For fans of Jodi Picoult and Anita Shreve comes an exhilarating debut novel of one woman’s courage in the face of catastrophe.She’ll do anything to save them.But what will she do to save herself?When Kat Jamison retreats to the Blue Ridge Mountains, she’s counting on peace and solitude to help her make a difficult decision. Her breast cancer has returned, but after the death of her husband, her … returned, but after the death of her husband, her will to fight is dampened. Now she has a choice to make: face yet another round of chemotherapy or surrender gracefully.
Self-reflection quickly proves impossible as her getaway is complicated by a pair of abandoned dogs and two friendly children staying nearby, Lily and Nirav. In no time at all, Kat’s quiet seclusion is invaded by the happy confusion of children and pets.
But when lightning ignites a deadly wildfire, Kat’s cabin is cut off from the rest of the camp, separating Lily and Nirav from their parents. Left with no choice, Kat, the children, and the dogs must flee on foot through the drought-stricken forest, away from the ravenous flames. As a frantic rescue mission is launched below the fire line, Kat drives the party deeper into the mountains, determined to save four innocent lives. But when the moment comes to save her own, Kat will have to decide just how hard she’s willing to fight to survive–and what’s worth living for.
A heart-pounding novel of bravery, sacrifice, and self-discovery, Wildland will keep you on the edge of your seat to the very last page.
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After the awesome reviews I expected to find my pulse racing, heart pounding and fingers flipping through well-written pages full of forest descriptions and crackling fire as our plucky heroine and her two accidental wards (children left with her temporarily), strive to escape a forest fire.
What I didn’t’ realize was quite how much I’d fall in love with characters that Rebecca Hodge has created, who you’ll be rooting for every single stop of the journey to save themselves. I read this book on vacation and enjoyed how I became totally immersed in the author’s setting, as Kat and the two children she’s been accidentally left with, each with their own scars, strive to save themselves.
This novel has all the best marks of women’s fiction- a flawed heroine who I cared deeply about, complex characters each dealing with their own issues. I loved how the author chose to include a newly immigrant child and did so with delicacy and empathy. In fact, I believe Nirav and his new love for a dog and trust in Kat as she attempts to save them all, was my favorite character.
Yes, as the description says you’ll be on the edge of your seat, but Rebecca Hodge has also created a memorable story and setting that stayed with me long after finishing the novel. Brava! Deft writing, amazing characters, the sparks of hope. A truly immersive and meaningful read.
This was an intense page turner of a debut novel. It was highly recommended to me and I’m so glad that I got a copy. Once I started it, I couldn’t put it down. The descriptions of the fire were outstanding – the reader felt like they were with the characters in the rapidly moving wildfire. The main characters grit and bravery was apparent throughout but when she was about to give up, I was rooting for her to remember how strong she really was.
Kat has decided to spend month in the Blue Ridge mountains to make some important decisions. Her cancer is back and she has to decide if she’ll go through chemo again or just let her life end. During his first round of chemo, her husband was her lifeline but he has recently passed away and she doesn’t know if she can fight the cancer without him. She settles in a small cabin with a beautiful view that is totally out of cell range so she’s totally isolated. On her first day, she meets a neighbor from down the mountain — Malcolm and his newly adopted son Nirav. Nirav has just come to the US from Pakistan and knows very little English yet. The next day, she meets Scott and his daughter Lily. They are spending time in the mountains much to Lily’s teenage dismay – she’d sooner be shopping than hiking. A few days after they all meet, Kat has the children for a sleepover. So her plans for a quiet retreat are now filled with 2 children and 2 rambunctious dogs. There is a bad thunder storm during the night and early in the morning, Kat realizes that there is a wildfire rushing toward them. When their way down the mountain is blocked, she decides that they’ll head into the woods to try to get ahead of the fire. She questions herself at every decision but continues on heading the same direction. The air is full of smoke and she can see the fire behind them. The kids are tired and she has lost her shoes and is walking on blistered feet full of cuts. But they still keep moving while she tries to figure out how she can keep the two kids safe. If it was just her alone, she doesn’t think that she would fight but she must keep the two children safe and get them back to their fathers. While they are fleeing the fire, the dads are in a helicopter above trying to find and rescue them but the smoke is so strong that it’s almost impossible to see the ground. They have a few successes but the major setback to the search has them doubting their success to find and rescue the threesome on the ground. The rush to find them as Kat and the kids are trying to outrun the flames is so well written that I was holding my breath with my fingers crossed for their success.
