I really loved the idea of this one, but to me the execution of this one (particularly in the second half) fell short. It felt so rushed in the second half and seemed like a lot of steps were skipped in getting to the resolution of the story. I also wish we had more time exploring Shannondoah. It was such an interesting world and I think a lot more could have been done with it.

Thanks to NetGalley for providing an eARC of this book.
4.25 out of 5 stars.

This book is precious. I was caught up within the first few pages and couldn't put it down.

When they were 15, Jeremy and Rafe got lost in Red Crow forest in West "by God!" Virginia. Six months later, they are found. Rafe is suffering from apparent head trauma as he cannot remember the last six months, nor can he explain the vicious scars on his back. Jeremy remembers, though, but Jeremy and his mother move far away, and it is fifteen years before Jeremy reached out to Rafe to ask for help finding a woman's sister...in Red Crow forest. Despite Rafe's heartache at being shut out of Jeremy's life for so long, he agrees to help, and together, they three make their way into Red Crow forest, where we find out what really happened to the lost boys all those years ago.

I loved this story. It is heartbreaking and precious and I absolutely cannot wait to get my hands on a hard copy of the finished product.

I loved the concept of Lost Virginia. It was like the upsidedown in Stranger Things. However, it created a huge plot hole. If Shannon/Skya created the world, how are the lost souls of the real world end up in Ghost Town?

I also felt like it could have done without the storyteller. I feel like the storyteller was included for page count purposes. I didn't think they added anything at all to the story.

There is a part with a woman in rags and a pile of leaves that will stick me for the rest of my life. So crazy. The imagery was vivid and haunting.

See my full video review here: https://youtu.be/pRSOp295AW8

Thank you so much for the arc! I love this author’s writing and the worlds she creates. Can’t wait for more!

Meg Meg Meg. This book description had my hopes up super high then FAR SURPASSED THEM. I didn’t want to put it down, and flew through it. Phenomenal job. I can’t wait to read it again ❤️

Meg Shaffer’s first book, The Wishing Game, topped the list for me last year. I highly anticipated her second book, but found myself muddling through this story at times. These are two completely different genres of books. There is heart to this story and it is beautifully written; however, The Lost Story is much more fantasy mixed with a dash of reality. I did wind up enjoying it even though it didn’t quite surpass The Wishing Game for me. I loved the Storyteller Corner breaking the fourth wall and the humor intertwined with some very heavy themes.

Thank you to Meg Shaffer, Ballentine Books, and NetGalley for the opportunity to read an advanced copy of this book!

Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. This book publishes on July 16.

Beautiful storytelling. This book was a lot more fantasy heavy than “The Wishing Game” and I wasn’t quite expecting the path the book took. Once I realized this was going to be fantasy, I was able to enjoy it for what it was. The premise was fantastic and completely unique. Worth a read if you enjoy fantasy.

MY OH MY. I would have never picked up this book on the basis of the summary, but I’m so glad I did. I loved the Wishing Game, and The Lost Story was just as great. Thanks so much for the advanced copy. I will be thinking of this story for a long time.

ARC Review: The Lost Story, by Meg Shaffer
3.5/5 Stars | Fantasy, Magical Realism

