First of all, thank you to NetGalley, C.G. Drews, and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

The writing is just gorgeous. It's so.. tangible... if that makes sense?? It's dark, descriptive, weird, and magical, and there are these little stories within the larger story, because the MC (Andrew) is himself a writer of short dark fairy tales.

We get everything from Andrew's POV and you can tell from the start that there is something a bit off about him. He is a senior in High School and has a twin sister named Dove. He's in love with his best friend Thomas, but he's afraid to share his feelings because 1) he doesn't want to jeopardize their friendship and 2) he's asexual and worried he won't be "enough" for Thomas.

All the characters attend a boarding school in the US (although Andrew and his twin are from Australia). Andrew and Thomas have this incredibly close and intimate relationship where Andrew shares his dark fairytales with Thomas, and Thomas draws the monsters from Andrew's tales. But then one day, the monsters start coming to life.

And so begins a lot of monster hunting, some blood and gore (not excessive though), and just a lot of mystery and strangeness as Thomas and Andrew try to figure out how to stop the monsters from destroying everyone and everything that they know and love.

The problem I had with DLTFI, was that after a while the monster battles started to feel a bit repetitive. At the same time, I felt like there was not enough effort put in to the character development to make me really care about Andrew or Thomas However, horror isn't my normal genre (romance is) so I am used to a bit more focus on characters and relationships... ymmv. But overall, I did enjoy DLTFI.

Dear CG Drews,

Thank you for giving the world a book about queerness and strangeness and horror. It's absolutely INCREDIBLE and filled with strange boys with sharp teeth and a forest that wants to take back. If I were to say one thing to potential readers, it's this: buckle up. This book is one that deserves to be read and loved and raved about, and I think the world might not be ready for it yet. I will be screaming about this from the rooftops for a very long time, and I think my friends will as well.

Sincerely,
An absolutely enraptured reader

As always, all my thanks to NetGalley and the Publisher for allowing me the chance to read this ARC. Buy this book!

This book felt like it started off a little slow but towards the middle it started to pick up! It threw me for a loop several times and I had to reread the twists because I couldn't fathom what was happening. This book felt so real and I can't wait to read more for this author!

Maybe I wasn't in the mood for this kind of novel or I didn't connect with the characters but I didn't care for this one. I found it slow at some points and it was hard to keep my attention.

I freakin' LOVED this book. The cover pulled me in, but on reading the synopsis I thought maybe I'm too old for dark academia and almost passed it up. I've since preordered the B&N special edition for my trophy shelf.

A few grammatical errors were found, hopefully to be fixed in the final version that will be published, but otherwise the writing style was engaging and kept me questioning the motives and sanity of each of the characters. I would like to read more by this author in the future, but hope this story stays a standalone book.

I wasn’t planning on starting and finishing this book in one night, but I was obsessed from the start.
This book is dark, emotional and macabre. I honestly didn’t expect to love this book as much as I did, but now I’m scouring the internet (and the authors instagram page!!) for similar recommendations because this book scratched an itch I didn’t know I had! Thomas, Andrew and Dove are all such beautifully well-developed characters. The dynamic between the three of them is interesting and frustrating and wonderfully fleshed out. There is no lack of detail in this book. I have been wanting to dip my toes into more horror-leaning books and this delivered!
I hate to give too much of the plot away in my reviews because I think going into the book blind is the best way to experience it. If you don’t mind gore, can appreciate twists that you’ll never see coming and want to see more asexual representation in your reads PLEASE pick this book up! I can’t wait to read more books from this author!

Thank you to Netgalley and Macmillan Children’s Publishing group for allowing me an early copy of Don’t Let the Forest In by C. G. Drews.

A very entertaining, unsettling read. It was fast-paced and I can safely say there wasn’t a moment of reading where I felt bored. I found it easy to get invested in the characters and their world. I think this would be a perfect read for autumn, as it has quite a spooky vibe to it. I wasn’t really sure what to expect going into it, but I can definitely say that, having now finished reading it, I’m pleasantly surprised.

thanks to NetGalley for the eARC

⭐️=4 | 😘=2 | 🤬=3 | ⚔️=5 | 15+

summary: so this boy goes back to this creepy school and he writes scary stories and his friend draws illustrations for them and there’s a creepy forest that’s coming alive with monsters that look suspiciously like the ones in his stories (this is a kind of basic and very bad explanation bc it’s more complicated than that but also makes sense)

thoughts: I was really really liking this (intrigue, quick pacing, creepy prose, mystery, interesting character, the LGBTQ of it all). however, it tried to do a double take thing once it got to the Big Reveal (which was foreshadowed quite well btw), and that didn’t work for me. I don’t really know how to describe what happened, but basically there was a moment that a thing should have been immediately revealed (in my opinion) and it was dragged out longer. this is a kind of picky, specific thing that I’m calling out, because overall this was very, very good!! yes!

