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Evergreen
The Pacific Forest stretches from California to Russia. 7000 kilometres of dense forest, most of which has never been seen by man. Everett West is going to walk it. Host of the hit T.V show ‘Going West,’ Everett needs to raise the stakes after their record setting first season. Navigating the forest sounds like the perfect challenge for his team of survivalists. They can go in, but will the forest let them out?
95 pages, Kindle Edition
Published March 20, 2016
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89 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
March 10, 2024
Read this in about an hour. Had it sitting on the shelf and it has a great cover, so I gave it a go.
This book is based on a writing prompt from r/writing prompts, and it shares the same one as the book The Forest. This one, however, does not try to take its premise to the whole way; it's more of a short story, or a very short novelette.
I knew that going into it, so was not disappointed by the length. There are some editing issues, formatting problems, and in general it has a sort of amateur feel to it, but otherwise is a compelling horror story.
Some of the concepts- malleable memory, shifting and replacing party members, malevolent presence lurking in the depths- are quite spooky. However I think that the writing could have been polished up to do a better job of representing exactly what was going on. Things were a bit murky, and though I understand what the author was going for, it could have been done better.
All in all, I enjoyed reading it, liked the things it was going for, and wish it had been more developed and polished. Would recommend to readers that enjoy creepypasta.
This book is based on a writing prompt from r/writing prompts, and it shares the same one as the book The Forest. This one, however, does not try to take its premise to the whole way; it's more of a short story, or a very short novelette.
I knew that going into it, so was not disappointed by the length. There are some editing issues, formatting problems, and in general it has a sort of amateur feel to it, but otherwise is a compelling horror story.
Some of the concepts- malleable memory, shifting and replacing party members, malevolent presence lurking in the depths- are quite spooky. However I think that the writing could have been polished up to do a better job of representing exactly what was going on. Things were a bit murky, and though I understand what the author was going for, it could have been done better.
All in all, I enjoyed reading it, liked the things it was going for, and wish it had been more developed and polished. Would recommend to readers that enjoy creepypasta.
December 28, 2024
Found the book off of a little tik tok Reddit story, you know the ones with the Minecraft parkour in the back. Seemed interesting and went on to read the entire thing. This is one of those books that you really have to pay attention to the fine details, or you’ll miss something important. I believe it’s very easy with this book to get confused and lost with all of the twists and turns, which is why attention to detail is so important. Overall, considering the book originated as a Reddit thread I think the quality is overall pretty good.
February 3, 2024
Really kept me guessing
This book was pretty good. It kept me guessing the whole way through and had me doubting myself and every character in it. Worth the read, especially for how short this is!
This book was pretty good. It kept me guessing the whole way through and had me doubting myself and every character in it. Worth the read, especially for how short this is!
March 19, 2024
I liked the concept (admittedly, I did find a version on Reddit which led me to want to read this). It was, however, confusing to read at times. That could just be my own faults, but some parts had me rereading to try and comprehend. Confused on the ending, too. Still quite a good read!
June 26, 2017
Good idea, poor execution, extremely unsatisfyng ending.
March 5, 2018
As a disclaimer, I got this book for free; the author gave it away on r/WritingPrompts on Reddit, since a prompt there is what inspired the book.
I disliked this; the first few chapters were intriguing, but around the halfway point the book suddenly began to decline; the ending is wholly unsatisfying and confusing, and not in a "deep philosophical" way but in a "what the hell just happened, I don't understand, wait what about all these loose ends" way. There is another published work based on the same prompt by a different author and I intend to read that as well, but it is a shame that this one ends so poorly because the concept and the direction that they started this off in could have been so intensely good. In fact, the only reason I gave it two stars instead of one is because of the concept.
