Heartwood – Amity Gaige
On the surface, “Heartwood” is a missing-person mystery on the Appalachian Trail, but it quickly becomes something deeper. Amity Gaige layers questions of survival with the ways conspiracy, trauma and public cruelty can warp people. The result is literary in style yet driven like a thriller.
Valerie Gillis, a 42-year-old nurse still scarred by the pandemic, disappears in the Maine Northwoods just shy of completing her thru-hike. Her journal entries to her mother alternate between resilience and despair as hope of rescue fades.
Leading the search is Lt. Beverly Miller, a 57-year-old queer game warden constantly second-guessed by her male peers. Bev is one of the most grounded characters I’ve read in a while (think Holly Gibney), fully capable but plagued by self-doubt and weighed down by professional isolation and family drama.
Others circle Valerie’s story: Santo, her exuberant but insecure trail companion; Lena, a retired birdwatcher in Connecticut whose sleuthing is both tangential and essential to her rescue; Gregory, the steadfast husband left behind. By the 40 percent mark, Gaige reveals the truth of Valerie’s disappearance, and the novel shifts into an exploration of paranoia and how conspiracies thrive in our post-COVID culture.
What sold this so completely for me were the characters. Valerie, achingly likable; Bev, devastatingly loyal; Santo, always second-guessed; Lena, consumed by decades of regret. Gaige doesn’t reduce them to tropes. She gives them interior lives that make the outside world’s reaction to the situation — online forums mocking Valerie, media speculation and public blame — all the more brutal. It’s perfectly cast commentary on how quickly we dehumanize strangers in crisis.
The audiobook is nothing short of superb, but that shouldn’t be surprising considering it’s a venerable who’s who of all-star narrators. Justine Lupe captures Valerie’s duality; Alma Cuervo brings depth to Lena; Rebecca Lowman anchors Bev; Cary Hite steals scenes — and laughs — as Santo; Ali Andre Ali voices Gregory and the wardens; Helen Laser rounds out assorted voices. Each narrator fully inhabits their role, making this one of those rare audiobooks that amplifies the novel.
“Heartwood” isn’t the best book I’ve read from start to finish this year, but it’s easily one of the most gripping. It’s a novel about seeking answers when the world refuses them, and about the gap between who we believe we are and how others see us.
It’s perfect for readers that want both substance and story momentum.
Rating (story): 5/5 stars
Rating (narration): 5/5 stars
Format: Audiobook (library loan)
Dates read: October 1 – October 3, 2025
Multi-tasking: Good to go. The short chapters and alternating POVs make it easy to follow along to the story regarding activity, but don’t zone out on the details. There’s richness in how Gaige writes the natural world.
