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Start giftingThe Wildlands
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Learn moreBookseller recommendation
“Sometimes, more than parents or spouses, siblings are those we share the greatest intimacies and the harshest family histories. Only the four McCloud siblings know how deep the loss of their father and family farm is to them all, especially Tucker, the brother who connected the most to the animals, so beloved by his deceased mother. More than a story of a family broken apart by a natural disaster, THE WILDLANDS will have you discussing ecotourism, what it means to be loyal, and how far you'll go to help your brother. This book is a spellbinding read you'll become obsessed with and exactly what I expect from Counterpoint Press. Bravo!”
— Rachel • Avid Bookshop
From the award-winning author of The Lightkeepers comes a page-turning new novel that explores the bond between siblings and the animal instincts that threaten to destroy them.
When a Category 5 tornado ravaged Mercy, Oklahoma, no family in the small town lost more than the McClouds. Their home and farm were instantly demolished, and orphaned siblings Darlene, Jane, and Cora made media headlines. This relentless national attention and the tornado’s aftermath caused great tension with their brother, Tucker, who soon abandoned his sisters and disappeared.
On the three-year anniversary of the tornado, a cosmetics factory outside of Mercy is bombed, and the lab animals trapped within are released. Tucker reappears, injured from the blast, and seeks the help of nine-year-old Cora. Caught up in the thrall of her charismatic brother, whom she has desperately missed, Cora agrees to accompany Tucker on a cross-country mission to make war on human civilization.
Cora becomes her brother’s unwitting accomplice, taking on a new identity while engaging in acts of escalating violence. Darlene works with Mercy police to find her siblings, leading to an unexpected showdown at a zoo in Southern California. The Wildlands is another remarkable literary thriller from critically acclaimed writer Abby Geni, one that examines what happens when one family becomes trapped in the tenuous space between the human and animal worlds.
Abby Geni is the author of several books, including The Lightkeepers, winner of the 2016 Barnes & Noble Discover Great New Writers Award for Fiction and the inaugural Chicago Review of Books Award for Best Fiction, and her novel The Last Animal was an Indies Introduce Debut Writers Selection and a finalist for the Orion Book Award. She is a graduate of the Iowa Writers’ Workshop and a recipient of the Iowa Fellowship.
Carol Monda is an Earphones Award–winning narrator and accomplished voice-over artist. She is also an award-winning actor known for her work in Out of Season, After You Left, and The Gentlemen.
Reviews
“[A] character-driven environmental thriller—think Silent Spring by way of Celeste Ng.”
“From the moment Abby Geni’s second novel starts, you know you’re in good hands…Geni spins a careful, humane, moving story, centered primarily on the youngest McCloud, Cora.”
“Combines the natural world with man-made terror.”
“With skillful prose, you’ll sympathize with Cora, a girl who must learn how to differentiate between love and family.”
“A moving exploration of humanity: not only the danger of our belief in our supremacy and our power to control our environment but also the unique power of our love for each other.”
“Geni’s fascination with the borders between human and animal drives this distinctive sophomore novel…Geni continues to create works of art with perfect voices that are simultaneously thrillers and meditations on nature. It is an incredible trick.”
“[A] deeply unnerving exploration of the permeable line between wildness and civilization in this teeth-gritting tale…Riveting, provocative, and unforgettable.”
“Enfolds multiple themes: how the well-intentioned can go horribly wrong, how childhood experiences shape us, and what family love really means and how it can vie with principle.”
“The novel is particularly notable for its interrogations of human relationships with the natural world…A fast-paced, high-stakes novel that will keep the reader turning the pages.”
“Geni dives into the complex relationship between siblings and how trauma impacts family bonds.
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