Many years ago, three best friends found something in the woods that they choose to keep to themselves and not tell anyone else about. A terrible crime happened in those woods as well and a man was convicted and died in prison for that crime. But those girls are hiding something and when they come back together in their small hometown, secrets won't stay hidden and more than one crime is revealed and made clear.

What I loved:
- the setting - small, nowhere town, easy to imagine and relate to
- I liked the main character, Naomi, and I enjoyed how her relationship with Ethan came to be and develop.
- medium-paced plot that moved along at just the right speed for me
- Loved the twists! I never saw them coming and I gasped out loud! Well done!

4.5 stars rounded up

This was a great thriller to start the year off with. Naomi is a wonderfully flower character who I grew to love after a couple of hundred pages. I’ll admit, it too me a while to warm up to her, but I think that’s the magic of this book—the characters feel real.

Thank you NetGalley for providing this audiobook for an honest review. I absolutely loved this book. The narrator did a great job! Normally when I read a mystery/thriller I can usually guess the ending. This book had so many twists and turns. I kept changing my mind about what was going to happen and I was still wrong. I will definitely look for more books by this author and this narrator.

This was such a fabulous thriller. Loved listening to it and although I predicted one of the twists there were still so many at the end my jaw dropped. And the MC was amazing. I really enjoyed rooting for her. The audio was awesome too!

I loved the action aspect of this whodunit thriller. Not only does the plot include a serial killer, you get to go down the drama of friendships, family, and all the other traumas in between. The plot was slightly predictable, but all the twists and turns until the end really take you for a ride!

Slow burner. I usually do not like that about thrillers, but this one made you want to keep reading because you wanted to find out what happened. Baby when you get to the end. Ohhhh childdddd. Go listen while reading!

I enjoyed this book a lot, and it translated very well to audio. Lots of twists, and had me guessing until the end.

What Lies in the Woods

⭐️⭐️⭐️

Finished this audio just in time for its pub day yesterday!

“What Lies in the Woods” is a thriller following Naomi, who had something horrible happen to her when she was 11 — she was nearly murdered. She helped convict the alleged attacker, but she’s always wondered if she really helped put the right person away. As an adult, truths about that night are coming to light that will change everything…

This one is a mix of “woman comes back to small town years after bad thing happened there” and “podcast guy in town trying to uncover the truth,” so if you liked similar books (“All Good People Here” or “The Last Housewife”), you’ll like this one!

I flew through the audio in only a few sittings, which is always a sign of a good book for me. There are a lot of things going on here, and I had to re-listen to the end to make sure I followed it all. I did guess one of the big twists, but I didn’t guess exactly how the moving pieces would come together.

I will say, some details made me raise my eyebrows about this one. Children hanging onto knuckle bones and decorating a skull w flowers for fun? Weird. Also every conversation w her dad was a major question mark for me - I thought their dynamic was odd and nonchalant for a parent/child (even a parent/child not on great terms!).

That being said, I’m pretty tough on thrillers, and this one is one of the better ones I’ve read in awhile. I always appreciate one that I want to pick up and listen to to figure out what happened, and this one did that!

Three young girls, Naomi, Cassidy and Olivia were best friends and played in the woods when they young. At age 11 Naomi was stabbed 17 times but survived. The girls identified the man responsible and he was also linked to the murders of six women and sent to prison. But was this the man who stabbed Naomi? Twenty two years later the girls are reunited in the small town where it happened and Olivia is ready to dig deeper into what happened that summer but there are people out there that don't want the truth to come out.
This was a twisty thriller and I enjoyed it very much. I never knew what direction it was going was surprised at time with the revelations. Karissa Vacker was the narrator and she did a great job with the female characters but when she read the male characters, all their voices sounded the same to it was a little confusing at times. It would have been better to have a male read the men characters.

This story was chock full of unlikable, thawed characters. Sometimes this takes away from the storyline and makes the book an unenjoyable read. That was not the case with this one. The characters made this story so engaging. And that ending! Kept me guessing the whole way through. I enjoyed the reader of this story.

