Hey book lovers! Today, I’m diving into two novels with surprisingly similar themes but vastly different executions: The God of the Woods by Liz Moore and Heartwood by Amity Gaige. Both feature missing women in the wilderness, multiple perspectives, and female investigators in male-dominated roles—yet one captivated me while the other left me struggling to stay engaged.

Let’s break them down—no spoilers, to help you decide which book is for you! Watch this comparison as a video on my BookTube channel here.

What These Books Have in Common

✅ A Missing Woman in the Woods – Both stories revolve around disappearances in remote, atmospheric settings.
✅ Multiple Narratives – The plot unfolds through shifting perspectives, adding layers to the mystery.
✅ Female Investigators – Tough women leading the search in fields where men usually dominate.

But despite these similarities, my reactions to each were polar opposites.

The God of the Woods: A Five-Star Mystery

Setting: Adirondack Mountains (1950s–1970s)

Page Count: 490 pages

Plot: Thirteen-year-old Barbara Van Laar vanishes from her family’s elite summer camp. Decades earlier, her brother also disappeared without a trace. As the search unfolds, dark family secrets emerge, exposing buried resentments and shocking betrayals.

Why I Loved It:

🔹 Unpredictable & Atmospheric – The tension builds masterfully, and I never guessed the twists.
🔹 Rich Family Drama – The Van Laars are a dysfunctional dynasty, and their secrets are juicy.
🔹 Rich Characters – I found every POV fascinating and could have read books about each character.

Despite taking some time to get into the story, The God of the Woods was a 5-star read for me—complex, immersive, and impossible to put down. Read my full review of The God of the Woods here with spoilers at the end of the post.

Heartwood: A Disappointing Slow Burn

Setting: Appalachian Trail (modern day)

Page Count: 320 pages

Plot: Valerie, a 42-year-old nurse hiking the Appalachian Trail, goes missing. The story follows:

• Beverly, a seasoned game warden leading the search.
• Lena, an elderly woman in a retirement home with unclear ties to the case.
• Valerie’s desperate struggle for survival in the wilderness.

Why It Didn’t Work for Me:

🔸 Too Many Perspectives – The constant shifts (mixed media: podcasts, letters, police interviews) and character POVs made it hard to stay focused.
🔸 Slow Pacing – Long nature descriptions and tangents about mother-daughter drama bogged it down.
🔸 Underdeveloped Main Character – I wanted more of Valerie’s backstory—instead, we got too much Lena and Beverly.

This book is very much a slow burn, although there was a jaw-dropping revelation 3/4 of the way through (that was actually quite realistic), but after that, the ending felt predictable.

Biggest Issue: The “Stolen” Real-Life Tragedy

While reading Heartwood, I had déjà vu—Valerie’s story eerily mirrors Geraldine Largay, a real hiker who disappeared on the AT in 2013. The parallels (nurse, husband helping on trail, heartbreaking letters) left a bad taste in my mouth. Is it ethical to fictionalize real tragedies for thrillers?

Final Verdict

• Loved: The God of the Woods (5⭐) – A twisty, atmospheric mystery.
• Meh: Heartwood (2.5⭐) – Great setting, but disjointed and slow.

Have you read either? Which did you prefer? Let me know in the comments! And stay tuned for my April wrap-up next week. Subscribe to my BookTube for more thriller book reviews and recommendations.

📚 Happy reading!

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