I was immediately intrigued reading the synopsis for this book, and I'm glad I read it! It is the perfect "spooky season" read, and I loved the audio narration (that's how I read this one). I highly recommend the audio version of the book. It had plenty of twists and turns, and while the ending was somewhat obvious, I still enjoyed this creepy read! Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for the gifted audiobook.

3.5 overall!

The cover alone had me wanting to read this book and the summary definitely had me sold. This was definitely a slow burn thriller and picked up halfway through. I loved the atmospheric vibes and felt like I was living in the Ashby’s cabin in the woods. I enjoyed the multiple POVs and getting both Natalie and Cheyenne’s side of the story. I also loved the ending and leaving it open ended to if the Hickory Man is actually real or not.

As much as I loved Cheyenne’s POV I wasn’t a huge fan of Natalie’s. You could tell she was being gaslighted by Hunter and it made me want to scream. I did end up guessing who the killer was, but it was still a good twist.

Overall, I enjoyed this slow burn, atmospheric thriller and would be a good fall/winter read.

This was a slow burn suspense read. There was a relatively high creepiness vibe to the story. The dual points of view added interest to the storyline. The small town of Blue Cliff is quite insular, steeped in superstition and not very welcoming to strangers. Strangers are viewed with suspicion and the the townspeople are quick to judge, make accusations and believe the worst. Who’s been murdering children for generations? Is there a supernatural explanation? Is the Hickory Man real or is there a flesh and blood murderer lurking in the woods? Much potential for this debut author.

Katherine Greene’s debut thriller, “The Woods Are Waiting,” delivers a spine-chilling tale set in the mysterious small town of Blue Cliff, Virginia, nestled in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains. Greene skillfully weaves a narrative that delves into sinister traditions and customs, plunging readers into an unsettling world where childhood friends Cheyenne and Natalie are about to face a truth beyond their wildest imaginations. Cheyenne Ashby, well-versed in her hometown’s dark and disturbing history, returns to Blue Cliff after five years away. Raised by her eccentric mother, Constance, deep within the woods, Cheyenne was exposed to peculiar customs and generational superstitions connected to the local legend of an evil entity haunting the forest.

The town’s tranquility was shattered five years ago when the bodies of three missing children were discovered. The culprit was not a mythical beast but a man named Jasper Clinton, convicted of these heinous crimes. However, when another child goes missing, Cheyenne and Natalie are determined to uncover the truth and reveal the dangerous secrets lurking in the town’s terrifying past. As the two women embark on their investigation, they confront the reality of the superstitions they once considered mere folklore, and the town’s enigmatic connection to the eerie woods becomes clear.

Greene’s writing is atmospheric that adds to the overall creepiness of the story. The slow-burn pacing allows for a deeper exploration of the characters and their motivations, and the well-built characterization brings authenticity to the tale. While some readers might find the premise of recurring child abductions hard to believe, the story’s dark atmosphere and spine-chilling elements compensate for any initial skepticism. The narrative introduces a cast of interesting characters, and the eerie nursery rhymes and town lore add to the unsettling ambiance.

The plot unfolds with a steady sense of suspense, and the well-executed twist keeps readers engaged until the end. For those seeking a spooky and absorbing read, this thriller is sure to satisfy your craving for the eerie and unsettling.

The Woods are Waiting by Katherine Greene. This book was GOOD. I thought for sure I had the ending figured out but it had me second guessing myself until the very last page. I love how you got to know (and mostly love) each character and then BAM! there is a twist and you are not sure if you love or hate the character. This book was really well done! Thank you Crooked Lane Books and NetGalley for the ARC!

Loved the cover of this one! In the beginning, I wasn't sure if this was a thriller or a ghost story but I thoroughly enjoyed finding out!
Highly recommend it if you enjoy Southern suspense, crime, and small-town thrillers with a supernatural twist.

The Woods are Waiting for me was a dark and disjointed read, one that was hard to capture me as I liked to be caught up in a book. This was a new author for me, but I always welcome finding new ones to fall in love with their work. Sadly this one did not do that for me, a town living in the past of a strange tell of the Hickory Man. Children have disappeared over the years, and it has happened once again. Chey has returned to the town, after making her break 5 years before leaving behind her best friends and her mother. Before the end of the book I had figured out who the culprit in the book was. I would still recommend this book to others, because I know not everyone enjoys the same books.

