THE WOODS ARE ALWAYS WATCHING

Bears aren’t the only predators in these woods.

Best friends Neena and Josie spent high school as outsiders, but at least they had each other. Now, with college and a two-thousand-mile separation looming on the horizon, they have one last chance to be together—a three-day hike deep into the woods of the Pisgah National Forest.

Simmering tensions lead to a detour off the trail and straight into a waking nightmare . . . and then into something far worse. Something that will test them in horrifying ways.

Stephanie Perkins, the bestselling author of There’s Someone Inside Your House, returns with a heart-stopping, gut-wrenching novel about friendship, survival, and navigating unmarked paths even as evil watches from the shadows.

This book will be published by Dutton on August 31, 2021.

ISBN: 9780525426028

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PRAISE & ACCOLADES

"Perkins delivers a thrilling survival story about two teens just trying to make it to daybreak with their friendship—and their lives, too, as a horror beyond their wildest dreams lurks in the forest. The scares here are authentic, and the details meticulous, driven by a smart, distinct narrative voice.”

—BOOKLIST

“Perkins crafts a lushly immersive natural setting, highlighting the tranquility of the Blue Ridge Mountains as her characters proceed through an escalating series of dire situations. Violence is quite present . . . but Perkins doesn’t linger on gratuitous gore, focusing instead on establishing tension and emotion in this rapidly paced dark thriller.”

—PUBLISHERS WEEKLY