The Vanishing Twin: A Tale of Mystery and the Dark Woods
Forest Deity's Domain and the Wild Decade of the 70s
Sending shivers down your spine, a child vanishes...again. The Van Laar family isn't just losing one, but two members now: first, Bear, their eldest son, and fifteen years later, his sister Barbara. With a chilling connection between the two disappearances, the Van Laars are left to uncover the truth. But the dark and ominous forest hanging over their estate may be more than just a witness.
Barack Obama's reading list has a knack for snaring books that delve into the heart of American themes with a dash of untamed wilderness. One such book, "The God of the Woods" by Liz Moore, finds itself on Obama's list and the famous bestsellers.
Welcome to the picturesque Van Laar estate nestled at the base of the Adirondacks, a forest-cloaked mountain range in New York. The family reigns supreme, their wealth and influence snaking through the town and the summer camp they established. Life is just another game to these aristocrats, until Bear, their eight-year-old son, darts into the woods and never returns.
Fifteen years later, the family is hard-pressed to put the pieces back together as they mourn Barbara's disappearance. The children at the summer camp are convinced that Jakob Sluiter, the town's sinister serial killer, has returned. Meanwhile, Detective Judyta suspects the Van Laars' boorish grandfather, who may or may not have been less than helpful during the investigation of Bear's disappearance. Alice, the grieving mother-now surviving on a steady diet of pills-wonders if she can recall a solitary clue that would break the mystery.
However, The God of the Woods is no ordinary crime novel. It paints a ghostly canvas across multiple timelines, eschewing a central investigator, and shying away from melodramatic violence. The British "Guardian" dubbed the book a "literary thriller," where the ominous forests and the domineering family duel for sinister atmosphere.
While the Adirondacks may be the true protagonist, the children, the matriarch, and the camp counselors also share center stage. Filled with dire warnings to stay out of the woods, scream when lost, and not to swim alone in the lake, the sinister woods are, without a doubt, as dangerous as the lurking villain.
Unraveling the tale, Liz Moore exposes a gritty counter-narrative to the idyllic 1970s, when life was seemingly simpler, and children could run free in the forests. The God of the Woods challenges this notion of a golden age, instead presenting the wilderness as a bulwark of terror.
For those wrestling with German translations, Moore's novel is still an enjoyable read, with skilled translator Cornelius Hartz delivering impeccable English language that keeps pace with the story's complexity, seamlessly shifting between the thoughts of the twelve-year-old Tracy and the sixty-year-old ranger Carl.
In the end, Moore delivers a tantalizing resolution, even if not all threads are immediately clear. Whether you're a president or an everyday reader, The God of the Woods guarantees an intriguing journey.
Source: ntv.de
- Thriller
- Mystery
- USA
- Forest
- Missing Persons
♪ The Van Laar family, while reveling in their lifestyle of outdoor-living on their Adirondack estate, is faced with a chilling mystery, as both their eldest son and daughter vanish without a trace, leaving the sinister woods as the only witness. ♪ Following the trail of clues in this thriller, readers will find themselves immersed in a literary exploration of home-and-garden lifestyles alongside the dark and foreboding forest, questioning whether the wilderness serves as a haven or a harbinger of doom.
