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Thanks to @simonbooks @simonandschuster @netgalley for my advance e copy

42 year old nurse, Valerie Gillis goes missing as she hikes the Appalachian Trail.
The resulting search and rescue mission takes on a whole life of its own.

I loved reading the viewpoints of:
Beverly, the Maine Game Warden in charge of the search
76 year old Lena bird watcher in Connecticut who’s in online communication with someone also on the hiking trail
Fellow hikers who give their interviews and input on their interactions and last sightings of Valerie
“Letters” written by Valerie to her mother, noting her feelings and memories of growing up and their mother/daughter relationship

The Read with Jenna book pick for April 🌷

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There are three women at the core of the story in Heartwood. There's Valerie, a stressed-out nurse taking a leave from her job to hike the Appalachian Trial. It's been challenging but she's now facing the most difficult terrain of her journey and finds herself alone and lost. Leading the search for Valerie is Lt. Bev, a loner and hard-core outdoors person. She's always been one of a few women in Maine's Search and Rescue organization, and feels especially alone now that she's in a leadership position. The search is a stressful one and she's trying to balance her focus while also dealing with personal struggles with her sisters and dying mother.
And then there's Lena. She's in her 70's, in an electric wheelchair and living unhappily in an assisted living community where she has no interest in socializing with 95% of her fellow residents. Her life is guided by her books, forays onto the community grounds on foraging expeditions, and correspondence through a subreddit with someone she believes to be a fellow forager.
The novel was inspired by a real life tragedy where a female hiker went missing on the trail in northwest Maine. In addition to that element of the story, the novel explored so many interesting areas: search and rescue, life and the outdoors in Maine, foraging, and, of course, hiking the Appalachian Trail.
Valerie's story and struggle is revealed through a series of letters she writes along the way to her mother. Her writing is beautiful and poignant, although it was a little hard to imagine such beautiful writing while under the stress of being lost and with very little food and resources.
There's an element of mystery to Heartwood, but it's not a thriller, but more of a story about a lost woman and mother and daughter relationships. The characters are all so well-developed and interesting, and I especially liked Lena and Santo, a fellow hiker and secondary character.
Thanks to Netgalley and Simon and Schuster for the opportunity to read Heartwood. I received a complimentary copy of the book and opinions expressed are completely my own.

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42-year-old Valerie goes missing in Maine while hiking the Appalachian Trail. Told through alternating POVS: Valerie, Warden Bev, senior citizen Lena.

Now THIS is the post-COVID book I've been wanting to read. You, the reader, get drawn in by the search effort and Valerie's journal/inner thoughts, but you stay because of the examination of human connection.

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This is a novel told from multiple points of view in the time span of 2 weeks as each of them are connected to the search for a missing hiker on the Appalachian Trail. Each of the characters have their own version of feeling lost or misplaced and each has someone to confide in. The writing is lovely and the search for the missing hiker feels urgent which added tension and excitement to the novel. Somehow, however, the whole thing felt disjointed. Relationships weren't flushed out. Plot lines didn't click with me because there were so many holes that the reader is supposed to just accept - even the significant plot lines. I wanted to know more and more deeply but ended the book dissatisfied, unfortunately. Heartfelt thanks to the publisher for the advanced copy.

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Riveting wilderness suspense story!

Wow, this was excellent! I was completely invested and hooked from the very first pages. Gaige masterfully weaves a story filled with tension, emotion, and mystery, making it impossible to put down.

One of the standout aspects of Heartwood is the multiple points of view, each unique and essential in unraveling this fascinating story. The shifting perspectives added layers of depth and urgency, making me feel fully immersed in the characters’ experiences. I wanted to slow down and savor every word, but the suspense kept me flipping pages as fast as I could!

The audiobook was phenomenal, featuring an impressive cast of narrators—Justine Lupe, Alma Cuervo, Rebecca Lowman, Ali Andre Ali, Cary Hite, and Helen Laser. While that’s a lot of voices, it absolutely worked, bringing the story to life in an incredibly engaging way. The narration truly enhanced the experience for me.

As a Read with Jenna TODAY Show book club pick, this novel delivers a thrilling and deeply atmospheric tale. If you love wilderness survival stories, intricate character dynamics, and books that keep you on the edge of your seat, Heartwood is a must-read!

