Oakwood Falls by D.C. Brockwell

Today Mandie shares her thoughts on Oakwood Falls, a brand new supernatural-come-environmental tale from D.C. Brockwell. our thanks to Zoe-Lee O’Farrell and Spellbound Books for the blog tour invite and for providing a copy of the book for review. Here’s what the book is all about:

About the Book

When Mother Nature chose Ashley Oakwood, she made a mistake. Now it’s time to eradicate that mistake.

From the dawn of mankind, Mother Nature has always known of humans’ destructive ways. To ensure her own survival, she created The Ferralling, a vicious and bloodthirsty breed of creature, who kept humans in check. When The Ferralling became a liability, She destroyed them, deciding to put her survival in the hands of only the most deserving humans. These chosen ones She calls The Reclaimed.

The only human to be born of the Earth, Ashley Oakwood has powers beyond that of The Reclaimed. A kind and generous young woman, who wants nothing more than to belong, Ashley watches humans from afar, until she meets James, the man of her dreams. When he rejects her, he sets in motion a chain of events that pits humans against The Reclaimed, The last of The Ferralling, and Mother Nature Herself.

Who will emerge victorious from this brutal and bloody battle?

Mandie’s Thoughts

Having read another book by Duncan Brockwell and thoroughly enjoyed it, I was intrigued by the premise of Oakwood Falls especially as it would not be something that I would normally read. With the opening chapter holding my attention right from the beginning I knew that this would be one of those books that would challenge what I considered my normal genre and I read it within two days.

When heavily pregnant Carrie is driven to Kielder Forest by her abusive husband as he tries to escape his partners she begins to wonder if both she and her baby will survive. What follows has her doubting things even more as the forest seems to come alive and to her rescue, quickly dealing with anyone who is a threat to her and then helping to deliver her daughter Ashley. There is one catch to this – Carrie must surrender her daughter to “Mother” so she can become one of the reclaimed and if Carrie wants to see her daughter grow up then she must agree to become one of the reclaimed as well.

The book follows Carrie and Ashley at various stages of their life and sees how they change their attitudes to humans over time. When they are above the ground you almost forget that you are not reading about a normal mother/daughter relationship. Ashley struggles the most as she has never been truly human so does not seem to have developed a sense of compassion for anything other than nature. She fights against both her mother and the rules that seem to have been forced upon her sometimes with devastating consequences for those who cross her. There is a kinder side to her that she demonstrates when she tries to help her mother find happiness but as she gets older and more wilful, these moments are lost in her determination to make humans suffer.

For me Oakwood Falls had a definite supernatural/horror vibe to it and at times the reader will see nature fighting back in a truly brutal way especially in the final chapters of the book where the fight takes on a more sinister path. There is also an element that will make the reader think as it highlights the devastation that people can do to nature no matter how they may believe that they are doing the best that they can, and I will certainly be watching my back the next time I go into the woods.

About the Author

Duncan Brockwell is a full-time dental technician from West Sussex. Having completed his course at Lambeth College in 2018, he started writing in his spare time. An avid gardener and part-time mixologist, he loves nothing more than relaxing at home with his wife, Beks and pure white rescue cat, Milly. 

Since Duncan started writing in 2018, he has written thirteen novels, nine of which have been, or are in the process of being published. Unlike a lot of authors, Duncan feels he is a hobby writer, toiling away on his purple couch in front of the TV in the evenings and weekends. He wants nothing more than for readers to enjoy his various offerings, ranging from romantic comedy (under pseudonym Katie Simpkins) to hardcore blood and guts horror and everything in between (Under either DC Brockwell or Duncan Brockwell).

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