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ClareR (5885 KP) rated The Girl Who Came Out of the Woods in Books

May 3, 2019 (Updated May 3, 2019)

The Girl Who Came Out of the Woods

Emily Barr | 2019 | Fiction & Poetry, Thriller, Young Adult (YA)

7.5

(4 Ratings)

Book Rating

Arty (Artemis) has grown up in a clearing in an Indian forest with eleven other people. They name themselves after Gods and Goddesses and have almost entirely shut themselves off from the outside world. Arty and the other children have never left the clearing. It’s an idyllic life, until an illness strikes the camp. It’s highly contagious, and all of the inhabitants except for Arty and one of her ‘brothers’, Zeus, die. Arty and Zeus are alone in the world, until Zeus’ aunt comes to claim him, leaving Arty utterly alone.
This is the story of Arty finding her family and her place in a strange world.
I really enjoyed this. Arty has such a simplistic view of life, but this makes her a genuine, caring person - she has a lot to learn. She has no knowledge of money, transport, and has led a sheltered life.
Alongside her story are excerpts of a mystery person who appears to be locked in a room. I couldn’t understand what the connection was to begin with, but it all became clear - a very clever addition to the book.
This is a lovely story, and well worth a read.
Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for my copy of this book to read and review, and to The Pigeonhole who ensured that I actually got it read!

Kudos

Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2357 KP) rated Lost Hills in Books

Mar 10, 2020

Lost Hills

Lee Goldberg | 2020 | Mystery

9.0

(1 Ratings)

Book Rating

Eve’s First Big Case

Thanks to a well-time viral video, Eve Ronin has become the youngest person promoted to the homicide department of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department. Her new co-workers aren’t treating her with a lot of respect, so she knows she has to prove herself. That chance comes when she and her partner, Duncan Pavone, are called to the scene of a crime in Calabasas. A friend has called to report that Tanya Kenworth never showed up for work. The house where Tanya lives is covered in blood in every room, but there are no bodies. What could have happened to her?

Just as I expected, this book grabbed me from the first page and never let me go. There were plenty of clues and twists to keep me engaged until I reached the suspenseful climax. I did feel that Eve and her co-workers fell into genre clichés, but there are hints of more to them, and I hope we see that explored as the series progresses. This book describes the aftermath of the crime and has more language than the cozies I typically read, but I expected that going in, and it never got too excessive. There are some nice bits of humor to help lighten what is a mostly series story. I’m already looking forward to Eve’s next story.