The Wind in the Woods

Reviewed by Charline Ratcliff for RebeccasReads (07/10) Initially I had some difficulty getting into "The Wind In The Woods." While the book's author, Rose Senehi, does have solid writing skills; her particular style did not immediately reach out and draw me in. In Senehi's defense there are several plots intertwined throughout "The Wind In The Woods." Once the characters were introduced; once the plots merged into a cohesive story, Senehi's novel was able to garner my interest and hold my attention. Moving on to the book: "The Wind In The Woods" is a romantic thriller set around the Green River Valley which is located in North Carolina. The book's main players are Tiger Morrison, a charming and charismatic widower. Tiger's beautiful daughter, who unbeknownst to anyone, including herself, is being stalked by a serial killer, and finally the nine-year-old Alvin Magee who is happily learning lessons about freedom and responsibility. Tiger owns a children's camp he built in the Southern Blue Ridge Mountains. Every summer he opens this camp in order to share wonders from the pristine land surrounding it with the kids. His love for these mountains causes him to take on the real estate developers who are intent on buying a large parcel bordering his. Tiger understands if this sale happens the developers will have no remorse whatsoever about the damage they will inflict upon the surrounding area. Somehow he has to come up with an exorbitant amount of money in order to buy the land himself until he can get a conservationist group involved. Alvin is one of the camp's kids and at first glance he is completely out of his element. He's skinny; he wears glasses and his mother is too overprotective. However, he does a phenomenal job of making up for whatever he's lacking with sheer determination and spunk. He loves the camp and because of his experiences there he learns about himself and about the man he will become. All in all I found "The Wind In The Woods" to be a decent read. Senehi does write well and she does pay attention to detail although I did feel the story started off too slowly. I enjoyed the environmentalism throughout the book and I definitely appreciated that while part of this novel included a sociopath Senehi was kind enough to leave out the majority of gruesome details.

Tiger Morrison has dedicated his life to helping children learn to love and appreciate nature through his family's summer camp in North Carolina's Green River Valley. He wants to see the camp continue to enrich the lives of kids for generations to come, but the value of the land has shot up and Morrison knows that upon his death, the inheritance taxes his heirs would have to pay on the camp would make it impossible to hold on to it. The camp faces a more immediate threat when the owner of a neighboring tract accepts a high-dollar offer from a developer. Add in Tiger's efforts to win a woman he thought he'd lost his chance with decades ago, a young boy discovering himself and the world around him during his first summer at camp, and a serial killer stalking Morrison's only daughter, and there's plenty to keep readers turning the pages. Part romance, part family and part suspense, with a big emphasis on environmentalism, there's a lot packed into this book, but it works. This is the second in the author's Blue Ridge Mountains series, in which Senehi examines the battle of families who have made their home there for generations to stave off pollution and over-development, preserving the land and lifestyles they love. Senehi's love and respect for the beauty and wonder of the natural world around her are obvious in the evocative descriptions of the land. I'm looking forward to the next in the series.

A love of nature can lead to very different events in one's life. "The Wind in the Woods" tells the tale of Tiger Morrison, as he continues his devotion to the Green River Valley. While he may stumble upon love once more, he has to help his son come into his own in his world, but more frighteningly, someone may be after his beloved daughter with cruel and violent intentions. An exciting nonstop story intertwines these ideas and makes "The Wind in the Woods" a choice pick for fiction lovers.