Thank you to Net Galley and Ballantine Books for the ARC access to this book in exchange for my honest review.
Meg Shaffer's debut novel, The Wishing Game was one of my favorite books I have read in years. The world of Clock Island was so fleshed out and compelling, and after reading the book I had such a strong desire to devour the entire Clock Island series - the only problem was that it doesn't exist in real life!
When I learned that Meg Shaffer was coming out with a second book and that it would be a Narnia-style fantasy book, I was so excited! I thought this was just about as close as I would get to reading a book as exciting as the Clock Island series sounded, and I couldn't wait. When I decided to try my hand at ARC (advanced reader copy) reading, and this was the first book I was approved for, I was beyond excited! 
Though I have admittedly never read the Narnia series, I have spent a lot of time getting lost in other fantasy worlds. I grew up reading pretty much every book Roald Dahl, read all of the Harry Potter books multiple times, and as an adult immensely enjoyed getting lost in the Narnia-style world of Lev Grossman's The Magicians series. 
The Lost Story is available today, and centers around two men, Jeremy Cox and Rafe Howell who seemingly get lost in the woods of West Virginia as teenagers. Except, they weren't lost, they were transported to the magical land of "Shanandoah." The heart of the novel is written around their return to Shanandoah to help a young woman named Emilie find her sister.
For me, the world of Shanandoah was somewhat of a letdown. As a whole, I did not feel that the fantasy world was as fleshed-out as I would have liked it to have been. Perhaps the story spent more time exploring Rafe and Jeremy's life in the real world to leave much time for dropping a lot of Shanandoah lore. 
The story, at least, seemed self-aware as it had a built-in mechanism to explain why much of the magic and rules of Shanandoah didn't make sense - it was a story written by a child who later became the Queen of Shanandoah. Queen Skya (formerly Shannon - hence the misspelling) wrote a fantasy story as a child with a magical unicorn pencil given to her by her teacher, and it somehow came true.
Throughout the story, the plot is interrupted by a "Storyteller's Corner" (revealed in the end to be Skya writing a second story) which feels entirely unnecessary and never furthers the plot or adds much value.
I felt the strongest part of this novel was when Rafe was remembering and exploring his childhood trauma. It was an interesting take to explore repressed memories through the idea of his "lost story," a book of memories that Rafe was unable to access once he left Shananoah, but ultimately the fantasy world did not seem strong enough to make this metaphor work. I wanted to be wrapped up in the magic and fantasy of Shenandoah, and it just did not get me there.
The story is left open for continuation. I thought the story ended somewhat abruptly and could have been wrapped up in a few more chapters, but perhaps Meg Shaffer wants to develop the story even more into a second book, or even a series. Hopefully if there is a sequel, the world of Shanandoah will be explored in more detail and the world-building will feel more strong and confident. Building a fantasy world, after all, is no small feat!
The ARC that I read of this book clocked in at 291 pages, but I've noticed that the publication information seems to indicate the final copy will be around 336 pages. I do wonder if the Shanandoah lore was more developed in the final draft, or if the ending was expanded a bit. I think I will try to listen to the audio of the final version and report back after I have consumed the final version!
Overall, I do have hope for the world of Shanandoah. It wasn't uninteresting, I just wanted more from it! I am eager to see what changes were made before publication and interested enough to read a sequel or second book if this becomes a series. I want to know more about what happens to Jeremy, Rafe, Emilie, and Skya after the end of the story. This story doesn't seem complete yet, and hopefully, Meg Shaffer has more to explore in this world!
If you enjoyed The Wishing Game, or if you are a fan of fantasy worlds, I would recommend giving this book a read.

3 stars

I love narnia!! Loved that this was inspired by it. I really enjoyed the magical realism, the journey, and the adventures. The writing was very lyrical and that was hit and a miss for me. It comes with pros and cons. Fast paced and cute at times.

So what could have been better?
• I struggled with the dialogue when it came to the characters. It felt very one dimensional and not much of a development.
• Also not much happened till half way down the line and I just found myself kinda bored sometimes.

Overall this was okay!

After the death of her mother Emilie discovers she’s has a sister. But her sister has been missing since she was a teenager. Hoping to find her body she enlists the help of Jeremy who is known for finding lost girls and women since he came home as a missing teenager. At first Jeremy agrees to help but they need the help of the other boy who went missing with him as a teenager. This is a sweet fairy tale for adults that doesn’t have some big elaborate world building or complicated story behind it. This is a good read for adults who want something a bit fantastical and escapist but don’t want to have to think to had or spent hundreds of pages reading set up and world building. I loved the characters, story and the bit of mystery. My only compliant was I felt the last bit of the book felt a bit rushed.

The Lost story is an adult fairy tale, found family, mm romance that focuses on the story of Rafe and Jeremy, two boys, and then men from West Virginia. When the novel begins, we meet Jeremy who seems to have a magical power to find missing women and girls, and Emilie, who tracks him down in order to find her half sister who went missing 15 years ago. We quickly learn that Jeremey and his best friend Rafe got lost in the same woods that Emilies sister did years ago, and were found months later, not only in good shape but stronger, taller and healthier than when they got lost.

The initial set up had me immediately interested, and I enjoyed learning about our characters, and the relationship between them. Once the trio goes searching however, the novel turns into a fantasy novel, not just the magical realism that we had in the authors first novel. It also felt a bit like a YA novel, but that might just because I do not normally read fantasy or fairy tales, but I picked this up because I enjoyed the authors first novel so much. Never the less I found myself immersed in the land of Shanandoah and its magical creatures, and the relationships between our 4 main characters. There are also some serious issues addressed here including child abuse, if that is a trigger for you.

If you enjoyed the wishing game, and are willing to expand into the fantasy, world building genre, then this one will be for you too. Thank you to net galley for the e galley for an unbiased review.

