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A review by cozylittlebrownhouse
Into the Jungle by Erica Ferencik
5.0
pub date 5/25/19
Thank you to NetGalley and Gallery Books for an advanced reader's copy in exchange for an honest review.
When Lily's teaching position abroad falls through, she realizes that hustling to scrape together money and hostel living isn't what she had dreamed of when she fled the foster care and group home system of the United States. Enter Omar, a handsome local who is trying out city living after leaving his small jungle home in remote Ayachero with whom she falls quickly and madly in love. When he decides to return to assist in hunting the jaguar that killed his nephew, Lily decides to embark on a journey to the desolate Bolivian jungle to be with him.
The terrors and trials of jungle-living are a new challenge for Lily, and as readers we join her for her time in Ayachero. She learns how to survive the oppressive and unrelenting nature that surrounds her, facing deadly predators, massive insects, vengeful shamans, and poachers.
Thoughts:
I enjoyed Ferencik's novel, The River at Night, but was COMPLETELY engrossed by Into the Jungle. In some ways, it was reminiscent (for me) of The Poisonwood Bible, one of my all-time favorite reads because it spurred the same fascination of how people adapt to such a foreign environment and the challenges that meet them there, which is something I loved about TPB. The foreshadowing really propels you forward as you get glimpses into Lily's future and wonder how she will arrive to that moment, and with each scenario faced, it was easy to wonder I would fare in her shoes. (Not well.) I was surprised when I finished to see that this is marketed as a thriller, because I found it to read like literary fiction with elements of suspense - it did not feel like traditional thrillers I have read, so keep that in mind when picking this one up.
This was a five-star read for me, and I feel confident that it will be on my top ten list of the year.
Thank you to NetGalley and Gallery Books for an advanced reader's copy in exchange for an honest review.
When Lily's teaching position abroad falls through, she realizes that hustling to scrape together money and hostel living isn't what she had dreamed of when she fled the foster care and group home system of the United States. Enter Omar, a handsome local who is trying out city living after leaving his small jungle home in remote Ayachero with whom she falls quickly and madly in love. When he decides to return to assist in hunting the jaguar that killed his nephew, Lily decides to embark on a journey to the desolate Bolivian jungle to be with him.
The terrors and trials of jungle-living are a new challenge for Lily, and as readers we join her for her time in Ayachero. She learns how to survive the oppressive and unrelenting nature that surrounds her, facing deadly predators, massive insects, vengeful shamans, and poachers.
Thoughts:
I enjoyed Ferencik's novel, The River at Night, but was COMPLETELY engrossed by Into the Jungle. In some ways, it was reminiscent (for me) of The Poisonwood Bible, one of my all-time favorite reads because it spurred the same fascination of how people adapt to such a foreign environment and the challenges that meet them there, which is something I loved about TPB. The foreshadowing really propels you forward as you get glimpses into Lily's future and wonder how she will arrive to that moment, and with each scenario faced, it was easy to wonder I would fare in her shoes. (Not well.) I was surprised when I finished to see that this is marketed as a thriller, because I found it to read like literary fiction with elements of suspense - it did not feel like traditional thrillers I have read, so keep that in mind when picking this one up.
This was a five-star read for me, and I feel confident that it will be on my top ten list of the year.