The Woods Are Always Watching: Stephanie Perkins

We meet again!

Okay, it has definitely been a hot minute since I did a full review on a book that I had never before read, and that was just because I was deeply immersed in my yearly Harry Potter re-read. Buuuut, I’m BACK! And I’m really excited for this one, so let’s just dive right in, shall we?

Brief Synopsis: Josie and Neena are best friends that have come to the point in their lives where they are finally going to have to part ways. Graduation is upon them and Neena is on to bigger and better things, while Josie is going to be stuck in their hometown with her depressed mother and her lackluster job at K-Mart. As a last hurrah, the girls decide that they’re going to set out on a three day hiking/camping trip together.

Armed with everything that Josie’s well-versed outdoorsman brother tells them they need (and some he tells them to definitely not bring) they set off. From the start, everything goes awry. The girls underestimate how physically grueling it will be, they have a hard time finding their campsite, Neena won’t ration the water the way that she’s supposed to, and all of Josie’s griping becomes wearing very fast.

There have been stories and disappearances in the National Park that they are trekking through, but they’re just stories right? On the very first night the girls get in a pretty bad argument and while Neena is out taking care of business, she’s sure she hears another human walking around. There’s a tent set up not far from them, but it seems abandoned, so what is going on?

Deciding to continue with this wreck of a trip, the girls continue on the next day, though they’re both not speaking much to one another.

The trip takes another, very sinister turn, when they take a path less known and one of them falls grievously injured. While the other takes off in order to attempt to help, a man appears after frantic and desperate calls for help. A broken bone, a girl running without her inhaler, a man appearing in the woods. This book really quickly goes from me being annoyed at them being so cranky with each other, to holy shit, this is actually pretty scary.

Though separated, both girls encounter separate men that would scare anyone witless. Armed, not too clean and acting shifty, the girls try and calm their panicking minds and except the help of these men.

With really no choice in the matter, these two best friends, recently argued, go off into adventures of their own into this unknown territory. True to Perkins’ style, there are gruesome details and unrelenting horrors that I can’t go into detail without giving too much away.

The girls do (I’m sorry if this is too much of a spoiler) finally reunite when all hope seems totally lost.

When the girls are reunited everything truly goes asunder (trust me, it gets worse) this book, though not even 300 pages long, takes you on a RIDE of all rides. I wasn’t a camper before, and though my husband loves it, I truly do not think I’ll never be a camper again.

This book encapsulates friendship, growth, love, terror, and the truly, badass absolutely human strength of SURVIVAL.

My rating:

Good god. 10/10. If you want to sleep, don’t read it late. I read the entire thing in a day and it’s almost midnight and I don’t know how I’ll slow my heart-rate.

Favorite Quote(s):

“Well, if entitled white men don’t kill us first, climate change will; nature always exacts it’s revenge.”

“It was shocking how quickly angry words – just like silence – could alter a shared history into insignificance.”

A book I read with similar vibes:

One Was Lost by Natalie D. Richards. I won’t go into much detail but the whole forest setting obviously made it similar, and I also love Richards’ books. And this isn’t a book, but are there any other fellow Supernatural mega-fans such as myself that definitely saw a connection between this and the episode where Sam is abducted by those… people!?

Check out my Goodreads (Traci Bishop) to see what I’m currently reading and to see a good chunk of the books I have already read. My Instagram can be found on the home page and I will share whenever a new post is up as well!

Until next time <3