Coming Soon

By Carrie Lee South

On Sale: Sep 22, 2026
Page Count: 304 pages
Publisher: Little, Brown and Company
ISBN-13: 9780316608985

$29.00

$39.00 CAD

Format

Format:

Buy from Other Retailers:

A park ranger in Devil’s Den becomes obsessed with the case of a missing child—a case that mirrors the disappearance of her own brother, whom she lost in the woods many years ago—and the possibility that both were taken by something vicious and unnatural that lives deep in the Ozarks.

Fifteen years ago, Audrey Figg’s little brother, Benny, vanished on a family vacation to Devil’s Den state park, a day that split her life in two.
Now, Audrey is a park ranger in the very same woods with expertise in wilderness search and rescue. Audrey has found a rhythm to her days: training new rangers, tending to injured hikers, protecting the backcountry, and still, searching.

When a little girl, Ivy, suddenly goes missing on the trails, Audrey can’t help but notice the similarities to her own brother’s case. As Audrey widens the scope of her search, she begins to believe Ivy wasn’t merely lost; it looks like she was taken by something—and maybe Benny was too. Yet the closer Audrey comes to answers, the more old memories push to the surface. Audrey is haunted not only by her brother’s loss, but a terrible secret from that day. A secret she has never shared with anyone.

Utterly absorbing and disquieting, In the Woods They Wait is an enthralling page-turner, one that asks how far you would go for a sense of closure—and what would you be willing to face to get it.

Genre:

Carrie Lee South earned her MFA at the Arkansas Writer’s Workshop where she served as the fiction editor for the literary magazine Arkana. She’s currently the fiction editor at StoryBottle Co. Her work has appeared in Waxwing, F(r)iction, Iron Horse Literary Review, Tales to Terrify, and elsewhere. When she’s not reading and writing, she’s spending time with birds—the ones outside and the four parrots that live in her house.

"A devastating, heart-pounding story about grief, loneliness, and beasts that lurk just outside of view, In The Woods They Wait is a page-turning, atmospheric, and wholly absorbing story about the bleak and unassuming strength it takes to live with regret until it becomes courage. This is a beautifully written shriek of a book."
Kerry Cullen, author of House of Beth
“Carrie Lee South is the reason my electric bill went up this week—the further I got into this book, the more lights in my house I had to turn on. In The Woods They Wait runs heavy with tension, authentic characters, and twists I never saw coming. A knockout of a debut.”
Rob Hart, author of the Assassins Anonymous series
"Written with the assurance of a seasoned novelist, Carrie Lee South's debut drips with dread. Equal parts heartbreaking and frighteningly real, this one draws you in and threatens to never let go."
Jacquie Walters, author of Dearest and Turn Off the Light

Carrie Lee South

About the Author

Carrie Lee South earned her MFA at the Arkansas Writer’s Workshop where she served as the fiction editor for the literary magazine Arkana. She’s currently the fiction editor at StoryBottle Co. Her work has appeared in Waxwing, F(r)iction, Iron Horse Literary Review, Tales to Terrify, and elsewhere. When she’s not reading and writing, she’s spending time with birds—the ones outside and the four parrots that live in her house.

Learn more about this author

×

Contributors

Formats and Prices

Price