What the Woods Took

Starred review from September 9, 2024
Two strangers wrest 17-year-old Devin Green from her bed in Portland, Ore., while her foster parents stand aside. After a 10-hour van trip, Devin learns that she’s been enrolled in wilderness therapy and must spend 50 days trekking through the Idaho backcountry with four other teenagers to “learn about establishing healthy routines.” Though she tentatively befriends fellow Portlander Ollie Baker, Devin is continuously needled by Sheridan West, whose combative attitude slows the group’s progress at every turn. When their counselors vanish and the teens find themselves stalked by strange creatures that wear faces from their worst nightmares, the group must rely on one another if they want to make it out of the woods alive. Via close third-person narration that shifts between characters, Gould (Where Echoes Die) concocts a harrowing story of trauma and metamorphosis with a potent mix of real-world therapeutic abuse, supernatural shape-shifting paranoia, and wilderness survival. Depictions of the power of connection and love in the face of hardship ground the otherworldly happenings; the simmering romance between Devin and Sheridan is a standout bright spot. Characters cue as white. Ages 13–up. Agents: Jessica Mileo and Claire Friedman, InkWell Management.

October 15, 2024
Grades 9-12 Five troubled teens forced to participate in a wilderness therapy program confront more than their metaphorical demons in this slow-burn supernatural thriller. Queer 17-year-old Devin would never have agreed to attend Revive, so her foster parents had her abducted. Same with Ollie and his dad. They are dropped off in the Idaho woods, where they meet three other teens and two adult counselors who swear that 50 days of remote backpacking and emotional reflection will make them better versions of themselves. While timid Ollie plans to go along to get along, self-reliant Devin starts plotting her escape. As they hike deeper, the woods turn unnaturally quiet and foreboding, and when the counselors disappear, the group is unsure whether this is a part of their therapy or if they're in danger. Gould cleverly uses her monsters--mimics who kill and replace someone by promising to live their lives better--to examine the psychological damage of forced transformation that these programs promise. While creepy and atmospheric, this novel focuses on developing authentic teens with complicated interpersonal dynamics overcoming emotional trauma.

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October 15, 2024
A group of teenagers must survive after a wilderness therapy program goes awry. When 17-year-old Devin is woken up in the middle of the night by two men in her room, she fights back and calls for her foster parents. She quickly learns they're well aware of what's going on. The men throw her into a van that's holding another teen named Ollie and take them both into the woods for wilderness therapy, where they join Hannah, Aidan, and Sheridan. Devin is determined to escape--until she wakes up to find the counselors are missing. Suddenly, her focus shifts to surviving, along with the rest of the group, even including Sheridan, whom Devin has butted heads with from day one. As the teens desperately trek through the woods, strange things start happening, leading them to believe they may not be alone, and that something sinister lurks in the woods. The teens must work together to make it back to civilization, all while facing the traumas that brought them there in the first place. While the story has an interesting premise, besides the author's note, it doesn't delve deeply into the well-documented harm of the unregulated world of wilderness therapy, leading to a somewhat shallow exploration of the industry. Despite that, the atmosphere is well developed, and the gripping plot moves forward at a breakneck pace. The main characters are cued white. Fast paced and atmospheric.(Supernatural thriller. 14-18)

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December 1, 2024

Gr 7 Up-When Devin wakes to strange men in the night, she doesn't realize her foster parents are sending her away. But along with Ollie, the other teen in the van she's put in, Devin is driven from her latest home. Eventually, the two are dropped off with a small group of others: three more teens as well as two young adult coaches. The group will spend the next 50 days hiking in the wilderness while developing better habits and reflecting on their self-destructive behavior. But when the coaches disappear overnight, the teens are left lost and alone, and when they begin to see unnatural faces in the trees, they realize their harsh environment isn't the only threat they'll need to survive. At first reminiscent of similar works centered on the often-exploitative treatment of wilderness therapy, the plot veers into the paranormal with the disappearance of the coaches. Readers follow Devin, angry and violent, and Ollie, level-headed but lonely, as they trek through the forest. The new, nebulous threat preying upon the teens' worst fears effectively advances character development and solidifies the group's bond. The overarching theme of transformation ties the two sections of the work together, leaving readers with not only a satisfying ending, but a concept that will stay with them long-term. An Author's Note at the beginning warns of potentially sensitive content including substance abuse, sexual assault, suicide, and gore. VERDICT An enemies-to-lovers sapphic romance framed in horror, with transformation at its core.-Maggie Mason Smith

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