Thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

The Forest Grimm by Kathryn Purdie is an amazing YA fantasy with fairy-tale elements. The story revolves around Clara, a 17 year-old living in a forest with her fortune-telling grandmother. Her grandmother has always refused to tell Clara her fortune, but one day, Clara decides to take her future into her hands. She enters the dark Forest Grimm with her handsome friend Axel in order to find a magical book that can change her destiny. Along the way, she encounters terrifying monsters based on fairy tale characters. Will the forest be the death of her, or will she be able to find her destiny?

Here is an enchanting excerpt from Chapter 1:

"“Tell me again, Grandmère, the story of how I die.”
The girl had waited until twilight to approach her grandmother, when the work of the day was done and the old woman sat close to the warmth of the hearth, her violet eyes half-closed and the valerian tincture bottle propped on the small table beside her, its cork removed.
The girl stepped closer. Clara was a rarity in Grimm’s Hollow to dwell on death instead of life, and all that life could become for her. The other children in the village dreamed of the happiness that awaited them when they came of age at sixteen. But with a fortune such as Clara’s, she doubted she would even live another seven years."

Overall, The Forest Grimm is a YA fantasy that is like Once Upon a Time meets The Hunger Games. One highlight is the super exciting scene in the forest, which had my heart pounding. Another highlight of this book are the scary, creepy scenes. Even though this is definitely YA, I definitely felt chills down my spine at several points. If I had to complain about 1 thing, I would have to say that I am not a fan of flashbacks after an exciting scene, especially when the exciting scenes are done so well. If you're intrigued by the excerpt above, or if you're a fan of YA fantasy in general, I highly recommend that you check out this book when it comes out in September!

The Forest Grimm by Kathryn Purdie
FIVE STARS

Listen, I have ZERO excuses for why it took me so long to read this book. It was SO good, I just...my headspace was not good.

The Forest Grimm follows Clara whose one mission is to break the curse and bring her mother home. In the village lives The Book of Fortunes and it brings an incredible amount of luck to the village. When each villager turns 16 they may make one wish and The Book of Fortunes assigns them a task to make their wish come true. Good crops, healthy babies, love, etc. It's all great until one person wishes death on another and The Book decides that's the end of it. It disappears and The Forest Grimm hides it but also lures people in without letting them out. Once you're lost, you're lost. Now the town is in ruins with poor crops and no rain and it won't let a soul into the forest it doesn't take and make disappear. Clara finds a way in though and takes her friend Axel with her, another friend also sneaks in and they start on a journey to find The Book of Fortunes and break the curse.

My description does this story no justice. I just highly recommend that you read it for yourself. It is a YA story with mild romance. A fairy tale retelling that is wonderful for all ages!

Thank you to NetGalley and St Martin's Press for the opportunity to read and review.

#Fantasy #YAFantasy #ReTelling #YAFantasyRomance
#KathrynPurdie #NetGalley #StMartinsPress #ARCReview

This was a struggle to get through the first few chapters, and I didn’t really begin to feel engaged with the story until about halfway through. So much info dumping in the beginning, it’s overwhelming and extremely hard to follow. After reading all that exposition, I still felt lost after chapter 2, but I kept reading, hoping the rest of the book wouldn’t be like that. Then I realized that might be intentional, throwing facts and lore—some of them relevant, some of them not—does contribute to the fairy tale aesthetic.

Overall, I enjoyed this. But it feels like a book that tries too hard. The inner monologue often feels convoluted and scattered, and I think this would have been better if it was written in past tense.

Review in progress and to come.

I received a free copy of this book via NetGalley and am voluntarily leaving a review

I loved this story and did not want to put it down. I found the characters easy to love and found myself rooting for them early on. I enjoyed the twists and turns and for me, the pacing was perfect. I didn’t feel there was too much action all the time but there was enough that I didn’t get bored. I thought I knew how it was going to end and I was completely wrong. My favorite part of this book is how fairytales were included in a way that they were familiar but also unique to the story. This is one of those books for me that I wish I could experience for the first time again. Highly recommend for fans of fairytales and fairytale retellings.

