Big thank you NetGalley and to the publisher for the chance to review this book pre-release. Don't Let the Forest In was absolutely amazing. I had so many thoughts and feelings to process throughout reading it. I loved the LGBTQ+ rep, the dynamic characters & all of the layers they brought to the story, and the entire thing was SO atmospheric. The perfect book for spooky season! A more formal review will be available on my IG/TikTok and Goodreads.

dear god this was one of the most incredible dark LGBTQ romances i've ever seen, with a strong psychological horror feel. poetic, gothic, ominous, and twisted. what's real? what's not? does that even matter at all? 5 stars

Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan for the eARC of Don't Let the Forest In in exchange for an honest review.

Don't Let the Forest In follows Andrew Perrault as he returns to Wickwood boarding school after summer vacation with his twin sister Dove who was noticeably distant from him all summer. Andrew couldn't decide if Dove's distance had to do with his anxiety and panic disorder, or the fight she'd had with their mutual friend (and Andrew's heartthrob crush and roommate) Thomas Rye the previous semester. However, when they get to school, Dove runs off, and Andrew finds out Thomas had a rough summer as well - his parents are missing and he may be the lead suspect. While trying to navigate the new dynamics of the school year, Andrew is hoping he and Thomas can continue to share their macabre fairy tales inspired by the Wickwood Forest surrounding the school - only one problem... the monsters from their fairy tales are now terrorizing the school. What will Andrew and Thomas do to save everyone else and themselves?

This was beautifully written. C.G. Drews had a wonderful way of pulling you into the story, making you feel like you were in high school again, wrote panic disorders extremely well - as well as someone who suffers from anxiety and what its like to live with it on a daily basis. I was not prepared for any of the twists and turns this book took and it was a perfect spooky read for the fall season.

"May this one haunt you." I haven't been able to stop thinking about it since I finished it hours ago and I doubt I will stop anytime soon.

I finished this book earlier today and had to sit with it for a bit before I was able to write a review because I have sO many feelings. First off, I loved the premise of this and the forest being the backdrop for all the creepies at Wickwood was so beautifully done. The setting and storyline was perfect for a chilling fall read. There were multiple moments throughout that I had to stop reading because I felt sick to my stomach with some of the descriptions. (Please note I consider this a VERY good thing when reading horror)

My one con with this book was the pacing felt a little stiff in a few spots throughout the story where it felt a little disjointed from one scene to the next but for the most part it flowed really well. I didn't have any moments were I felt bored or like I was counting down until I had finished the story. The writing was beautiful and poetic and haunting with incredibly well done foreshadowing with Dove's storyline. By the end, everything made sense but also had the right amount of blurriness that you were questioning if Dove wasn't real... was any of it? The ending especially was all I could've hoped for. It was satisfying while also leaving me wanting more of the aftermath.

I am SO glad that I decided to request it because this type of book is one that I hoped I would find. It was a stunning debut YA horror that I may not have gotten to read if not for NetGalley and I will be recommending it to everyone I know who likes psychological horror. 10/10 5 stars, fully recommend. I can't wait to see what CG Drews writes next.

I really wanted to like this book, but I don't think it's my vibe. I wanted to read it because I love CG Drews, but forest-core horror just isn't my thing. That being said, I loved the ace and Pride club rep in the 50% of the book I read!

Thank you to NetGalley for providing a review copy.

This book gutted me. The writing is just gorgeous, absolutely lush and brimming with emotion and atmosphere. The monsters in the book, both human and otherwise, are truly creepy and disturbing. It made me remember the feeling of being so in love with someone that it is physically painful to be both near them and separated. The tension and desperation in the story has me desperate to finish and find out what happened. 4.75 stars

Thank you to NetGalley for sending me this amazing ARC!
I absolutely adored Don’t Let the Forest In by CG Drews. This book was a gorgeously dark fairytale steeped in intricate nature imagery, magic, and love. I felt that there was just so much amazing representation laced throughout the book as it dealt with tough familial trauma as well as young adulthood. In short, this novel takes place in a dark and foreboding academy where sinister forces lurk in the nearby forest. However, Andrew and Thomas slowly learn that the monsters that they create have real world consequences and that they must come together to fight the darkness and defeat the evils of nature. This is a brilliant coming of age story that I will come back to time and time again.

First I have to comment on this books cover it just pulled me in for some reason and made me want to read this love it.
Now on to my thoughts
Overall, Don’t Let the Forest In
This is a thought-provoking story that will have you second guessing going into the woods.
fans of dark academia, horror, will enjoy this
Thanks netgalley

This book destroyed me, and I thanked it for the tears. The prose is downright poetic, every bloody, magic word, as all good fairy tales should be. I am bereft. One of my favorite reads of the year.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for giving me an ARC copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

4.5 stars. This book was right up my alley. It is the perfect Halloween read!

