C.G. Drews creates an LGBTQIA+ story wrapped in a nightmare of forest creates and bad writing Don’t Let the Forest In doesn’t live up to the hype that proceeds it.
High school senior Andrew Perrault finds refuge in the twisted fairytales he writes for his best friend Thomas Rye, the bad boy with perpetually ink-stained hands. His twin sister Dove used to be the last member of their little trio but after a fight with Thomas, she chooses to keep her space. As the school year starts, he notices something wrong with Thomas. His abusive parents are missing, and police have questioned him starting rumors at the school. Worse still, he has lost interest in his drawings. To find out what’s going on with his friend, Andrew follows Thomas into the forest by the school and finds Thomas battling familiar monsters—monsters that Thomas himself has drawn. What was now Thomas’ problem was now his.
This book was written poorly which is so sad because the idea behind the book is fascinating. I have always been intrigued by what brings an idea to life” the idea in a person’s head? Writing it down? Making it into a visual medium? The X-Files has a brilliant episode on this that leaves too much discussion. This book though….it once again makes mental illness dangerous. And there is no back story to lead to the school or forest feeding on those who are so fragile (though the author makes a one-off statement that this is it; no, you can’t fix what you’ve already done like that).
Now to the writing itself. Drews makes no clear transitions and the story jumps around. I couldn’t understand what was going on or why. There was a hint of something dangerous in the forest from the adults, but it was never divulged. There was an investigation into the disappearance of one of the student’s parents, but it disappears halfway into the book. About halfway into the book, we got some Silent Hill 2-like spots but that was momentary. And the twist? Really? There is no way Andrew could have lived in that much denial with that many people around.
There is one shining thing about this book is the queer romance and the inclusion of asexuality. Talking sexuality is a spectrum and sexuality and romance are two separate things that were brilliant. Andrew learned that he could kiss someone and not want sex was ok. Seeing that he could want that from Thomas was beautiful. Seeking love to bloom was beautiful and if anyone reading this helped them and their identity I am all for that.
Any Acknowledgements where the author hopes the reader is “now frowning at the wall” should tell you a lot about the book. While Drews probably means something else that I do, this sums up how I felt about Don’t Let The Forest In.

Don’t Let the Forest In was eerie, gory and at times gruesome. I felt Andrew’s anxiety and need for comfort. His fears and hopes were all so relatable.

Drews plays with teen angst and mental health to create a creepy private school monster thriller that will unsettle the reader’s understanding of reality. Focusing on the school’s outsider, Andrew, a writer of dark fairytales, struggling with mental health, grief and questions of his identity, flails through his senior year. Building and losing relationships in times and ways that makes the entire world of the book feel unsteady. Andrew’s bestfriend, roommate and the artist who brings the dark fairytales to life, first on the page and then in the forest just outside of campus.

Drews created a truly YA/Teen horror story, written not for the adult who reads YA market, but for the teen market. The themes have the same chaos of identity and reality that will resonate with younger readers. The dark academy setting is familiar, but played with in interesting ways. The horror is somewhat simple, but it is the deeper psychological elements that had me devouring the last half of this book.

One of my favorite covers of 2024 😍

I was a little skeptical going into this since I haven’t had the best experiences with YA horror in the past, but thankfully this book is not just a pretty cover. I loved everything about this. CG Drews reminded me a lot of K Ancrum, especially in terms of their writing style and characterization. This book had such an ominous ambiance, but also so much heart and intrigue at the same time. The characters felt tangible and incredibly flawed, to the point you couldn't help but be entranced by them. Familial, platonic, romantic…all of the relationships just made me feel so deeply. I’d highly recommend picking this up over the fall/winter season!

CWs for homophobia, bullying, body horror, gore/death, disordered eating, death of a loved one

Wow this book...

I'm honestly pretty mad at myself for putting this book off as long as I did because this was the best book I've read all year. Hands down.
To start, the writing is beautiful. There are so many lines I could highlight and emphasize again and again. It's Gothic, morbid and beautiful. I loved every aspect of it. It have me The same feeling I got reading The Great Gatsby for the first time. I mean, is a lot different than that book and it's writing but they scratch the same itch.
The characters in this book were wonderful, The horror was visceral and bloody and I loved it. Also the yearning. It was phenomenal. It was very "In a Week" by Hoizer vibes. The slowburn and angst was just great.
Honestly the only thing I'll dock is the ending. It's not bad but it kinda hurt my heart after reading everything these characters went through. But aside from that this book is amazing! Best read of 2024 hands down. 10/10 highly recommend.

Thank you to NetGalley and McMillan for the ARC is exchange for an honest review (And I apologize for this being late, I was busy with work)

Don’t Let The Forest In is easily one of my favorite books that I’ve read this year.

The writing style is both poetic and gruesome, and I just truly don’t have the words to say how much this story affected me or how much I loved it. I fear I may never recover.

This book was so much more than I expected. It was full of imagery that made me gasp and cringe! The boys were disturbed in the best ways and that ending made me think and wonder… I will read anything and everything CG Drews writes.

This is a book that will linger with me. From the earliest pages, I sense that Andrew is an unreliable narrator. The only question is just how unreliable his POV is. How much is happening and how much is the result of trauma or deteriorating mental health? Somehow not knowing what is real and what is imagined makes me love him and want a happy ending for him even more. Is a happy ending truly possible in a dark fairytale though? Maybe. For once, I’m okay accepting a story’s thorns and not expecting the HEA.

That was dark and that was depressing. Those are not necessarily bad things. It was confused and it was riddled with toxicity. It was hard to tell if the author meant to romanticize these controlling and abusive relationships. It was all just unsettling.