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A Grounded Sparrow

"Heartwood" tells the story of the search for Valerie Gillis, a 42-year-old hiker known as "Sparrow," who vanishes while navigating the challenging Appalachian Trail. In charge of conducting the search is Beverly, a Maine State Game Warden. A third key player is Lena, a seventy-six-year-old retirement home resident who connects strongly with the missing woman. This trinity of women provides the framework of the book.

Valerie, a nurse, found herself drained and disillusioned after the Covid crisis. “We were called heroes. But we were given only two options– being a hero or falling apart.” The Appalachian Trail was her way to seek rejuvenation. Her journal entries, penned as letters to her mother, offer a glimpse into her emotional and physical deterioration. These entries gradually reveal the reasons why this seasoned hiker strayed so far off course, especially when she was so close to completing the trail.

Beverly's unwavering dedication to her work, even at the cost of her personal life, makes her a fascinating character. Her impressive achievements in a male-dominated industry are commendable. However, the lack of progress in this particular case has raised doubts about her capabilities and cast a shadow over her typically relentless drive.

The introduction of Lena is baffling and makes her the weak link, which ultimately makes her eventual importance in solving the central mystery feel contrived and convenient. Her role creates an imbalance in the overall structure. While Valerie's and Beverly's perspectives drive the plot, Lena's interludes feel like unnecessary diversions.

Gregory, Valerie's husband, seemed somewhat evasive. While husbands are always potential suspects, his behavior was particularly difficult to interpret. In contrast to Santo, Valerie's hiking companion for most of the trail, Gregory's role in the story was clear. Santo's periodic interviews seemed unnecessary and appeared to serve only to introduce another possible suspect. In a motion picture, a decent film editor would leave these scenes on the cutting room floor.

I enjoyed learning of the challenges of search-and-rescue operations. Beverly and Valerie were compelling characters and Valerie’s heartfelt journal messages to her mother were moving. Lena and Santo were like speed bumps, however, and detracted from an otherwise smooth reading.

Thank you to Simon and Schuster and NetGalley for providing an advance reader copy in exchange for an honest review. #Heartwood #NetGalley

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📚: Heartwood by Amity Gaige
⭐️: 4/5

Valerie Gillis - a nurse from Massachusetts on a journey to hike the Appalachian Trail. For months she hikes, when 200 miles from her final destination in Maine, she disappears into thin air.

This was an absolutely beautifully written book. With multiple media forms woven in across multiple POVs, this is a story of suspense, identity, and mothers and daughters. While this is a mystery, it isn’t a thriller - don’t expect a major twist but expect masterful storytelling.

Thanks to Simon & Schuster via @netgalley for a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review. Heartwood is out now.

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Heartwood by Amity Gaige is an atmospheric literary novel centered around a woman hiker who goes missing from the Appalachian Trail (AT) in Maine. The narrative unfolds through the point-of-view of three women. Although chapter headings inform you whose point-of-view follows, the voices of these three women are distinct and immediately recognizable while reading.

After hiking 1900 miles on the Appalachian Trail, Valerie Gillis, a 42 year-old nurse, fails to show up at a predetermined checkpoint in Maine’s 100-Mile Wilderness and is reported missing by her husband, Gregory Bouras. Lost, alone, and with only one boot, she spends her time writing letters to her mother. Her trail name is Sparrow and she met and spent much of her hike with Santo, an amiable heavyset Black hiker from the Bronx who had to leave before the stretch of trail through Maine.

Lt. Beverly Miller, Maine State Game Warden, is in charge of the search and rescue effort. She has led many successful searches, but she knows the statistic on timeliness and survival. When a massive, multiday effort turns up no sign of Valerie, Bev fears the worst but keeps up the effort to find her.

Lena Kucharski, 76, is a wheelchair bound resident of a Connecticut retirement community, who becomes an armchair detective when she learns of the search. Valerie reminds her of her estranged daughter. She's in contact online with a forager and survivalist who professes to know the search area. There are some additional points-of-view also included.

