The Trees

By: Ali Shaw

Narrated by: Ben Onwukwe

There came an elastic aftershock of creaks and groans and then, softly softly, a chinking shower of rubbled cement. Leaves calmed and trunks stood serene. Where, not a minute before, there had been a suburb, there was now only woodland standing amid ruins.

There is no warning. No chance to prepare. They arrive in the night: thundering up through the ground, transforming streets and towns into shadowy forest. Buildings are destroyed. Broken bodies, still wrapped in tattered bed linen, hang among the twitching leaves.

Adrien Thomas has never been much of a hero. But when he realises that no help is coming, he ventures out into this unrecognisable world. Michelle, his wife, is across the sea in Ireland and he has no way of knowing whether the trees have come for her too. Then Adrien meets green-fingered Hannah and her teenage son Seb.

Together, they set out to find Hannah's forester brother, to reunite Adrien with his wife - and to discover just how deep the forest goes. Their journey will take them to a place of terrible beauty and violence, to the dark heart of nature and the darkness inside themselves.

©2016 Ali Shaw (P)2016 Bolinda

Almost OK

Narration hard to follow with a very deep British voice. Story a little simplistic. Ending predictable.

Amazing Book

The story was engrossing. The Characters were fully fleshed out and relatable. I enjoyed every moment of it.

Magical and Interesting Post-apocalyptic Novel

I went back and forth on selecting this book for months. Combed over the reviews multiple times. A couple times I was a close as selecting “confirm purchase” but sides against it. Finally I decided F*** it!

The book starts out strong and continues throughout the book. It was an interesting twist on the post-apocalyptic genre. The book had me excited to continue on. I’d wake up and be waiting for the time of the day I could continue the journey.

I thought the narrator was great! I will say though that I read most of the book on my Kindle so I only listen to maybe a 1/4 of the book but I thought the narration was solid. You could easily distinguish between the characters.

If you are at all on the fence with this book please don’t be like me a wait, going back and forth. Dive in, you won’t be disappointed.

Post apocalypse with a little bit of magic

What made the experience of listening to The Trees the most enjoyable?

This was a strange book, difficult to define. The writing is beautiful with vivid descriptions of nature. It's a look at not only Earth's nature, but human nature as well.

Who was your favorite character and why?

I liked them all.. every quirky, flawed one of them. I even started thinking "hey, maybe worms aren't that gross"

Which scene was your favorite?

My favorite part of any book is when someone is faced with a difficult decision, and trying to understand what led them to that decision. There were quite a few in this book.

Any additional comments?

This book reminds me of a Margaret Atwood novel. If you liked her MaddAddam series, you will probably like The Trees. If you don't like apocalyptic/fantasy/survivalist stories, then this one isn't for you.

The Trees

A gripping,intense story with characters who grow into meaningful people The end is satisfying.

Worth it!

I had been putting off getting this title. No reason, I just figured I'd not enjoy it and have to return it. I was so wrong

I loved this. The characters felt real, and had their good and bad qualities. The premise is completely new, for me at least, and I loved that. I really loved how the magical elements were introduced slowly, and they didn't take away from the journey these people were taking.

I can't put into words what I felt when listening to this. But I will listen to it again. I know I'll find even more to appreciate about it. Maybe even find the words to describe why I loved it so much!

The Trees

This book shattered all my expectations. Everything I thought would happen shifted and where some authors may end, the story continued, surprising me with what was still in store.
The main characters became very important to me. Adrian in particular seemed to represent how difficult mental illness can be and how difficult it is to live with such burdens. I understood him well and liked how his journey ended ( and ultimately began). Everything came together perfectly, in my opinion, and I relish listening again in the future.
The author has truly created a treasure.

This could be a movie!

Great story with excellent imagery. The narrator was very good BUT a minor annoyance was that each audio cut dropped the first word or two, knocking me out of the story.