The God of the Woods: A Novel

Interesting story and well written. Characters are well developed. Most have something to hide and the story is plausible. The pace is good, chapters are short and relate what is happening with each of the main characters. Having one of the first female investigators in the country as a primary character is an interesting choice. I really enjoyed this book.

Wow, this story was incredible! From the very first page, it kept me on the edge of my seat, guessing what would happen next. Each chapter introduced a new theory, making it super engaging. The characters were so well-developed and brought to life on the page. But, there were a few things that could be improved. The time skips between chapters were a bit jarring, and the story jumped around a bit too much. Sometimes, a character would be left in a confusing situation for so long that I wondered what had happened the last time I saw them. The page breaks were also a bit unnecessary. Overall, this is a minor issue compared to the rest of the book, which is incredibly well-written.

Such great writing! Suspenseful in a slow, building-up manner. Loved the character development. I thought it would be more thrilling and shocking but appreciated that I had no idea what the outcome would be of this book.

This is a fun read of who done it set in a picturesque location . Takes place over several decades with many characters to get to know . Great storytelling by Liz.

This is a pretty good book. It is a page turner but a little too long with too many characters. The chapters jump all over the place time wise. The author made it easier though by labeling the time periods at the beginning of each chapter. I followed a character guide put up by another reviewer to help me understand who was who....since there were so many characters.

📖 Genre(s): Mystery, Crime Fiction, “Thriller”📍Setting: upstate NY, campground with time periods 1950-1975✔️ Topics: love/crushes, community mystery, family secrets, summer camp, wealth has leverage, disappearances, myths📖 The novel starts off very slow and difficult to keep track of what’s going on as the author keeps adding new characters to the story while jumping back and forth between decades. I almost gave up and put down this book twice and almost moved onto my next read. It took me some push to continue reading.Not until about mid way in does Liz Moore drag you in. This novel eventually became a turn pager with twists and turns and unforeseen events. What really helped me stay focused was the timeline guide at the beginning of each chapter. I’ll be honest, I understand why Moore wrote the beginning of the novel as I continued reading but all the details and flashing back then forward, this was a hard read. I also wouldn’t call this novel a thriller but many book sites/sources label this as such.

At first, I thought it was a teen novel. . . Simple sentences, teen characters etc. a misleading first impression. Instead there are well-described and complex characters, interesting multiple story lines, unanticipated twists. Well worth reading.

Been waiting to read this book for MONTHS & I'm glad I finally got to! The winner of last year's Jimmy Fallon Summer Book Club, Liz Moore's "The God of the Woods" uncovers the truth behind the sudden disappearance of Barbara Van Laar, the 13-year-old daughter of an affluent family, from Camp Emerson in August of 1975. This is a case which becomes even more critical given the disappearance of her then 8-year-old older brother, Bear, almost exactly 14 years prior. The story is told through alternating POVs & jumping timelines as a way of putting pieces together & getting readers closer to what really happened.Some authors make nonlinear narratives confusing, but I found it rather easy to follow, mainly because Moore's characters are fairly fleshed out enough to separate them out, but also because each POV informs the others, often filling in the blanks to the overarching mystery. These helped in guiding me to certain theories as the plot unfolded, & I found the big twists were fairly predictable, but the minor ones were sufficiently satisfying. The only POV I didn't emotionally connect to was Barbara's mother, Alice, who's an insufferable wet dish rag--she's submissive, neurotic, simple-minded, willing to dumb herself down, critical of her daughter's interests out of concern they would ruin the family's reputation, & virtually spineless (which goes against my ideal of what a woman should be)--who would do nothing to change her situation even if given the opportunity because she's been convinced by the people around her that she's dumb & erratic & she plays right into it. Whether that's just her being a product of her time or her privileged upbringing, even when knowing how difficult it must be to lose both her children, at the end of the day you just want to pity her. Her chapters were difficult to get through, but the rest I had no trouble with.It was also an interesting read given the time in which it takes place because it reminds readers of what was accepted socially at the time vs. not 50 years ago, while also noting what's changed vs. stayed the same. It'd be interesting to know what these characters would be up to today & how they'd appraise the world. I hope that's something Moore will uncover in a later book because I think there could be enough substance for another one.