4.5 stars. Fifteen years ago, two teenage boys got lost in a West Virginia forest. Six months later they returned, unharmed, unable to explain where they'd been. Now, one of those boys has made a name for himself through finding missing people, and the other is an artist who lives as a recluse in the mountains, with only a garden full of fantastical sculptures as company. They're brought together again by a young woman searching for her missing sister, who helps them realize that, maybe, the only way to move forward is by going back.

Whimsical and magical, The Lost Story is the very definition of a fairy tale for grown-ups. Meg Shaffer is such an incredible storyteller, with an ability to weave words and worlds that puts her right up there with some of the best fantasy writers. For me, her books bring back the nostalgic feeling of being transported to a make-believe world for the first time: going through the wardrobe to Narnia, taking the train to Hogwarts, waking up in Oz. In The Lost Story, she transports us to another place...but that's all I'll say, because you should discover the magic for yourself.

At the same time that The Lost Story feels like a fairy tale in its execution, it also deals with contemporary themes like overcoming trauma and complicated family dynamics and doesn't shy away from difficult topics. But mostly, this is a story about love and acceptance, and it was a pure joy to experience. I'm so excited to watch Meg Shaffer's writing career unfold -- and I hope we haven't seen the last of these characters or this world. Thank you to Ballantine Books for the early reading opportunity.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Ballantine Books for the Kindle ARC of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

Fifteen years after Jeremy Cox and Rafe Howell returned after having been declared missing for six months, Jeremy is approached by a young girl name Emilee who is searching for the truth behind her sister's disappearance in the very same forest the the boys had been lost in called Red Crow.

Since the boys return, Rafe, who can not remember what happened to them has become a recluse artist who has painted and carved from wood fantastical creatures and people. Jeremy, on the other hand, remembers what happened to them but refuses to tell Rafe for reasons you will learn when you read the book. Jeremy has a special ability for finding lost people and things and has made that his life's work.

After meeting Emilee, Jeremy knows it is time to go back to Red Crow and he must have Rafe with him to help Emilee find her sister.

In the woods is tree that is a portal to another world.... read this fun, entertaining fantasy to see how all this plays out.

I feel that this should be sold as a young adult story. The author did something fun with little interjections throughout to clarify a few things along the way, which is a unique style of writing.

Some themes that are covered in this book: domestic violence, child abuse, child neglect, child abduction, male lovers, fighting.....

I liked Shaffer's first book much more than this one, but this is a fun little fairy tale!

This was a surprisingly quick and enjoyable read for me. If you have read Schaffer's other novel The Wishing Game and enjoyed it, you will also enjoy this one! The characters were really easy to like and the story is so imaginative. There is a mystery type quality to this fairy tale that is easy to like. I would definitely recommend this read to anyone who likes light fantasy or mystery type novels. It's fairly short, so you don't feel like it drags on.

The interludes told by the Storyteller were a great addition and added some comedy to the novel. Overall, I really enjoyed this one!

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine for a copy of this ARC!!

2.5 Stars. When they were teenagers, Jeremy and Rafe went missing in the West Virginia forests, only to reappear 6 months later with little recollection of their whereabouts or how they survived. Fifteen years later, Jeremy is working as a missing persons’ investigator, and Emilie seeks him out to help her find her sister who disappeared in the same forests prior to the lost boys. Together, with Rafe, they return to the West Virginia woods in hopes of discovering the truth behind their disappearances.

After ranking “The Wishing Game” #2 in my 2023 favorites, I expected to love this book, so it saddens me to write this review! I loved the premise of this novel and the first half pulled me in, giving me very similar vibes to the author’s previous novel, “The Wishing Game”, with a touch of magical realism integrated into contemporary fiction. However, the second half of the book did a complete 180 and was VERY fantasy heavy, which I wasn’t a fan of and it felt overdone. If you are a fan of fantasy-fiction you may love this one {like so many readers did with a 4.14 average star rating on Goodreads!}, but I just had different expectations given the author’s previous novel. I also think the main male characters seemed very juvenile, despite the fact that they are supposed to be 30 years old, and the characters read like teenagers. I do think the author tied things up nicely at the ending, but overall this wasn’t the book for me; however I’ll definitely check out the author’s future books!

Thank you to NetGalley and Ballantine Books for my gifted e-ARC!

