When Liv wakes to find herself kidnapped by her own parents and dumped at a wilderness therapy camp, survival is already going to be difficult. Then people start dying, and escaping the camp becomes only one of her problems.
📚 Pre-Reading Thoughts
I've really been enjoying Kate Francis's YA thrillers. She has a knack for taking unsettling premises and pushing them just far enough to keep you guessing without relying on anything supernatural.
The idea of wilderness therapy camps has always fascinated—and horrified—me. Coming from Ireland, they're such a distinctly American phenomenon that they almost feel fictional, but the reality behind many of them is disturbing enough before you even add a murder mystery into the mix.
📖 Post-Reading
As I thought...
- Kate Francis once again proves she's excellent at building tension. The isolation of the camp means there's nowhere to run, no adults to trust, and no easy answers.
- The camp itself is genuinely unsettling. Even before the deaths begin, the counsellors' methods make it obvious this isn't a place intended to help vulnerable teenagers. The power imbalance is chilling, and the casual cruelty feels all the more believable because it never tips into melodrama.
- Liv is a compelling heroine. She refuses to stop questioning what's happening around her, even when doing so paints a target on her back.
It surprised me by...
- Just how effectively it captures the way fear spreads through a group. As suspicion grows, alliances fracture, accusations fly, and yesterday's friends become today's suspects. Everyone is reacting to incomplete information, and that's where much of the tension comes from.
- The decision to keep everything grounded in reality. There are no ghosts, curses, or supernatural explanations waiting in the wings. Every threat comes from human choices or the unforgiving wilderness itself, and somehow that's even more frightening.
- The twists. Without spoiling anything, there were several moments where I had to stop and rethink everything I'd assumed. They're cleverly planted rather than coming out of nowhere, making the reveals genuinely satisfying.
🎧 Music Pairing
🎵 Featured Song:
Control
🎶 Vibe Album:
The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess — emotionally intense, defiant, and full of characters refusing to be boxed in.
🎧 Artist Recommendation:
Billie Eilish — sparse, uneasy songs that build tension in much the same way the novel does.
🌈 Vibe Check
- Colour Palette: pine green, charcoal grey, muddy brown, warning-sign orange
- Soundtrack: crunching leaves, distant thunder, snapping branches, whispered accusations after lights out
- Season: late autumn
- Mood: claustrophobic, suspicious, relentless
- Scent: damp earth, campfires, rain-soaked pine
🃏 Tarot Pull
Seven of Wands
Like Liv, this card is about standing your ground even when you're hopelessly outnumbered. She refuses to compromise her sense of what's right, even when keeping her head down would be the safer option. It's a card of resilience, conviction, and defending your principles under pressure.
👀 For fans of
- One of Us Is Lying
- The Naturals
- grounded YA thrillers where the real danger comes from people rather than monsters
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