Erica Ferencik | INTO THE JUNGLE

Plot (via Goodreads):

Lily Bushwold thought she’d found the antidote to endless foster care and group homes: a teaching job in Cochabamba, Bolivia. As soon as she could steal enough cash for the plane, she was on it.

When the gig falls through and Lily stays in Bolivia, she finds bonding with other broke, rudderless girls at the local hostel isn’t the life she wants either. Tired of hustling and already world-weary, crazy love finds her in the form she least expected: Omar, a savvy, handsome local man who’d abandoned his life as a hunter in Ayachero—a remote jungle village—to try his hand at city life.

When Omar learns that a jaguar has killed his four-year-old nephew in Ayachero, he gives Lily a choice: Stay alone in the unforgiving city, or travel to the last in a string of ever-more-isolated river towns in the jungles of Bolivia. Thirty-foot anaconda? Puppy-sized spiders? Vengeful shamans with unspeakable powers? Love-struck Lily is oblivious. She follows Omar to this ruthless new world of lawless poachers, bullheaded missionaries, and desperate indigenous tribes driven to the brink of extinction. To survive, Lily must navigate the jungle--its wonders as well as its terrors—using only her wits and resilience.

Review:

Two years ago, I gobbled up The River at Night by Erica Ferencik in one day. I was a man obsessed and soon after, I was quickly refreshing the Gallery Books Instagram and searching for Amazon for Ferencik's next novel. When the synopsis was announced with the title, I was expecting something similar to The River at Night and what I got was the complete opposite - in the best way possible. 

Into the Jungle is the kind of novel as I can only describe as an adventurous and dazzling character study with a hint of action and suspense, a trial and error of a love story, and a miraculously well-plotted novel with a setting that almost acts as a character all in its own. Still with me? Good, because if you think you know what this one is about - you are terribly wrong. 

My best advice is that if you enjoyed the nature element to The River at Night, then you'll enjoy this one. If you're looking for the same type of thriller, this might not be the one for you. I say that in the best way because this is unlike any novel I've read and it is really a tremendously well-written novel. I really enjoyed getting to read the character of Lily because she was unlike anyone I've ever read. She was fierce, intelligent, and albeit a little wet behind the ears. This girl is no angel, but you'll fall in love with her the minute you gobble up the first chapter. Going on this adventure with Lily was a striking experience that left me humbled and a little terrified of what goes on beyond my bubble of a life in Upstate New York. Every single character in this story is written so vividly and required little to no search of your memory as to who they were. The minute someone spoke or took action in this novel, you knew exactly who it was. 

The plot to this one is at times a little slow, but doesn't have to rely on the typical twists and turns of your typical thriller to be a thrilling read. No, no - Ferencik builds a beautifully detailed novel that will take you on a whole different path with each turn of the page due to its unique plot and even more unique and chilling setting. It's not often you can read about the heat of the jungle and feel a chill run up your spine. Although this isn't the kind of novel I am used to reading and definitely a different type of thriller, it's one that has a story that sticks to your ribs, characters that break into your heart, and a plot that acts as a treadmill with your imagination. A beautiful reading experience with a terrifyingly brutal and heartbreaking ending, I could not get enough and I still think of this one weeks after finishing it. A job well done to an author that has made her mark as one of the most gifted writers I've had the experience of reading. 

Special thanks to my friend Krissy for this copy! 

Rating: 5/5