“Some day you will be old enough to start reading fairy tales again.” —C. S. Lewis

I loved The Wishing Tree and was so excited for this book. Fantasy isn’t normally a go-to genre for me but since I loved The Wishing Tree so much I knew I needed to give this one a try! It started out great and grabbed my attention instantly. It had a little of everything…fantasy, mystery, humor, magical realism, childhood trauma, found family and even a love story which I wasn’t expecting. I feel like this book could easily be geared more as a YA book. It’s inspired by The Chronicles of Narnia and quotes and references CS Lewis in the story but it definitely isn’t as virtuous as a CS Lewis book.

There was a diverse cast of well developed characters and was set in West Virginia and in a fantastical realm called Shanandoah, that was just as beautiful as it was magical. I loved Emilie’s story and wished it would have been more dominant in the overall plot. The story was filled with pop culture references which was fun but I felt like the story was a little repetitive and predictable at times. Like in most fairy tales, there is nostalgia mixed with a little evil and there are life lessons to be learned.

I loved the setup of the book with the “Storyteller Corner” and enjoyed the map and the recipe for a fantasy story at the beginning and the recipe for Golden Apple Christmas Cake at the end. I thought these were all fun elements to add to the story. I also loved how multiple creative arts were included as a way of coping, healing and processing trauma. Rafe was very artistic and creative and Jeremy played extravagant masterpieces on the piano. Both were excellent and very skilled at archery as well.

Thank you @NetGalley, @randomhouse, Ballantine Books and @meg_shaffer for the #gifted ARC in exchange for an honest review.

“‘Mom, I’m scared.’ ‘I know, Emmielou. But scared is a feeling, not an excuse.’ All right. She would do it scared then.”

I had super high hopes for this book because The Wishing Game was one of my favorite books of last year. Unfortunately this one did not live up to my expectations. I enjoyed the fantasy elements. Meg Shaffer truly knows how to write a fairytale. However, I just did not connect with the story or the characters. It was a bit of a jumbled mess for me.

Rating:
⭐️⭐️⭐️.75

Read if you like:
The Inklings
CS Lewis
References to The Wishing Game
The song Landslide
Fairytales

Meg Shaffer somehow managed to write Appalachian Chronicles of Narnia for adults - and it's absolutely phenomenal. A few months ago I read and enjoyed The Wishing Game, so I was thrilled to see another release from this author.

The Lost Story follows Jeremy and Rafe, two boys who, while growing up in West Virginia went missing for months. Now estranged, they're brought back together by Emelie who is looking for her sister who went missing in the same state park. While Jeremy and Rafe are a bit more reserved, Emelie is somewhat impulsive and goofy with a huge passion for Stevie Nicks and her pet rat, Fitz.

This story is perfect for kids who grew up reading The Chronicles of Narnia and dreamed of other worlds. It's phenomenally well done and touching. This is a must read.

Jeremy Cox has become famous for his uncanny, almost supernatural, ability to find lost and missing girls. Fifteen years ago, when he was a teenager, Jeremy and his best friend Ralph "Rafe" Howell went missing in the Red Crow Forest of West Virginia for six months, so Jeremy credits his ability to that experience. He only looks for missing girls, though. He hasn't told anyone this, but he is looking for a particular girl. And one day she finally finds him.

Emilie Wendell was raised by a loving adoptive mother who has recently passed away. Adrift and craving familial connection, she takes a DNA test and learns that she has an older sister, Shannon. But Shannon has been missing for decades, kidnapped and then lost in Red Crow Forest a few years before Jeremy and Rafe disappeared there. So Emilie asks Jeremy to help her find Shannon. Jeremy agrees, but he insists that Rafe must also come with them to Red Crow Forest, even though they have been estranged for years.

In a story inspired by The Chronicles of Narnia, three adults venture into the woods to recover the magic, memories, and secrets of the past.

I loved Meg Shaffer's debut novel, The Wishing Game, and was surprised when I saw that reviews on her sophomore effort were mixed. This book definitely contains some of the same feel-good moments of magic as The Wishing Game, but I felt that, overall, the plot points were very predictable. Knowing what story beats a writer may hit can make for a great comfort read at times, but I felt that the book lacked any real tension.

I am sure that many other readers will forge a strong connection with this book. At the heart of it, this is a queer love story that will likely feel true to the experiences of many. However, for me, in a book about recovering lost memories, I was able to predict what too many of them were to make for an ideal reading experience. Meg Shaffer writes lovely worlds, and I look forward to seeing what her next novel brings as she continues to strengthen her craft.

This review will be published to Goodreads and Instagram (@goodquietkitty) on July 18, 2024.

My rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐.5
Trope: Magical Realism

Synopsis: Jeremy and Rafe go missing in the Red Crow State Forest and there is no trace of where they could have gone. They were missing and then classified as lost. They mysteriously reappear six months later taller, stronger, and the epitome of health, except for some unexplained scars on Rafe’s back.

Fifteen years later, Jeremy has become a missing persons investigator and Rafe has secluded himself in the woods as an artist. Emilie approaches Jeremy to help her find her missing, presumed dead sister, who was lost in the same woods as Jeremy and Rafe. Jeremy agrees to help find Shannon but insists Rafe must join them.

Thoughts: I was sucked in from the first page of this book. The writing and storytelling were excellent. I loved being transported to the magical world of Shenandoah. The world-building was imaginative and was the perfect blend of magical realism to allow you to submerse yourself into this secret land.

My only complaints are the kids' age and the relationship that developed between them was so young. The story made them so innocent and young when they went missing, but later in the story, the author talks about how their relationship fully progressed during their time in Shenandoah.

Also, the story feels like it came to an abrupt end. I was left wanting a little more from the story. However, overall it was a lovely, magical journey.

Thank you to Random House Publishing Group/Ballentine and NetGalley for the copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

After reading The Wishing Game which was one of my favorite books of last year, I was looking forward to reading The Lost Story and desperately wanted to feel the same way about it. While I do think the author was trying to reproduce the magic in The Wishing Game, it wasn't quite there. The book was inspired by C.S. Lewis's Chronicles of Narnia which was something else that was a plus to me but while there were many references to the books, it just did not quite do it for me.
Two boys, Rafe and Jeremy go missing in a forest for a period of time and emerge with no explanation. Rafe has no memory of what happened. Jeremy is the only one who knows and be becomes an investigator to find people who are lost in the forest. Emilie hires Jeremy to find her adopted sister (another reason for me to love this book since I am adopted and always choose stories that involve that). In finding Emilie's sister, they confront their past in the forest.
What worked for this story: This was a solid plot. The characters were compelling. I did like Rafe and Jeremy and Emilie. Rafe and Jeremy had a relationship and it was done lovingly and tastefully. The storytelling mechanism: there was a narrator who introduced sections of the story and told the reader things that they needed to know. I enjoyed that. There were vivid descriptions of West Virginia woven throughout the text.
What didn't work for me: While I understand that the author wanted to set things up before the boys started on their journey (Rafe and Jeremy's relationship, Rafe's past, Emilie's adoption, etc.), it felt to me like the story really started when the journey started and I wondered if the book wouldn't have been better if the journey started sooner, with some of the other things coming out along the way. In other words, I felt like it started a bit slowly. Finally, this felt darker than The Wishing Game in many ways, even though there were definitely bad things that happened in it. I did not take off any points for this because this may be what the author intended to do and it might not suit my mindset at the moment, but it is something the reader might want to know.
Thanks to NetGalley and to Ballantine Books for providing me with this advance reading copy in exchange for my honest review.

The Lost Story Is a beautiful book about what Home really is. Meg Shaffer Beautifully writes a magical fantasy that will warm your heart. She builds a world that you can feel yourself in. She made you want to root for these characters, even the non human ones. I highly suggest this book if you like the chronicles of Narnia Or even the Wizard of Oz. I will say it did take a little bit for me to fully immerse myself in the story. But once I did, I didn’t want to put it down.

Thanks Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine & NetGalley for the arc. ❤️ this was one of my most anticipated books of the year and I was so excited to get to read it finally!!

This is a beautiful story, it felt like a love letter to West Virginia. In a lot of ways this story was unique but also felt like a warm, familiar hug because it was just one big fairy tale, it’s fun to escape as an adult and read a story like this. I would definitely recommend this to my fellow West Virginias, it’s always fun to read about the state you live in and I feel like it helped me connect to this story even more. Some parts felt like grade 9 creative writing class… but then the way it wrapped up made me forgive some of the goofy parts (lol)

5/5

This book sounds like:
Lana Del Rey - Country Roads, Take me Home.

One of the things that I most loved about The Wishing Game by Meg Shaffer was that it felt like a big bundle of joyous nostalgia for book lovers. The Lost Story felt the same—it was a fairy tale for adults, filled with bookish references that we may remember from our childhood. It was full of both yearning and of whimsy. It was magical realism and found family, and some absolutely lovely world building. The characters felt well developed, including flaws and struggles that made sense.