I disliked this; the first few chapters were intriguing, but around the halfway point the book suddenly began to decline; the ending is wholly unsatisfying and confusing, and not in a "deep philosophical" way but in a "what the hell just happened, I don't understand, wait what about all these loose ends" way. There is another published work based on the same prompt by a different author and I intend to read that as well, but it is a shame that this one ends so poorly because the concept and the direction that they started this off in could have been so intensely good. In fact, the only reason I gave it two stars instead of one is because of the concept.
December 31, 2019
Cool and intriguing concept, poor follow through and really half arsed ending.
February 9, 2020
Cool idea, but nothing too interesting started happening until almost halfway through, and the ending was abrupt and weird. Worth the low price I guess, but I doubt I'll ever reread it.
January 11, 2021
ending was disappointing.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 25, 2024
A great downward character arc and amazing use of perspective.
November 24, 2016
I first heard of "Evergreen" when a friend of mine sent me a snippet of it online. I read the first chapter, and was instantly intrigued by the idea of a giant, dark forest instead of the ocean. There are so many things you could do with a concept like that, and unfortunately most of my expectations fell flat once I finished the book. Now don't get me wrong - I still enjoyed it every second of it. However, by the time I finished, I couldn't help but feel there was a lot missing.
First, the main character, Everett West. While at the beginning I disliked him for his cocky and uptight attitude, he eventually grew on me once his weaknesses were exposed. He felt like a genuinely real person, and by the end of the story I even felt bad for him. In my opinion, this book does a good job of character building, but unfortunately forgets to do so on the remaining cast. Most of the characters felt hollow, aside from Everett and his ally, Cheryl. They are both built wonderfully. However, everyone else seemed more or less the same (or were "killed" off before any significant change could happen). I was disappointed by this, but I do see a lot of potential for future books.
Next, something that really bugged me was that the amazingly innovative, terrifying setting was hardly built upon at all. I went into this book expecting to read about giant animals, terrifying predators, and isolation - I was not expecting any supernatural elements. While certain parts could possibly be explained by Everett's deteriorating mind, it still read like a paranormal thriller rather than a survival horror. This may be my own fault for making assumptions, but with the book's current summary it definitely appears as more of a tale of survival, not escaping apparitions. There was a single giant animal that was briefly mentioned, but there wasn't enough of it to be interesting.
Lastly, the ending. As many other reviewers have said, this story ends very abruptly, and gives no clues as to what was actually happening. This is common in short horror stories, but there should always be SOMETHING to make the reader feel intrigued, or "rewarded", for finishing the story. In here, there was none. I actually was shocked by the sheer abruptness of the end, and even googled to see if there was something I was missing. The thing is, there wasn't enough information provided throughout the story to make your own guesses. The only answer I could think of was that the thing stalking Everett was a "ghost", but I can't accept that a story with such an original concept would go with such an unoriginal villain.
All in all, "Evergreen" isn't a bad book. I did enjoy reading it, and was genuinely spooked at certain parts. I do think the book was too short, however. At only ~74 pages long, there wasn't enough space to truly build on the setting or have a satisfying ending. I think if the author were to revisit this concept as a full-length book, it could be fantastic. The story is full of potential, and I would love to see it become something more - but as it stands now, it's too similar to other horror stories to really stand out. I give it a 3.5/5, because though I had fun reading it, I was left unsatisfied by the end.
First, the main character, Everett West. While at the beginning I disliked him for his cocky and uptight attitude, he eventually grew on me once his weaknesses were exposed. He felt like a genuinely real person, and by the end of the story I even felt bad for him. In my opinion, this book does a good job of character building, but unfortunately forgets to do so on the remaining cast. Most of the characters felt hollow, aside from Everett and his ally, Cheryl. They are both built wonderfully. However, everyone else seemed more or less the same (or were "killed" off before any significant change could happen). I was disappointed by this, but I do see a lot of potential for future books.
