The Forest Beyond the Earth

By: Matthew S. Cox

Narrated by: Elisabeth Lagelee

Under the watchful eye of the Mother Shrine, 12-year-old Wisp ekes out a simple but challenging life with Dad, foraging for food and losing herself in old books from the world that came before. She loves the Endless Forest - except when the Tree Walkers come for her.

In ages past, the great rain of fire and ash destroyed the earth, wiping out the ancients and everything they had made. Nature has reclaimed much since then, spreading out in a vast forest full of wonder and dread. Ever in fear of being taken away, she follows Dad's rules without question while learning to survive off the land.

No longer a small child, she accompanies Dad on one of his treks, her first time more than a few steps away from the cabin. A day exploring with him is the happiest time of her life, but joy is short-lived. A monster follows them home.

Safe in her haven, she hides while Dad goes outside to confront the beast. She wakes alone the next morning and waits. Alas, her hope of his return fades with the daylight.

Desperate, she breaks his strictest rule and goes outside alone. Not far from the cabin, she discovers his rifle abandoned next to the monster's strange footprints.

Afraid but determined, Wisp sets off on her own into the Endless Forest to find Dad - before the Tree Walkers catch her.

©2017 Matthew Sean Cox (P)2018 Matthew Sean Cox

A fantastic take on post apocalypse

Wow. What a great and original story. I found this story fascinating and engaging. The narrator does a brilliant job.

Wisp

I absolutely loved the audible version of this book as much as I did reading it. Matthew Cox has another hit on his hands with this audible. Elisabeth Lagelee did an amazing job in her performance. Wisp is a 12 year old girl who her father has kept safe by locking her in her safe haven. One day her father has her safely locked away when some men come and her father disappears. She has no way out of her haven until she figures a way to get the key. You really need to join her on her hunt for her father and the things that happen including almost getting caught by the tree monsters.

All your questions will be answered

This is a great story. Honestly as I was listening to it a lot of questions, concerns about the timeline arose in my mind. I started to compose this review even before I finished the story, but it completely changed.

The performance is amazing, with Ms. Lagelee conveying a wide range of emotion and detail, though her voice doesn't seem to lending itself to Wisp being as young as the story implies. I kept imagining Wisp 16-17 range rather than the 12. Might just be my failing though. Aside from that small issue she was perfect.

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Some of the things I had problems with is if the story is roughly 60 years after the war (it's mentioned that a grandmother lived through it) a lot seems to have been lost. How do some know about guns but blame the destruction on 'fire dragons'? Why is Magic so quick to become the explanation?

All these are eventually answered in the last chapters of the book and Mr. Cox does a wonderful surprise ending. Perfectly executed and perfectly written. A pleasure to read.

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I received a copy of this book in exchange for a fair review