Rebecca Hodge has written a fantastic character driven first novel. I loved all of the characters especially Kat who wasn’t sure what she wanted to do with her life but was determined to save the lives of the children. She was so real as she questioned herself with every decision but did everything she could to guarantee their survival. She had to dig deep to find the strength and determination needed to save them all.
It was hard to believe that this was a debut novel for this author and I can’t wait to read what she writes in the future.
After learning of her breast cancer resurgence, Kat retreats to an isolated cabin in the Blue Ridge Mountains to weigh her options. Her solitude is soon interrupted by two children, a rescue dog, and a lost mutt. When a wildfire breaks out, she must fight to stay ahead of the flames and save their lives.
Phenomenal debut! Loved the authors bio and the book was recommended by author friends so had to read it. I was holding my breath for most of it. So exciting and suspenseful. Awesome characters. Highly recommend for lovers of nature, dogs, and suspense.
Today I’m teaming up with Kate Rock Book Tours to bring you a fantastic story and a great giveaway. Check it out!
Wildland u2063
By: Rebecca Hodgeu2063
Publisher: Crooked Lane Booksu2063
Release: February 11, 2020u2063
~For fans of Jodi Picoult and Anita Shreve comes an exhilarating debut novel of one woman’s courage in the face of catastrophe.u2063
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She’ll do anything to save them.u2063
But what will she do to save herself?u2063
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u2063u2063A heart-pounding novel of bravery, sacrifice, and self-discovery, Wildland will keep you on the edge of your seat to the very last page.u2063~
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*I received a complimentary copy. I voluntarily reviewed, and all opinions expressed are my own.*
*REVIEW*
I have always loved survival stories of all kinds, so Wildland was the perfect choice for me. This story, however, is unlike anything I have ever read in the genre. Kat is a woman at a major crossroads in her life. She has retreated to a cabin in the Blue Ridge Mountains for quite contemplation, but Kat ends up with a couple of dogs that attract two neighboring children. Then, the unthinkable happens. Lighting ignites a monster forest fire. The kids are with Kat at the time, and her cabin is cut off from the rest because of the fire. Kat and the kids and the dogs are forced to flee. The story is told by Kat and the two fathers of the children, and this showed all sides of the tragedy very well. Will they survive the fire? This story was breathtaking, or, rather, breath holding, and so intense that it felt realistic. Rebecca Hodge has built an authentic scenario with details that grounded me right there with the characters. Kat was such an empathetic and emotionally compelling character with relatable qualities and problems. Her relationship with the kids was touching, genuine and believable. Wildland is the kind of story that pulls you into its world and will easily keep you riveted from start to finish. If you want a thrilling emotional read that portrays human nature in all of its variations and gives you all the feels, pick up this book today. You will not be disappointed.
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*LINKS IN BIO*
GIVEAWAY:u2063
http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/52592b2c7/?u2063
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u2063Purchase:
https://amzn.to/34DLPq6u2063
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Author Website:
https://www.rebeccahodgefiction.com/u2063
Instagram: @rhodge.fictionu2063
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Wow!! Wildland is an intense, page turning ride! There were times that I felt myself holding my breath, just waiting for what was coming next. I love discovering debut authors and Wildland by Rebecca Hodge blew me away! Wildland is the story of self discovery set against the backdrop of an Appalachian wild fire. I cannot wait to read what Rebecca writes next!
Rebecca Hodge’s breathless debut is a story about ordinary people facing extraordinary circumstances, and finding strengths they didn’t know they had. With a gutsy heroine and a wonderfully layered cast of characters, not to mention too heartwarming rescue pups, Wildland is storytelling at its best, a detailed and gripping page-turner you won’t want to put down, but will also want to slow down and savor.
