Sylvia Doe and the 100-Year Flood

What worked:
Effective hooks in a book’s opening pages immediately capture the attention of readers. This book’s first page finds Sylvia hiding in the back of a truck, fleeing from unknown pursuers. She survives flood waters from a powerful hurricane before readers learn she’s run away from a foster family and is returning to an orphanage she considers home. There’s no information about Sylvia’s parents which begins to create a mysterious aura to her character. Doe is a name commonly used when identities are unknown. Glowing blue water raging through a river near the orphanage adds to the strange world. Sylvia can’t understand the animals she sees caught up in the torrents like jaguars, grey wolves, and an extinct Carolina Parakeet. There’s no rational explanation for the presence of these creatures in the mountains of North Carolina.
The plot shifts when Sylvia revives a young boy who’s drowned in the floodwaters. She’s happy that she remembers enough CPR training to get his heart beating again. Jorna is thankful Sylvia saved him but he’s frightened and insistent that she not tell anyone about him. Sylvia finds it odd that he’s reluctant to share information about his circumstances and readers will notice other small details too. Sylvia wonders how Jorna starts a campfire in the wet woods without matches and he casually says he does it the usual way. He doesn’t recognize hot dogs wrapped in tin foil but he recognizes large rocks of sapphire, emerald, and ruby that are washed up on shore. The pasts of these two characters offer mysteries to tantalize readers’ minds.
The author is a word master and piques readers’ emotions. The descriptions of Sylvia struggling to rescue Jorna and to survive the hurricane and flooding will have readers experiencing the distress right along with her. They’ll feel her desperation when she can’t get Jorna to breathe and she still can’t feel his pulse. Sylvia also has a tight bond with her horse, Kitty Hawk, and she’s terrified of losing him in the deep, churning waters. Horses can’t hold their breaths underwater but Kitty Hawk won’t stop facing danger and death if the option is leaving Sylvia behind. Sylvia wrestles with conflicting feelings of loneliness and belonging as she searches for her place in the world.
What didn’t work as well:
The story doesn’t offer much emotional relief as the whole ordeal seems like life is constantly in the balance. There are moments of rest but then the characters are back fighting the storm. Much of the book evolves into life-and-death situations. While readers may be trying to catch their breaths, they’ll enjoy the non-stop mystery, drama, and action.
The final verdict:
The plot centers on returning Jorna to his home and trying to discover Sylvia’s origins. The author guides readers on a treacherous adventure in the mountains of North Carolina that culminates in an emotional reunion. I highly recommend you give it a shot!