#camplitsy25
** WARNING FOR SPOILERS**
There are no spoilers in the question above but please do not read the comments if you don‘t wish to see spoilers for the ending of this book. Everyone else, please go ahead and discuss, with as many spoilers as you wish included!
Thanks for being such great campers in June - come back tomorrow for our first vote of #camplitsy25.
Bookwormjillk Normally I would have found an ending like that emotionally manipulative, but given climate change is a focus of this book a happily ever after ending wouldn‘t have fit. Question though. Do you think she went to the island knowing her husband was a narcissist, or did she just realize it when she realized all that he had done? 3d
Zuhkeeyah I agree with @Bookwormjillk on it being a good finale. It was certainly dramatic, but this grief brought them all back together which is fitting since her husband‘s actions are what caused the divide. (edited) 3d
Zuhkeeyah @Bookwormjillk I think she made this discovery only once she hit the island. Rowan was too caught up in the grief of losing the house to fully mourn the loss of her marriage. She gained perspective on the island as she watched Dom miss his wife even after so many years. 3d
See All 65 Comments
Susanita @Bookwormjillk I agree about the emotional manipulation potential, but in this case it made sense that at least one of the five wasn‘t going to leave the island. I guess that‘s a spoiler! As for knowing he was a narcissist, I think not. She was dealing with a lot of past trauma herself, and one thing about narcissists is that they are good at gaslighting. 3d
jenniferw88 I think she knew deep down, but because they'd been apart for a while and with the loss of her house, she'd forgotten and was wearing rose-tinted glasses when she started looking for him on the island. And then when she learnt the whole truth she realised that she'd been right back on the mainland about Hank all along. 3d
JamieArc I didn‘t expect the ending to be so dramatic and normally may have rolled my eyes about it. I still do think it all may have been a bit much. I too didn‘t expect a happy ending, but would have liked one. I like the idea of some of the loss being healed by Dom and Rowan being together. And I like the idea of Rowan being a sort of anchor for the children as they have to figure out how to live in a different world after the island. 3d
Reggie I felt a little let down by the ending so much that it removed me from being in my feelings that the rest of the book had me. The book was soo sad and doom and gloom. By fire, by water, or starvation whatever she kept saying. I needed a pick me up. Which I thought was gonna be Rowan surviving. And then the ghost mom shows up and like in Poltergest 2 when the Angel grandma shows up in the ethereal purgatory to return Carol Ann to the family I 3d
Reggie thought for sure ghost mom was gonna return Rowan to the family who needed her. But. O. I guess she was there to welcome her to the afterlife. Comfort her in death? Say, not my family? lol idk I was kinda what was that all about? 3d
Reggie Also there was this meme post on Litsy where it said- he shows all kinds of red flags but I still go for it because my favorite color is red. lol I literally thought of Rowan. ‘You‘re just a baby vessel to me.‘ ‘Our house burned down and you‘re too sad, bye.‘ ‘Help me- she‘s on the first boat out. I just didn‘t understand that. And why couldn‘t they just tell her hey by the way we have this guy imprisoned until the boat gets here for (edited) 3d
Reggie statutory rape and attempted murder. After they felt out her character. 3d
Kitta @Bookwormjillk I think she knew beforehand Hank was a narcissist - she had talked about how their marriage was suffering and how when she got married she didn‘t want to be seen exactly, how she realized that he didn‘t know her and that she wouldn‘t change her mind about kids. I think she went because she still felt something for him and she was worried but I think she knew. 3d
Megabooks @Reggie I was kind of wondering that myself. Why they didn‘t just tell her, your husband is a bad dude? I guess maybe that since she‘d come all that way she‘d do anything to free him and that felt dangerous. Idk. The ending was a bit weird for me! 3d
CBee I think she knew but was too immersed in all of her other feelings (so much loss) to admit it. The ending - sigh. It was fitting despite of course not wanting it to go that way. It came full circle though - Claire dies giving birth to Orly, saving his life. Then Rowan dies to save his life as well, years later. I knew it was coming but I was still “NO NO NO” in my head 💔😢 (edited) 3d
