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This complex literary thriller deals with a missing hiker on the Appalachian Trail. Multiple points of view give the reader insight into the fate of 42 year old Valerie Gillis, who goes missing in the Maine woods as she nears the end of her 2200 mile through hike. We also meet Beverly, the state game warden in charge of the search effort; Lena, an elderly arm-chair detective who becomes obsessed with the case; Santo, a fellow hiker who traveled most of the trail with Valerie but had to leave to tend to his father's funeral just before Valerie disappeared. We also meet Valerie's family - her husband and parents. While the mystery of what happened to Valerie and the painstaking search that grows more desperate with each passing day is the through line that carries the plot, there is also a deeper examination of love and relationship, especially within families, as each character has a complicated relationship they are working through in addition to the main plot. A well written, taut, suspenseful, and yet thoughtful story.