This is going on the favorites list for 2024.
The way it is written is so poetic, romantic, and beautiful that it almost makes you forget that it's a psychological horror. One sentence from the synopsis instantly made me want to get the book and it did not disappoint.
"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."
In this sweeping tale, you follow twins Dove and Andrew and their halestorm of a friend, Thomas. Thomas is pure passion shaped into a human being. He lets no one talk down to his friends and finds himself in trouble constantly due to his complete lack of rule-following. Andrew has crippling social anxiety and finds it difficult to do pretty much anything without the help of his sister and his best friend. When Dove decides that she isn't wasting her senior year, and finds less and less time for Andrew, he and Thomas attempt to coast through the school year.
This is made difficult by his trying to overcome his social anxiety, his feelings for his best friend Thomas, realizing that he is Ace, and trying to survive killing the Eldritch forest-like terrors that have begun to attack the boys in search of payment that they're due.
It's Amazing, Queer, and Terrifying all at the same time, and I've already ordered my physical copy.
For all that is holy read it!~

CG Drews’ "Don't Let the Forest In" masterfully blurs the line between reality and imagination in a dark, haunting exploration of friendship, trauma, and the monsters we create—both literal and metaphorical. Drews’ writing captures the raw intensity of adolescence, where emotions are heightened and relationships feel life-or-death. The forest, as a setting, is lushly atmospheric, and Drews paints it vividly, making it both a refuge and a place of terror. "Don't Let the Forest In" offers a deeply moving and unsettling tale that lingers well after the final page. It’s a must-read for those who crave emotionally driven, gothic-tinged stories about the power of creativity, the shadows of our minds, and the lengths we’ll go to protect the ones we love.

After returning to boarding school after a holiday break, Andrew (a writer) notices his best friend and crush, Thomas (an artist), is acting strangely. Thomas is the resident bad boy at school, but then it turns out his parents are missing, Andrew’s twin (Dove) is avoiding them, and they suspect Thomas’s art is creating woodland monsters that are now out for their blood. Kind of hard to get homework done when you’re fighting those things all night, despite your debilitating anxiety.

Don’t Let the Forest in is a fascinating, dark fairytale of a novel that examines obsessive first love, the tortured artist, the LGBT+ spectrum, mental illness, and—as the show Buffy used to put it—how high school can be hell. This book is for you if you enjoy Eldritch horror, psychological horror, spooky forests (and associated body horror), cottagecore, lush, but creepy vibes, and haunting narratives at boarding schools.

This book…wow. I went in with high expectations as someone who has been following along with the release drawing closer and I wasn’t let down! Firstly Andrew was such a heart warming chaste whilst he was exploring and understanding his asexuality. It was such a joy to read such great representation!
I am thoroughly obsessed with Thomas and how protective he is of Andrew.
This story had a great balance of horror mixed with small slithers of romance, friendship and plot twists. The ending was very unexpected and the illustrations were GORGEOUS

So so so so sooooooo good. Loved the balance between heartwarming and unsettling lol. I’m going to be thinking about this one for some time.

Unreliable narrator plus more. We realize what's going on at the same time Thomas does, which is interesting because Andrew is the sole narrator. I cried at the end. Tags: dark academia, nature horror, asexuality, ptsd, unreliable narrator, graphic depictions of mental health crises.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review. This book officially publishes on 10/29/24!

I will say right at the start that I don’t believe I was the ideal reader for this book. Being an older reader, the characters were difficult for me to relate to, as this novel takes place at a private high school. That being said, I really enjoyed the unique premise of this novel, the LGBTQIA+ representation, and the format of the book. I do wish that some more things were tidied up by the end, as I do still have some lingering questions. Overall, however, if YA horror is your favorite genre or one that is comfortable for you, you would absolutely love this book.

I have so many feelings about this book. It was dark and interesting enough, but about halfway through, Andrew really started to get on my nerves. I couldn't understand how he could be so oblivious and whiny. I just kept pushing through. So many things unraveled in the end, and it totally made sense. I don't want to give any spoilers, so I can't really say too much. But, if you are into dark gothic stories, this is a good one to read.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for this ARC!

I’m not a huge horror person, but sometimes a story comes along that makes me want to leave my comfort zone. This was one of those stories. Once I started reading, I couldn’t stop. Everything about this book was just so good: the psychological horror, the atmosphere, the dark fairy tale vibes. The thing I think I liked most of all was the relationship between Andrew and Thomas. The love that they had for each other was so deep and the lengths they were willing to go for each other was beautiful in a dark way.

I also appreciated the asexual representation. It always makes me happy to see ace rep popping up in different genres. Also, can we take a second to appreciate this gorgeous cover? It perfectly encapsulates the vibe of this book. Gosh, I loved this book so much. It might be one of my favorites that I’ve read this year.

I'm much more interested in sapphic horror so I'm not entirely sure why I requested this one, my bad.

This story was truly a haunting experience. I’m not sure that I can find a better way to describe it. I’m sitting here with tears in my eyes, just trying to figure out what everything meant. Was this a fever dream ignited by the absolute devastation experienced by Andrew? Or was there really a horrible magic born out of it that caused the forest to infiltrate every facet of his life and attack with an unforgiving vengeance?!

The prose is so beautiful and poetic in this. The descriptions, to me, felt deeply romantic, if not a little macabre. I know that sounds strange, but the writing resonated with me and the entire experience was unlike anything I’ve read before.

I would highly recommend this to anyone looking for an eerie and atmospheric read! It has angst and tension, emotional insecurity of adolescence, dark and emotional themes, forest monsters, and a journey through destructive grief. It’s dark…really dark and really sad. I’m not going to forget this one.