The Lost Story by Meg Shaffer

I received a digital copy of this book from NetGalley for review. My opinions are my own.

5/5 stars

I cannot gush enough about how much I LOVED THIS BOOK. I was enamored by the description on NetGalley, touting it for fans of “The Chronicles of Narnia.” And it is, my friends. It absolutely is. It seems to be very loosely modeled after “The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe” with a LGBTQ+ twist.

This is light on romance (and definitely closed door), heavy on fantasy and world-building, and big on friendship and found family.

The ending is set up in a way that there could be a series. My hope is that there is a series modeled after “The Chronicles of Narnia” - please 🙏

TW: there is some mention of child abuse but the author weaves this in skillfully. I do recommend that this is addressed as a TW in a forward at the beginning at publishing.

The Lost Story, set in West Virginia, follows two boys who mysteriously go missing during a school field trip to Red Crow State Forest. The boys, Jeremy and Rafe, reappear unharmed six months later, and become estranged from one another once settling back into their routines.

Fifteen years later, Emilie entrusts the help of the boys to relocate her missing older sister, who disappeared from the same forest many years prior.

This was a quick and easy read, with a small cast of characters, short chapters, and minimal world building to digest. You get sporadic callouts from a “storyteller” giving this book a classic fairytale feel.

Similar to the Wishing Game, this is a whimsical story - while it has more of a YA tone, difficult situations are discussed and addressed.

I devoured the first 25% of this book, but things really slowed down for me from that point on. It takes nearly half of the book for the crew to return to the forest, and what was initially presented as the “mystery” of the story (finding Emilie’s sister) isn’t really a mystery at all. The back half of the book relies on the romance subplot to carry it along, rather than adventure and magic,

If you liked the Wishing Game, I think you’ll also like this story - while it was cute, it just wasn’t a home run for me.

Thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this eARC!

The Lost Story centers on the disappearance (and reappearance) of two boys lost in the forests of West Virginia. Only one boy remembers the truth of what really happened to them and the magic kingdom they visited. Too bad he can’t tell the other boy any of it. Now, 15 years after reappearing, they must join together to help a girl find her lost sister, who disappeared in the same forest.

This story grabbed me from the very beginning. I loved the use of the storyteller to give insight into the story and provide some comic relief at times. The pop culture references seemed written just for me and I thought they enhanced the story perfectly. This book made me laugh out loud, cry, and feel my heart warm.

You will love this book if you loved The Princess Bride & The Never Ending Story!

Such a sweet story 🥹 lovable characters in a unique setting with a little bit of romance and mystery mixed in with fantasy. If you enjoyed The Wishing Game, I definitely recommend picking this one up because I enjoyed it even more!

This story should have stayed lost. As much as I loved Shaffer’s last book, The Wishing Game, I disliked this one. It was a cross between a fairy tale, Peter Pan and a homosexual love story. It did not come across for me as whimsical but weird and trippy. It covers topics such as abductions, homosexuality, abuse by parents, and suicide. The jest of the story is two previous “lost” boys go back to their kingdom to help reunite two sisters. Even typing out the premise of the story is strange. This book lacks the magic and whimsy of the Wishing Game and even the connected story telling component.

Jeremy was once a missing boy who disappeared in a West Virginia forest with his best friend Rafe while they were on a school trip. 15 years later he has committed his life to finding lost girls and women and is eerily successful in finding them. Emilie is a young woman who finds out after her mother dies that she has a sister who went missing in the same forest, never to be found, and she seeks out Jeremy's help. Emilie's goal is to find her sister's remains and put her to rest but when Jeremy hears the details of her case he knows it is much more complicated than Emilie knows. Jeremy must reunite with Rafe to help Emilie and face what had happened 15 years prior. Based on, or as an homage to, the Chronicles of Narnia this tale has magic, adventure, loyalty and most especially love as these young people face their demons and put everything on the line to help each other. I loved it and will be highly recommending.

“The Lost Story” is an adult fairy tale by Meg Shaffer. I know this book is to be a tribute to the Narnia books, but having never read beyond “The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe,” I didn’t really see the connections. I liked the queer representation between Rafe and Jeremy, their story was lovely and really felt like “love is love is love.” I found Emilie and Skya basically both there to start the story and then move the story along, but they really felt like secondary bit players in this story. In some ways this book was really well done - I liked the overarching idea, the “magic” slipping into “the real world,” and the power of love. In other ways, this book was okay - there was a lot of build-up to the main story (interesting but I’m not sure how much was necessary) and an ending I predicted (meaning the ending ending - which was like Narnia, but with a twist). I didn’t love the book and I didn’t always enjoy the book, but it was a fine book! I just wish that I’d felt as enchanted as the cover and synopsis had me hoping I would be. Would I recommend this book? Yes - though think of this book not as an homage to Narnia, but more an adult fairy tale (sometimes it felt more like a nod to the adventures in Neverland). I will look forward to Ms. Shaffer’s next book; not all books by an author you like are 100% loves, but there’s always hope for the next one.