I received an ARC from NetGalley and CrookedLaneBooks, and I am leaving my review voluntarily.

This was a fun thriller that kept my interest and kept me on my toes! Really fun read for anyone who likes thrillers.

Blue Cliff has a dark and disturbing past. Filled with folklore, everyone learns about the Hemlock Man from a young age, to always have coins in their pockets and dirt in their shoes for protection and most of all to stay out of the woods! The town has a history of missing children that later are found dead. The Ashby’s are a big name in the town, but after finding one of the children in the woods five years ago, Cheyenne quietly leaves town without a goodbye or a backward glance. When the police chief calls to tell her that her mother needs her after another young boy goes missing, Cheyenne heads home to help out. When Cheyenne and her two best friends get back together and the town starts an uproar over the handling of the case, they start to slowly put pieces together, remembering things from their own past, but are they true memories or just their forgotten dreams and are they safe even now? This was a very dark and creepy story that just didn’t work for me. Compared to the works of Ruth Ware and Lisa Jewel, it just doesn’t hold a candle to either of them! Thank you to Crooked Lane Books and NetGalley for an ARC of this book.

The Woods are Waiting is a slow burn eerie thriller. I loved the setting, books set near the Appalachian Mountains excite my thriller/horror heart to no end, I love spooky stuff. The slow burn was a bit too slow for me though, I felt like nothing happened until the last quarter of the book and even then, I felt like it dragged. It's a great debut with interesting characters.

I liked the book, I just didn't love it.

Thank you Netgalley and Gallery Books for this ARC in exchange for a review.

Reading the book I had a hunch pretty early on who the 'Hickory Man' could be (which turned out to be correct) and then it was all about finding out the 'why' aspect and the actual backstory of the legend that had the town of Blue Cliff, Virginia in grips for generations. When that mystery was solved, one thing became clear--the scariest part of Blue Cliff wasn't the creepy and atmospheric woods or the monster, it was the people living in the town (past and present). People who, as a result of their own generational superstitions, beliefs and customs, were responsible for creating the legend and the monster in the first place.

Overall, this was a decent debut and the book had its share of suspenseful and atmospheric moments; however, I would have liked a bit more character development of the main characters, especially Cheyeanne. Cheyeanne Ashby is shown to return to Blue Cliff from Ranoake after 5 years but we are never told what she did in those years away from her hometown. To me, she gave vibes of someone who might be in law enforcement but it was never made clear what she did.

My thanks to NetGalley, the publisher Crooked Lane Books and the author duo Katherine Greene for the free widget of the book. I had finished reading the book before its publication date but got delayed in writing a review.

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐✨💫

This story is definitely a slow burn, the beginning really focuses on the characters and building up the tension that will eventually come to a head in the second half.
I didn’t know if this thriller was going to be what I wanted it to be, but I had a lot of fun reading this one.
I love small towns with secrets and settings with creepy woods. I did predict a tiny bit of it, but the ending did something that I was hoping for, which made me happy! I think if you like Lisa Jewell, you might enjoy this one.

I loved this book!! It was one of my favorites of 2023!! I’m so happy I got to read this book!! I couldn’t it down from start to finish. I read this book in one day that’s how good it was for me!! I love Katherine greens work!!

Cheyenne left her hometown but was called back to help her mom, who wasn't doing well. Her hometown has a history of missing children and the townspeople have followed traditions in an attempt to keep the mysterious evil Hickory Man away. However, another child has gone missing recently and when Cheyenne returns, the townspeople are sure it's the same killer who was convicted 5 years earlier for killing three children, but who was recently released due to new evidence. Cheyenne and her childhood friends Natalie and Jack think they know who is behind it, but soon realize they didn't have all the information. The more they learn, the more old memories are dredged up. Overall, a quick read that focuses on the superstitions of a small town and how they continue to drive the town's trajectory. Though the book seemed to focus on the fact the killer was a very real person, it also leaves the reader with an open ending that still could be supernatural.

Thanks to Crooked Lane Books, Netgalley and the author for an ARC of this book. I am leaving this unbiased review voluntarily.

