Heartwood

De: Amity Gaige

Narrado por: Justine Lupe, Alma Cuervo, Rebecca Lowman, Ali Andre Ali, Cary Hite, Helen Laser

“A riveting wilderness suspense novel by a novelist at the height of her powers” (Jennifer Egan, Pulitzer Prize–winning author of The Candy House), Heartwood takes you on a gripping journey as a search and rescue team race against time when an experienced hiker mysteriously disappears on the Appalachian Trail in Maine.

In the heart of the Maine woods, an experienced Appalachian Trail hiker goes missing. She is forty-two-year-old Valerie Gillis, who has vanished 200 miles from her final destination. Alone in the wilderness, Valerie pours her thoughts into fractured, poetic letters to her mother as she battles the elements and struggles to keep hoping.

At the heart of the investigation is Beverly, the determined Maine State Game Warden tasked with finding Valerie, who leads the search on the ground. Meanwhile, Lena, a seventy-six-year-old birdwatcher in a Connecticut retirement community, becomes an unexpected armchair detective. Roving between these compelling narratives, a puzzle emerges, intensifying the frantic search, as Valerie’s disappearance may not be accidental.

Heartwood is a “gem of a thousand facets—suspenseful, transporting, tender, and ultimately soul-mending,” (Megan Majumdar, New York Times bestselling author of A Burning) that tells the story of a lost hiker’s odyssey and is a moving rendering of each character’s interior journey. The mystery inspires larger questions about the many ways in which we get lost, and how we are found. At its core, Heartwood is a redemptive novel, written with both enormous literary ambition and love.

©2025 Amity Gaige (P)2025 Simon & Schuster Audio

Beautiful writing

One of the best audio books I’ve read ! Loved the character development and it was beautifully written

Great listen

I enjoyed the story, characters and the reading. It was different than my usual book, but I will search out more by this author.

Hard to put down

The story held my attention for the few days it took to read, I knew there were twists to come but couldn’t predict them. Great read!

The optimism of finding a lost hiker

Relatable characters, believable storyline, kept me guessing until the end. I’m a RN, hiker and love the outdoors.

The writing style was beautiful

Loved the writing about plants , birds and all nature . The readers voice was beautiful and calming .

Beautiful story

Very engaging, story woven together masterfully. I literally could not put this down. I will look for more from this author

Beautifully written

I enjoyed the eloquent, poetic vocabulary of the author. The story carried a lot of emotion from the characters. The ending is a bit predictable, but the journey woven to get there was well done.

Soul growing...

Lyical - could not put down. Felt the woods, the pain, and most of all the love.

Life at the Roots

Outstanding characters and spot on narration made me sail through this book. Variation in personalities brought this whole story together. It examines choices people make and their joy and/or regret they end up feeling. And the best definition of love I’ve ever experienced.

Just ok

From the sample, this seemed like it was going to be a really interesting story! I loved the narration of the lost woman. It’s what drew me in…her voice and her talking about her mother. The narration of Lt. Bev was flat, monotone, and downright depressing. I found the book to go steadily downhill after about 1/3 of the way in. And talk about an anticlimactic ending….I wish I had my credit back.