Reggie Also this has nothing to do with this question but my favorite passage in this whole book was about Dom saying being a mother was Claire‘s role but when she died it was just him and this baby but then there were these 2 9yos who also had just lost someone and there they went raising and helping this baby and how he realized it wasn‘t him versus this baby but that they were all a family in it together. 😭😭😭 3d
BarbaraBB I agree with @Reggie in wondering why they didn‘t just tell her. 3d
BarbaraBB To me the ending certainly makes sense this way. The book is steeped in themes of environmental collapse, loss, and the fragility of human connection. A tidy or “happy” ending would undercut the realism and the urgency that pervades the narrative. 3d
BarbaraBB @Bookwormjillk I think Rowan probably went with hope and loyalty, and only fully grasped his narcissism—and its consequences—once she was there, facing the reality head-on. 3d
sarahbarnes Honestly I think I‘m with @JamieArc on this one - it was a little too much for me. It felt so unnecessary. Was it to justify Dom‘s decision to have kept Hank locked up - to show indeed how terrible he was? I was disappointed in the ending and I‘m not a happy ending kind of reader. 3d
Karisa @Bookwormjillk I was wondering if Rowan had realized her husband was so flawed before too. The images she shows of him shaping the landscape in their earlier life seemed so magical but also narcissistic to manipulate the place‘s habitat to that extent. @jenniferw88 “Rose colored glasses” for sure! I think that was why the Salt family knew they couldn‘t trust Rowan with their secrets yet. She was still deceiving herself. 3d
AmyG I, oo, thought that on a subconscious level Rowan knew he was a narcissist but hearing about him and the incident made her face his narcissism head on. I was “all in” with this book so I loved the end. I got the feeling Rowan came into the life of this family to serve a purpose. She did and sadly died. But the reader “knows” now that the family will carry on, somewhat healed. @CBee Yes….it came full circle. 3d
AmyG @Reggie Ha, loved your thoughts! As in any story….works for some, not for others. (edited) 3d
Karisa I thought the ending was right on the target even while being dramatic. The themes in the book are so big that an operatic conclusion felt necessary to me. Rowan and Hank had caused so much grief (intentionally or not) that it felt correct and balancing somehow. As @BarbaraBB pointed out happy just wouldn‘t have suited this book. 3d
squirrelbrain @Bookwormjillk @Zuhkeeyah @Kitta @cbee @karisa @amyg - I think she knew something was seriously wrong in their relationship but couldn‘t figure out quite what, otherwise why would she have chased after him to the island? 3d
CBee @AmyG I was all in as well. As with all of her other books. 3d
squirrelbrain @jamiearc @sarahbarnes - I agree, the ending was very over-dramatic. I also agree with @barbarabb that it needed to not have a ‘happy‘ ending, and it couldn‘t have been one of the family who died, but it was the manner of it that seemed a bit excessive. 3d
squirrelbrain Yes, I agree @Reggie - why couldn‘t they just tell Rowan what her husband had done? They wouldn‘t have been arrested themselves for locking him up. 🤷♀️ 3d
CBee @squirrelbrain makes you wonder more about Hank and his backstory. 3d
mcctrish @Reggie I laughed out loud reading some of your posts ❤️ I feel like the window for telling Rowan about her husband was minuscule- this women chartered a boat to find her husband on a island in the middle of nowhere about to be decommissioned. Said husband is a bad man. First she has to heal. Then they have to get to know her. Then the deadline is fast approaching to clear off. Not a lot of wiggle room. 3d
CBee @squirrelbrain I think they were trying (in a very extreme way) to protect Fen. They didn‘t want Rowan to let him out. I do think Dom should‘ve told her sooner, though. 3d
mcctrish And didn‘t Hank make good choices when they did decide not to let him drown?! I WAS SCREAMING #rotinhellmotherfucker 3d
mcctrish But I did want a HEA 3d
Kitta @squirrelbrain as someone who was raised by a narcissist, you can still care for them and you sorta lose all sense of self preservation due to the gaslighting. They‘re very charismatic and convincing! I think she felt she had to help him, even if she knew. I certainly felt it was my job to « rescue » my family from messes all the time. She was distracted by the loss of her house I think and finding him gave her purpose again. Even if he‘s not good 3d
Reggie @mcctrish yes! I was like why we have to lock Orly in there like that? lol and I love horror and am used to all kinds of horrible and terrible things happening to character endings but I really wanted the HEA here, too. 3d
