"The rules were vague but should not be broken: don't cut living wood; don't shed any animal's blood; trade if you must, but do not negotiate. And certainly never accept any 'gifts.'"

The deep, dark forest, home to magical creatures both good and evil, is a staple of many fairy tales, and in this story that involves a quest to rescue two missing children, it looms larger than life; it becomes a character almost. Veris has ventured into these woods once before, and managed to bring home the lost child. She barely survived the experience. Now she is ordered, by the tyrant who killed both her parents, no less, to retrieve his heirs . . . or he will kill her only living relatives, and burn their village. What follows is a tense adventure fraught with peril and more creepy foes than you can shake a walking stick at. It's an enjoyable, mesmerizing read that ends with the promise of more terrors to come.

I'll be tagging along on that next walk in the woods.

Gulp!

It’s a beautifully written, yet dark and twisted novella that made me shudder quite a few times. I’m normally not a big fan of novellas - only few manage to deliver a well-rounded story without leaving me feeling like something was missing. This novella definitely didn’t leave me missing anything other than maybe sleep. Both because I was so wrapped up into reading it that I forgot I am an adult who needs to be up early and also because of the level of suspense. It wasn’t gory or terrifying, but it definitely was dark. The only thing I was not a huge fan of was the ending. Thank you to the author and Netgalley for providing me with an early copy.

This is a fun, though disturbing, romp through a very scary forest. This reads like a dark, twisted fairytale and kept me hooked until the last page.

The Butcher of the Forest by Premee Mohamed - ebook ARC

This was a super fun read. I would describe this as a darky fairytale, with high stakes and fun creatures. Our main female character is forced into a crazy forest to save children from a tyrant of a ruler. Oh and if you remain in the forest for more than a day, you are trapped forever. We have traps, riddles, and really dark monsters. This was way more dark than I anticipated but I was here for it! This is a Novella so it’s a quick short read, but packs a real punch! I’m not sure I how I feel about unicorns anymore because of this book! lol. Veris Thorn is our main female character, is unique and I find myself really cheering for her and loving her development in this gothic horror story.

I loved the mystery, the riddles, the creatures and the plot. Highly recommend!

3/5 stars!

This was a beautifully written novella...that was also super unnerving at parts. The Butcher of the Forest is a dark fairytale with an extra dash of horror and macabre; it's set in the Elmever woods and focuses on Veris whose main job is to retrieve lost children from the aforementioned forest. From the get go this novella had a dark overtone and pretty much the entire story has a huge sense of dread and foreboding.

I'm usually a fan of horror novels but this one was a bit to gore-ish for me and left me rather unsettled. I did read it in one setting (relatively short) and the writing is fantastic, but the actual content wasn't for me.

Trigger warnings: body horror, gore, child abuse, death.
Shout out to NetGalley, Tor, and Premee Mohamed for the ARC in exchange for a review.

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for providing this e-ARC. I am anticipating reading this soon and reviewing on my socials.

What a creepy little novella! I loved it. This is dark fairytale at its best. From the forbidden forest, to the monsters, the games, the chase, and the difficult choices. Amazing. Can’t recommend enough. Also can’t discuss more without spoiling. All I can say is go read this immediately!

“Veris bravely ventures into the dark woods to rescue Tyrant’s children in this fast-paced tale filled with creatures and danger. Despite a lack of character development, the captivating world and unique story make it a perfect choice for dark fantasy fans.” - thindbooks

This book follows a woman who got out of the woods before but is told to go back to get the Tyrand’s children. This short read was great and perfect for those looking for a folklore, fantasy book. This book starts right off with the plot so there’s not much introduction of the MC and her background. This made it hard to connect with her as I didn’t know much about her. I enjoyed the author’s writing and the story they developed. The world was great and I thought it was interesting for how much we knew. However I have to say that the story did feel as though I didn’t read the first book because there were questions already answered that readers don’t know about.

Veris is the MC of the story and I enjoyed her character. I couldn’t really connect with her as I feel like we don’t go through her story but the world’s. I still enjoyed how caring she was of the children and how she went into the woods to save them. There are two main side characters which are the children but there are creatures who appear to give the group a hard time. I loved the dark, forest vibes I was getting and the journey the trio had to go through. There is more of a family element where the trio begins to connect when they are getting out of the forest.

The ending was rushed and I wish we got to see more of what happened. The story and the concept were great but the pacing could have been better. I’m not sure if there was a book before this where I could understand the world more but I’m not sure and can’t find that information. I do check this book out if you need a quick read and looking for a dark fantasy.

*this book was sent to me by the publisher to give an honest review in return*

A delightful folk horror-style novella - my only complaint is that it wasn't longer. Very efficient worldbuilding.

Sometimes it is miserable that people remember you did a thing. Especially when that this is something everyone in your community warns people not to do, to the point that it is just culturally accept to avoid it. Unfortunately for Veris Thorn, there is a tyrant in residence, with some children who went into the forest. And he is aware of her one time success in bringing someone out of the forest. Double unfortunately, she doesn't want everyone she knows to be killed. So back into the woods she goes.

Thank you @b2weird for setting up this tour with @tordotcompub for "The Butcher of the Forest" by Premee Mohamed! Had me rustled for a few days.

