Title: Near the BoneAuthor: Christina Henry
First Published: April 13, 2021
Publisher: Berkley
Pages: 331
Genre: Horror, Mystery, Paranormal, Thriller
Format: Hardcover
Source: Purchased
Rating:
Synopsis:
Mattie can't remember a time before she and William lived alone on a mountain together. She must never make him upset. But when Mattie discovers the mutilated body of a fox in the woods, she realizes that they’re not alone after all.
There’s something in the woods that wasn’t there before, something that makes strange cries in the night, something with sharp teeth and claws.
When three strangers appear on the mountaintop looking for the creature in the woods, Mattie knows their presence will anger William. Terrible things happen when William is angry.
Review
Despite the menacing beast of the woods, able to rip and tear animals to shreds, the most terrifying thing in the woods is a man. Martha can’t remember anything before she came to live in a cabin in the woods with a man named William. She is significantly younger than him, barely twenty-one, and she lives in fear of upsetting her husband, who rules over her life with a bible and a fist. This novel was more horrifying than terrifying, my heart bled for Mattie, who struggles with maintaining her sense of self. Perfectly paced with a genuinely scary mystery wondering what it is that lurks in the woods and a powerful allegory about the powerlessness of people trapped in an abusive home.
My one major gripe is that the other characters clearly don’t act in ways that I think a normal person would in dire circumstances. They were a little more like the characters you see in a horror movie that continually make stupid mistakes even after constant warnings. The other issue I found is that Mattie mentions that she had been living with William for what she estimates is around 12 years within the first few chapters of the book, and then is shocked later when someone tells her it has been 12 years. It is a silly thing that was seemingly missed during a round of editing.
Despite my few issues with the book, Near the Bone was by far one of the most chilling books that I’ve read in a long time. It is a page-turner that I absolutely could not put down, I was hungry to know what would happen in the end. I am so glad that I took a chance on this book, I wasn’t sure how it would go but it has easily made it onto my list of favorite books that I’ve read this year!
Quote
“They didn’t know how to be quiet because they’d never really needed to be. They didn’t have to hide from monsters that might hurt them.”
Content Warnings
View Spoiler »About the Author
About Christina Henry
Christina Henry is the author of the CHRONICLES OF ALICE series – ALICE, RED QUEEN, and LOOKING GLASS – a dark and twisted take on Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, as well as THE GIRL IN RED, a post-apocalyptic Red Riding Hood novel, and LOST BOY: THE TRUE STORY OF CAPTAIN HOOK, an origin story of Captain Hook from Peter Pan.
She is also the author of the national bestselling BLACK WINGS series (BLACK WINGS, BLACK NIGHT, BLACK HOWL, BLACK LAMENT, BLACK CITY, BLACK HEART and BLACK SPRING) featuring Agent of Death Madeline Black and her popcorn-loving gargoyle Beezle.
She enjoys running long distances, reading anything she can get her hands on, and watching movies with samurai, zombies, and/or subtitles in her spare time. She lives in Chicago with her husband and son.
Discover more from Radical Dreamer
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