Thank you to Net Galley for an ARC OF The Forest Grim by Kathryn Purdie. This is not my first book by Kathryn Purdie. I enjoy this author’s writing style, she always does a fantastic job at world building. The world building is easy to understand, and the imagery that the author uses is quite beautiful. AS you’re reading it’s very easy to imagine the setting of The Forest Grim. The characters were well developed, and the pacing was of the story was good.

I thought the romance between Axel and Clara was very sweet. They had good chemistry, and it was clear how they felt about each other. I think there will be a second book with the way the story ended. Overall, a very good read, and start to a new series.

‘“Tell me again, Grandmère, the story of how I die.”’

Hooked from the first sentence.

I’m on vacation at the moment, but spent the whole morning and night reading this book. It only took me a day to finish, I just couldn’t put it down!

I love dark fairytale retellings and this definitely did not disappoint. The main character, Clara, is basically little red riding hood. I really liked her character and how strong and determined she was. She references tarot cards, luck, and destiny a lot. But how can you expect her not to when her grandmother has the magical ability to read tarot cards. It was actually one of the things I liked about her character.

I really enjoyed the love story. It didn’t feel rushed, or forced. And I could really tell that they truly loved each other. I don’t want to say too much and spoilt it. But I do think any helpless romantic will love this aspect.

This book reminds me of Small Favors by Erin A. Craig. I loved that book, it’s not exactly a retelling. But it’s still dark and has some magical elements. The Forrest Grimm won by a tad because the love story is superior (in my opinion) and I do like that it feels like magic plays a bigger role. Talks about destiny and the tarot cards were also fun.

There were some parts that were a little confusing. For example, when explained how the curse has forbidden the townspeople from entering the forrest. And the initial explanation of how Devotion Day works. I had to reread it a few times and finally understood as the story progressed. It wasn’t a huge issue to me since I eventually understood, but I do see how this could bother others.

I’ll be not patiently waiting for the next book. I’m 100% continuing with this series.

I received an arc from NetGalley for an honest review

2 stars

I received a feee eARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

I'll admit, I had higher hopes for this book. The premise is soooo interesting but it really didn't deliver. While this book was entertaining and even fun in some parts, it was a mess. The plot didn't make a lot of sense a lot of times and it just seemed like an excuse to throw as many fairytales in one book as possible.
I'm also really peeved this ended on a cliffhanger, showing that it'll either be a duology at best or, god forbid, a series. This isn't strong enough for that. If this hook had been slowed down a little more and the pacing tightened up, the entire story could have been told, no sequel(s) needed.
This might be someone else's cup of tea but it wasn't mine, and I hate that it wasn't because there was a lot of potential!

As someone who loves fantasy books, this book was incredible. It was fast paced and I became so attached to the characters. I wish i could read this over and over. It was atmospheric and sucked me in front the first few pages. I loved every second of this book.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. A retelling of Red Riding hood, the Grimm brothers version. It’s a twisted and haunting take on it and a little creepy, it seems like it it was a little slow burn for me but I enjoyed it.

This YA Fantasy novel was very good, it is a play on some of our beloved and favorite fairy tales. This was very good and it kept me spellbound and wanting to see what happened. I can't wait for the next book!
I just reviewed The Forest Grimm by Kathryn Purdie. #NetGalley
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I really enjoyed the Bone Crier's Moon, so when I saw Kathryn Purdie had a new fantasy novel coming out, I jumped on the chance to read it! The Forest Grimm was such a fun reading experience that kept me guessing at every turn of the page! I absolutely adored the characters and the way she used creepy/twisted versions on classic fairy tale characters was incredible. I was equal parts fascinated and creeped out! Overall, I really enjoyed this book and am excited to read more from these characters and the world! I highly recommend!

Main characters were pretty dull, flat, and not fully fleshed out. I felt like there was no growth, and felt nothing towards the characters. That being said, I did enjoy the magic system but some of the explanations were dragged out and repetitive. It was enjoyable but not very memorable.