This was great! I love the twists and the turns. I felt like I was pointing my finger at a lot of people so I didn’t know who to blame. Which was fantastic.

Very entertaining, if you enjoyed books like Flicker in the Dark and Jar of Hearts then you will love this one!

Unreliable characters, great motive, and fast paced.

🪵𝗿𝗲𝘃𝗶𝗲𝘄 𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗲🪵
WHAT LIES IN THE WOODS 🎧
🤍𝗚𝗲𝗻𝗿𝗲: thriller
𝗠𝘆 𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴: 4 ⭐️
📖 336 pages

Okay this was goooood! I loved all the layers weaved in about Naomi’s past and the characters and how they were all linked. It was a great pace and I enjoyed how all of the reveals were timed. Just when I was so sure I called the ending, another twist came along. Some theories I had were right, but definitely not all!

I listened to this one and finished it so fast. I understand this is the author’s debut in this adult thriller genre and I can’t wait to see more from her!

Thank you @netgalley for the #gifted copy!

When best friends Naomi, Olivia, and Cassidy were 11, they spent the summer exploring the woods playing the Goddess Game. One summer day however, Naomi barely escapes with her life. 22 years later, Naomi is confronted with the past as the news that the killer who spent the rest of his life in jail may have been innocent, which means the true culprit could still be out there…

➡️ Swipe for the full synopsis 📖

#kindle #bookaddict #whattoreadnext #botwxbs #bookcollector #booksaremylife #booksonbooks #WhatLiesintheWoods #thriller #suspense #whodoneit #mystery #horror #giftedbooks#giftedcopy #audiobook #cozycorner

This was a good mystery with lots of twists. I did guess the ending due to being familiar with the events it may be based on, but it was still a good read.

Naomi Shaw and her 2 best friends, Cass & Liv, grew up playing in the woods. One summer, at 11 years old, Naomi was stabbed 17 times. She survived, and the girls identified a man, Alan Stahl, as the murderer. Naomi didn't remember much about the attack, but followed the lead of her friends, the police and other grown ups in her life. Now, 20 years later the lies and secrets are catching up with them.

I did enjoy the story, but I did also have some problems with it. There was a lot of emphasis on how Naomi "lied" about what happened - she was an 11 year old victim! The constant talk of her culpability annoyed me throughout the book - enough for me to only give 3 stars to an otherwise good story.

Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to listen to this ARC.

This was a twisty book. I thought several times I had figured it out, and even at one point thought they had wrapped it all up for us. Only I should have known better. Twist after twist just kept coming!

Thank you to Net Galley and the publisher for this arc. The story interesting and it had some good twists and turns.

Naomi was attacked in the woods when she was just 11 years old. Her two friends, Olivia and Cassidy were there and witnessed the attack. They all helped send the serial killer to prison. Now, the serial killer is dead and Naomi has returned to try and finally find peace. But, that is not at all what she discovers.

Naomi broke my heart in so many places in this book. She truly wants to do the right thing but she has to know what actually occurred. And even though the attack happened to her, she has no recollection.

I can honestly say, this plot is rocking it! I am not going to give it away but I may never walk through the woods with the same perspective I have now. It is amazing what secrets will do!

I love this narrator, Karissa Vacker. She made these characters come alive! Her voice is perfect for all the drama that takes place in this novel.

Need a book which has more twists and turns than a tornado…THIS IS IT! Grab your copy today!

I received this novel from the publisher for a honest review.

This was absolutely amazing and surprising read.

This book had so many twists and turns and I went into this book pretty blind. I loved the audiobook and the characters. The characters were messy and complicated in all the best ways. This gave me the same vibes of a real crime that happened and I loved it, I hope Kate Alice Marshall continues to write more adult thrillers.

I loved this audiobook. It was so well done that I couldn't stop listening and finished it in two days. The main character has a ton of depth and is well developed. The trauma she has from her past meshed was well represented. The twists in this book were also well done. I saw one coming but not the other. The resolution of the mystery I didn't see coming and it was exceptionally well done. If you love a dark twisty mystery this is a great one to check out.