Next, something that really bugged me was that the amazingly innovative, terrifying setting was hardly built upon at all. I went into this book expecting to read about giant animals, terrifying predators, and isolation - I was not expecting any supernatural elements. While certain parts could possibly be explained by Everett's deteriorating mind, it still read like a paranormal thriller rather than a survival horror. This may be my own fault for making assumptions, but with the book's current summary it definitely appears as more of a tale of survival, not escaping apparitions. There was a single giant animal that was briefly mentioned, but there wasn't enough of it to be interesting.
Lastly, the ending. As many other reviewers have said, this story ends very abruptly, and gives no clues as to what was actually happening. This is common in short horror stories, but there should always be SOMETHING to make the reader feel intrigued, or "rewarded", for finishing the story. In here, there was none. I actually was shocked by the sheer abruptness of the end, and even googled to see if there was something I was missing. The thing is, there wasn't enough information provided throughout the story to make your own guesses. The only answer I could think of was that the thing stalking Everett was a "ghost", but I can't accept that a story with such an original concept would go with such an unoriginal villain.
All in all, "Evergreen" isn't a bad book. I did enjoy reading it, and was genuinely spooked at certain parts. I do think the book was too short, however. At only ~74 pages long, there wasn't enough space to truly build on the setting or have a satisfying ending. I think if the author were to revisit this concept as a full-length book, it could be fantastic. The story is full of potential, and I would love to see it become something more - but as it stands now, it's too similar to other horror stories to really stand out. I give it a 3.5/5, because though I had fun reading it, I was left unsatisfied by the end.
April 17, 2016
This was one of those books that made me so angry I wasted my time reading it that I wanted to throw it at the wall. But since phones aren't meant for chucking, I'll have to content myself with saving a few others the same trouble.
Could have been so good. Instead. Oh, instead. Yes, we have an okay developed MC and sidekick but the rest of the characters are so cardboard that the entire main plot of the story is a bust as it rests completely on them. COMPLETELY. If you don't make me care enough about characters to even remember their names, how on Earth am I supposed to notice the wrong aka "nobody" creeping in their midst?
The setting was also entirely unnecessary. Haime didn't need to create a whole new forest when any single landscape on Earth would have done just as well. It's such a waste not to utilize so fantastic an idea at all. I read Justin Groot's The Forest, which carries a similar premise and is much better executed. I recommend it instead.
And about that ending. There was none! Absolutely nothing explained. No reward for finishing the story. No point. No meaning. Nothing. Nada. Did not see character development and/or growth. No mysteries solved or even meaning vaguely hinted at. I'm left with the most post-modern, frustrating and literal darkness ever. As someone from a college writing workshop I attended once rightfully said about one of my stories, "I didn't get my cookie."
Could have been so good. Instead. Oh, instead. Yes, we have an okay developed MC and sidekick but the rest of the characters are so cardboard that the entire main plot of the story is a bust as it rests completely on them. COMPLETELY. If you don't make me care enough about characters to even remember their names, how on Earth am I supposed to notice the wrong aka "nobody" creeping in their midst?
The setting was also entirely unnecessary. Haime didn't need to create a whole new forest when any single landscape on Earth would have done just as well. It's such a waste not to utilize so fantastic an idea at all. I read Justin Groot's The Forest, which carries a similar premise and is much better executed. I recommend it instead.
And about that ending. There was none! Absolutely nothing explained. No reward for finishing the story. No point. No meaning. Nothing. Nada. Did not see character development and/or growth. No mysteries solved or even meaning vaguely hinted at. I'm left with the most post-modern, frustrating and literal darkness ever. As someone from a college writing workshop I attended once rightfully said about one of my stories, "I didn't get my cookie."
December 18, 2016
The characters are relatively developed, but everything else is sorely lacking.
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April 12, 2016I really wanted to like this book, but I just don't. The plot was not well developed. Suspense was built well but without any clear aim. Overall, a disappointment.
May 22, 2016
This started out so promising and I was expecting a decent resolution. Unfortunately what I got was a confusing, abrupt ending. Incredibly disappointing.
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews