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    The Girl in the Woods
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    The Girl in the Woods
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    The Girl in the Woods
    Ebook340 pages4 hours

    The Girl in the Woods

    By Patricia MacDonald

    4/5

    ()

    Currently unavailable

    Currently unavailable

    About this ebook

    A deathbed confession has chilling consequences in this gripping novel of psychological suspense.

    “I have to tell you something … I did something bad”.

    Ever since her best friend Molly was murdered fifteen years before, Blair Butler has returned to her small hometown in the Pocono mountains as seldom as possible. Now she has been summoned home to see her terminally ill sister one last time – only for Celeste to make a shocking deathbed confession. Is it really true that the wrong man has spent fifteen years in jail for a crime he didn’t commit?

    Having promised her dying sister that she would do her best to right the wrongs of the past, Blair sets out to discover what really happened that cold, wet November night fifteen years before: the night Molly’s battered body was found in the woods behind her home. But is Blair prepared for the shocking truth … ?
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherSevern House Publishers
    Release dateJun 1, 2018
    ISBN9781780109572
    Unavailable
    The Girl in the Woods
    Author

    Patricia MacDonald

    Patricia Macdonald's darkly hypnotic tales have captivated readers across America, as well as in France, where she is a #1 bestselling author. Her previous novels include Suspicious Origin, Stranger in the House, Not Guilty, Safe Haven, and the Edgar Award-nominated The Unforgiven. She lives with her husband and daughter in New Jersey.

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    Reviews for The Girl in the Woods

    4/5

    14 ratings3 reviews

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    • 5/5
      Patricia MacDonald's "The Girl in the Woods" takes place in Yorkville, a small town in the Poconos. In the prologue, we meet thirteen-year-old Blair Butler, whose close friend, Molly Sinclair, is a good-hearted girl who frequently invites the lonely Blair to her home. Unfortunately, Blair and her sister, Celeste, are orphans who live with their uncle, Ellis Dietz, an irascible and verbally abusive racist. Ellis's house is a wreck (it "looked as if it was going to implode on itself"). This elderly and cantankerous man is a hostile and irresponsible guardian who is even nastier to the kids after he downs a few beers.

      One evening, when Molly is at Blair's house, an argument erupts between Blair and her uncle. Molly decides to walk home but, tragically, never makes it. A jury convicts an African-American man, Adrian Jones (who converted to Islam and has a new name, Yusef Muhammed), of bludgeoning Molly to death. Muhammed has already spent fifteen years in jail. Blair, who is now in her mid-twenties, has a graduate degree in computer science and runs a successful business in Philadelphia. When she discovers new information that may exonerate Muhammed, she puts aside her own concerns and boldly fights for the prisoner's release. Blair even hires a private investigator, Tom Olson, to help track down the perpetrator who took Molly's life.

      This engrossing and suspenseful thriller is a multi-faceted page-turner. The novel's descriptive writing and dialogue are lively and fast-paced, and the characters are believable and well-defined. Blair is bright, intuitive, and strong-willed. Ellis is obnoxious, but shows a softer side when a do-gooder named Darlene Reed takes an interest in him. Tom is brusque and ill-mannered, but relentless when it comes to chasing down information. The story is surprising, developed with subtlety and skill, and culminates with a chilling and intense finale. The author demonstrates that justice can be elusive; villains lurk in the most unexpected places; and one should never underestimate a resolute woman who sets out to right a terrible wrong.
    • 4/5
      The Girl in the Woods by Patricia MacDonald is a gripping mystery about a young woman's attempt to exonerate a man wrongly convicted of murder.

