Image of the book cover. Blue background with black trees, and bear silhouette, and a girl in an orange coat.
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“Black Woods Blue Sky” by Eowyn Ivey

Life isn’t easy for a single mother in a remote Alaskan town where everyone seems to have an opinion on her way of life. Birdie dreams of a change for her and her daughter Emaleen–a dream of freedom and a life in the wild. Arthur, who lives far off in the mountains and can only bear to be in town for short periods, captures Birdie’s curiosity and then her heart when he offers her a simplistic natural existence. At first, everything seems perfect, but when Arthur keeps disappearing into the woods for long periods, Birdie suspects he’s buried a dangerous secret.

Black Woods Blue Sky by Eowyn Ivey is a beautifully written exploration of the power of love, the pull of nature, and what we risk when we refuse to recognize the truth before us.

This was poised to be a five-star read until the end. Throughout the novel and in one of its most heartbreaking scenes, an internal logic for instinct’s role and unchangeable nature is established. However, the ending seems to abandon this logic, making it difficult to accept.

Eowyn Ivy is an exceptional writer who takes the reader on an unforgettable journey. A blend of adventure, the power and limitations of love, and folktale, this story is for readers who enjoy novels about imperfect people struggling to defy the natural order in hopes of finding happiness.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House for providing me with an advanced copy for review consideration; all opinions are my own.

For readers wanting to learn more about writing, Eowyn Ivey demonstrates how slowly revealing a secret adds tension and keeps the reader turning pages.

Black Woods Blue Sky hinges on a secret, one that is revealed relatively early, but a secret that the reader is teased with and encouraged to puzzle out. No one likes to feel tricked, and when Arthur Neilsen’s secret is disclosed, the reader feels satisfied because Eowyn Ivey has earned the big reveal. When and how the reveal is made further ramps up the tension.

We first meet Arthur Neilsen in the POV of the protagonist (Birdie) when she is surprised to run into him deep in the wilderness. The first interaction focuses on what he doesn’t do: “He gave no reassuring laugh or smile…” and then on what sets him apart: disfigurement, awkward behavior, and an unconventional way of speaking. This initial interaction lets us know there is something different about Arthur, but leaves us unsure of his character. After their first meeting, I pictured someone similar to Billy Bob Thornton’s character in the movie Swing Blade.

Ivey dishes out clues to Arthur’s secret in the concern of other characters, Birdie’s observations, and the reader’s own experience with Arthur’s speech and mannerisms. The clues build on each other, and when the secret is revealed, the reader has the pleasure of feeling like they solved the puzzle or the desire to go back over the clues to see how they missed it.

The reveal of Arthur’s secret to the reader comes early in the novel, but that only increases the tension because now the reader knows more than the other characters. This knowledge becomes a burden as the reader worries about Emaleen and Birdie’s well-being and empathizes with Arthur and those who care about him.

The careful layering of clues and the timing of each reveal make Black Woods Blue Sky impossible to put down.  

Jozzie Stuchell Velesig
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Jozzie Stuchell Velesig

Growing up in Appalachia, I was surrounded by natural storytellers. The air around me permeated with their tales while I read every book I could find. Stories became essential to my identity. I was lucky to have parents who encouraged reading. Our home was too rural to use the closest public library, so my mother would take me every year to a charity book sale where you could fill up a Walmart bag for a dollar. We would leave with the bed of her red Silverado loaded down with books. I would then lay them all on the living room floor, showing my dad every book I had picked. Undiagnosed dyslexia left my dad barely able to read into adulthood. He would beam at me and my piles of books, proud to foster a love of story for his daughter. Moments like these formed me.

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