I was eager - and nervous - to read The Nature of Disappearing by Kimi Cunningham Grant because her previous novel, These Silent Woods, was one of my favorite books of 2021. How would the author follow up a near-perfect novel? I'm thankful that early reviews tempered my expectations because Nature was good ... but not nearly as engaging as Woods. 3.5 stars rounded up.
Set in rural Idaho, the contemporary storyline follows Emilyn, a skilled wilderness guide, whose life is small and secluded by choice. It's disrupted when former boyfriend Tyler suddenly appears with concerns that their mutual friend Janessa is missing. Emilyn agrees to use her tracking skills to help Tyler search for Janessa, and segments of their trek alternate with flashbacks to moments in Emilyn's past, from her childhood and meeting Janessa to the good and bad times with Tyler. Their discoveries increase in tension until the full truth is revealed.
I had the rare opportunity to consume this audiobook, narrated by Emily Pike Stewart, in a single day while doing mundane spreadsheet work at the office. As a result, I had no issues following the non-chronological story, but I may have if I read or listened over several sessions. The story has a small cast of characters, several of whom are unlikeable, but I really liked Rev and Varden. I'm not familiar with the Idaho wilderness or trekking through it so any plot issues regarding these topics were lost on me.
One of the most meaningful things in my reading life is finding unexpected elements of faith woven into âgeneral marketâ novels. I love that Ms. Grant does this so well; it was my favorite aspect of this tale. I was also intrigued by Emilyn's early fascination with a dictionary which fostered her practice of choosing a single word to describe people, including herself.
I'm grateful to Minotaur Books and Macmillan Audio for review copies of this novel.
Set in rural Idaho, the contemporary storyline follows Emilyn, a skilled wilderness guide, whose life is small and secluded by choice. It's disrupted when former boyfriend Tyler suddenly appears with concerns that their mutual friend Janessa is missing. Emilyn agrees to use her tracking skills to help Tyler search for Janessa, and segments of their trek alternate with flashbacks to moments in Emilyn's past, from her childhood and meeting Janessa to the good and bad times with Tyler. Their discoveries increase in tension until the full truth is revealed.
I had the rare opportunity to consume this audiobook, narrated by Emily Pike Stewart, in a single day while doing mundane spreadsheet work at the office. As a result, I had no issues following the non-chronological story, but I may have if I read or listened over several sessions. The story has a small cast of characters, several of whom are unlikeable, but I really liked Rev and Varden. I'm not familiar with the Idaho wilderness or trekking through it so any plot issues regarding these topics were lost on me.
One of the most meaningful things in my reading life is finding unexpected elements of faith woven into âgeneral marketâ novels. I love that Ms. Grant does this so well; it was my favorite aspect of this tale. I was also intrigued by Emilyn's early fascination with a dictionary which fostered her practice of choosing a single word to describe people, including herself.
I'm grateful to Minotaur Books and Macmillan Audio for review copies of this novel.
This book was not what I thought it would be. I could not connect with what the book was saying. It turned out to be quite boring so I could not even finish reading it. I heard her other books were good so I thought I would try it. I don't think it's her writing that is so bad, I think the subject matter is the main item. Some people I noticed did actually like the book. So I say to just try it and see if you can like it.
