Novel Kicks Book Club: The God Of The Woods by Liz Moore

Hello to 2026. Howdy to January. 

Why is it that all the other months have up to 31 days but January feels like it drags on for a decade?

I’m hoping that you’re as excited as I am about January’s book pick and that it will help you get through this loooooonnnnng month.

The book we’re reading this month is The God of The Woods by Liz Moore. 

I first came across a snippet of this book from the Taylor Swift documentary, The End of an Era on Disney+. Even though I only heard a few lines, it had me hooked.

So, how does our book club work?

If you’re new to our book club, welcome. Anyone can join and it can be at any point in the month. Maybe you’ve already read it and want to talk about it or you’ll be reading along with me?

I’ve posted a question below to start the discussion.

I am looking forward to seeing you there.

About The God of The Woods – 

When their thirteen-year-old daughter Barbara goes missing at summer camp, all eyes fall on the Van Laar family.

They’re cold, rich people. They own the camp. And it’s happened to them before.

Fourteen years ago their little boy, Bear, vanished without a trace.

Two children lost to the same wilderness.

Is it a tragedy… or a crime?

The God of the Woods was released in July 2025 by The Borough Press. Click to buy on Amazon UK, Amazon US, Waterstones and Barnes & Noble. 

About Liz Moore – 

Liz Moore is the author of five novels: The Words of Every Song, Heft, The Unseen World, the New York Times-bestselling Long Bright River, and The God of the Woods.

A winner of the 2014 Rome Prize in Literature, she lives in Philadelphia and teaches in the MFA program in Creative Writing at Temple University.

Say hello to Liz via Instagram. 

by

Laura

I'm Laura. I started Novel Kicks back in 2009 as I wanted a place to discuss books and writing - two loves of my life. As someone who has anxiety, these two things give me, and I am sure countless others, a much needed escape.
There is a monthly book club, writing exercises, prompts, reviews, author interviews, competitions and guest posts. I cover many genres and I hope there is something for everyone.
I grew up by the sea in Dorset and currently live in Poole with my husband, Chris and three cats. I love writing and have a BA (Hons) in Creative Writing from Falmouth University. I am writing my first book. If only I could stop pressing delete. Chris has threatened to stop it from working. Haha.
I have always loved creative writing since I was in first school and would very much like to meet my teacher, Miss Sayers, to say thank you for all the encouragement she gave me then.
When not writing, I love reading, cats, Disney, singing (I can't sing but this doesn't stop me,) and falling into a good TV show or film. If I could step into any fictional world, it would be amongst the characters in ABC's Once Upon a Time.
I love reading many genres and discovering new authors.