Yikes, I'm glad that's over. Started off strong and just went downhill from there

So what's going on here?
Nora Walker was born in a house in the mountains next to Jackjaw Lake, the same house where her mother was born, and her grandmother, and every Walker woman who has ever lived. And before there was a house, the Walker women are said to be of the forest, with moonlight in their blood and a magical ability unique to each woman. They call it their nightshade. Everyone else calls it witchcraft. One night Nora is walking among the sleeping, malevolent Wicker Woods in search of lost objects, but what she finds instead is a boy, a boy who is said to have ran away from camp two weeks ago during a snow storm that knocked out the power and blocked the roads, trapping everyone on the mountain. On that night, one boy went missing and another died, and Nora decides she needs to figure out the what's really going on before she falls too hard for Oliver. What follows is the story of a handful of teenagers in a snowed in mountain town, and a murder mystery that is much more complicated than any originally thought.

What I loved
I was originally captivated by the writing style from page one. This is my first novel by Shea Ernshaw and I was very impressed in the beginning by the setting she spun. This story is incredibly atmospheric, and I'm very happy that I read the majority of this book curled up on the couch during a snowstorm. I can absolutely see why this book is so well loved, it's a fantastic winter read and is perfect for those who love YA romance with a touch of magic and mystery. I, unfortunately, am not a huge fan of YA romance and didn't realize that romance would be the main focus going into this. More on this in the next section

What I didn't love
As just stated, I am not a fan of YA romance, especially the heterosexual kind. The second I realized that not only was this going to be a romance, but it was going to be an insta-love romance, I almost DNF'd on the spot. But at that point I was close to the halfway mark and figured I may as well finish it. So here we are, almost one in the morning after forcing myself to read the last hundred pages in one sitting because I really did not want to have to continue this tomorrow. Ugh I just caaaaaan't with insta-lovey bullshit. There were so many moments throughout this book that took me back in time ;) to late 2000's paranormal YA romance that just had me cringing and rolling my eyes so hard it hurt. The pining, the desperation, the "omg we've known each other for two seconds but I want to spend my life with you" garbage that I used to eat up when I was 12 years old. But main thing that had be audibly frustrated was

Spoiler

Nora RISKING HER GODDAMN LIFE STANDING IN THE MIDDLE OF A FOREST FIRE BECAUSE APPARENTLY HEARING OLIVER'S STORY WAS MORE IMPORTANT THAN HER SURVIVAL. BUT OK.

U G H I really can't deal with shit like that anymore, I do not have the patience. I also figured out the major plot twist way too early. I know I said in my updates when I figured it out that I was hoping I'd be right because that would be a rad plot point, I was actually really disappointed at being right during the revelation. In all honesty, it's not the most unique plot twist, and I feel like the reveal could have been done better. I know there was a lot going on at the time, but it somehow felt like a really slow moment when Nora finally figured it out and it didn't impact me the way I wanted it to. And finally, my last frustration with this book, is what the fuck happened to Nora's mom?? She was briefly mentioned a couple times and Nora speculated that every time she leaves might be the time she never comes back, and then that was just never resolved???? It's not mentioned whether or not the mom comes home and that is super frustrating to me because that question was asked by Nora multiple times throughout this book. But anyways

Overall thoughts
Not great, kinda wish I hadn't read this one to be honest and I don't think this story will stick with me for very long. I'm still planning on reading The Wicked Deep (mainly because I literally just bought it last week and now feel obligated to read it but... that's besides the point) but I don't know if I'll keep up with any other books Earnshaw publishes in the future