Book Review: The Little Woods

 Title:  The Little Woods
Author:  McCormick Templeman
Where I got it:  From NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review

Amazon Summary:
Are the woods behind St. Bede's Academy really haunted, or does bad stuff just happen there? When Calista Wood, a new student, arrives midway through her junior year, St. Bede's feels like a normal school . . . until she discovers that a girl had disappeared a couple of months earlier. Some kids think she ran away, others think she was murdered, but it's only when Cally starts digging around that she finds the startling truth.

Watch as Cally enters a world of privilege, weekend-long parties, high school romances, and . . . well-kept secrets. This page-turner will appeal to teens looking for a fast-paced thriller. Written in a voice at once gripping and crystal clear, debut novelist, McCormick Templeman, will take readers on a twisting and turning journey as only a "new girl" can experience.

My Thoughts:
The Little Woods proved to be a pretty interesting little psychological mystery.  This is one of those books that I was really hoping for a huge creep factor, that just didn’t materialize for me, but aside from that small disappointment, I definitely found this to be a fun, enjoyable read.

Cally receives a scholarship to St Bede’s, an exclusive private boarding school where her sister died mysteriously ten years ago.  Not to mention the student who disappeared just months before Cally’s arrival…  Needless to say, there’s a lot of secrets and mystery going on at this school.

I really liked Cally as a character, despite some questionable boy-related decisions that just didn’t work for me.  She’s a bit of a misfit, but mostly ok with that, and that worked for me.  She’s the only character that really took on personality for me.  And her love interests – yeah, I don’t get the point of either of them, for very different reasons.

Things that didn’t work for me in the grand scheme of things – those weird boy decisions…  And the odd cliquish tendencies of literally all the girls at this school.  It just didn’t make sense if you thought too much about it.

This is definitely a worthwhile mystery, especially if you’re willing to overlook some flaws in characterization in favor of the mystery aspect and story line.  If nothing else, check it out at your local library.