Pre-order this adrenaline-pumping page-turner now (you’ll thank me in February 2020). What an incredible story of courage, survival, and humanity. Kat is a fearsome heroine–a mother and a widow who is trying to decide whether to fight or retreat from her second battle with breast cancer. But when she must save two children and two unwanted dogs from a raging forest fire, she discovers strength and ingenuity she never imagined she possessed. And as the children’s fathers race to the rescue you canNOT put this book down. I loved every word, every sentence, every plot twist, and every character–especially the soft-spoken, scarred, ex-special forces Malcolm, who wants only to build a new life with his adopted son, Nirav. I have no doubt EDGE OF SAFETY will become one of the best books of 2020.
Rebecca Hodge writes an action-packed story of humans, adults and children, reaching into their very core to overcome panic, fear, and a powerful force of nature..
Wow, not what I was expecting when I read the description of this book. Thriller, survival story, personal reflection and growth and so very much more. Upon finishing I just want to tell friends ‘ read this book”! Thank you to Net Galley, Rebecca Hodge and Penguin Random House Publishing for giving me this ARC in exchange for my honest review
Wildland by Rebecca Hodge
I could not put this book down! I knew it was a survival story but it was a pulse pounding, though provoking, life or die story that kept me on the edge of my seat till the very end. I kept wondering what I would have done if in Kat’s shoes and whether or not I could have been as strong, focused and resilient with a huge forest fire to get away from. This hit close to home due to the fact that during the California Camp Fire that wiped out Paradise, California I was checking in with family and friends hoping that they had made it out of the fire safely. The harrowing tales they told, their flight, their seeking shelter from the fire and then the losses sustained were remembered as I read this book.
What I liked:
* Kat: marvelous character who has reached a crossroad in her life with a big decision about her future to make. She was so very real as she took on the responsibility of getting not only herself but others to safety.
* Malcolm: a scarred warrior who has undertaken fatherhood and a man to be admired. He takes charge when he must and is a bulwark for those that need him.
* Nirav: a young boy with an old soul – he suffered so much and yet persevered – he so deserves happiness with Malcolm
* Lily: seemed a whiny pre-teen but proved to be a leader in the making
* Scot: father of Lily and a man who grew a lot in this story
* Sara: a good woman and daughter of Kat
* The writing was compelling, vivid and made me feel I was there with Kat and her crew
* That I was made to think and feel and care
* Really liked all of it except…
What I did not like:
* I am trying to think of something and…can’t 😉
Did I enjoy this book? Definitely
Would I read more by this author? Without a doubt
Thank you to NetGalley and Crooked Lane Books for the ARC – This is my honest review.
5 Stars
This book is an absolute thriller. I couldn’t put it down and finished in one day. Again, another wonderful writer in the Women’s Fiction Writers Association.
This magnificently written debut started off where I wanted to savor the words, hold the book tight to my heart. And then – bam! A fire rages and I couldn’t stop turning pages. A nail-biter for sure. Hodge brings her characters alive on the page and grabs the reader’s heart, having it pound hard anticipating what will happen next – Will the fire engulf the children? Will Kat find her way, not only in the fire but in herself? Will the dads be able to rescue the kids? And what will happen to the dogs? You won’t want to put this gripping emotional novel down.
Kat is facing a resurgence of breast cancer, and now, with her husband dead, she’s hard-pressed to find a reason to fight it anymore. But when she takes a month in an isolated cabin (no cell service) to ponder the decision that is causing division between Kat and her daughter, she meets two single fathers staying down the hill. She befriends their children, who are under her care when wildfire strikes the mountain. Cut off from the children’s parents, Kat has to take off across the wild land to save them all.
Wow. Just–wow.
Rebecca Hodge’s debut novel, WILDLAND gave my heart a workout and I didn’t even have to leave my chair!
The story about a woman (Kat) who is battling the return of her breast cancer, and her decision as to whether or not to forego anymore treatments drives her decision to stay for a month in the Blue Ridge mountains. Her daughter, Sara, wants her to continue to fight her disease, but Kat isn’t sure that’s what she should do. She has a “what’s the use, the outcome won’t change,” sort of demeanor about it.
She believes if she takes some time away, it might help her decide. Thirty days in the mountains can’t be bad, right? After arriving at the cabin where Kat stayed with her now deceased husband, another loss that enforces her lack of will to live, her daughter Sara springs a little surprise on her – Juni, a labrador who needs a home. Kat is not thrilled whatsoever, but acquiesces under Sara’s urging that she “needs a dog.”
