This review first appeared in Booklist on June 1, 2025.
After a series of personal tragedies leaves her friendless and aimless, Lara Williams finds herself uprooted, wanting nothing more than to escape the mess that’s become her life. So when she gets the chance to work aboard the Banebury, a luxury train traveling through the lush European countryside, she jumps at the opportunity, determined to at least run away in style. Not even the unexpected presence of an old, maybe-sort-of flame among her fellow crew members can dampen her spirits. But shortly into the voyage, a mysterious set of siblings board the Banebury, bringing two carriages overflowing with strange, beautiful flora—and an ancient, ominous force waiting to take root. Inspired by Welsh mythology and combining elements of folk horror and dark academia, Goldsmith cultivates a fierce, frightening fantasy that draws powerful parallels between folkloric tragedy and the grim mundanity of modern misogyny. Predatory Natures grafts itself into the flourishing genre of botanical horror, joining the ranks of Krystal Sutherland’s House of Hollow (2021) and Andrea Hannah’s Where Darkness Blooms (2023).
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