Haunting and lyrical, The Bobcat is Katherine Forbes Riley’s magical debut novel in which Laurelie, a young art student who suffers in the aftermath of a sexual assault, has grown progressively more isolated and fearful. She transfers from her busy city university to a small college in rural Vermont, where she retreats into her vivid imagination, experiencing the world through her art. Most … Most comfortable in the company of the child for whom she babysits, and most at ease in the woods, Laurelie has shunned any connection with her peers. One day, while exploring the woods, she and her young charge encounter an injured pregnant bobcat – and the hiker who has been following it for hundreds of miles. In the hiker and his feline companion Laurelie recognizes someone as reclusive and wary as herself. The hiker, too, finds human companionship painful to endure, yet he is drawn to wounded Laurelie the way he is drawn to the bobcat. As Laurelie moves toward recovery and reconnection she also finds her voice as an artist, and a sense of purpose, maybe even a future, comes into sight. Then the child goes missing in the woods, threatening the bobcat, the hiker, and the fragile peace Laurelie has constructed. With the hypnotic intensity of Emily Fridlund’s The History of Wolves and Fiona McFarlane’s The Night Guest, Riley has created a mesmerizing love story, in lush, gorgeous prose, that examines art, science, and the magic of human chemistry.
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Laurelie is an art student and a survivor of sexual assault, which has left her very anxious and uncomfortable with others. She transfers from a university in a hectic city setting to a college in rural Vermont, hoping to find some peace. Her art, and babysitting her landlord’s son, become her main focus. One day, while walking through the woods with her landlord’s son, Laurelie spots a pregnant, injured bobcat. Shortly after, they come across a hiker who has been following the bobcat for miles. Laurelie and the hiker strike up a friendship which develops into a romantic relationship. The hiker is an unusual fellow with deep sensitivities to his surroundings which are fascinating to Laurelie.
This was a wonderful read. The characters are intriguing for their uniqueness and the story line was pleasantly original. Strongly recommend.
Thank you to Netgalley, the author Katherine Forbes Riley, and the publisher Skyhorse Publishing for the free ARC I received in return for my honest opinion.
The novel is richly observed, the depth and detail of its description a particular strength. It has been described as “immersive” and I’ll tell you why: you will lose yourself in this book. The words and sentences are enough to keep you turning the pages, even if the story were less than the fascinating tale that it is. […] The ending is perfect.
I found this book to be very difficult to follow. It was very poetic and beautifully written, but I felt like I missed the big picture. This would be a good book for someone who likes more metaphorical writing and is okay with a low amount of action.
The Bobcat is a masterpiece of understated grace, an insightful study of trauma and healing, and a work whose narrative power shines with the strength of its skillful prose. […] This realistic portrayal of recovery is light years from the superficial takes we often see in stories, and it makes the narrative that much stronger and more engaging. An extremely impressive debut, The Bobcat is a compelling and rewarding read.
You’ll want to savor this read. […] Riley’s prose is engaging and evocative. I absolutely loved her gift for description and imagery. I can’t wait to read more from this talented author.
Katherine Forbes Riley’s tender artistry and elegant prose exalt one woman’s painful tale of violence in a violent world to a memorable novel where people’s capacity for humaneness and love pulsate from the center. The Bobcat is graceful, profound assurance of man’s perpetual instincts to refuge in nature and commune with the beasts every time our own humanity or our fellowman fails us.
A mesmerizing novel, […] Riley uses language, both precise and lushly descriptive, to show how true connection does not depend on words. In an age of tell-all stories and healing through talk therapy, it’s a radical act. Though there is plot and mystery enough to drive this novel, what really powers it is Riley’s profound sense of empathy and her gorgeous writing — about people, animals, the natural world, fear, love and hope. This is the kind of novel that makes you turn the pages to discover what becomes of the hiker, Laurelie, the bobcat and the toddler – and then makes you slow down to savor the telling itself.
Riley’s riveting novel, The Bobcat, inexorably pulls readers into a strange world full of possible dangers in which the physical and the psychological are rendered in stunning detail. But she reveals, too, the beauty inherent in this world — if you can bear to let it in, if you can learn to trust again. Intense, surprising and thought-provoking, this story ultimately allows that souls and bodies can in fact heal, and that meaningful human connection is both possible and valuable.
The Bobcat is deeply evocative, written in lush, delicious prose about a wounded young woman and her journey towards healing. With the help of her artwork and an unusual hiker she meets, the two come together, find love in this mystical tale that will linger with readers like a haunting dream. Highly recommend.
In addition to being a moving story of healing, resilience, and love, The Bobcat includes so many lush and exquisite details that make the setting of this novel leap from the page. It also includes a line that, in my opinion, perfectly encapsulates the gift and challenge of being a teacher in the arts. As Laurelie steps into teaching duties herself, she muses how “each student was like a puzzle, finding the right artists to show, the right words to deconstruct their art and make it open up, so the student would see it working just like his or her own.
Equally intimate and expansive, The Bobcat is one of the most unique books I’ve ever read. Riley’s prose works equally as exquisite storytelling and its own thematic device to capture the isolating nature of trauma — and the path out. All of this is wrapped in very human relationships and lush descriptions of the wilderness for a fast, distinctive read that will haunt you long after the final page.
This book snuck up on me, its quiet fairytale quality perfect for the story of a traumatized young woman’s search for a way out of isolation and fear. Riley’s grasp of nature and art and human psychology are on full display in this spellbinding tale of connection and chemistry. […] A book to ponder long after the final page.
The Bobcat is a heartfelt, revelatory, and moving novel about how the way back to our humanity and to the humanity of others leads us sometimes through the animal world. Surprising, precise, and full of love for the immeasurable possibilities of the human heart.
This novel is mesmerizing! Completely unpredictable and engaging. I loved the sentences and the descriptions and the characters.
What a beautiful, thoughtful, touching debut. […] The Bobcat had me at turns flipping pages to find out what happens, and re-reading pages to soak in the expansive and lovely prose. Katherine Forbes Riley steps onto the scene like a master storyteller, comfortable in her craft and precise in her presentation. This hauntingly lovely book will be a favorite of book clubs, and people in search of a novel with genuine heart and wonder.
Saturated with emotion, vivid and sensual, The Bobcat tells the gripping story of a young woman rebuilding her life and self after trauma. Katherine Forbes Riley takes us deep into the Vermont woods to show the power of nature, art, animal companionship, and human connection. An exquisite debut.
I feel like this book was supposed to have some huge impact on me but it missed its mark. If you’re looking for a sentimental and figurative read, The Bobcat is just the book for you. You won’t get to know the characters by the words coming from their mouths, or even by their names, you learn about them purely by their actions. The author made an interesting decision to leave names out of the story, if she refers to a character, it’ll be by “the hiker” or “the boy”, which took me a long time to get used to. I think what really turned me off was that it was missing a lot of action and basic character interaction that makes a story, a story. Even though I didn’t love it, it will be loved by plenty of people who have the patience and more poetic mindsets.