The writing style is insanely good. I was eating up every line. It’s so descriptive. The scary and gross descriptions of the monsters and the forest were so creepy! I was gagging or cringing at some of the lines, in the best way possible.

Even each of Andrew’s stories that he wrote were so well written! Sometimes in books if a character is an author or writes poems or what not, what the character writes isn’t that good. This was not the case with this book! Every little story was so unique and creepy, it gave me chills.

I loved Andrew so much and my heart ached for him every time he was too in his head or looked down on himself. I related to him in so many ways, so his character really hit home for me. He has a special place in my heart.

I honestly didn’t like Thomas that much at first. I know we were supposed to like him because Andrew did, but he said some pretty harsh things, even if he was just protecting him. He also kept so many things from Andrew even though Andrew proved he wouldn’t get angry or look at him differently, which was frustrating. I think because I loved Andrew so much that if Thomas made him upset I got angry at him. Thomas is Andrew’s best friend and Andrew is obsessed with him, and they had a lot of history I did not get to see, so I wasn’t quite as forgiving as he was when Thomas did him dirty. Andrew did also say though they both knew how to push each other’s buttons and where to hurt each other the most, so Andrew wasn’t always innocent either.

Don’t get me wrong, I still wanted him and Thomas to get together. So many of the things they said or thought about each other was either so romantic or so heartbreakingly good, I was eating it up. I just didn’t like Thomas’ character as much as Andrew liked him.

I liked Lana a lot! She was in it quite a bit, but I could have used even more of her. I wish Dove was fleshed out a little more as well.

I need to reread this, almost immediately. So many signs were there showing what was going on but I didn’t connect the dots! I should have put the pieces together, but since we are in Andrew’s head I just took what he thought as truth.

The author’s note of this book made me laugh because that is exactly what I was doing! This will haunt me for a while! When it ended I thought to myself “that can’t be the end! I need more!!” But also it ended in the perfect spot. Two things can be true at once haha.

I do wish we had a little more answers on what happens in the aftermath, especially because some pretty major things happened. I want to see more of Andrew and Thomas together. Who knows, maybe we will get a sequel or a short story of them! I hope.

I highly recommend this. What you see is what you get, and it is very much so worth the read.

First of all—this has the most stunning cover and that will definitely be why a lot of people pick it up. Unfortunately, the words inside are less stunning. In many parts, the prose felt very try-hard and it ended coming off convoluted and nonsensical, and the characters felt like caricatures to me. TBH if you want a YA horror with deep themes and lyrical prose, pick up Kelly Andrew instead.

First off I love that the book takes places in Virginia because that’s where I’m from so it was cool to see it. Second this book took me on an emotional roller coaster and the ending absolutely shocked me. The dark academic vibes were fantastic as well. Very well written and the LGBTQ+ with the main character being asexual but still maintaining a romantic relationship is a nice reminder that relationships come in all shapes and forms and does not have to be physical for it to still be a valid relationship

This was an interesting story with some great writing, but as it progressed I found it harder and harder to get the pieces to fit together. The plot just got too far out there for me and it didn't feel grounded in anything. It felt like anything crazy out there could happen on the next page which made it hard to care. The ending also doesn't really resolve most of the story and it just feels like there are gaping holes left behind.

I did enjoy the atmosphere of the book though and the creepier parts where well executed.

CG Drews' Don't Let the Forest In, set to release on 10/29/24, is a gripping exploration of love, loss, and the shadows that lurk within us. Following high school senior Andrew Perrault, the novel weaves a dark fairytale that reflects both the magic and the terror of self-discovery.

Plot Summary: Andrew finds solace in the twisted fairytales he writes for Thomas Rye, a boy with ink-stained hands and hair reminiscent of autumn leaves. As Andrew navigates the challenges of his senior year, he grapples with his twin sister Dove's sudden coldness and the growing bond with Thomas, who is hiding troubling secrets. When Thomas’s abusive parents disappear, and he shows up at school with blood on his sleeve, Andrew’s concern for his friend intensifies. The discovery of Thomas battling nightmarish monsters—creations of his own artwork—propels them into a fight for survival and the unraveling of their relationship.

REVIEW:
While the love story between Andrew and Thomas is beautifully crafted, Andrew's character initially feels a bit weak, often playing the victim in the face of his challenges. However, by the end, he embarks on a journey of redemption, showcasing growth that makes his character arc satisfying. Thomas, in contrast, emerges as a well-written, complex figure—both a hero in Andrew’s eyes and a vital source of support.

