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Don't Let the Forest In

ebook
0 of 2 copies available
0 of 2 copies available

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...
Also by CG Drews
Hazelthorn

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    • Booklist

      Starred review from August 1, 2024
      Grades 9-12 *Starred Review* Andrew would rather spend time writing lurid, fantastical tales than anything else, save hanging out with his best friend, Thomas, who illustrates the stories with equally grotesque, vivid drawings. But upon his return to boarding school for senior year, Thomas is being evasive, leaving Andrew to the exacerbated anxious mechanisms of his mind. He spirals further as Thomas stops drawing and starts to return to their dorm late in the night covered in dirt and mysterious injuries. One night, Andrew follows Thomas to the off-limits woods that surround the and is stunned to find that Thomas has been battling his own drawings, come to life, so that they won't attack the unsuspecting people in the school. Andrew joins the cause, forgoing reason and allowing his relationship with Thomas to turn as obsessive as his habits around food. But when the evils of the forest get closer to the school and begin emerging from Andrew as well, destroying the original creator of the monsters may be their only hope. Drews paints a gruesome narrative with visceral descriptions of monsters and the violence they enact while, with equal vigor, encapsulating the trauma of loss, disordered eating, bullying, and anxiety, all of which is counterbalanced by a gentle touch addressing asexual identity. A frustrating but fantastical read; prepare for the emotional roller coaster of plot twists, unreliable narration, and a divisive conclusion. Sure to please those interested in modern horror mixed with a touch of fairy tale.

      COPYRIGHT(2024) Booklist, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

    • Kirkus

      September 1, 2024
      When the monsters they imagine come to life, two boys fight for their lives--and each other. Andrew Perrault, who's from Australia, writes beautiful, macabre fairy tales. His roommate at his American boarding school, Wickwood Academy, is talented artist Thomas Rye, who brings his stories to vivid life in paint and charcoal. Andrew's twin sister, Dove, is all but ignoring him, so he has plenty of time to focus on Thomas' increasingly odd behavior. Thomas' parents disappeared just before the new school year started, and Andrew noticed blood on his roommate's sleeve on their first day back. When he follows Thomas into the forest one night, Andrew discovers him fighting one of the monsters that Thomas has drawn from these stories. The boys soon find themselves coping with vicious bullies by day and fighting monsters by night. At the same time, Andrew struggles to reconcile his feelings for Thomas with his growing awareness of his own asexuality. But when the sinister Antler King breaches Wickwood's walls, Andrew realizes that he and Thomas may not survive their own creations. This novel, written in rich, extravagant prose, features frank portrayals of disordered eating, self-harm, bullying, and mental illness. Andrew grapples realistically with his sexual identity, and the story has ample genuinely creepy moments with the monsters. Andrew, Thomas, and Dove are white. Lush, angsty, queer horror. (content warning)(Horror. 14-18)

      COPYRIGHT(2024) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

    • School Library Journal

      Starred review from November 8, 2024

      Gr 9 Up-Returning to Wickwood Academy isn't easy, but it's the only choice Andrew has, because that's where Thomas is. Thomas doesn't know how Andrew really feels about him, but that's no matter-there's absolutely nothing Andrew wouldn't do for him, anyway. NOTHING. Andrew's twin sister, Dove, was also close to Thomas until last year's mysterious happenings; her current distance is unfathomable and weighing on Andrew, but he can't seem to find a way to get close to her. Andrew discovers that Thomas's haunting illustrations, inspired by Andrew's own darkly fantastic stories, seem to be triggering something monstrous in the off-limit woods behind the academy. Despite knowing better, Andrew can't help but follow Thomas into a dangerous, violent battle with forces neither of them really understands and the highest stakes imaginable. In the darkness, ink and blood are increasingly hard to tell apart, and the lines between the boys' imaginations and reality are, too. This psychological struggle between variations on sanity will have readers on the very edge of their seats all the way through. Beautifully emotional despite much physical and mental brutality, Drews's debut skillfully touches on asexuality, eating disorders, abuse, various mental health conditions, grief, and more. Clearly rendered characters with intense, explosive feelings navigate a creatively violent scenario; impossible to look away from. VERDICT An angst-fueled, twisted fairy tale wrapped tightly in dark academia, exploring the border between love and something more dangerous.-Allie Stevens

      Copyright 2024 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

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