In the even paced narrative the tension increases as time passes because readers know what Valerie is experiencing and how dire her situation is. Once you learn how she went off trail, it is a game changer in the story. It is also clear how dedicated and determined Bev is while conducting the search and rescue efforts as well as how heavy the search weighs on her. Lena's role is interesting but it is not clear why it is included at first. Rest assured it all comes together at the final denouement.

Heartwood is mainly an introspective literary novel. The plot explores aging, mother-daughter relationships, tenacity, introspection, and solitude. Stress induced by the pandemic was also mentioned, which I can do without hearing. Thanks to Simon & Schuster for providing me with an advance reader's copy via NetGalley. My review is voluntary and expresses my honest opinion.

The review will be published on Edelweiss, Barnes & Noble and, unfortunately, Amazon would not published my review.

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I was wholly invested in this story from the beginning, almost as if it were non-fiction.

This layered, multiple POV mystery was so beautifully unraveled, I delayed reading it so I could savor the pages rather than my typical racing through to finish.

I loved Santo’s perspective the best, and was curious where it would all end up, both literally since this is set on the Appalachian Trail, which is mysterious on its own, and metaphorically.

The middle took a strange turn, and I was worried it would jump ship for a second, but the train was righted and the journey kept on to its satisfying ending.

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Heartwood is such a gorgeous book. It’s a literary, propulsive, and emotionally resonant story about a woman lost on the Maine leg of the Appalachian Trail and two other women invested in her fate. As the search for Valerie drags on, Maine warden Bev begins to lose hope of finding her alive, while down in Connecticut, a retirement community resident named Lena finds herself drawn into the search for Valerie in unexpected ways.

Weaving seamlessly between the voices of the three women – Valerie’s through letters to her mother, crafted in her trail journal – and utilizing transcripts from interviews and online exchanges, Heartwood is an unforgettable story about resilience, love, and motherhood that’s profoundly affecting. Amity Gaige’s prose is luminous and meaningful, full of deep insights into the relationships between mothers and daughters and the complex beauty of self-discovery. And it’s also suspenseful, an urgent missing person narrative in which it’s clear that time is running out. But most of all, it’s a powerful character study about three women, each strong in their own way, and their personal struggles and successes. The characters are richly-crafted, beautifully flawed, and so heartbreakingly vulnerable.

My suggestion is to take your time with Heartwood, no matter how desperately you want to know Valerie’s fate. Read it slowly, savor the stunning writing, pause to digest the poignant insights and tender character moments. Let the book wash over you and relish the fact that novels like this just don’t come around very often. Thank you to Simon & Schuster for the early reading opportunity.

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Heartwood by Amity Gaige is a gripping mystery that captivated me immediately.
This authors writing style and ability to turn this book into a compelling story was amazing.
A clever, twisty murder mystery packed full of secrets and lies that will keep you turning the pages way past bedtime.

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A rescue team in Maine, headed by Maine state warden Beverly, is racing against the clock to find a missing 42 year old novice hiker, Valerie. The story is told through multiple POVs including Beverly, Valerie’s hiking buddy Santos, Valerie herself (through letters she writes during her time missing), as well as Lena, an elderly women in CT who is closely following the case. Between all of these viewpoints the story of Valerie’s hike and life emerges as the pieces of the puzzle about her disappearance begin to fit together.

I didn’t really know what to expect when I went into this one but I ended up loving it. It’s a bit of Strayed’s Wild but in thriller form. Each character has a parental/child relationship that gets fleshed out, but also this book is about caretakers in all forms: Valerie is a nurse right after COVID and writes letters to her mother, Beverly is the caretaker of the hikers, Santos has issues with his father and Lena is struggling with the estrangement of her daughter. I love the depth of each character which makes me hesitate to call it a thriller, but there is the element of the race against time to find Valerie in time. I listened to a little less than half of this one and the audio was the perfect pace and speed for this genre crossing book.

