The Wild Beneath
A Novel
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4.0 • 132 Ratings
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- $14.99
Publisher Description
AUGUST 2026 REESE'S BOOK CLUB PICK
"If you love immersive, magical stories with unforgettable settings and books that spark great conversations, I think you're really going to love this one." —Reese Witherspoon
“Ethereal. . . . A story that reminds us sometimes the impossible is possible.” —Jodi Picoult, #1 New York Times bestselling author of By Any Other Name
“An entrancing, magical novel that highlights the beauty of the natural world and our fragile place within it. Spellbinding!” —Nita Prose, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Maid
For fans of Wild Dark Shore and Remarkably Bright Creatures, a love story as fierce and mysterious as the sea itself.
Annie MacLeod always knew she was different, growing up on a sailboat in the Pacific Northwest, navigating by the stars and swimming in the ocean. But when a tsunami shatters her world and her parents are swept away, Annie is stranded on land, grief-stricken and forced to confront just how unconventional she is, despite her enduring love for her childhood sweetheart, Evan.
In the wreckage, she rescues a wordless man named Walker, who emits a hum only she can hear. Their connection is instant, elemental. When Walker disappears—along with any explanation he might hold about who she really is—Annie is forced to decide between evacuating with Evan or staying to unlock a secret that feels vital to her survival.
Six years later, Annie has buried the past. But when Walker’s otherworldly sound returns, it forces a reckoning with the wild life she’s left behind. Is the truth of the ocean more powerful than she knows?
The Wild Beneath is a spellbinding story of soulmates, homecoming and the ancient bonds that tie us all to the natural world.
APPLE BOOKS REVIEW
The past is a vast ocean of bittersweet secrets and forgotten truths in this deeply emotional story. Raised mostly on a sailboat, Annie was always tuned to the rhythms of the ocean, only taking to the shore to spend summers on Vancouver Island with her grandmother Ruth and lifelong friend Evan. But that was before a devastating tsunami swept through the Pacific Northwest. With her parents lost at sea and their community decimated, she meets a mysterious young man named Walker when he washes up naked on the beach. The strange connection Annie has to Walker feels perfectly in line with the highly atmospheric vibe of Kelly Anderson’s lyrical, evocative writing. As the story unfolds, you can sense how Evan’s steady presence grounds Annie on land, while Walker’s mystical strangeness pulls her toward the ocean, where buried truths about her past seem to be rising to the surface. This is a gorgeously complex story of love, grief, and discovering who you are.
Customer Reviews
Just not for me
The Wild Beneath by Kelly Anderson
3.5 🌸
Just not quite for me. 🤷🏼♀️
I love a good love story, but this one just didn’t hit the mark for me. I found myself confused at times and honestly wasn’t always sure who—or what—the love story was really between. Was it the characters? Was it the sea? Maybe that was the point? 🤔
Unfortunately, I don’t think I quite got what the author was going for. And maybe I’m just a little too literal of a reader! 😂
That said, I can definitely appreciate what this story was trying to do. It was a good story in theory; it just didn’t quite land for me.
3.5 flowers for this one! 🌸🌸🌸½