The Memory of Trees

The Memory of Trees
by F. G. Cottam
Sutton, Surrey, England: Severn House
2013
249 pages


This is another adult book that I think teens might also like that also involves some mythology, this time British mythology and history.

Tom Curtis is a tree expert. He has been hired by billionaire Saul Ambercrombie to complete a very unusual job. Saul has purchased a very large expanse of land in Wales and wants to convert it back to the medieval forest that existed there over 1000 years ago. But he doesn't want baby trees, he wants full-grown, authentically Welsh trees that would have existed there originally.

Clocaenog Forest, North Wales

Tom is going through a bad divorce and custody battle, so he is looking for work that will help him gain financial stability in order to gain credence in the courts. He takes the job, despite its odd nature. Where else is a "Tree Man" going to find such a good opportunity?

Soon after Tom arrives to the estate, he discovers that all is not as it seems. There are local legends surrounding the place, and the few landmarks are steeped with eerie vibes. He takes an instant dislike to a humongous thorn bush at a spot called "Gibbet's Mourning," which seems to move on its own. There is a small unidentified church with a stained glass window of a knight holding up the head of a monster. The knight just coincidentally (not really) looks very much like Tom. There is also a mysterious cairn near the edge of the sea cliff, called Puller's Reach.

Tom plants some ceremonial yews near the cairn to mark the beginning of the project. This is where the creepy events begin to take place. Checking back the next day, there is not only one yew at Puller's Reach but two full grown yews, and every day they multiply. Work begins on the forest renewal and trees appear faster than they are planted, as if the forest is trying to replenish itself. But why? And why does Saul want to help it?

We eventually learn that long ago, the forest was ruled by Morgan le Fay, enchantress and nemesis of Arthur. She walked the land, with evil smelly beasts to do her bidding, and woe to any who got in her way.The knight of the window was Gregory of Avalon, a knight of King Arthur's Round Table and renowned for slaying dragons, who was commissioned to kill the monsters and eliminate or at least render her harmless. He accomplishes his task and the forest is burnt to the ground.

Tom is contacted by a mythologist, Professor Andrew Carrington, who has learned of the project and is greatly disturbed by it. He knows the stories that have been passed down and suspects that reclaiming the forest to its original state would not be a good idea. He tells Tom some of the story of Gregory, and also that of another man who wanted to study the forest but experienced terrible disaster there, but it is rather hard to believe, and anyway, what can Tom do? He needs the job and is committed to it. But soon the situation becomes so intense and tragic that Tom can no longer pretend that the project should continue.

I thought the mythology in this story was interesting, the characters were realistic and motives explained well. The suspense of the horror is built well and convincingly. I was glad that Tom survives to the end and Morgan is again incapacitated, but it is not a happy ending at all. Too many characters that I cared about ended up missing or dead, but this is horror after all.

In looking up a cover photo for this book, I found other "Memory of Trees," a mystical song by Irish songwriter and singer Enya. It doesn't have the same spirit as this book, but it is still worth a listen.