A mysterious religious community hidden in the forest, a young woman ostracised by the town nearby, and the gruesome discovery of a body in the lake. Deep in the Forest has all the makings of a gripping crime thriller.
This is the second novel from Erina Reddan, author of The Serpent’s Skin, and it’s another excellent page-turner. There’s often talk of the pressure on a debut author to repeat success, and in this case, Reddan does not disappoint.
The premise and first chapters of Deep in the Forest are creepy enough to hook you, while the main character Charli Trenthan is well developed and believable. You feel her concern when hooligans descend on her family’s sandstone house where she lives with her trusty dog, Bojo. The township of Stone Lake blames Charli for a bush fire that destroyed homes and livelihoods, while she blames herself for her mother’s death. There’s a lot going on here and the reader is kept nicely entertained by the bread crumbs of backstory that Reddan sprinkles throughout.
Add to this the conservative closed community in the forest nearby and you have the beginnings of an intense and suspenseful read. Charli plans on leaving her hometown, once she’s finished binding the book begun by her mother about the religious community, the Sanctuary. When Charli discovers a cryptic message from a member of the Sanctuary, she decides to stay to find answers. A gruesome discovery soon leads to a murder investigation and lands Charli in hot water with the police, but how is the Sanctuary connected? As she digs deeper, dark secrets are uncovered and the fight to prove her innocence turns into a fight for her life.
Charli is a well-crafted character, made more likeable by her flaws; the first-person voice brings us even closer to her. Reddan enhances her characters with a layered and intense narrative. She writes about women and power, and the way the town treats Charli is reflected in the closed community with its secrets and betrayals. There are surprising plot twists to keep you reading and the build to the shocking conclusion plays out with measured control.
A gripping thriller with a shocking conclusion that will leave you spellbound, Deep in the Forest raises questions about who we trust and why. This is a character-driven page turner that will leave you reeling. With Deep in the Forest, Reddan cements herself as a crime writer to watch. I’ll be looking out for book three!
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