I really wanted to like this book. Historical fiction set in WWII, LGBT representation, a mystery binding it all together - it sounds perfect.

Unfortunately, the execution was more than a bit off. The pacing was incredibly slow; nothing really happened for 3/4 of the story. I found myself putting the book down out of boredom a few times because of it.

The villain was positively cartoonish, while the two narrators lacked any sort of character or depth. As you can imagine, this made it near impossible to care about their fates.

I’m struggling to point out any gems in the story. The cover is gorgeous and Healey’s knowledge of taxidermy is impressive? That’s all I’ve got.

I’ve raved about Welcome to Night Vale many times over the years, so it should come as no surprise just how excited I was to read the latest book. And I think it’s the best one yet.

With a story covering the origins of the Faceless Old Woman, you know it’s going to be dark and more than a little messed up. And it really is. Her history shows why she acts the way she does in modern Night Vale - and it’s kind of terrifying.

The book is written from the FOW’s point of view and it sounds just like her speech in the podcast - I could practically hear Mara Wilson read the words. She actually narrates the audiobook - I’ll definitely give it a listen in the future.

So what else can I say? I loved it, and I think that any fan of Night Vale would be happy with the story. And don’t worry about podcast spoilers or continuity; you can safely read it without being all caught up. Enjoy!

Greenwood is centred around a pretty fascinating premise: what would happen if the majority of the trees on earth were wiped out by disease? The result is a world turned into a dust bowl, that destroys the lungs of anyone not rich enough to hide from it. The remaining trees (such as Greenwood Island) become places where the obscenely rich can visit and experience what is left of nature.

The central character is a young woman named Jack - a tour guide on the island. Severely in debt, her job is the only thing protecting her from life in a dust filled wasteland.

But we don’t spend a lot of time with her; the story suddenly jumps back, and the majority of the book follows Jack’s relatives and their history with Greenwood Island.

So much of the book is spent in the past that by the time we go back to Jack at the end, there really isn’t any emotional connection with her. The character fell flat, and her fate didn’t really interest me. The historical part was far more engaging.

And then there was the ending - it irritated me so much. Jack is supposed to be an intelligent woman, but she makes the most non-sensical choices that leaves everything worse off. So what was the point of having her at all?

If the story had just focused on the history of Greenwood, I would have rated it much higher. But as it is, I’ll have to give it a 2.5