Black River Orchard by Chuck Wendig has put the fear of the great apple gods deep into my heart. I do (did?) like me some apples, but hooo-wee! I think about the Ruby Slipper every time I so much as look at an apple now.
Right from the get-go, I suspected that the characters who had standing aversions to apples would likely survive whatever calamity was about to befall the good people of Harrow, but whoa – I did not expect to develop an aversion my own damn self!
Unlike some stories where good is clearly set versus evil, Black River Orchard delivers temptation to one and all. The suffering in this novel is spread pretty evenly… like sweet apple butter. HA!
This book had me thinking in the first half about how many apple trees I could potentially plant in my yard – you know… as a hobby? The second half had me wondering if my house would catch fire when I would inevitably have to burn it all down. If you’ve read Black River Orchard by Chuck Wendig, tell me – would you have eaten the apple?
