A review by theleppy
Beneath The Trees Where Nobody Sees by Patrick Horvath

dark mysterious tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

I really enjoyed this and avoided adding spoilers as much as possible because it's worth a read:

The art style is really beautiful, I love the watercolor softness because it makes the horror more shocking. The character designs are really nice too which, again, adds to the shock of the horror elements because they are so adorable. I liked this Zootopia-esque world of humanoid animals all living in a cozy small town. 

I don't think comparing this to Dexter is great (as the book summary does). Samantha Strong is a stone cold emotionless killer. She doesn't have a "code of honor" like Dexter. She kills innocents. I wanted to make a point to say this because I went in expecting an MC who is an anti-hero and Samantha is far from it. This didn't detract from my enjoyment but instead made her killings more stomach turning. Samantha isn't someone to like but to fear and be disgusted by.

I really liked Samantha's moment in the woods with "real" animal bears. My standout highlight was the whole chapter with Melody. It was a glimpse into a seperate story of grief I found fascinating (and honestly a story I wanted to explore more of).

I have to admit it completely went over my head that the title is from the Teddy Bear Picnic song! I was telling my husband about the book and as I finished saying the title he continued the song and my mouth dropped open. I used to sing the song when I was a kid! Very clever!
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