Book Review | The Wild Dark by Katherine Silva

Liz Raleigh has lost everything: her job, her work partner, and her fiancé. She lives in solitude in a cabin in the middle of nowhere. But one night, her late partner, Brody, appears. He’s one of the many dead who has returned as ghosts. Along with them comes an unearthly forest and savage wolves hungry for souls. Chaos erupts, and Liz must do what she can to survive this brutal winter.

I stilled. It wasn’t the old cabin making its usual sounds: the structure groaning in the wind, pipes rattling, treads loosening on the stairs out front… This was something heavy walking across the floor of my front porch towards my door.

THE WILD DARK is a thrilling apocalyptic horror! We know almost immediately that Liz has lost everything yet her dead partner, Brody has returned apparently as a ghost. But why? Told in a dual timeline, the past looks at Liz’s life and how it collapsed, while the present looks at the aftermath and how she must find out what’s going on.

The winter setting in New England is described wonderfully and feels eerily relevant because the storyline involves the spread of a suspected virus. Those who are affected have the ability to see a ghost, usually someone close to them. Of course, there are people who will do anything to get their hands on the affected people for their own reasons. The supporting characters range from the innocent to the guilty and those in between, adding to the tension.

I liked that the story kept us guessing as to how Brody died and why Liz has resorted to living in solitude. His ghostly appearance is haunting and even suspicious. Liz has to go through a lot of trouble to get answers! I did find her ability to emerge from every challenge reaches almost superhuman levels at times. I also wasn’t fond of the love triangle storyline but it resolved to my satisfaction. This is a story about grief, love and loss where it shows how every decision you make can have repercussions, and that you have to deal with your mistakes even when it hurts. The ending leaves a question mark but I believe the sequel will be out soon.

The Wild Dark is recommended for fans of suspenseful apocalyptic ghost stories.

CW: domestic violence, child death

I received a copy from the author for review purposes. 

About the author: Katherine Silva

Photo by Zoya Lonoohod