What Lies in the Woods

October 24, 2022
YA author Marshall (These Fleeting Shadows) makes her adult debut with a powerful psychological thriller. Twenty-two years after Seattle photographer Naomi Shaw survived a stabbing attack when she was 11 while playing in the forest in Chester, Wash., with her two best friends, Naomi expects to feel some closure when the suspected serial killer the girls’ testimony put behind bars dies in prison. But the opposite occurs when the news unnerves the most fragile of the trio, artistic, unstable Liv Barnes, threatening to unearth long buried—and potentially explosive—secrets. Sucked back to Chester, Naomi tries to support Liv, reconnect with their third friend, golden girl Cass Green, and finally press for the truth she’s never been able to remember, despite her statements on the stand, about what really happened that fateful day. Then a suspicious death near the site of the stabbing ups the ante, and the intricate plot starts careening down precipitous, blind curves. Marshall overloads the twists that lead to the devastating denouement, but readers will root for the determined Naomi every step of the way. This emotionally involving tale of friendship, betrayal, and redemption leaves an indelible impression. Agent: Lauren Spieller, TriadaUS.

June 10, 2024

YA author Marshall's (These Fleeting Shadows) adult debut follows Naomi Shaw and her best friends, Cassidy and Olivia, who discovered a human skeleton in the woods in their Washington State hometown when they were 11. But instead of telling anyone, they included the body in the ongoing series of dares and challenges they called the Goddess Game, urging one another to shoplift trinkets to leave at the skeleton's cave as offerings. Then Naomi was brutally attacked in the woods, surviving with 17 stab wounds. Urged on by the sheriff, the girls identified serial killer Allan Michael Stahl as the attacker, and their testimony sent him to prison, but none of it was true. Now, as Naomi learns that Stahl has died in prison, Olivia shares that she's learned the skeleton's identity and wants to come clean about all their lies. But someone--or possibly multiple people--are invested in keeping those secrets. Karissa Vacker's narration ratchets up the tension and does a good job of providing distinct voices for the main characters. VERDICT While avid thriller listeners may anticipate the twists, they'll still enjoy rooting for Naomi and watching the pieces of past and present mysteries come together.--Stephanie Klose

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