Don't Let the Forest In
by CG Drews
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Pub Date Oct 29 2024 | Archive Date Oct 29 2024
Macmillan Children's Publishing Group | Feiwel & Friends
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Description
AN INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER!
As alluring as it is unsettling, award-winning author CG Drews' debut YA psychological horror will leave readers breathless and hesitant to venture deeper into the woods.
Once upon a time, Andrew had cut out his heart and given it to this boy, and he was very sure Thomas had no idea that Andrew would do anything for him. Protect him. Lie for him.
Kill for him.
High school senior Andrew Perrault finds refuge in the twisted fairytales that he writes for the only person who can ground him to reality—Thomas Rye, the boy with perpetually ink-stained hands and hair like autumn leaves. And with his twin sister, Dove, inexplicably keeping him at a cold distance upon their return to Wickwood Academy, Andrew finds himself leaning on his friend even more.
But something strange is going on with Thomas. His abusive parents have mysteriously vanished, and he arrives at school with blood on his sleeve. Thomas won't say a word about it, and shuts down whenever Andrew tries to ask him questions. Stranger still, Thomas is haunted by something, and he seems to have lost interest in his artwork—whimsically macabre sketches of the monsters from Andrew's wicked stories.
Desperate to figure out what's wrong with his friend, Andrew follows Thomas into the off-limits forest one night and catches him fighting a nightmarish monster—Thomas's drawings have come to life and are killing anyone close to him. To make sure no one else dies, the boys battle the monsters every night. But as their obsession with each other grows stronger, so do the monsters, and Andrew begins to fear that the only way to stop the creatures might be to destroy their creator...
Available Editions
EDITION | Other Format |
ISBN | 9781250895660 |
PRICE | $19.99 (USD) |
PAGES | 352 |
Available on NetGalley
Featured Reviews
The first thing I want to say, is that the acknowledgements at the end state both "If you've turned the last page and are now frowning at the wall, everything is as it should be." and "May this one haunt you."
Both of these are incredibly accurate statements. I am questioning reality as I stare at the ceiling.
I devoured this in a matter of hours while on an international flight.
Firstly, the sublime writing. Here's one of my favourite bits: "For a vicious moment, Andrew thought about slipping his fingers into Thomas's cut. Taking hold of his rib and breaking it. Pulling the soft crumbling bone from his chest and sewing it into his own. They'd be forever together, rib against rib, fused in gore and bone and adoration." Drews' writing is visceral and clever.
Andrew is such a perfect example of an unreliable narrator that makes you trust him wholeheartedly. I was prepared to believe everything he believed and defend him to the death.
I'm a little stuck on what else to say because I'm still gathering my thoughts but essentially if you want to read a spooky, macabre fairytale psychological thriller set in the modern world at a school featuring a sentient forest, its beasts and some botanical body horror? Read this. Oh, and there's queer rep!
This was utterly and grotesquely delightful, and will haunt me for a while.
Thank you so much to the publisher and MTMC Tours for the eARC!
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