The Woods Are Always Watching

August 2, 2021
Recent Asheville, N.C., high school graduates and best friends Neena Chandrasekhar and Josie Gordon, who are Indian American and white, respectively, decide to spend their little remaining time together embarking on their first-ever backpacking trip before Neena sets off for college on the West Coast. Heading into the Pisgah National Forest for three days with borrowed gear and a few tips from Josie’s older brother, the two quickly find themselves underprepared. When a fall into a sinkhole results in a gruesome injury that leaves Josie trapped, Neena must find her way back to civilization to call for help. Terrifyingly, their paths cross with two white serial killers, who prove even more dangerous than the terrain. Perkins (There’s Someone Inside Your House) crafts a lushly immersive natural setting, highlighting the tranquility of the Blue Ridge Mountains as her characters proceed through an escalating series of dire situations. Violence is quite present, from the teens’ brutal capture to mentions of Josie’s father’s death by auto accident, but Perkins doesn’t linger on gratuitous gore, focusing instead on establishing tension and emotion in this rapidly paced dark thriller. Ages 14–up. Agent: Kate Testerman, KT Literary.

August 1, 2021
Grades 9-12 Before they separate for college, best friends and fellow high-school outsiders Neena and Josie embark on one last hurrah: a three-day hike deep into Pisgah National Forest. But as the pair navigate the complexities of human relationships, their innermost emotions and undiscovered truths bubbling to the surface, they find themselves in the midst of a grueling, dangerous foray through the woods. True to her previous book, There's Someone inside Your House (2017), Perkins delivers a thrilling survival story about two teens just trying to make it to daybreak with their friendship--and their lives, too, as a horror beyond their wildest dreams lurks in the forest. The scares here are authentic, and the details meticulous, driven by a smart, distinct narrative voice. Hand this to fans of the film Midsommar or June Hur's The Forest of Stolen Girls (2021), who will delight in the eerie world building, the disintegration and rebuilding of interpersonal relationships, and the unseen forces of evil that threaten to break two friends apart.

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