Book Review: In The Wild Light

It's Book Club time! I love our Saturday evening book club dinners. Only three of us were able to make it this time. Others were at Disney on a school trip. (We felt very bad for them that they had to miss book club for that. 🤣😜) And life kept the rest from being able to attend.

We all agreed this book was our fastest read. The short chapters made it feel like we flew through the story.

My Review: 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

Cons: Yet again, I'm reading a secular book. For many of my readers, that matter not at all, while others are looking for my review of Christian-based books. I promise the next 3 books I review will be Christian based. I've already finished two of them. I give this warning because the language in this books was rough. How do you image teenagers speak to each other when adults aren't present? That's this book.

Pros: The characters are beautifully written. Unlike almost all the books we've read for book club, this one tells the entire story from one point of view. Still, we have the opportunity to see each character develop through the eyes of Cash, a teenage boy making adult-sized decisions. We receive beautiful descriptions of scenery from the Appalachian Mountain of Tennessee to the skyline of New York. The author allows us to hold Cash's hand through the highs of learning he has skills he never realized and the devastating pain of losing all he holds dear.

My thoughts: As a suspense writer, my books are plot-driven. A lot of what I read is plot-driven. The characters move the plot along and no one would find those books interesting without fully developed people. In the Wild Light is more character driven. Don't expect on-the-edge-of-your-seat suspense. Do look for soaring highs and crushing lows of character development. Character, after all, doesn't develop from the calm waters of an easy life.

Cash's best friend Delaney has discovered a new strain of fungus similar to penicillin but more potent in its response to antibiotic-resistant bacteria. She and Cash are both sixteen. She's offered a full scholarship to an expensive prep school in the Northeast, but she'll only go if Cash receives a full ride as well. With both scholarships secure, she offers Cash a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to escape rural Tennessee and learn from one of the top high schools in the nation.

Cash struggles with the decision. His mother died from a drug overdose, and his beloved grandfather is dying from emphysema. He knows if he leaves, he may never see his grandfather alive again. But allowing Delaney to leave without him would break both their hearts.

He ultimately decides to join Delaney at the new school. Change is hard, especially for scholarship kids at an elite school.

If you're looking for a quick read with colorful characters and heart-wrenching growth, pick up In the Wild Light.