Only The Trees Know by Heather Hansen
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
I liked the premise of Only The Trees Know. 4 friends go into the woods to spend Spring Break hiking but only 1 comes out alive.
This was easy enough to read though it did take me longer than expected because I kept setting it aside in favor of other things.
The book alternates between “Now” and “Then” in telling the story which I actually found annoying because I didn’t think either ever got into a good flow. The story is very slow at times and I did find myself wanting to skim several parts especially where the “friends” were communicating.
In many ways I think the story would have benefitted from being longer or the author taking the time to flesh out the characters and the case against the one surviving friend. It was hard to decide whether a jury should or should not convict because we were given very little information about the deaths or the apparent evidence. After the story plods on at a slowish pace the ending feels rushed.
None of the characters are likeable. Literally no one! So if that is something you need to engage with a story definitely skip this one. There was lots of opportunity for the author to more fully develop the plot around some of the trigger issues including abuse and addiction.
Overall, I’d rate this 2.5 stars.
Thanks to the publisher and the author for an advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.
View all my reviews
