Review | Pine by Francine Toon

After her mother disappeared when she was a baby, Lauren is raised by her father Niall in a small village in the Scottish highlands. The villagers treat them strangely, she is bullied at school and there are whispers that her mother was a witch. When a teenage girl disappears, it all comes to a head. Will Lauren be able to discover the truth behind the disappearances?

𝑺𝒉𝒆 𝒄𝒂𝒏 𝒇𝒆𝒆𝒍 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒘𝒐𝒎𝒂𝒏 𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒏𝒅𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒃𝒆𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒅 𝒉𝒆𝒓. 𝒀𝒆𝒕 𝒘𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝒔𝒉𝒆 𝒍𝒐𝒐𝒌𝒔 𝒐𝒗𝒆𝒓 𝒉𝒆𝒓 𝒔𝒉𝒐𝒖𝒍𝒅𝒆𝒓, 𝒂𝒔 𝒔𝒉𝒆 𝒐𝒑𝒆𝒏𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒇𝒓𝒐𝒏𝒕 𝒅𝒐𝒐𝒓, 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒆 𝒊𝒔 𝒐𝒏𝒍𝒚 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒅𝒂𝒓𝒌 𝒓𝒖𝒔𝒕𝒍𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒓𝒆𝒆𝒔.

Pine is a supernatural mystery about memories, loss and the chasm of grief between a father and a daughter. This is a slow-burn ghost story that manages to feel grounded amidst all the magic. The use of tarot cards, crystals and spells lend a dreamy tone to the earthy, moody forest setting. The story takes place in the Scottish highlands and the elusive, wintry setting is gorgeously rendered.

I really liked Lauren as the protagonist. She’s a ten-year-old child struggling to understand why her mother is gone and why her father refuses to communicate. She is brave, curious, angry and in dire need of parental love. Her conversations with other characters feel fresh and genuine. Her father Niall‘s behaviour frustrated me, but the book shows careful handling of his character. While I wanted more interactions between both of them, I was satisfied with how their relationship is portrayed.

The pace of the is very deliberate, and while this allows the story to breathe I was expecting more in terms of plot development. I thought the mounting dread as it reaches its conclusion is done really well. However, the ending wraps up too quickly. I would have loved for a deeper exploration of a certain character’s motivations.

Overall, Pine is an eerie, moving, beautifully written debut with an engaging protagonist and an atmospheric setting.

I received a copy from the publisher for review purposes.

About the author: Francine Toon

Photo by Joey Pilgrim