      Blair Butler has come a long way from her small home town where she lived with her older sister Celeste and their bigoted uncle who raised them after their mom's death.  Blair went on to college and owns a thriving business with two college friends. Celeste became a single mother and still lives with their Uncle Ellis Dietz.  Blair has no choice but to return the small town where Celeste's battle with cancer is about to come to its sad conclusion. However, before she dies, Celeste makes a stunning confession to her about the murder of Blair's childhood friend, Molly Sinclair, who died fifteen years earlier.  Now Blair feels like she has no choice but to act on this new information, but local police are in no hurry to re-open the case in which the killer has already been convicted and is serving out his prison sentence. Blair wants justice for her friend and she enlists the aid of  private investigator Tom Olson to help her uncover the truth. However, a killer who has gotten away with murder for the past fifteen years will go to any lengths to stop Blair and Tom from unmasking his or her identity.

      Blair has always blamed herself for the circumstances that led to Molly's death.  Her business needs her attention but despite her best efforts, she cannot walk away from this new information.  She does not waste any time informing the police about the details Celeste disclosed to her right before her death. When they refuse to re-open the case,  Blair feels duty bound to investigate the case herself and she first teams up with a local news reporter to search for answers. When this arrangement quickly falls through, Blair is ready to concede defeat, but she cannot in good conscience leave town without trying one last time to find someone who can look into the case for her.

      With no one else to turn to, Blair hires former cop and current private investigator Tom Olson to help her find Molly's killer. Tom is not exactly hopeful he can unearth the truth, but he nonetheless agrees to take the case. Blair's plans to leave town are once again scuttled when she does not trust Tom to follow through with his end of their bargain.  With the new lead that Blair has uncovered, she and Tom resume their investigation and she notices a puzzling detail that takes the case in a very unexpected and  shocking direction.  Blair's curiosity then puts her harm's way and she is uncertain whether or not she can escape from an increasingly dangerous situation.

      The Girl in the Woods is a fast-paced and absorbing mystery. Blair is a likeable and sympathetic protagonist who learns and grows from her unexpected experiences in her hometown. Savvy readers will most likely figure out the perpetrator's identity but Patricia MacDonald has a few surprises as the novel comes to an action-filled conclusion.  A nice amateur sleuth mystery than fans of the genre will enjoy.
    • 3/5
      The Girl in the Woods by author Patricia MacDonald was a very twisty story. It is the story of Blair both before and after her move from home. At the age of 13, Blair's best friend Molly is murdered after her Uncle Ellis sends her home alone in the rain. Blair has always felt guilty about this situation. Uncle Ellis took the girls in after their mother died and he was not a very good guardian. he was bigoted, cheap, mean, and more. The only thing he did not seem to do was sexually or physically assault the girls. When Blair got the opportunity, she left, got a great education and started her own business. When she gets the call that her sister is now in hospice, she returns home to spend time with her in her last few days or weeks. Shortly before Celeste dies she whispers a confession to Blair that reveals that the man who has been in prison for 15 years for killing Molly is innocent. Blair is shocked and promises Celeste that she will do everything she can to free him. It is not easy to get those in authority to listen, believe, and become involved in freeing a convicted man. Blair realizes that it is up to her to find the real killer in order to keep her promise to Celeste. There are a lot of clues still out there and as Blair finds more and more information, the story takes several turns.

      The characters in the story are all fascinating. Ellis Dietz, the crotchety uncle, is easy to dislike, until he does something that makes you think, maybe he is not all bad. The P.I. that Blair hires seems to not care about the case, but then does everything he can to help Blair. The newspaper reporter who starts off helping Blair, leaves her high and dry when it benefits her. Even Blair's young nephew has to make some pretty heavy decisions and as young people often do, takes a misstep along the way that could be very dangerous.

      The Girl in the Woods by author Patricia MacDonald was a good story. I enjoyed the book not only for the psychological suspense but also for the questions it brought to my mind about the whole plot of the story. What would you do in this situation? The thing I did not like was that there were several themes that seemed to be taken from various stories and lumped together in this book. I did figure out who the murderer was early in the story, but not why. I liked this book and once I started reading I finished it quickly as I wanted to see what would happen next. Those who enjoy thriller/suspense stories, will enjoy this one. The publisher generously provided me with a copy of this book via Netgalley.