Wildwood Creek by Lisa Wingate ~ A Contemporary Review with an Historical Twist



Lisa Wingate
Contemporary Fiction

Back of the book:

WITH LOVE AND LOSS TANGLED TOGETHER, HOW WAS SHE TO KNOW WHERE HER LIFE WOULD LEAD?

Allie Kirkland has always heard the call of her father's unfinished destiny. When she's offered a production assistant's job on a docudrama filming in the hills near Moses Lake, Texas, the dream of following in her director-father's footsteps suddenly seems within reach. The reenactment of the legendary frontier settlement of Wildwood is a first step into the film industry. A summer on set in the wilderness is a small price to pay for a dream.

But in 1861, the real Wildwood held dangerous realities. Town founder Harland Delavan held helpless residents, including young Irish schoolteacher Bonnie Rose, in an iron grip. Mysterious disappearances led to myths and legends still retold in the region's folk songs. Eventually, the entire site was sound abandoned.

When filming begins, strange connections surface between Allie and the teacher who disappeared over a century ago, and everyone in Wildwood--including Blake Fulton, Allie's handsome neighbor on the film set--seems to be hiding secrets. Allie doesn't know whom she can trust. If she can't find the answers in time, history may repeat itself . . . with the most unthinkable results.

READ THE
FIRST CHAPTER!

My thoughts:

No matter the genre you prefer, contemporary fiction, historical fiction, mystery, romance or suspense, you'll find something to enjoy about this book. The story begins with Bonnie Rose and the time frame is 1861, right as the nation was entering the Civil War. Bonnie and her younger sister have just been given the chance to escape from a scandalous past and emerge as new people in a new place. 

The story then quickly changes to that of Allie Kirkland, a modern day struggling film school student. She is haunted by the death of her beloved father. Her mother remarried and went on to have more children, but Allie never quite fit in that new family. At a very providential time Allie is afforded an opportunity that is just too good to turn down. 

One of the things that I enjoyed about this book was that it contained two distinct story lines that would have been intriguing on their own. In fact at the beginning of the book each story stands separate from each other with only a small thread linking the two events together. But as it progresses more strands become connected and a mysterious tapestry begins to emerge. 

About three quarters of the way through the story a shocking detail is revealed that I didn't see coming. After I read that section I could see how the author had left clues along the way but they were so subtle that the delicious build up to the drama was not spoiled. 

Another thing that I really liked was that the story was complete. Even after the suspenseful drama came to an end the mysterious questions that would normally be left hanging to our imaginations were answered. Through the use of a very detailed epilogue we got the complete rest of the story in a wonderful first hand account of someone who had lived to tell the tale.

I can't recommend this book highly enough. It is sure to have wide appeal to a varied audience. If you would like to read about the behind the scenes of writing this book, be sure to check out our Q & A with Lisa Wingate, Author of Wildwood Creek.

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2 comments:

  1. What a sweet review, thank you for having me here at your cyber-spot. I'm so glad you enjoyed the journey to Wildwood Creek ;)

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    Replies
    1. Thank you for writing such an engaging book! It is an honor to have you pop on over to our little spot on the web. We're looking forward to your next book . . . write fast!

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