Review: The God of the Woods by Liz Moore

Introduction

The God of the Woods by Liz Moore is a worthy representative of various genres: the atmosphere is mysterious, folk motifs are sensed, it can be attributed to both literary fiction, and a supernatural theme. The novel is set in a small town which is surrounded by forests which adds some eerie element of suspense and mystery to the novel and its compelling world, its characters, and emotions. Moore tends to develop the loss, memory, trauma, and the inexplicable energy of nature in the work. That way she builds the sort of tale that has the reader looking for answers deep in her soul; and even after the book has been closed it haunts you.

Plot Overview (Spoiler-Free)

The plot of the novel is based on an individual who comes back to the village he grew up in to confront an unsolved enigma, resulting from the mysterious woods at the black periphery of the town. The woods have a dark reputation: they are the places where disappearance and other mysterious incidents take place. The pest’s inhabitants are fully convinced that a deity-like creature, the very name of which is ‘God of the Woods,’ dwells at the bottom and captures whoever dares to sail to it. Instead, the protagonist is plainly unaware of most of the folklore aspects and is altogether too caught up in their own story, trying to solve a missing persons case from their childhood.

He and she discover that as they look into the case, they find out that there are many other secrets that are worth revealing about the town, its people and the underbelly of the society. Thus, with each step, the protagonist of the story feels squeezed between the potential understanding of the truth behind the legends and submission to the woods’ magic.

As is typical of the crime novel, the narrative shifts between past and present and the flashbacks serve an important purpose of explaining the motives of the protagonist, the memories that shaped them and the malevolent forces that drive them. Moore’s approach to timelines adds depth to the experience of reading: gradually, there is excitement and gradually – terror, a promise to be introduced to a world where the familiar is as dangerous as the unfamiliar.

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Atmosphere and Setting

Perhaps one of the things done best in The God of the Woods is the portrayal of the physical location of the story. Moore crafts the woods themselves into a character: It gives off a vibe of ancient, watchful and a touch of malevolence. The forest is depicted in a way that makes a person feel the passion from the writer and their revulsion towards such a place. The reader gets allusions of tracing the movements of the leaves, the shadows dancing between the trees and the nervousness of being followed—an eerie feeling that dominates the novel.

The general environment of the movie limited and confining nature is further enhanced by the small-town backdrop. It is a community in which each person seems to know each other personally and anything that goes wrong is hidden behind a veneer of decency. People do not trust each other, they fear the stranger and they are kept in check by their own fear of the forest. Due to the geographical location of the town, there is an increase in tension in the build-up to realization of the prevailing truth.

Moore also has a good command of the fairy-tale atmosphere of the woods and, at the same time, the methods of realistic storytelling. Adequate separation of the real and the mythical is yet again not clear throughout the novel and one remains in doubt as to whether there is actually the occurrence of the supernatural or just psychological effects. This causes the reader to wonder what is real and what is imagined and thus is a factor that increases tension in the novel.

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Characterization

The hero is a simply awful yet likable, having mental issues resulting from the trauma and propelled by guilt. Their efforts to discover the truth of their origins makes them a captivating character, however, they can be impatient and reckless, thus making some developments quite exasperating. However, all these traits help in making them real, human and sometimes vulnerable which will be appreciated by the readers.

The same goes for the supporting characters; even if rather often they are as foggy and unclear as the forest’s backdrop. The townspeople are portrayed generally or, rather, enigmatically, which contributes to the mystery; characters’ aims and personalities are left rather blurry. These characters have this sense of ‘‘shame’’ and always avoid volunteering information to the protagonist or else give ambiguous responses. It brings in elements of mystery and deceit into the interactions and makes every meeting seem like there is more than just what is on the surface.

Moore also provides the characters with emotional tangent in relations to their relationships. Relationships with the loved ones and enemies are filled with the unsorted feelings of longing and resentment. Such relationships are often associated with the memoir, loss and or consequences of the actions led in the past. In these scenes, Moore takes the time to show even the vilest of the characters, are actual human beings with depth and as fascinating as the main character.

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Themes

In its essence, The God of the Woods is a story about the ways in which we deal with trauma, construct and maintain memory, and create myth. Moore presents us with how individual experiences or mythical tales create our perception of the world, try this site . The path of the main character into the woods represents his move into his own mind and memory, where he comes face to face with such memories as sexuality has been distorted by time and trauma.

Moore is also interested in the concept of place and the role that setting can play as character. It is a survival of the town’s folk lore and its abstract pictorialization of the dangers which lurk in the dark. Thus, deep in the forest not only secrets of the woods, but the protagonist’s metaphysical burden begins.

