I tried to love it and the premise for the story is one I love (climate change/nature/our effects on it) and the setting was exquisite....the forest of NH, one of my fave states! The author even mentions UNH where my youngest is a senior!
However, it just got so bogged down towards the end for me. And the ending wasn't what I was expecting and at the same time I usually like surprises but also it just felt rushed at the very end. I cannot explain it. It just left me feeling a bit let-down.
STORY SUMMARY
Cadence (Cadie) Kessler works for the Forestry Department at University of New Hampshire. She is doing research on the effects of an invasive beetle which leads to forest fires and is destroying the land.
She has also spent most of her life covering up a truth...keeping a secret from her childhood best friend Daniela and everyone around her, including her parents. Deep down, she always knew her secret would rise to the surface.
Daniela sends her an urgent message one afternoon after they've been estranged from each other since they were young teens. Daniela is now a mommy to a little girl named Sal. Daniela and her parents are originally from El Salvador and were always looking over their shoulders as, although they paid their taxes and ran the local hardware store, they never bothered becoming American citizens. They are illegal immigrants and have hidden that from most people.
The message from Daniela brings Cadie back to her childhood home....a small town called Maple Crest in the mountains of NH. She actually lives in Concord in an apartment when she isn't tramping through the woods collecting beetles.
Daniela and Cadie became best friends when Cadie found an abandoned boat, a boy they named Summer Kid (aka Garrett), and the disappearance of Juan Hernandez. Daniela thinks she knows what happened.....but Cadie was there. And she knows the real truth....or at least she thinks she does until she and Garrett re-unite.
Daniela and Cadie are forced to face the dark secret they've been a part of. Something happened to them one perfect summer and the memory of it has invaded Cadie's mind more than any other event in her life.
Cadie needs to decide if she what she is willing to sacrifice to protect the people and forest she loves. Drought, foreclosures, and wildfires place tensions between the migrant farm workers and the local townsfolk.
Is she willing to finally tell the truth about what happened that awful summer afternoon??
Will Garrett still love her?
And more importantly, will the real truth be discovered?
MY THOUGHTS
The setting is perfect. The character development is good.
And I so love the themes in this story: nature, climate change, environmental concerns, the plight of immigrants, the fight for our convictions and beliefs.
What I did not like about the story (and I tried to research this and came up with nothing) is that the author makes UNH the bad guy by saying they are going to stop the funding for Cadie's research because she trespassed on federal lands. Now, maybe the university really does want to not allow research students to traverse federal lands but from what I know about UNH, they are all about research and have a strong environmental program. So....I'm not sure if the author was just taking liberties with this or not. I just didn't like the negative tone to that part and maybe it's because we've invested so much money and time in UNH/Durham! I did find this via the UNH website: Research
I liked Cadie but I didn't love her. She really has a lot of issues and life would have been better for her had she just told the truth and let the consequences play out. I don't like that Dolores (Daniela's mom) told a young teen to lie about the body and what really happened. I get that she was scared. But something doesn't sit right with me when a parent tells a child to lie.
I do like the surprise ending but I don't like that it took so long to get there.
The writing style is quite good and I love how the author really writes so descriptively. I could practically smell the wildfire and the lake and pine trees.
There were some excellent quotes that jumped out at me:
"I'd rather accidentally cause something bad to happen because I did the right thing, than ause a disaster because I did something selfish." (pg39, Waiting for the Night Song by Julie Carrick Dalton, c.2020)
"When someone says you're overreacting, but you know you're right, keep reacting until it's over." (pg 195)
"Not speaking up against injustice is just as bad as being complicit. I've been quiet too long.....How can I ever hope for forgiveness if I can't stand up for other people?" (pg 237)
And I just loved this because it's so true!!
"The truth can be buried, crushed, or burnt, but it will always rise." (pg 329)
In my opinion, this book is appropriate for ages 14 and older.
On a scale of 1-10, with 10 being the highest, I rate this an 8.
1 comment:
I was interested to come here and see the rating on your site after I saw you gave it a 3 on goodreads. I find Goodreads rating system when comparing to others systems. A 3 there should translate to a 6 on a ten star rating system but it doesn't with how goodreads defines the stars. Didn't mean to go off on that bunny trail. :) Sorry the book disappointed.
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