(there were also a couple of moments where the plot and author’s style would, like, screech to a halt so we could (literally) have a GSA meeting and explain what asexuality is, and like, yeah, that’s annoying, but I get that this is YA and at least a semi-function of the genre. like I can work my suspension of disbelief around those parameters yk)

i loved this books prose and overall writing. it really captured the eerie feelings and i loved the dark academia vibes.

thank you netgalley for the e-arc!

This haunting and unsettling horror novel will have you on the edge of your seat. The atmospheric writing and the descriptions are on point and the characters and absolutely unreal. What a great novel.

4.5 ★

What made me like this book is that it gives justice to psychological horror, painting an eerie dark academia aesthetic and carries a haunting form of storytelling through striking prose. C.G. Drews’s writing style is very beautiful and descriptive so that I could easily create the scenes in my mind from her words alone. To add, the characterization of the main character Andrew was well done, especially as we read through him traversing through the spectrum of asexuality and he had a delightfully dark dynamic with Thomas that keeps a reader going. Moreover, it took me through the experiences of having ED, panic attack/ disorder, and anxiety. As someone that fits one of these boxes, it was very realistic to read and allowed me to empathize with him. Overall, this book is deeply rooted in gothic fiction and is a dark and twisted tale about loss and grief and I greatly recommend!

i was reading this before my surgery and after the surgery i picked it up again but just couldnt get through so i am rating it based on the half i read and i love it honestly i will finish it when i am out of the hospital

One branch was broken.
Don’t Let The Forest In primarily follows Andrew, a fragile boy with a head full of grim stories and bloodthirsty creatures as he navigates his final year at Wickwood with his best friend, Thomas.
The two are inseparable. To pull them apart would be to rip one lung from the other. They wouldn’t breathe—nor live—without their other half.
This year, there’s monsters in the dark forest that encroaches on Wickwood property. Monsters that come straight from Thomas’s sketchbook, the monsters he illustrated from Andrew’s stories. It is up to the both of them to protect their classmates and put a stop to whatever is causing Thomas’s art to come alive in worse than flesh and blood.
For me, this didn’t feel like a book of paper and ink. This story breathes organically on its own.
I opened it up many times at a respectable time in the evening only to get consumed and spat out sometime around 1am when sleep would finally then have permission to take me.
I flew through it, consumed it as it consumed me, I lived and felt pain but I wasn’t dried up at the end. I felt inspired.
C.G. Drews’ writing style and prose is so beautiful. I found myself often highlighting quotes and scenes from the book, planning drawings and animatics in my head. I wanted to include more quotes in this review but it’s a struggle not to just quote the entire book.
The characters’ beautiful moments of safety and comfort were mine and their moments of terror were too. The monsters were beautiful and horrific and truly poetic, I got chills at many points.
If you want a dark academia book, C.G. Drews will give you a dark academia book. They’ve truly delivered. I’ve read other aesthetic-minded stories before but this one hit all the right beats.
An important thing to keep in mind before you read, is that this story wasn’t written to comfort you or to make you feel safe.
Much like the Grimm Brothers, C. G. Drews has handcrafted a beautiful and dark tale meant to unsettle the reader, and force them to study the macabre.
These characters were not meant to be role models to follow, the forest is not friendly, and the darkest things that can happen, will. Only after recognizing this then you can truly enjoy this awesome tome of botanical horror and sweet, delicious obsession.
I quite liked the characters; and I love Thomas and Andrew. Their dynamic was interestingly complex, tender and loving but in unhealthy amounts. Their interactions were messy and realistic and alive. I loved it.
Side characters Lana and Chloe were amazing. I love their personalities and their differentiating ways of showing kindness.
Now something icky that I did want to mention, and I’m not sure if it was all done on purpose… but some of the monsters had sexual undertones fitting to what Dan O'Bannon had said of Alien (1979) and I don’t know if that’s worthy of a trigger warning or not considering its range of subtlety.
On the subject of trigger warnings, I will warn people who struggle with body image and/or eating disorders that there are detailed descriptions of Andrew’s dangerously thin body and his struggle to eat regularly due to the events of the book. It’s not exactly eating disorder related but I still wanted to mention it.
Despite that, I really liked this story and I can’t wait to get my grubby little goblin hands on the B&N special edition hehe.
Thank you Netgalley for the ARC, and thank you C.G. Drews for this sickeningly-sweet wonder of a tale! I had a lot of fun and I look forward to reading more of your stories.