The novel explores rich themes of identity, love, and the struggle against one’s inner demons. The forest serves as a powerful metaphor for the unknown aspects of their lives and the monsters they must confront. A particularly striking twist—a revelation about a character presumed alive—adds a layer of depth that resonates long after the story concludes.

Drews’ lyrical prose immerses readers in the vivid and haunting world of Wickwood Academy and the mysterious forest. The blend of whimsy and horror creates an atmosphere that perfectly complements the emotional undertones of the narrative.

Final Thoughts:
Don't Let the Forest In offers a poignant love story intertwined with a thrilling fantasy narrative. Despite some initial reservations about Andrew's character, the novel ultimately delivers a compelling tale of bravery and connection. With its LGBTQ themes and unexpected twists, this book is sure to resonate with readers looking for both heart and depth.

Rating: ★★★☆☆

First, thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an eARC in exchange for an honest review!

I’ll start by saying that the premise of this book, the prose, and the scenery/imagery were all lovely. It felt so haunting and I was hooked pretty early on. It handled some pretty heavy topics in beautifully gruesome ways.

But it also felt like it was trying too hard to be edgy and gruesome and horrific in some places, and I feel like it took away some of the punch from where it was important to have that horror the most.

All in all, this was a great read if you want something substantial, something that makes you want to keep sinking your claws in deeper.

I really loved this book! The writing was phenomenal and the characters were very well developed. I think my only complaint is the ending was pretty abrupt.

I liked this book so much! The creepy atmosphere and constant tension/anxiety kept my attention. The way the horror entered the story was really interesting. The desperate tension between the two main characters had me utterly hooked

Andrew's return to boarding school should be a return to all that's normal and right, but his twin Dove and their best friend Thomas aren't talking, and the police are questioning Thomas. And that's the normal part of his year. Andrew writes brothers grim style fairy tale vignettes and Thomas gives them life with macabre illustrations. Literally, and now Andrew and Thomas are fighting every night for their lives and the lives of their classmates.

Lyrical and haunting Don't Let the Forest In captures the feeling of being a mentally ill high school senior disturbingly well, and then takes it further. This is a story that will make you ask "what the fuck?" again and again.
Horrifically beautiful and deliciously fucked up, it's a plot driven story that will terrify you and leave you questioning the narrative's reality. C. G. Drews is a wordsmith. Highly recommended for horror and dark academia fans, and it might be worth a read for others for the prose and vignettes alone.

The ending leaves too much unanswered for my personal preferences, but I believe that is a convention of dark academia. I don't feel the content warning list in the book is comprehensive but some of them could definitely be massive spoilers so I understand why. I personally would have wanted this warning so I'm putting it below a spoiler.

The Tik Tok video is in my drafts so expect it later this week

This book sounded like a perfect spooky season read! The book started off quite well and I was pretty hooked in. But then I started losing interest and getting confused. I think this book has so many directions it wanted to go in but it just couldn’t be fully fleshed out. I liked this book, but I wanted so much more.

This story is dark, hauntingly beautiful, disturbing and full of teenage angst and I continue to think about even a week after finishing it. I felt like I was peeling back the layers of what these boys were feeling and finding something totally unexpected. This book was both terrifying and beautiful and it was really hard to let it go.

Andrew is the sole narrator of this story, and even from the beginning, before all of the horror begins, you get the sense that he is not a reliable narrator. We know from the start that something bad happened at the end of the previous school year, that has broken the friendship between him, his best friend Thomas, and his sister. Andrew is friendless except for Thomas, and his grief over what is going on is palatable from the start. His unreliable narration continues as the monsters reveal themselves and the barrier between reality and nightmares becomes blurred. By the end of the story I still wasn’t sure how much of the story was real or imagined by Andrew. I really felt Andrew’s pain as he tries and at times fails to navigate his emotions about himself and those for Thomas, and even why he is protecting a school that has never protected him. I loved the beautiful relationship between him and Thomas and fragile it was at the beginning, but it eventually becoming something stronger.

The writing was what I really liked about this story. It was so beautiful and so descriptive that I had no trouble imagining the monsters and the horrors that these two boys went through. I was right there with them in the forest and the halls of the school as they fought to save each other and the school. I understand that there will be illustrations in the final book, which will add a marvelous layer to the story. The pacing was solid, with some nice quiet moments between the characters after the horror of the monsters. The blending of the themes of friendship, love, grief, discovering and accepting yourself amongst all of the horror was beautifully done. The ending was somewhat open, in that we are not sure what happens to the boys, but there was some implied closure, that while not happy, was at least an ending.

This book won’t be for everyone. It is disturbing in some ways, and if you don’t like unreliable narrators, than this isn’t for you. But if you like emotional stories about grief, acceptance and self discovery hidden inside a horror story, this is one you don’t want to miss.