A second issue that is revealed in the novel is the conflict between science and faith. The main character who dismisses the legends about the town finds him/her self doubting own instincts as bizarre incidents occurs.

Moore does not make this tension a clear polarity he just balances the protagonist with skeptical as well as believing, rational as well as fearing disposition. This makes the reader constantly on the edge and this adds to the novels’ themes and ideas of uncertainty.

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Pacing and Structure

The plot of the novel is slow and systematic. Unlike many modern directors Moore does not rush things and does not cram her audience’s head with clues; everything is constructed slowly and patiently. This is quite a slow-burning narrative that may well enrage certain readers craving for instant changes, yet it forms the basis of the hauntingly atmospheric novel. Switches between past and present are well-timed, every flash reveals the motive behind the hero’s actions and at the same time contributes to the development of the story’s main premise.

As for the novel’s structure, it is rather uncomplicated, except for the fact that the chapters are switched between past and present tense, and there are some changes of point of view. This in turn helps in erecting suspense and at the same time giving the viewer background information about Moore. However the pacing does suffer from this at moments which is most visible when the story does require further focus stalls in middle of the book where it tries to replicate the monotonous thoughts of a character and rather stilted dialogues. These moments pause it and can be said that the incidents could have been more compressed to keep up the suspense of the novel.

Writing Style

Moore’s writing style is rather lyrical and ornate, and at times her depictions of the woods and the atmosphere of the area sound almost poetic. She is very descriptive in her writing that every reader can feel the sound, smell, and feel of the forest. This kind of a descriptive writing makes the reader want to wretch and thus improves the creepy, otherworldly feel of the novel and the woods are personified in some ways.

Her dialogue, on the, hand is very minimal and most of the time it is very ambiguous, mirroring the culture of the town as portrayed to be very Closed. Dialogues in such stories are filled with innuendoes and hidden meanings as the protagonist, and the audience, try to decipher the message. Such self-control in conversations contributes to the generalized atmosphere of suspense in the novel; on the other hand, it may also result in some conversations may appear rather forced, or, indeed, overly ominous.

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Strengths

What is perhaps the novel’s strongest suit is the suspense. Moore does a great job of building an eerie atmosphere throughout, covering the trees as well as the liberal use of confining small town atmosphere. She is an excellent chronicler of fairytale and at the same time, she often challenges what is real and what is not.

The character development is a strength as well, especially with regards to the protagonist’s character arc; the way Moore handles memory and trauma lends the novel an emotional heft that is hard to come by in more traditional mystery novels. Motives of characters are rather dark and many of the relations between them are toxic, which gives some degree of actuality to the story.

Weaknesses

Still, while the Arcade has its merits, The God of the Woods is at least imperfect. In the central part of the story, the events’ rhythm occasionally slows to the extent that it becomes bothersome. Despite her emphasis on atmosphere and the use of internal focalisation, the plot progression can at times be slow and the novel feels somewhat prolonged. The pacing of the plot can be also seen as the major weakness of the book: while some readers may consider the slow, detailed way of disclosing the crime and its consequences to be rather boring, others can observe that the author tries to focus on the details only.

Furthermore, as is typical in the case of postmodern writing, the novel’s vagueness is sometimes useful but some of the time, it is just plain confusing. The line is drawn to distinguish supernatural and psychological horror to an extent that some points of the plot seem left rather ambiguous. However, Moore uses a lot of open-ended questions and even seems to do this deliberately – there are implications of this for readers who like the more rigid, clear-cut resolution.

Conclusion

The God of the Woods by Liz Moore is in essence a gothic novel of mystery, folklore and a psychological thriller which is both haunting and poetically written. Boasting a great view to the atmosphere and characters, the book is sure to provoke interest; however, it might be too sluggish for some readers coupled with a somewhat vague plot. It is recommended to all those who like the gaping chasms between the legendary and the real, the long and slow journey towards the revealing of the enigma, obscure and otherworldly experience of this novel.

Pros:

• It’s very well described and I can imagine the woods, the surrounding town vividly.
• Psychedelic investigation of shock and remembrance or improving history.
• Strong, well-developed main character who has a good range of need-based emotions.
• Beautiful and poetic writing style that will take the readers into the events of the story.
• It is inconclusive and often places the supernatural right along side of reality, thus adding dimensions.

Cons:

• Slow pacing, which can be worst especially in the middle part of the story.
• Certain viewers may find the plot confusing or may just be dissatisfied with the ambiguitous plot.
• Use of internal dialogue in some parts makes the flow quite...
• superficial and repetitive.
• A few storylines have ambiguous endings which may annoy the audience used to the clearly defined endings.

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