Wicked River by Jenny Milchman is a gripping thriller that holds on tight and won't let you go until it's over. I freaking loved this book! I'd been just dying to read it ever since last summer when Jenny released a preview of the book to her newsletter subscribers. I had thought I would have to wait until ThrillerFest to get it, but I didn't! She went on a book tour that brought her through my neck of the woods and I got a signed copy a couple months or so ago. Yay! You should buy a copy, too. In the ThrillerFest bookstore, it's on the far side of the room, in the back row of the table to the right of the U-shape the tables form.

In this novel, we follow a newlywed couple, Natalie and Doug, on their honeymoon journey of canoeing, hiking and camping through the six-million-acre Adirondack forest. But, they're not alone in the wilderness. Unseen eyes watch them, and the man behind those eyes doesn't want them to ever get out alive.

The suspense was fantastic. There were more and more questions that just kept building, driving the story and stopping me from putting it down. Like many of the other high-quality authors around here, I finished her lengthy book in just a few days. The twists were entirely unexpected but fully plausible and explainable. Milchman's writing is well-crafted and exciting. I was really drawn in by her descriptions of settings, as well as the characters she created. The foreshadowing was great in that it was oh, so subtle. I really loved this book.

The ending was superb. It was a real heart-thumper--to the extent that my watch went off, saying that my pulse was too high for my resting position. I was so driven to know what happened, I almost resorted to skimming. It was hard, but I showed restraint and read every word. It was damn-well worth it.

Another good reason to buy this book is that the cover of the paperback is textured. Also, get it signed because Jenny's such a nice person.