Wilderness Reform

A Novel

De: Matt Query, Harrison Query

Narrado por: Todd Menesses

The authors of the “impossible to put down” (The Guardian) thriller Old Country return with a terrifying novel about a wilderness camp for troubled teens that is plagued by mysterious events and disappearances, taking survival and discipline to a frightening extreme.

Thirteen-year-old Ben is sent to a remote reform program for troubled teens by a juvenile court judge. But when he arrives at the camp, located on the edge of the vast wilderness of northwestern Montana, he immediately recognizes that there is something off about the counselors. They’re too friendly and upbeat…yet Ben can tell there’s an undercurrent of menace.

As he gets to know the boys in his cabin, he soon discovers that they each have far more going for them than whatever crime landed them there. And each has a different critical skill, one that could help them unearth what is really going on in this place—and how to make it out alive. They are inching ever closer to the truth, and the hidden evil beneath the camp’s surface will make itself known in order to deter them.

©2024 Matt Query and Harrison Query (P)2024 Simon & Schuster Audio

Verbose but ultimately a great book

This is a great story - luckily I hung in there despite wanting to scrap it within the first few chapters b/c it just went on & on & on & on........it felt like someone was reading a textbook to me at times. Since it had such great reviews I decided to plug along - just sped the narration up 1.2 (& sometimes 1.5!) to get things moving along. Glad I did. Really good story. I really liked the characters. (not a fan of New Orleans accents but it was worth it).

Suspenseful

The book was easy to follow. It kept my attention throughout the whole book. Very suspenseful.

Loved it!

This book was excellent. Chilling and intriguing. I don’t agree with some of the reviews regarding the narrator. It seems like this is a difficult book to narrate and he does good job in my opinion.

Not what I expected but was so good

It very different than what I thought it was going to be about but really liked and couldn’t put it down

Poor narrator choice.

I loved Old Country. It was one of my most fun reads of 2023. The actual story here is fine, but still nowhere as good.

A big issue here is the narrator. It's not only that's he's really bad at the accents--though he is--but that many of the characters are very young, and he sounds, well, old. He'd be perfectly suited reading a historical book about World War II for example, but not one about teenagers.

There were parts of the story that seemed to drag. I feel like a good third probably could have been cut out. The ending was fairly exciting and fun though.

Overall though, I did pretty much enjoy the book. Perhaps this is a sophomore slump and the next one will be better.

unpredictable and unsettling

Nicely told story that has everything. We'll developed characters and a story that goes from unsettling mundane to places you probably can't imagine until you hear it, and it was all done with well fleshed out depiction that draws the images to the forefront of the imagination.
The narrator performed incredibly well for such a variety of voices (and creep factor as well).

no spoilers

it's a slow burn in the beginning but stick with it, it's a really good book

The narrator at first seemed to plodding but I was definitely able to distinguish each character very easily. He grew on me.

The story started out good but seemed to drag on at the end. The ending was ok but left you hanging on the main character's fate.

Original, realistic, thoughtful horror/survival/adventure story.

I loved it all. The nature, the believability, depth of characters, truthful depiction of human nature. Best book I've enjoyed in at least a couple of years. I wish it went on and on. I was sad when it ended.

Engrossing story

Matt & Harrison Query are enough to put you off of going out into remote places altogether. And I wouldn’t have it any other way! Their previous book, Old Country, scared the bejabbers out of me. Now that I look into their background, I see why their stories have such authenticity — they’re outdoorsmen and I can identify with the way they describe the experience. Highly recommend this book and Old Country. Cannot wait for the next one!