This story revolves around a town where three children, a boy and two girls, go missing on a fairly regular basis for generations and one of the town's family's, the Ashby's, have always been known as the town's protectors from the legendary 'Hickory Man'. '

The tale begins with Chey Ashby coming back to her hometown to visit her mother who seems to be going a bit off the deep end as a new child has gone missing recently. Chey reunites with her old friends, Nat and Jack, who get caught up in the mystery of the missing child and are inextricably linked to the past.

While this was a quick and easy read I found it a little too predictable and the relationship between Chey and Jack unnecessary. I liked the friendship between Nat and Chey but the whole thing felt a bit implausible towards the end. This story about missing children, while a little creepy, just didn't do it for me.

"The Woods are Waiting" was a decent story. About halfway through the story the identity of one of the killers taking advantage of the Hickory Man legend became pretty obvious. However, the motive behind the killing of the children both currently and over the centuries did come as a surprise. How it had been covered up for so long was creative. Also, the author does a good job of portraying how one might be persuaded to act in an immoral and illegal fashion, that brings great harm (or even death) to others, if doing so will protect loved ones.

Katherine Greene’s debut thriller, “The Woods Are Waiting,” delivers a spine-chilling tale set in the mysterious small town of Blue Cliff, Virginia, nestled in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains. In the vein of renowned authors Lisa Jewell and Ruth Ware, Greene skillfully weaves a narrative that delves into sinister traditions and customs, plunging readers into an unsettling world where childhood friends Cheyenne and Natalie are about to face a macabre truth beyond their wildest imaginations. Cheyenne Ashby, well-versed in her hometown’s dark and disturbing history, returns to Blue Cliff after five years away. Raised by her eccentric mother, Constance, deep within the woods, Cheyenne was exposed to peculiar customs and generational superstitions connected to the local legend of an evil entity haunting the forest.

The town’s tranquility was shattered five years ago when the bodies of three missing children were discovered. The culprit was not a mythical beast but a man named Jasper Clinton, convicted of these heinous crimes. However, when another child goes missing, Cheyenne and Natalie are determined to uncover the truth and reveal the dangerous secrets lurking in the town’s terrifying past. As the two women embark on their investigation, they confront the reality of the superstitions they once considered mere folklore, and the town’s enigmatic connection to the eerie woods becomes clear.

Greene’s writing creates an atmospheric and claustrophobic setting that adds to the overall creepiness of the story. The slow-burn pacing allows for a deeper exploration of the characters and their motivations, and the well-built characterization brings authenticity to the tale. While some readers might find the premise of recurring child abductions hard to believe, the story’s dark atmosphere and spine-chilling elements compensate for any initial skepticism. The narrative introduces a cast of interesting characters, and the eerie nursery rhymes and town lore add to the unsettling ambiance.

The plot unfolds with a steady sense of suspense, and the well-executed twist keeps readers engaged until the end. While the mystery might not be entirely unexpected, the novel still provides ample thrills and chills that will appeal to lovers of slow-burn suspense, mysteries with supernatural undertones, and haunting tales. “The Woods Are Waiting” stands as a compelling debut, showcasing Katherine Greene’s storytelling prowess. The novel captivates readers with its haunting atmosphere, intriguing characters, and urban legend that leaves a lasting impression. For those seeking a spooky and absorbing read, this thriller is sure to satisfy your craving for the eerie and unsettling.

3.5+ stars

This one was just okay for me. I wanted to be more captivated by it than I actually was. The characters and plot were okay, but I found it a bit slow at times. That being said, the premise was good, and the writing wasn’t bad. I’ll probably be looking to check out what the writers come out with next in the future.

I enjoyed this book, more towards the middle to the end. The beginning was a little slow and picks up once you get through the history of the characters. I enjoyed it more then I thought I would, small town, creepy history and family legacy. I was surprised with one thing at the end. No spoilers here, you will have to read the book. I will keep an eye out for more books by Katherine Greene and thank you to NetGalley for the ARC/Audio.

A solid small town multi-generational mystery! I had no idea where this was going to go, and was thoroughly shocked by the big reveal.

I received an advance copy in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts are my own.