Wow! The way this book captivated me from the beginning and I thought so many times I knew what actually happened and then I was wrong! I love being wrong about the ending, but I also love when the ending makes sense and isn’t so far-fetched it’s unbelievable. This was such a great book about betrayal and secrets amongst friends.

Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for allowing me to audibly read and review What Lies in the Woods. Also, thank you to publicist, Amber Cortes for the Widget.

Author: Kate Alice Marshall
Narrator: Karissa Vacker
Published: 01/17/23
Genre: General Fiction (Adult)

Overall, I enjoyed this book. The storytelling was pretty good, rather long in the middle. I did intentionally take a break. While I wanted to know the ending, I also wanted to appreciate it. I've learned when a book runs long I get bored.

The ending itself was good. I liked it, and I had suspected just a smidge. There were parts that felt rushed and other parts that felt long.

There is profanity, the type not to be used in public. This I find disheartening from one who has the skill to write, using public vocabulary should not be difficult. This is an audiobook that is restricted to bud/pod use. I wouldn't want children to hear this nor would I take as a volunteer for reading at a nursing home.

I liked the narrator especially for the main female character.

Overall, this was alright and I will look for other works by the author.

This was a twisted thriller that I really enjoyed. I liked the dual timelines and I could relate to the girls playing in the woods when they were little playing little made up games as I used to do the same. Karissa Vacker was the perfect narrator for this one! She has great emotion and was able to differentiate really well between the characters. I liked the “final girls” sort of aspect of the book and seeing how what happened to them when they were younger affected them when they were older. I felt that it dragged at times and was someone predictable. The explosive ending brought it all together and kept me on the edge of my seat waiting to see how it would end.

Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for access to the audiobook.

Thank you NetGalley for an early copy in exchange for an honest review.

First I'll start with the things I enjoyed:
- The narrator.
- The double meaning of the title.
- The cover.
- The serial killer aspect.
- The writing itself was done well.

However, I feel like this kind of story has been told a hundred different times. It's not exactly memorable or unique. And sorry to say, SO PREDICTABLE. I was even hoping for one little bit to be a red herring on purpose because I was like "no way it's that obvious." But it was.

I didn't particularly like Naomi either. She was kind of annoying and not the brightest character. By the end, even though it was obvious what was going on, I didn't care when the reveal happened and I was indifferent about the ending.

This author is new to me but I'll still give her a chance because I like the way she wrote, I just didn't care for the story.

Twenty-two years ago Naomi and her two best friends, Cassidy and Olivia, believed in magic. They spent a magical summer roaming the woods and creating their own little world of imagination and wonder. The magic of that summer came to an abrupt end when Naomi was brutally attacked in the woods. Naomi suffered 17 stab wounds but managed to survive and identify her attacker, a man responsible for the murder of six women. The testimony of the three girls was enough to put a serial killer away for life. Everyone thought the girls were heroes…but they were also liars. The girls have kept the goddess game and the events of that summer a secret for over two decades but now Olivia wants to come clean. She sets a deadly chain of events into motion and causes Naomi to doubt her memories of the attack. No matter how dangerous the truth turns out to be, Naomi will stop at nothing to learn the truth of that summer.

I’m so glad I read this fast paced and addicting thriller! I couldn’t make myself turn the audiobook off! I love a super twisty thriller and this book has all the twists and big reveals as well as a shocking conclusion. What Lies In The Woods is a dual timeline that alternates between past and present. It has several of my favorite tropes such as unreliable narrator, homecomings and secret identities. I thought the characters were relatable and I really liked the main character. Not being able to tell who the good guys were made this mystery even more enthralling. I suspected so many people before it was all said and done…and I was wrong about all of them. I really appreciated the mental health representation as well as Marshall’s writing style. I also loved the narration by Karissa Vacker who is one of my favorites!

4.5 Stars! I was curious about what happened this whole book and I did 't know which characters to trust and which ones were actually good people! A twisty thriller and a fun book! I loved the setting in the woods, I felt like I was there! I listened to an audiobook read by Karissa Vacker and she is quickly becoming a favorite narrator of mine! Thank you to Netgalley and Macmillan Audio for a copy of this book! Out Jan 17th 2023

A summer of fun and friendship changes the lives of three best friends from a small town. Secrets, murder, and lies leave Naomi unsure of whom to trust. Fantastically narrated by Karissa Vacker because her voice definitely adds to chilling setting deep in the dark woods.
Thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan audio for this book in exchange for my honest review..
#NetGalley #MacmillianAudio

I thought this book was really great! It had layers upon layers, and every character is hiding a secret.

I had a good idea of what happened fairly early on, but I loved hearing it all unfold - because there were so many unexpected twists along the way to revealing the truth. I liked the main character and her perspective, it was interesting following along with her processing what happened in her past.

I liked the narrator, but I did feel like she dropped to almost a whisper too often.

Overall, I would definitely recommend this book!

3.5⭐
Twenty-two years ago, three girls were playing in the woods, and one was stabbed 17 times. She survived. They did put a man behind bars for the attack. Now that he's dead, they have reunited once again.

Overly self-doubt MCs usually turn me off. In this case, Naomi begins to question her memory of the attack over two decades ago and the guy is already dead. A little too late?

I give props to the author because although this bugs me, it didn't make me dislike Naomi. I enjoyed the podcast angle and the MC has an interesting relationship with her boyfriend and father.

What Lies in the Woods reminds me of a true crime story. If you read it, let me know what you think!

This is my first book by Kate Alice Marshall and I think it's very readable. I certainly enjoyed it even though I figured out the twist and was greatly disappointed with the ending. I like the writing style and I'll definitely read more from her in the future.

