Don’t go in the woods…For 12-year-old Garrett and his four best friends, the idyllic summer of 1989 crashes to a halt when his older brother vanishes. Something is very wrong in Sallow Creek, Pennsylvania. Something is turning their neighbors, their relatives, into unstoppable monstrosities… Monsters that are coming for the them.Their small town is under siege, but the adults refuse to … under siege, but the adults refuse to believe the truth. Can five young misfits and outcasts save the day?
For fans of Stranger Things, Stephen King, Stand By Me, The Goonies, etc. comes a thrilling new novel from #1 best-selling horror author Tony Urban.
Read Within the Woods now because growing up has never been so scary.
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Tony Urban has populated Sallow Creek with unbelievable terrors. Within the Woods is small-town horror at its finest!
4.5/5
This was my first time reading something by this author, and I was super impressed! This will definitely not be my last read of something by Tony Urban.
So in a nutshell, this book is about a small group of preteens in a small town in the late 80’s. When Garrett’s brother goes missing, he’s actually relieved. His dad is less abusive, and his brother always made things more difficult. But soon, he and his friends start to notice other odd happenings, horrific and surreal things that defy reason. Can Garrett and his friends get to the bottom of this bizarre invasion and defend their city, or will they die trying?
Nearly everything worked perfectly for me in this book.
The characters were great. All of the boys had distinct personalities, depth, and some really great interactions throughout. They are a tight-knit group, and listening in on their conversations made me feel like a member too. I grew up in the 90’s and would run off with my friends on crazy adventures, so it was super easy to relate to each and every boy in the group. They cussed like sailor’s but I think that was refreshing. So many YA novelists are afraid to go there, but kids cuss, they say crappy things to each other, and this was showcased extremely well.
The plot had me since I read the blurb. The 80’s? A small town? People getting turned into monsters? Gimme, gimme, gimme! The plot was a high-stakes rollercoaster ride that I loved. There was so much action and never a dull moment. I was on the edge of my seat the entire time. The 80’s nostalgia was balanced perfectly. There were some occasional nods to that era, but it wasn’t beaten into you. I loved the shenanigans the boys got into and the element of mystery and horror that were present throughout.
The only tiny thing I would nitpick at would be that in a couple of the losses experienced on the way I didn’t feel there was enough of an emotional response. Other than that, zero complaints!
This book is a stellar read, and if you love horror, you’ve gotta get your hands on this!
I liked this book. I like the fact that kids solved the problem and took care of it, while the adults were oblivious. Not really scary, but I liked the story.
A good quick read in the vein of Stranger Things or classic 80s sci-fi horror adventure. Some scary parts, some good humor, believable characters, good plot, overall a fun book. Some parts are derivative of other source material but not in a bad way, more like a clear homage to the classics. Definitely recommended if you’re into those kinds of stories where groups of friends have to fight off some sort of horror/sci-fi stuff and have a dramatic and fun adventure.
This is the first book I’ve read by Tony Urban but probably won’t be the last. The characters, development of the 4 young boys in the story was very well done. The story grabbed me at the very beginning, kept going back for me until I finished.
Fun throwback to IT and The Body with enough originality to keep the story from being a complete rehash.
If you read or watched Stand by me or IT you will enjoy this book!!!