Reasons to read:
-I have less trust for wildlife
-Didn't expect that to chose violence
-So much packed into a novella, just brilliant
-What will a person give up to accomplish their goals and still survive?
-At least 1 smart(ish) kid

Cons:
-Well my survival plan in a similar situation is suddenly way darker after reading this

A great read for long time fans of dark fairytales and also people who want to get into dark fairytales.

It's about a woman in her late 30s. Love an older main protagonist! She is taken on a near hopeless quest to find the children of a ruthless tyrant. She must brave a creepy magical forest with only a pocket full of trinkets to help her.

The writer is great at making you feel emersed in the story. I actually jumped with fright while reading.

It should be noted that this story has no romance and a few triggers.

It's a short one and definitely worth checking out.

There's something immediately gripping about this novella. If you're a fan of creepy forests, definitely pick this one up. I personally tend to prefer Mohamed's writing in shorter form—so far, her short stories and novellas have all worked very well for me, even though I get the feeling there are way more layers to her works than I can pick up. The way Veris's background is revealed to us slowly, with tantalizing hints dropped every so often, was fantastic. I don't think this novella is officially listed as horror, but it falls under that category for me. The author's take on unicorns is probably the most unique one I've ever read. This reminded me of old fairytales in all the best ways. The ending did feel a bit weak in comparison, and some things are left very open, but I would still highly recommend this.

I like the concept of this story, and the cover is gorgeous. I’m just not the right reader for it. I think it is well-written and that there are lots of readers who will enjoy this book - I’m just not that one.

The Butcher of the Forest takes you on a journey into a magical forest where the forest itself is the danger. It harkens back to the old folktales of others loving just out of sight, just on the other side of some invisible screen that we cannot, or maybe should not, penetrate. This was a beautifully creepy story of our main character, Varis, who is ordered to return into the Elmever wood, a magic, haunted wood set within the Northern Woods, to save the Tyrants children. Many years ago, Varis walked into the woods to save another child and has been the only person to walk back out again. Now, to save the Tyrants children... as well as her own family and village from the Tyrants wrath... she must traverse the Elmever once again.

Premee Mohamed's writing style took me a little bit to get use to, but once I did, her lyrical writing style flowed effervescently throughout the story and made the otherworldly nature of the Elmever Wood feel more real. My only real complaint about the writing/formatting of this story was that there were no chapters. This may have been something that was changed in later edits or it could have been the author's stylistic choice for this story, I am not sure. I just know that for my brain, it made it feel like a long slog without any breaks, which is saying something for a 160 page novella. That could also be the whole point, as this journey for Varis was definitely a long, brutal slog.

I did enjoy Varis as a character. As we are thrown into the story, we are told that she is a forty year old woman and lives with her aging aunt and grandfather. She has lost much to the Tyrants rule and we get more revelations about her life as we go through the story. It is refreshing to be in the point of view of a main character that has seen life, has seen tragedy, and is wizened by years instead of an ambitious youth. There is something to be said about the choices we make and how we make them different after years of experience versus in our youth and the book does a good job of showcasing that.

4.25/5 stars

Premee Mohamed has a novelette about Veris Thorn, a simple villager, who had managed to retrieve her daughter from the enchanted forest years before, When theTyrant calls on her o rescue his two children from the horrific place she is forced to face The Butcher of the Forest (paper from Tordotcom) the forest is properly eerie, with puzzling rules. Impossible to put down.

No one knows the strange and terrifying traps of the Elmever better than Veris Thorn, the only person to ever rescue a child from the forest many years ago. When the Tyrant’s two young children go missing, Veris is commanded to enter the forest once more and bring them home safe.
I loved this story, truly haunting and creepy and mysterious. I love stories where even the characters living the moment don't truly know what's happening. A perfect length.

A beautifully dark novella. I am such a huge fan of twisted and dark fantasy stories and Premee Mohamed really hit the mark with this story. At 160 pages it was a fun and quick read but it honestly had me hunger for more! I cannot wait to read more that this author puts out.

This is an imaginative, dark fantasy novella following an older woman named Veris who is given a task by the “Tyrant,” who is basically a king, to rescue his children who have gone missing in this evil/magical forest. And boy does Veris get herself into an adventure.

I’m not sure if it was just the arc version but I did not like how this was (or wasnt) broken up. For a novella it felt very long at times and I think that really affected my enjoyment. It might just be me but I needed more decisive chapters and breaks.

I think a lot of people will really like this novella. I definitely recommend giving it a try for yourself.

It's so refreshing to read a book where the main protagonist isn't basically a child. Veris is almost 40 and makes an awesome hero of the story, venturing into the forbidden forest ruled by powerful magic to rescue the tyrant king's children. I can't wait to see this book on shelves! I think older fantasy lovers are going to love it.

Thank you to Tor Publishing Group, Tordotcom and NetGalley for an eARC of The Butcher of the Forest.

This haunting tale made me reminiscent of when I read T. Kingfisher's Nettle and Bone. A dark fairy tale that contains a gritty protagonist on a race against time to save the two children of the Tyrant that rules her land from a mysterious forest. The Butcher of the Forest is a fast paced novella that keeps you rooted in from start to finish. I really enjoyed this one.