Narrated by Karissa Vacker, this was a very enjoyable listen. I might just listen to other authors with her narrating them.

*4.5 rounded up

I really enjoyed this thriller! Even though did guess one of the main plot twists, I was off by how the plot twist came to be. The author did a great job keeping me engaged in the story (I literally sped up the audiobook because I HAD to know what was going to happen next) and she tied up the story really well.

This one was just okay for me. Overall, I felt like I had heard this story before, and it didn't feel all that original to me. There were some decent red-herrings thrown in, but I had the big twist called from the beginning. It was entertaining, but didn't feel fresh or memorable.

The narrator, Karissa Vacker, is one of my favorites, so she really added to the audiobook experience.

Overall, I'd still recommend it because it has some great reviews from other readers, so I'm probably in the minority with this opinion. I didn't dislike it--it was just okay.

I'd give it 3.5/5

So, yes, my prediction was true BUT it wasn't true the way it usually ends up. It was actually kind of sweet? Either way, 5 stars. This was a very twisty story. I definitely suspected the one friend but not the other OR the guy. I don't want to say it but... I might like Kate Alice Marshall better as an adult writer. I wonder if she will ever try adult horror to match her YA horror. Hmm. A girl can dream! Make sure you pick this book up when it comes out January 17th!

I enjoyed this light thriller. The story started off slow but quickly began to move and shake (which is what I like). Once I got all the characters in order, I settled into the story nicely. I love a thriller with a childhood backstory that creeps its way back in to present day. Marshall did a fantastic job bringing me between two distinct timelines with ease. Her book was an easy breezy read that I happily listened to. I am a huge fan of the audiobook narrator, Karissa Vacker, who 100% brought the characters and story to life.

Debating between a 3.5/4 stars… FLEW through this audio! Definitely your typical thriller (girl goes back to her hometown, dealing with childhood trauma, you’re left wondering who can she trust, etc)

Lots of twists and turns (some you’ll see coming, some you won’t)

Very entertaining — however, I felt like there were TOO MANY characters and you didn’t get to know any of them in-depth (which made some of the plot twists not as monumental as I think were intended)

Honestly if you enjoy thrillers, you’ll enjoy this one!

Thank you Netgalley & Macmillan Audio for an advanced audiobook in exchange for an honest review

Add this thriller to your list this year. What Lies in the Woods by Kate Alice Marshall and narrated by the wonderful Karissa Vacker builds to a wild ending.

"Twenty-two years ago Naomi Shaw and her friends, Cassie and Olivia, spent hours as kids roaming the woods and imagining a world of magic and wonder. The summer ended when Naomi was attacked. She survived her seventeen stab wounds and lived to identify the man who attacked her. Her testimony put away a serial killer, wanted for murdering six women. They were heroes.
And they were liars.
Now - years later - Olivia wants to tell their secret. Naomi sets out to find out what really happened in the woods that fateful day - no matter how dangerous the truth turns out to be..."

The main character, Naomi, begins as a typical unreliable narrator - something happened, there's a secret, the truth is messy. But Marshall makes almost everyone an unreliable narrator. The more you find out about what really happened the more you wonder about who is telling the truth. And then Marshall hits you with the final scene and you're left reeling with the twistiness of it. Marshall leads you around with misdirection until she hits you with the final reveal.
Some might consider this a slow burn of a book, but the ending makes it worth it.

Karissa Vacker does a fantastic job with the audio performance - lots of character voices, male and female - and she nails it

Put this one on your books to read for 2023.

This was a dark and twisty thriller. I kept thinking I knew which direction it was going in and I was mostly wrong.

I really enjoyed this story and was not expecting the twists that it included. I thought that the narration was really well done and I could not stop listening. I loved the interactions between the characters and felt like they were well fleshed out.

This book spun me around like a top. So many twists and turns that left me breathless by the end. Naomi is our narrator and is quite prickly. As we learn more about her story, it is easy to understand why. She has baggage. A survivor of a serial killer attack at the age of eleven, she now finds that the death of the convicted murderer has stirred things up twenty years later. There were three girls in the woods that day. All three were united in their story. They also shared a secret. Letting that piece of information out is like the opening of Pandora's box. Who will survive? What will Naomi have to do to get to the truth of that day in the woods? Dark and atmospheric, this book will worm its way into your dreams and make you a little afraid to go for a walk in the woods.

First of thank you to Macmillan audio for reaching out to me to review this book and for Netgalley for providing it.

This thrilling book is about Naomi Shaw and how when she was 11 she sent a killer to prison but it was all a lie…

Naomi and her friends have many secrets about the time she was stabbed in forest seventeen times, somehow she survives. This story then unravels the secrets that are kept regarding the attack.

I really enjoyed this book and I know it is on the most anticipated books lists of so many people for good reason. I am not someone who is very good at guess ending and twists but there was one part of this that I was able to guess, but it didn’t change my enjoyment of the book in any way.

The ending and the twists were extremely shocking nonetheless. I would recommend this book to anyone who loves creepy, twisty, unexpected stories.

Thank you to NetGalley, Macmillan Audio, and Kate Alice Marshall for a copy of What Lies in the Woods in exchange for an honest review. Alright first off, what is it about small town settings and drama that just captivate me?! I love this setting so much and this setting was perfect for this storyline! Not only did I love that our main character wasn't perfect, I loved that she stayed true to who she was throughout the story. I also couldn't pick better characters for this storyline. I won't say much more because I'm not trying to spoil anything but this one had me riding the roller coaster of twists and turns over and over again!! As soon as I thought I had something figured out, our author threw me for another loop. The narrator did an amazing job of keeping me hooked from the first chapter! I hope everyone picks this one up on Jan 17th, 2023 because if you don't, you're missing out.