The Dark Between the Trees

De: Fiona Barnett

Narrado por: Vicky Hall, Tayla Kovacevic-Ebong

Brought to you by Penguin.

1647: A small group of Parliamentarian soldiers are ambushed in an isolated part of Northern England. Their only hope for survival is to flee into the nearby Moresby Wood...unwise though that may seem. For Moresby Wood is known to be an unnatural place, the realm of witchcraft and shadows, where the devil is said to go walking by moonlight...

Seventeen men enter the wood. Only two are ever seen again, and the stories they tell of what happened make no sense. Stories of shifting landscapes, of trees that appear and disappear at will...and of something else. Something dark. Something hungry.

Today, five women are headed into Moresby Wood to discover, once and for all, what happened to that unfortunate group of soldiers. Led by Dr Alice Christopher, an historian who has devoted her entire academic career to uncovering the secrets of Moresby Wood. Armed with metal detectors, GPS units, mobile phones and the most recent map of the area (which is nearly 50 years old), Dr Christopher's group enters the wood ready for anything. Or so they think.

©2022 Fiona Barnett (P)2022 Penguin Audio

Solid folk horror

Fairly standard but nonetheless entertaining tale of folk horror with some cool ideas weaved in. Other reviews complained that the ending was confusing but it seemed pretty clear to me. If you have a folk horror itch, this will scratch it.

Really enjoyed.

I really enjoyed this. It was a quick and spooky listen. Performance was great. Unlike a lot of people, I actually enjoyed the ending. It was a very bold choice, but I think it was quite fitting. This is one of the most atmospheric books I have ever read.

Amazing Story

I absolutely loved this story. The story gripped me from start to finish and the 2 narrators were fantastic. I don't want to say what the story twist is but for fans of Lincoln and Child type of books (historical fiction/archeological thrillers) you will love this story.

Folding in on itself

This was a cool premise and an unfortunate execution. About three chapters could have been eliminated because of redundancy along with some of the most annoying, frivolous dialog I’ve come across. I don’t believe there was one character I cared about but that was okay because, you see, many of their stories don’t get resolved. Unfulfilling and also boring. Elements were interesting. But I’m a bit cross about the book.

Really falls off at the end

This books performance is great, the setting is fun but then just gives up at the end. I am confused and disappointed.

Terribly boring

The premise of this book was very intriguing and the execution left me wanting. The pacing is terrible so slow and drawn out way to much exposition at times and the constant jumping back and forth between two different stories took me out of what was going on Everytime. This book also suffers from what most stories based in a haunted or creepy forest do, as I feel like they are always the same type of story listening to this had me feeling like I have heard this before. The narrators were decent other than they gave zero energy or emotion like they are as disinterested as I was listening my opinion is to skip this title.

Interesting Concept but Muddled Execution

This book starts off with a great premise- two groups centuries apart facing the same situations. Unfortunately the story isn't able to execute on this idea. At first I was disappointed that it was only an 8 hour audiobook, but by the time I got to the last 3 hours I felt like the story should be over and it was being dragged out.

Unlike some other reviews I dont mind the "twist" ending, but I did predict it an hour before it happened since the story was so boring I started imagining how to make it more interesting.

The performances by the narrators are both excellent, (the speaker for the 1643 group in particular), but I would skip this one if you're considering it.

What a waste of a credit & time

This book is the worst thing a story can be: boring and pointless. In both timelines the characters and story are equally uninteresting and tiresome. This isn’t a horror or thriller more of a soft slow weird story with dumb characters ... don’t waste a credit on this one.

Good concept but does not do much with it

Alternates chapters between 17th century English soldiers pursued by a folk monster in Moresby Woods, and a modern research team having the same experience.
More dark fantasy than horror. Marred by reaching for a broad, casual-reading audience , that is, plain language, not enough ideas, and little atmosphere.

Where is the rest of the book?

This book started out with promise and then went absolutely nowhere. It felt like I watched a series that was cancelled on a cliffhanger after one season just as it was starting to get good.