I enjoyed reading this book. I was hooked for the very beginning as soon as I read the synopsis. The Forest Grimm is the first book in the series and I’m looking forward to reading the story and seeing how it continues. Thank you to Netgalley, St. Martin’s Press/Wednesday Books and Kathryn’s Purdie for an opportunity to read an advanced copy of this book.

"Tell me the story of how I die."
From the jump, I was hooked. I figured this book would feature some kind of fairytale retelling, but I wasn't expecting several of them put together! It reminded me of Into the Woods, a musical that I really enjoy. The retellings (Rapunzel, Cinderella, Briar Rose, and Little Red Riding Hood) were very clever. I especially liked the way the Grandmother was used.
The relationship between Clara and Axel developed beautifully, and I loved watching the two of them come to terms with their feelings for each other. I love star-crossed lovers, and I was happy with the way their story ended.
I read this so quickly, I was immediately sucked in and couldn't put it down! The idea of the Forest Grimm being cursed and the Lost people in the village was very compelling to me. The only issue I have is that the end clearly set up a sequel, and I don't love when storylines don't get wrapped up, but I am very curious and will definitely be checking out the next book (or books) in the series.
I'd rate it a 4.5 but was more than happy to round up to a full 5 stars. A very enjoyable YA read!
Thank you netgalley for the ARC.

2 stars for the Forest Grimm.

It hurts me that I didn't really enjoy this book. I think it has a lot of potential, but I just never found myself really connecting to the main character and I was getting really bogged down by the meandering plot. The pacing felt off and I caught myself multiple times skimming to see if something more interesting was going to happen. That being said I don't think its a bad book, I think it just wasn't my cup of tea.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for giving me an eArc of this book!

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for giving me an ARC copy of this book to read and review. All of these thoughts and comments are my own.

I personally enjoyed this book a lot. I’m a huge fan of Grimm Tales and I always love reading twisted versions of fairytales. This book features Rapunzel, Cinderella, Hansel and Gretal, Sleeping Beauty, and I guess Red Riding Hood.

This was super fast pace for me and I found myself not being able to put it down. I wanted to keep reading because at every turn of the page something was going on. This is very action packed but not in a boring or annoying way.

I think Clara and Axel were very sweet together. I really loved how everything feel together for them.

With the way this book ended, I’m sure there will be a second one. Although I do think this book would be best as a stand alone; I am very curious how the second one is going to turn out.

4 stars!

I received this ARC from NetGalley. This story is great for those who love fairytales. The story follows Clara as she tries to save her village and her family from a curse and an evil forest. This book combines all of my favorite fairytales into one great adventure story. If you enjoy books based on fairytales, you will enjoy this book..

2.5 stars

I loved how this book started out. It had good pacing, and was building a unique world that I was very interested in.

The world is slightly dystopian, where villagers have to go into a forest to save the ‘lost’ of their village. The forest doesn’t let everyone in, but people of the village draw names to see if they’ll be the one to save the ‘lost’.

The unique part is the lost are fairy tale characters that we’ve all read about in the past, but darker. The forest also changes each day. Making it difficult to navigate.

I think my main problem with this book is the speech was very YOUNG ADULT. I think a young teenager would probably enjoy this book, but I couldn’t get into it. The love interests were not sparking any interest for me.

Why the leading lady likes Axel is beyond me. He pretty much leads her on, almost marries another chick, and he felt inconsistent with his words/actions.

I found myself losing interest at many intervals throughout the book.

Overall, a unique concept, that I think younger readers in specific would enjoy more than older readers.

Thank you to Netgalley and publisher for sending me this book. All opinions are honest and my own.

Reviewed for NetGalley:

I had no expectations about this one, so was pleasantly surprised in how much I enjoyed it.

Seventeen year old Clara takes off on an epic journey into the lethal Forest Grimm to save her mother, save the townspeople, who has been lost for years, and retrieve the Book of Fortunes that reveals the townspeople's greatest wish.

The Forest Grimm, however, is so deadly, that every time one of the townsfolk passes beyond its branches, they have yet to return.

Setting off into the Forest Grimm, a red cape in town and some friends, Clara comes across a retelling of some well known fairy tells that are told in much more enticing a realistic way.

Cannot wait to read the sequel.