[withholding my review at the moment due to the St. Martin's Press Boycott. will add as soon as possible!]

Ah, queer longing and unfathomable horrors. What more could you ask for?

I grabbed this book for the queer characters and botanical motifs, but the horror is what locks this in as a favorite. I love the contrast between poised dark academia and chaotic wilds, especially when the lines blur. Don't Let the Forest In winds up slowly, then releases all that tension in a bloody, disorienting whirl. I'm still feeling a bit dizzy!

Don't Let the Forest In is gilded in the most beautiful and nauseating descriptive language. With the prose and the plot twists, this book deserves a re-read someday.

If you're like me and prefer YA horror that doesn't shy away from depravity...you won't be disappointed. What a stellar debut!

I'm grateful for the opportunity to read this ARC for free. I'm leaving this review of my own accord.

This is probably my current favorite dark academia book that I've ever read. I love everything about it--the vibes, the characters, the relationships. I will 1000 percent be rereading this!

I cannot tell you how excited I am for this book to be in my hands right this second. so many parts made me stare at the forest behind my home

TRAGICALLY beautiful. i cannot emphasize how good this was.

a twist of horror, fantastical beings, & fairytale level storytelling... all brought together to bring this masterpiece.

i loved the suspense. just when i thought i knew what was going to happen... well, i was most definitely wrong. i sat there for a good 5 minutes after finishing, just trying to wrap my head around that ENDING!

andrew and thomas are now officially my babies. my dark forest, monster slaying babies.

//"It hadn't hurt, the day he had cut out his own heart...
No one would want a heart like his. But he'd still cut it out and given it away. //

CG Drews just earned themselves a new fan. i am wholeheartedly prepared to devour any story they write, if it brings anything close to this level of cottage-core melancholy

received as an arc

I loved this book! I loved the character and the total vibe of the book. It kept me engaged with what was going on. I loved the dark and intense scenes with Andrew and this monster or monsters. I will be buying this book when it is released. I will write a better review than on my official blog, but I loved it!

C.G. Drews' "Don't Let the Forest In" is a hauntingly beautiful exploration of grief, resilience, and the power of stories. Set against the backdrop of a mystical forest where secrets whisper and shadows loom, this novel unfolds as a poignant journey through loss and healing.

At its heart is protagonist Eimear, a young woman grappling with the recent loss of her brother and the weight of her family's expectations. Drews portrays Eimear with sensitivity and depth, capturing the rawness of her emotions as she navigates guilt, sorrow, and the gradual unraveling of buried family secrets.

The novel's atmosphere is richly atmospheric, immersing readers in a world where the boundaries between reality and myth blur. Drews' lyrical prose weaves a tapestry of dark enchantment, evoking both the beauty and danger lurking within the forest's depths. The forest itself becomes a character—an entity that both threatens and comforts, holding keys to Eimear's past and her future.

Interwoven with Eimear's narrative are snippets of folklore and fairy tales, adding layers of meaning and symbolism to the story. These tales serve as mirrors to Eimear's own journey, offering insights into the human experience of loss, resilience, and the enduring power of hope.

"Drews' storytelling is masterful, seamlessly blending elements of magical realism with poignant human drama. The pacing is deliberate, drawing readers deeper into Eimear's world with each turn of the page. The supporting cast, from enigmatic strangers to steadfast friends, adds depth and complexity to the narrative, each character leaving a lasting impression.

Ultimately, "Don't Let the Forest In" is a mesmerizing read that lingers in the mind long after the final chapter. C.G. Drews' evocative prose and nuanced exploration of grief make this novel a standout in contemporary fiction—a testament to the resilience of the human spirit and the healing power of stories.