One day, Madelyn follows a stranger down a path in the woods and finds herself in a strange world full of competing factions. She joins the New Hopefuls, who are trying to save the forest's magic from the Tree Eaters, but she finds that the Cannibals are a wild card in this situation, and it's really hard to figure out who's right.

The slow pacing and gentle magic of the first half of the book in no way prepared me for cannibalism as a possible solution to environmental exploitation. I don't know how to express how disturbed I am by that idea. However, despite both the initial plodding pace and terrifying ending, I have to give this book credit for really looking at the issue of deforestation from many angles. I've often said that the solution to any kind of large-scale problem can't be boiled down to "humans bad." This book takes a deep look into four sides of the story: the faction that works tirelessly to heal the forest, the faction that remembers the poverty before they began exploiting the forest, the faction that really wants to be the most powerful no matter who it hurts, and the faction that will stop the greedy even if it means compromising morality. While it would be easy to make this book about the latter two factions, it's ultimately about the first two and finding ways to communicate and reach an understanding. I both loved and hated this book, but I can't deny that it did something incredible in tackling the underlying issues beyond greed and sacrifice.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC. All opinions are my own.

Asterwood drew me in with the mysterious atmosphere and compelling characters. I was really invested in the story... though I have to admit that I wasn't loving the addition of the group of cannibals (it felt a bit jarring for a middle grade book). Even so, it was an engaging and suspenseful read that kept me hooked! Thank you, NetGalley!

I didn't go into this book with many expectations, but I was blown away. The story is so charming and delightfully engaging that I couldn't put the book down.

The concept of this book feels great at first. The description makes it feel like a cozy fantasy adventure but the story has some very strong adult themes. The story deals with a kid not trusting that their parent is being truthful with them ( completely justified at that age) but then the child runs away and joins a group of runways and for a lot of the book has no idea that a family member is even looking for them. Then she stumbles upon a group of cannibals?! Really in a middle grade novel? I just don’t know that the idea of cannibalism is something that should ever be normalized enough to be included in a kids book. Especially as later in the book the girl goes to the group to ask for their help. Overall this is not something I would recommend to others as is. I would definitely say this needs some major revision and story plot changes.

A wonderful book for middle schoolers. Suspenseful enough to keep me reading and I finished the book in one day. The chapters were written well and the pace of the book was well thought out. I can see myself recommending this book to many students. I was rooting for the MC the entire time and the side characters were flushed out. Suspenseful, nature, mystery, reflective, adventurous are all great words for this book.

Asterwood quickly draws you into its mysterious and exciting tale. Madelyn is curious about her true family history, believing she was adopted as a baby. When she meets a child in the woods outside her house and makes a friend for the first time in her life, she follows this child to a strange yet familiar land. Madelyn finds that while she does not recognize anyone in this magical land, she is well known to all. This book is perfect for those who love found families, magic, and just enough spookiness. Two scenes in this book were eerie enough that I will remember them forever, but not too scary for middle grade readers. I truly loved this book and will absolutely share it with my children.