Ruthiella I thought it was ridiculous. The plotting is mostly what drove me nuts about this book. No one behaved in a way that made any sense to me. The withholding of information was a means to draw out the tension, and that annoyed me. 3d
Lesliereadsalot I thought the ending was perfect, not tying up all these damaged people in a neat little bow. They couldn‘t tell Rowan that Hank was there, they didn‘t know how she‘d react. We don‘t know how she‘d react. And I think they were all too damaged to live happily ever after. They needed to recover slowly, off the island, find out who they were in another environment. 3d
ChaoticMissAdventures @Reggie I totally agree. Why didn't they just tell her? It is a emotional manipulation -miscommunication trope. 3d
TheKidUpstairs @Bookwormjillk It seemed to me that she knew, and honestly it's the one thing about this book that I have trouble reconciling. I don't quite understand why she'd risk so much to get to him when it really seems that she knew who he really was. 3d
ChaoticMissAdventures @Kitta I agree I think any rational woman would know, with the way he talked to her about her home, and how he talked to her about kids. She is still married to the guy and he disappeared, I think personally it was stupid of her to go to the island in the first place, but she was worried for her husband who was erratic before disappearing. 3d
ChaoticMissAdventures @sarahbarnes I am disappointed in the ending too. What are we supposed to learn from it? Dom is the one who locked Hank up, the whole family lied and manipulated her. She is there trying to find a husband who sent scary emails then disappeared, what is the message we are supposed to get from her death. Having both of the adult women figures in these childrens lives die? Why? 3d
ChaoticMissAdventures @BarbaraBB I get that someone should have died in the end. With the themes as you say, but why Rowan? What is the message we are suppose to get from it being her? I personally, after 3 Mcconaghy books think this author hates women.... I wish I was joking, and I really think she hates women who do not have children. Every book of hers she either forces the woman to change her mind, treats them like idiots, or makes them regret their decisions. 3d
Deblovestoread Some books there is a voice in my head analyzing an author‘s choices and others I‘m just all in. Not sure the reason but in all of her books I‘m 100% in. I trust that whatever the story goes it‘s right. I was sad about the ending but also wondered if they all got off the island would the relationship last. 🤷🏻♀️ 3d
Christine I think I‘m mostly with @BarbaraBB and @Karisa on the ending - fittingly dramatic. And yay, I‘ve been waiting to learn the details about your hate this week, @Ruthiella !! 😁 I enjoyed the book but I agree that a lot of the decision-making was not sensible. 3d
Christine @squirrelbrain Thanks for leading such great conversations this month! 3d
BookwormAHN I think the ending was a little too dramatic, mostly I hated that Rowan died. I would have rather have seen them all get a fresh start. But I did love the book. 3d
Hooked_on_books I think the most important thing about an ending is that it fits the book and honors what has been told in the story to that point, and this one does. So it really worked for me. It also gave Rowan a complete character arc and the others a path forward. I thought it was really well done. 3d
Gissy It was a heartbreaking ending💔 Of course I didn‘t want Rowan to die, I wanted a second opportunity for each character, but I respect author‘s choice. Her stories are dramatic😭I think Raff and Fen would emerge stronger from this experience and they will help Orly and specially Dom to start their healing process. So sad 😭 Love this book4.5/4.8 ⭐️ 3d
willaful @ChaoticMissAdventures I'm intrigued by you opinions because that part of the storyline about Orly's birth sat uncomfortably with me. And if it really is a pattern in her books, even though I loved this I don't think I'll want to read her again. 2d
ChaoticMissAdventures @willaful I mostly have been looking at her from a child free lens. This is my 3rd (&last) book of hers I have read Wolves- MC doesn't want children, gets pregnant, ignores it, then decides there is nothing in life she wants more than a baby has the stupidest birth, (I think her sister dies?) Migration & This 1 childless women run all over the globe suffering searching for their connection to men. All of her women go through it. None are spared.👇 2d
ChaoticMissAdventures 2/2 the women who do live have to change their minds about having children (wolf girl) and even then she might kill them off for the plot! Is it possible that here the moms death doesn't sit right with you b/c no doctor in the world would ask a husband to choose?? People talking about she is writing women suffering b/c it is reality when there are insane plot devices like asking husband to choose mom or baby in an actual hospital. 2d