4.5 stars

Thank you to S&S and NetGalley for the ARC to review

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Heartwood by amity gauge, Valerie is a 42 year-old nurse who went missing while walking the Appalachian Trail in Maine. For over 1000 miles she had a trail partner named Santos who had to leave due to his dad‘s untimely death and although she wanted to give up she kept going. When she didn’t meet her husband at their proposed time he raised the alarm and now the Maine forestry parkwardens led by Beverly Miller is trying to find her. A couple of states away 73 year-old Lana is online talking to her friend on a forging website when he tells her about the 42 year-old missing nurse who was hiking the trail and instantly Lana Belize it is her daughter and although she will be wrong about who it is she will still be pivotal to finding the lost woman not to mention she will also find something she has been yearning for for years and didn’t know it. This book whether it be Valerie Lana or Lieutenant Beverly, on the surface this looks like a simple case of a missing woman but as you peel back the layers it is about so much more. this book is so well written and captivating I found it hard to put down and although there are no big reveals or got you moments it is still a book that will leave you thinking about it days later.#NetGalley, #TheBlindReviewer, #MyHonestReview, #AmityGauge, #Heartwood,

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Gripping and suspenseful until the very end.

When 42 year old Valerie Gillis, trail name Sparrow, goes missing in the Maine woods while hiking the Appalachian Trail, a massive search effort is launched to find her. This fractured, multifaceted story unfolds from a host of points of view as the days stretch on and the clock continues to tick. As search efforts go from days into weeks, it becomes less and less likely that Valerie will be found alive. Follow Valerie as she strives to keep her heart beating and make it to rescue as well as the wardens and other interested parties in her search as they strive to do the impossible.

Heartwood was such a gripping read. I was immediately drawn into this story, hoping and praying just like many of the characters involved that Valerie would be found alive. The author's inspiration was obvious. As a true crime fan, I knew very quickly that this story was inspired by Gerry Largay. This meant my reading of this tale was colored by this knowledge and honestly made it that much more important that I finish the book as soon as possible and find out if Valerie's story had a different ending than Gerry's.

At first I was a little confused as to how all the characters and different POVs intertwined, especially Lena. As I continued, however, I began to put the pieces together and the individual points of view began to make more and more sense as a cohesive story. I feel that Ms. Gaige masterfully wove all these different viewpoints together and that the varied formats of the chapters (journal entries, interviews, and more) made for a very diverse and interesting read.

While not quite the thriller I thought this would be, I was nonetheless glad that I had read this novel.

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This has been a common theme in a few books I've read lately. Woman is going through some internal or external crisis and goes on a solo hike to think thinks over. Then proceeds to get lost. In this case, Valerie is a nurse recovering from the emotional toll of the COVID pandemic and decides to start planning this trip to get away. She's an experienced hiker, so when she doesn't show up at the meeting point with her husband, he starts to get worried. We hear Valerie's inner dialog throughout the book, and she also narrates letters she writes to her mother, offering intimate insights into her internal struggles and the profound bond they share.​ Her journey takes a perilous turn when she strays from the path and becomes lost in the dense wilderness.​

The author masterfully intertwines suspense with profound explorations of human relationships and resilience.

The novel is told through 2 other perspectives besides Valerie's. Maine State Game Warden Beverly assumes the daunting task of leading the search and rescue mission, her determination and expertise highlighting the challenges of navigating the treacherous terrain. Meanwhile, Lena, a 76-year-old resident of a Connecticut retirement community, becomes an unexpected participant in the search, her involvement adding depth and intrigue to the unfolding drama. She has researched the area throughly and believes that something supernatural is going on, which adds some extra curiosity to Valerie's predicament.

Gaige's prose is both eloquent and immersive, capturing the raw beauty and inherent dangers of the natural world. The way she weaves together various viewpoints and timelines, creates a rich tapestry that keeps readers engaged and invested in the outcome. The novel's exploration of mother-daughter relationships is particularly resonant, adding emotional weight to the suspenseful plot.​

The ending comes as a complete surprise and it was a great journey getting there!

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If you read this, keep a box of tissues handy because this story will destroy you first and then repair you. What do you do when the world becomes too much for your heart to handle?

Valerie Gillis is a forty-two-year-old nurse in need of healing and reset after pandemic traumas. She decides to take on the challenge of hiking the Appalachian trail, making wonderful new friends and life-changing decisions along the way. And then, shortly before reaching her destination, she vanishes.

Lieutenant Bev is the Maine State Game Warden assigned to lead the ground search for Valerie, still fighting to prove herself after thirty years as one of few women in her line of work.