Book: The Lost Story
Author: Meg Shaffer
Rating: 5 Out of 5 Stars

I want to thank the publisher, Ballantine Books, for providing me with an ARC. Meg Shaffer, the author of The Wishing Game, is quickly becoming a new favourite author. She has this way of creating these magical worlds and making it impossible to put them down. She crafts characters whom we cannot help but fall in love with. It’s what I am looking for in books.

In this one, we follow Emilie, Jeremy, and Rafe, who have had some bad things happen to them. For Emilie, it is the loss of the only family she has ever known and her quest to find the missing sister whom she has never met. For Jeremy and Rafe, it’s about trying to uncover what happened to them fifteen years ago. They went into the woods of West Virginia and came out six months later unharmed and healthy. Rafe cannot remember what happened to them. Jeremy now has the power to find anyone. They fell out of touch and out of contact. Now, Emilie has asked Jeremy to find her sister. Jeremy knows that he needs Rafe’s help, but they have not spoken to each other for fifteen years. It will take some work. Plus, it means that they will have to return to where it all started fifteen years ago. It is the only way for them to find all that they have ever lost.

This book is marketed as an adult version of Narina. For once, I do agree with this. We have two men who when they were teenagers were taken to this magical world, one that was more of a home than their real homes. They built a life there and were happy. Most importantly they had each other., I think you know that they were more than friends and that this typically does not go over well with certain West Virginian circles. Rafe has an abusive father and just wants to get away. Jeremy, who is British and lives a rich life, just wants to be with Jeremy. Somehow they find a way do so. When they return, people question, but the boys don’t tell them what happened. Rafe can’t remember at all and starts to do things that end up having him put in a mental hospital. As an adult, he ends up shutting himself off from society. Jeremy becomes a famous tracker. Yet, they still cannot let go of what happened to them. No matter how bad it is, they still find themselves being pulled by the magic. Both of them are lost and need to go back to get rid of that feeling.

While we do have three main characters, this is Jeremy and Rafe’s story. Don’t get me wrong. Emile does play an important role in the story, but it is about second chances. Now that I think about it, all of the characters are getting second chances. For Jeremy and Rafe, this is their second chance at being together and reuniting. It’s about moving on from the past and coming together for the future. It’s about letting go of the ghosts that have haunted them their entire lives and shutting that door. For Emile, it’s about healing after her mother’s death and finding the sister she never knew. It’s also about finding the life that she longs for and needs. She wants a family, she wants that connection, and, most importantly, she needs it. All of them were looking for something that they could not find in their sense of reality. They needed to let go of their reality and uncover what the forest truly had to offer.

The writing is what makes all of this happen. Meg has this way of creating characters and putting them on the page that makes you fall in love with them. They are regular people who need a little bit of magic in their lives. They need something. Most importantly, they are real people who we can all see a little bit of ourselves in. Emile wants a family and to feel like she belongs. Jeremy and Rafe want a second chance at what could have been. All of them have hit rock bottom, even if some of them don’t realize it, and need this. You can feel their heartbreak and just how lost they feel. They need something to happen to bring life back to them. It’s hard to put into words, but they are the type of characters with whom you want all of the good things to happen.

Anyway, I had a great time with this one. I am looking forward to more from this author.

This book comes out on July 16, 2024.

Youtube: https://youtu.be/AwESIj96_cM

If you loved The Wishing Game, you will LOVE this book. Inspired by? Influenced by? The Chronicles of Narnia. However, this book is so beautiful, richly written, stunning, captivating, transporting. I loved this book so much and did not want it to end, but it had to end. However, the story, like The Wishing Game, made me cry. Now, I normally do not cry in books. But I did in this one and I am so not embarrassed because I am proud of reading something so touching and I absolutely loved this book. It's hard to describe this book, because anything I say will not do it justice. But I will tell you right now if you want to read the next CLEAR hit/BookTok sweetheart, this will be in and RIGHTLY so. Pick this up if you love fantasy, stunning books, or just something sweet.

This ebook was provided by NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.