3.5 rounded up. I had to let this one simmer for quite some time after I finished it. Ultimately, I think my struggle was with the format and not the writing...it's a short novella...what could I possibly expect to unfold in so very few pages? That being said, I've read some very fantastic novellas. It's a difficult thing to write and even after waiting weeks, I think back on the woods depicted by the author. They felt like home.