Chelsea.Poole I think another mother figure passing away from this family was connected to the idea of the environmental crisis//Mother Earth, a symbol of one generation giving way for the next to inhabit the earth. Motherhood is often about sacrifice for children and their mother made the ultimate sacrifice at the beginning of Orly‘s life and now Rowan does too. It was awful and sad…fit with the rest of the book. @Reggie commentary is golden✨ 2d
JamieArc @squirrelbrain I‘m impressed that such a robust conversation can happen through short comments. So many people engaging with it! Thanks for hosting a great month of conversation! 2d
TEArificbooks I was upset Rowan died. I thought maybe she would drown but the ghost and Dom doing CPR would save her, maybe leave it unclear at first if she survived but in the epilogue make it clear she did. I definitely figured Hank would die. And would never read another book by her though if she killed off Orly. Would have been way more upset about his death. 2d
GatheringBooks @Reggie i miss youuuu! Love what you said about the ghost of the mother and “not my family” bit - or maybe they bonded? Lols. I have to admit that I am of the camp who loved this book. I did cry when I read through the last part - as I was hoping for something more uplifting. But @BarbaraBB is right- it wouldn‘t have blended well with the overall vibe of loss and devastation that McConaghy was going for. I felt it was heartbreaking - yet hopeful. 2d
Reggie @Chelsea.Poole lol, thanks! I like your take on mothers and the connection to Mother Earth. I get so bummed out when I go see zombie movies and the end is like, no, there are no humans left. And in here she was laying it on thick. Like sooner, much sooner than we think, climate change is coming for us. But until then can we just have a happy ending? 2d
Reggie @GatheringBooks hi Myra!!!! I was crying while reading this book up until the ghost mother showed up. Why was she there?!!!! lol What was the point? I felt like we were about to have a real ghost Susan Sarandon to the new stepmom Julia Roberts-treat them like your own moment. Whatevs, whatever Charlotte McConaghy- I‘d still read another by her. I‘m excited for the next camp books! 2d
squirrelbrain @JamieArc @christine - it‘s the Littens who make camp so wonderful - with wide-ranging discussions and such insightful commentary. ❤️ 2d
BarbaraBB @ChaoticMissAdventures Oh wow is that true? I hadn‘t realized that and it seems hard to believe but it‘s an issue in each book, that might be a motive indeed 2d
ChaoticMissAdventures @BarbaraBB I am sensitive about the topic, being passionately child free I hated wolves & how she showed the MC pregnancy and change of mind so it was top of my mind here. Here I really hated how she acted like it is shocking that Rowan could care about others children. When she had made her decision due to the environment. She never said she hated children. Being willing to be a stepmom is a whole other thing than being willing to have children. 2d
vonnie862 I was not expecting the ending 2d
BarbaraBB I loved Rowan‘s attitude towards the children. I didn‘t feel like the author was judgmental about that but I get that you‘ve paid much more attention to it so you‘re probably right! @ChaoticMissAdventures (edited) 1d
DGRachel Going to comment again before reading others just because I was absolutely devastated by the ending. I‘m glad the Salts survive, and that they seem to be pulling closer with honest communication, but I‘m devastated they have to move on without Rowan. One more person for the family to grieve and it marked the death of the hope I had for their off-page future. 1d
squirrelbrain Yes, it was a truly shocking ending, wasn‘t it?! @vonnie862 @DGRachel 1d
Butterfinger I was completely shocked. Hank. Oh my goodness gracious. Was not expecting him. AND, I WILL REMAIN ANGRY FOR HOW HE TOLD ROWAN HE WAS GOING TO THE BASE. YOU HAVE TO BE KIDDING ME, YOU JERK!!!!I'm just glad that the children survived. Broken, but together. 6h
Butterfinger @ChaoticMissAdventures you make a very valid point about women choosing to be child free. I find myself thinking all the time-she's been married for awhile, is she having trouble getting pregnant? I realized while reading WDS, I was being judgmental. It's 2026 and every woman doesn't want to be a mom. I guess it was ingrained in me as a child-you can work and you get to still be a mom. So, I am grateful that this book opened my eyes in this regard 6h
Butterfinger @Chelsea.Poole wonderful parallel between the characters and Mother Earth. 5h
32 likes65 comments