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AFTER THE WOODS by Kim Savage Kirkus Star

AFTER THE WOODS

by Kim Savage

Pub Date: Feb. 23rd, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-374-30055-5
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux

Even after surviving the kind of ordeal most people don't, Julia still doesn't feel safe.

Julia thought she knew what evil was: Donald Jessup was the man she'd had to escape from after he attacked her and her best friend, Liv, in the woods nearly a year ago. And he’s dead, killed by his own hand in jail. So why does she still feel the need to investigate her own case? Why does she keep a notebook of evidence and discoveries? When a dead body is found in those same woods, Julia starts asking more question and even lets local reporter Paula Papademitriou help her in exchange for an exclusive interview. But the information Paula unearths makes Julia rethink her memories, her relationships, and Liv's secrets. Savage offers up a mystery wrapped in a psychological breakthrough tied with the bow of lyrical language. The characters are engaging beyond their habitation of an intricately woven plot and supply readers with the motivation to care beyond the simple solving of the mystery. The mystery, in fact, almost pales in comparison to the richness of the relationships, Julia's discovery of her own strength, and the examination of the different forms of evil.

A riveting exploration of what it's like when the enemy is much closer than you suspect.

(Mystery. 14-18)