Other key characters are introduced, people staying in the cabins nearby, like Malcolm who bears a horrible scar on his face from war, his adopted son, Nirav who’s seen plenty of trauma too, and Scott, a self-centered father of Lily, a typical young teen girl who we will learn is seeking how to connect to her father, and last of all Tye, a puppy trapped in some underbrush, that Kat and Lily find on an impromptu hike.
Each and every one of these characters – even the dogs – will play a key role in a story that then launches readers into a harrowing account of what it might be like to wake up, and suddenly realize you only have a few minutes to escape or be trapped by a wildfire that is ascending the hill toward you.
Rebecca Hodge lays out her story with the day and time, and for me, this blip of information at the start of each chapter upped my anxiety level. There was something about knowing exactly how much time had passed that further fueled my turning of the pages. Along the way, I did something I’ve never EVER done before. As the story progressed, at one point I had to peek ahead to check on something. The outcome was that important, I was that invested in what might happen.
I never look ahead in a story! WILDLAND changed that forever.
A great debut by a talented writer.
I strongly recommend Wildland, for so many reasons. First, it’s beautifully written, and that matters a lot to me. Second, it’s impossible to put down after you pick it up. Third, it’s impossible not to cheer as the main character faces adversity after adversity and manages to succeed. The book is about a forest fire, and I read it as I breathed smoke from the fires in Colorado. I thought about saving to it read for after the fires were out, but I couldn’t put it down. This book is awesome, and I hope you read it, either before or after the fires are out.
Wild Land is Rebecca Hodge’s debut novel. I read it in part because I had read parts of it in a writing class months ago and wanted to see how the novel had turned out. Also, I was intrigued that Hodge had chosen a middle-aged female with breast cancer as her protagonist.
When her cancer recurs, Kat Jamison wants time for self-reflection and decides to spend a month in the cabin where she and her husband once stayed. Her time for herself vanishes almost immediately when her daughter, Sara, appears with a dog named June that she wants her mother to foster. Kat also picks up a stray dog, Tye, along the way. Then, Malcom a neighbor down the road appears with his newly adopted son, Nirav. Later she meets Scott and his daughter, Lily. When asked to babysit Lily while her father works on a last-minute work project, she agrees and also invites Nirav. When lightning starts a wild fire, Kat must save both children, both dogs, and herself. The two fathers, Scott and Malcom, team up to try to rescue their children. What ensues is an incredible story of survival.
Hodge’s characterizations are spot-on. There is plenty of action to keep the reader enthralled. The novel is women’s fiction at its best, with a flawed, but heroic woman with deep internal issues to deal with as well as a cast of complex supporting characters who also must deal with their own issues. Each of the supporting cast has a full character arc.
I read the majority (75%) of this book in one sitting because I could not put it down…unfortunately I had to stop at a critical point in the story, because well…life. I devoured the last 25% with tears streaming down my face. I highly recommend this book for those who love a suspenseful, dramatic read.
Setting: Mountains of Franklin, NC
Borrowed from the library but wish I had bought it.
Just to find a place to escape the weight of your world baring down on your soul. That was one woman’s hope when she fled to a beloved mountains side cabin in Rebecca Hodge’s novel “Wildland”.
Trying to clear your head and figure out witch path to take in a life that keeps throwing curves your way is the hope of Hodge’s main character in her story. A woman who has battled uphill for so long finds herself, with some new friends, needing to escape downhill from one of nature’s deadly forces! More strength and courage will have to be dredged up in herself to battle for her life and those she finds unexpectedly under her care.
Hodge uses a beautiful location in her story that turns deadly! I was captivated by the action and perilous situations she put her characters into, it was just enthralling! I felt a personal closeness to her main character, Kat. Both of the difficulties she is going through, one physical and the other a natural disaster, I went through myself. This made the story, a very well written tale, come even closer to my heart!
This is an action packed, emotionally charged novel I heartily endorse for fans who love to be thrilled by a marvelous story!!
4.5 Stars
This book is intense almost from the onset. Along with the extreme and harrowing conditions that each character finds themselves in, there are also personal realizations of strength, determination, and selflessness. I enjoyed seeing those character transformations and the ending is worth the anxiety-inducing action involving survival and rescue from a deadly wildfire.