Published: December 2016
Pages: 68
Synopsis: “When the son of a very high profile family went missing, people talked, people searched, people cried and then all too suddenly people forgot, but Nathan couldn’t just forget about his brother, Michael.
Silver Woods follows Nathan Barondale as he relocates to Port Hood in a desperate effort to uncover the truth about his brothers’ disappearance. The locals claim that he was never there but Nathan has it on good authority that Port Hood is a town of big fat liars. He hates them all…except for Angel Wildwood, a girl so beautiful he was sure there had to be something wrong with her, like maybe she was crazy or had six toes on one foot, plus her father is the sheriff and Nathan's number one suspect.
He only wanted to find his brother but Nathan uncovers a lot more when an old legend rises from the depths of Silver Woods. Nathan quickly learns than Port Hood isn’t a place where fairy tales lived, it is a place where fairy tales went to die.”
Rating: ****
I received a free copy of Silver Woods in exchange for an honest review.
Silver Woods is a prequel to Whimper, also by Crystal Crichlow which was published in November 2016. I haven’t read Whimper, so approached the plot chronologically as opposed to having read Whimper and then going back in time with the characters to Silver Woods.
I was unsure about the opening chapter, as you were launched straight into a scene between Nathan and a friend who is training him. I initially felt as though this would have made more sense if I had read Whimper first and this plot knowledge can’t be assumed by the author when writing a prequel (especially if they are writing the prequel after having written the main book).
Despite this, the following chapters were amazing and I quickly found myself immersed in Nathan’s world and being as concerned about his brother as he was. This surprised me, as I don’t tend to react to novellas in the same way I do to full-length novels as often they are simply too short. I believe, this shows a certain degree of skill by Crystal Crichlow.
Silver Woods is definitely on trend when you consider the current themes in YA fiction; with its links to the supernatural and family secrets.
Silver Woods was a short but very enjoyable read and I will definitely be reading Whimper and other novels by Crystal Crichlow.
