Friendship, immigration, and climate change

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Waiting for the Night Song opens on present-day Cadie Kessler collecting samples of an invasive beetle in the woods of New Hampshire. Cadie, now an entomologist, has done her best to leave the past behind her. But when she receives a desperate call from her childhood friend Daniela Garcia, she begrudgingly returns to her hometown of Maple Crest, NH. Now both adults, Cadie and Daniela are forced to revisit the events of that summer and how they changed the course of both their lives forever.

Alternating between the present and twenty-five years in the past, Waiting for the Night Song tackles immigration, climate change, and close friendship. Although Waiting for the Night Song is told from the third person, the focus is limited to Cadie’s perspective. I loved the climate change aspect of the plot. Cadie is an entomologist for the University of New Hampshire. Her primary goal is to trace the migration of an invasive beetle, which she believes is linked to the catastrophic fires spreading through the area.

I thought this was a beautiful story about secrets and what people will risk to keep them. The story carefully weaves immigration issues, climate change, murder, and friendship so seamlessly. Although this story is often classified as a thriller, I would disagree with that. Waiting for the Night Song is more contemporary or literary fiction. The book does include a bit of a mystery, but that’s only one component to the complex overall story.

Thank you to Forge and BookishFirst for the review copy! All opinions are my own.