If I were to describe it to a friend, I would say that this book was the perfect cross between Stephen King’s “Fairy Tale” and TJ Klune’s “The House in the Cerulean Sea” with a side of Stevie Nicks thrown in for good measure. Overall, I really loved this story and highly recommend it—it’s easily one of my favorites of this year so far!

Absolutely stunning. At once, this book is fresh and new and also familiar and nostalgic.

Meg Shaffer is making a name for herself in the magical realism genre and I am HERE for it.

The Lost Story is a whimsical book inspired by classic fantasy books.
I have to admit, I liked the first half better. It felt like a completely different book than the second half. I was looking forward to the magical world but it felt like there was more focus on the romance than the world itself which was a bit of a disappointment. I did love Jeremy and Rafe though!
I just feel like this would've been better had it been split into two books or even been a little longer.

I enjoyed learning about Jeremy and Rafe’s history and the connection Emelie has to their enchanted world. For the most part, I enjoyed the storyteller interludes but at times they could be a bit jarring.

The ending seems like there could possibly be more in the future, and I'd definitely be interested in revisiting this world!

If you enjoyed The Wishing Game, you should definitely give this a read!

The first half of this book was lovely. I thought this was going to be a top book of the year for me. Shaffer did so well setting the scene.
But the second half completely lost it for me. Once they ventured into the magical realm, the pacing shifted in an extremely noticeable way, and the whole story became stilted. It became a book about adults that sounded like it was written for middle-grade readers.
Unfortunately it ended up falling short for me.

I’m very surprised I’m giving this a lower rating, but it just wasn’t for me. Mostly, it felt like everything was just underdeveloped. Even though all of the characters are processing some complex traumas, they somehow felt superficial. I didn’t connect to anybody or get invested in any of their relationships. Also, to me, there wasn’t much world building when it came to Shanandoah. I know the story was inspired by The Chronicles of Narnia, but it kind of felt like that’s as far as the development went. It read more like a YA novel, sometimes even more like a middle grade book. It’s not bad by any means, I just went in expecting to love it and it ended up being just OK. Thank you to NetGalley and Ballantine Books for the digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I received an eARC of this book for review from Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine | Ballantine Books via NetGalley, all opinions are my own.

This novel is a contemporary re-imagining of portal fantasy genre following children who slip through to a fairy tale land, and the adults they become. It is sweet and funny, yet tackles the horrors of the modern world. Delving too much into the plot would involve spoilers, so I'll just say that there are fascinating characters, consistent and imaginative world building, and beautiful prose. The ending left me a little unsatisfied, which may have been by design. Still, it was a lovely adventure.

4.5 stars, rounding up

"Fair warning: if you've never believed any impossible things before, now is a good time to start." In The Lost Story by Meg Shaffer, Jeremy and Rafe went missing in the woods of West Virginia as teenagers, only to mysteriously reappear six months later with no explanation for where they were or how they had survived. Fifteen years pass and the two men are estranged, and must come together to help Emilie find her sister who vanished in the very same forest.

In this adult fairy tale inspired by The Chronicles of Narnia and Lord of the Flies, Shaffer has crafted a fast paced adventure that begins in West Virginia and ends up in a fantastical land called Shannandoah (not to be confused with Shenandoah). The dialogue is sharp and funny, and the descriptions of the magical land are vivid and enchanting. In addition, I enjoyed the yearning and romance between Jeremy and Rafe (we love a queer fairytale). Each of the characters feel fully developed with unique and distinct personalities and drives. Overall, this is a very easy and quick read.

I struggled a bit with the Storyteller chapters that are interspersed in between the story. I felt like it broke up the action for me and felt jarring to hop in and out of the plot, provide background and character introductions without weaving them into the story, and were a bit heavy handed in directing the reader's attention to where the author wanted it to be. I understood why they were included by the end, but it still took me out of the reading experience.

Another thing I would note is the need for a content or trigger warning page at the start of the book. While this is clearly described as an adult fairy tale, there are intense adult themes as well that are not clear before reading, including homophobia, child abuse, physical abuse, institutionalization, death of a parent, kidnapping, and suicide. Readers should be aware of these before starting.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House for sending me an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

This was interesting. It has really great potential, but I think it fell a little short. I did like all of the characters, but they seemed a bit too immature. Also I really did not enjoy the interruptions from the storyteller. They totally killed the flow.

I really liked the premise and how the characters meet and the mystery of it all. I also really enjoyed the world and the magic of it all, but it just needed to be more fleshed out.

I feel like this needed to be longer and this felt way too YA. I would honestly probably not recommend it, but I wouldn’t steer someone away from it either