The Children’s Book Review | November 5, 2019
Written by Shea Ernshaw
Age Range: 14 and up
Hardcover: 336 pages
ISBN: 978-1534439412 (November 5, 2019)
Publisher: Simon Pulse
What to expect: Dark Romance, Magic, and Fantasy
Author Shea Ernshaw (author of THE WICKED DEEP) beckons you to the lush darkness of the Winterwood, where romance and magic collide in a mysterious tale.
Nora is a Walker, and all Walker women are witches. They draw their gifts from the captivating, all-encompassing forest. But so far, Nora hasn’t found her magic. The only thing she knows how to do is find items in the woods on full moon nights. Silver belt buckles, pearl buttons. Little trinkets found in a sleeping forest, things that she is meant to keep. But none of the forest gifts has been a living thing until Nora finds Oliver.
Alone in her cabin, as a snowstorm whirls up and cuts her off from the town, Nora wasn’t planning on finding a boy who’s been missing and presumed dead for the last two weeks.
But there Oliver was, with no memory and eyelashes full of snow. He’s from the Wayward Boys Camp across the lake, and he uncannily pulls at Nora – almost as if she knows him without ever meeting him before. Their instant, visceral connection makes her heart swell, and her mind reel.
As the storm rages on, Nora discovers that not just one boy went missing from the camp, but two. Nora’s once sure-footed path is ripped away, and she’s careening toward answers that she doesn’t want to know. Oliver has hidden secrets that even he can’t face, and if Nora discovers the truth, it could rip everything apart. Was Nora meant to find Oliver in the woods, and if she was, is his heart hers to keep? Or will the forest find a way to take him back?
Full of magical, mystical storytelling and haunting twists that keep you guessing, WINTERWOOD is a first-rate pleasure to read. Ernshaw’s enchanting prose evokes the weight and depth of the dark woods. This, at times, claustrophobic mystery thrums along to its own beat, pulling readers to a near fever-pitch denouement that no one sees coming. Nora Walker is a wistful girl with a painful thirst for magical knowledge, while Oliver’s alternating chapters hit with a crisp, unreliable voice. With the narrative structure stepping up the tension with each chapter, you’ll devour it all until the very last page.
The best kind of book to read on a camping trip or on a dark covered porch with the lamp turned low, WINTERWOOD is a powerfully dark fairy tale. Highly recommended.
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About the Author
Shea Ernshaw is the NYT Bestselling author of THE WICKED DEEP and WINTERWOOD. She is the winner of the 2019 Oregon Book Award and her debut novel, The Wicked Deep, was an Indie Next Pick. She lives in a small mountain town in Oregon and is happiest when lost in a good book, lost in the woods, or writing her next novel.
You can connect with her online at sheaernshaw.com.
Read our exclusive interview: NYT Bestselling Author Shea Ernshaw Discusses Winterwood.
Winterwood, by Shea Ernshaw, was reviewed by Denise Mealy. Discover more books like Winterwood by following along with our reviews and articles tagged with Christine Roussey, Gratitude, Jo Witek, Kindness, and Sharing.