Lena, an elderly wheelchair-bound woman living in a retirement community becomes obsessed with the case of this missing woman who is so similar to her own estranged daughter.

This is such a beautiful story, from Valerie’s letters written with love to her mother while she hopes for rescue, to Beverly’s devotion in caring for her community. It’s very much an exploration of the complexities of mother-daughter relationships and the powerful emotions contained within. How do you let go of the idealized relationship you’ve wished for?

Thank you so much to Simon and Schuster and Netgalley!

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Heartwood tells the story of a woman lost on the Appalachian Trail, in the Maine wilderness, through the eyes of three different women. Valerie, is the lost hiker, who tells her story through journal entries addressed to her mother, Lt Bev is the no-nonsense warden in charge of the search, and Lena is a woman in an assisted living facility in Connecticut, whose role only becomes clear as the story plays out. We also hear from Valerie's hiking buddy, Santo, through his interview with the warden service.

Valerie doesn't immediately tell us what has happened to her, so we're left to wonder at exactly what (or who?) let to her going off the trail. I was completely engrossed through all the different narratives, and desperate to know both what happened and whether the search team would find her. The tension ramps up as the search drags on and Valerie grows weaker. I loved the format and found the story really compelling. There's a lot of exploration of relationships, especially mother-daughter ones, and loneliness throughout all three women's stories. While I was rooting for Valerie to be found, I found both Lt Bev and Lena to be the most compelling characters, so the structure of shifting between these viewpoints really worked for me. Recommended for anyone interested in survival stories or mysteries!

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This book immediately draws you in with what happened to Valerie, a woman in her 40s who disappears on the Appalachian Trail. The book has shifting narrators between Valerie (in letters she writes to her mother), and older woman who is a scientist and has become engrossed in the news of Valerie's disappearance, and the parks warden in charge of the search for Valerie. The plot definitely moves pretty quickly, so it's an easy read. There are definitely interesting examinations of what it means to be mentally healthy in this book. I only wish the mystery lasted a bit longer. It was pretty clear to me about half way through the book what happened to Valerie, so I became a bit less interested in the chapters that were supposed to make me be suspicious of a lot of different characters. Overall, if you're interested in hiking books, or search and rescue, this is a good read.

Thank you NetGalley for the free digital ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

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When I started reading this well-written story, w/just the first letter to mother, I was reeled in. I barely did another thing until I finished it.
It’s obviously a well-researched book. I find all the info about hiking the Appalachian Trail, & the human machine that kicks into action when someone goes missing, very interesting. It’s definitely more than a police procedural. It’s also a mystery w/perfect character development. I like how things are gradually revealed through various perspectives, interviews, & journaling. There’s also interesting insight into family & relationships, & how these shape each character. I really enjoyed putting all the puzzle pieces together as they were revealed. Thanks to the author & publisher for allowing me to read an advance copy via Netgalley.

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📌 Summary:
Deep in the remote Maine wilderness, seasoned hiker Valerie Gillis vanishes just shy of completing the Appalachian Trail. As search efforts intensify, the story unfolds through three distinct voices: Valerie, whose fragmented, lyrical letters reveal her fight for survival; Beverly, a game warden leading the search with relentless determination; and Lena, a retired birdwatcher in Connecticut who unexpectedly becomes engrossed in the case. As their narratives intertwine, a quiet mystery emerges—not just about how Valerie disappeared, but about the internal landscapes of those left searching.

💭 My Thoughts:
Heartwood is a novel that leans more into reflection than suspense, exploring themes of isolation, resilience, and the many ways people become lost—both physically and emotionally. Stewart’s writing is undeniably beautiful, but its poetic, fractured style didn’t fully work for me. Valerie’s letters, while evocative, created a sense of distance rather than deepening my connection to her plight.

The shifting perspectives provided interesting contrasts—Beverly’s grounded determination versus Lena’s introspective curiosity—but the pacing felt uneven, and at times, the narrative meandered. While the premise had potential, I found myself more engaged in the atmosphere than the actual story.

Ultimately, Heartwood wasn’t a bad read, just not entirely my style. If you enjoy literary fiction with meditative prose and layered character studies, this might be a better fit for you. A solid three-star read.

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