“It sneaks, skulks, stalks. I see a tail, a snout, peaked ears.
My heart kicks a heavy beat.
The Grimm wolf.”

I received this ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

While The Deathly Grimm by Kathryn Purdie isn’t my usual genre, I really enjoyed the spooky vibes of the forest and the fairy-tale-inspired story. This second book in the duology follows Clara and Axel as they venture back into the cursed forest after villagers mysteriously disappear.

The YA story hits all the expected beats: love, drama, and a perilous adventure. While the pacing dragged at times, the conclusion was satisfying and tied the story together nicely. Fans of YA or darker fairy tales will feel right at home with this eerie and atmospheric tale.

This book is whimsical and enchanting with a touch of horror. It has the feel of little red riding hood, if Red was in Caraval. I liked the romance, the characters, are the magic but it fell short in the ending.

This was such a good book. I loved the story and the writing so much. The characters were great and the story flowed smoothly. Will definitely read more books by this author in the future.

This book picks up where the first leaves off! Clara and Axel have returned from the Forest Grimm, however, their peace doesn’t last long. The forest continues to beckon more villagers to it’s depths, making Clara and Axel realize that part of the curse is still alive.

They return to the forest, resolved to find who it was that caused the curse and destroy it once and for all. Along the way, as in the first book, they encounter various ghosts, usually villagers or characters based off of fairy tales.

Overall the story is well done but it feels a bit long. I was very invested for the first half of the book and then the slow pace started to catch up with me. I thought this was a decent conclusion overall to the duology and everything is wrapped up at the end of the book.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

In Deathly Grimm, the sequel to The Forest Grimm, Clara and Axel have finally made it safely back to the village. But when more villagers go missing they discover that though they defeated the Wolf they did not end the curse. They are not out of the woods yet. Clara and Axel must return to the forest to find the murderer and lift the curse once and for all.

I really enjoyed Kathryn Purdie's first book in this duology, The Forest Grimm. It was very enjoyable to slip back into the story, knowing more about the forest and the worldbuilding. I really liked how Rumpelstiltskin and the Frog Prince were woven into this book. That said, the last half became very clunky with confusing storylines, and loose ends that were tied up quickly at the end. I thought the character of Ollie was dragged out, and after all the buildup, the solution was a bit too easily fixed.

I think the idea is a good one, and I will read more by this author, but the first book was certainly more satisfying.

In a sequel just as dark and twisty as it's predecessor, Purdie has woven a unique set of fairytale retelling, creating a dark and atmospheric series that blew me away. Pick up if you love a fantasy with bite!

Thank you to the publisher for sending a review copy

honestly after reading the first one and being mostly bored with all of the walking around the characters do, I didn’t think i’d be interested in the sequel. BUT given the cliffhanger ending and my curiosity I decided to give it a try

let’s start with this: I completely understand that this is a YA book intended for YA (13-18) audiences. HOWEVER, this book and writing is so unbelievably juvenile it felt like I was reading middle grade. The author would mention things that happened in the previous chapter as if we the audience had already forgotten? do we really think teens are incapable of holding a plot in their heads?

okay now the actual story itself: similarly to the first book, lots of walking around the forest and lots of nothing. and then the story takes off towards a sprint to the end as if distracting you from the rest of the mess of the book you will only remember the finale and feel satisfied. it’s equally dull and repetitive while being completely predictable.

if you loved the first one, awesome, great news for you. you will probably love this.

if not, then save your time and effort

as always thank you to the publisher and netgalley for a copy of the book for my honest review

I had not realized this was book #2 of a series. I personally always want to read them in order, however, I still enjoyed “The Deathly Grimm”.

Clara and the villagers are panicking since people were gone missing in the forest. It seems what Clara and Axel did in the first book wasn’t enough. So determined to end the curse, Clara heads back into the forest with Axel. But they face deadly situations, one after the other.

This is a dark fairy tale retelling with tense moments and romance. It’s a grabbing read most of the way. I want to say that this wasn’t fast-paced but I enjoyed it nonetheless.

4/5 stars! I thoroughly enjoyed this book and I could not put it down. The Deathly Grimm is book two in The Forest Grimm duology. This is book is releasing March 25, 2025. Thank you to Kathryn Purdue and Netgalley for the opportunity to read an advanced copy of this book.

I've loved this duology. The Forest is still holding on to it's magic as Clara and Axel work to find the tokens of those who are Lost. Clara can try to see parts of their past and find information about the future by having visions, but she doesn't have control over it. Yet.

As they venture into the forest to save their friends and break the curse, they find and befriend a frog who used to be a villager. But soon they will find out what kind of friend he will be. Bringing more of the original Grimm fairy tales to life, Clara and Axel race time to break a curse and save them all.

This solid sequel to (second half of) the Forest Grimm sees Clara and Axel continuing to work to untangle the curse around their village. Even though a few of the villagers have been reclaimed from the forest, most are still missing and the curse still holds most of the forest in its grasp. They need to untangle the mystery of who stole the book in the first place to finally get their Happily Ever After.

The worldbuilding and characters remain solid and the plot is both nicely twisty and at times personal to the main characters. The fairy tales themselves remain familiar but in a dark, deadly way that echoes back to the origin of fairy tales rather than the sanitized versions we tel today. All in all, a great book.

This was one of my most highly anticipated sequels this year and I was NOT disappointed! It was great to dive back into Purdie's eerie world and continue on Axel and Clara's adventure. I can't wait to see what's next.


Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Thank you Netgalley for this arc in exchange for an honest review.

The Deadly Grimm is a captivating sequel to Forest Grimm, continuing the eerie and enchanting tale of Clara and Axel as they journey back into the forest to break a dark curse that grips their village. The book maintains a tense, mysterious atmosphere throughout, though there's a brief lull in the middle as Clara struggles with her ability to see visions. This slower pace is essential for deepening both the characters' development and the unraveling of the curse. The story culminates in a satisfying conclusion that ties everything together.

One of the standout elements of the duology is the author's skillful integration of Grimm’s fairy tales, blending familiar and twisted elements into the plot to enhance the atmosphere. This thoughtful use of folklore breathes new life into classic myths.

Overall, The Deadly Grimm is a beautifully written, immersive conclusion to the duology, full of heart, mystery, and magic. Fans of the first book will find this sequel highly rewarding and satisfying.

These pages take off after a little time has passed from the end of the first read...or so I'm getting that vibe. Since I didn't read the first one in the duology, I can't say for sure. While I am missing out on a few background occurrences, which would no doubt help know the characters and such a bit better, it wasn't too hard to sink into this one right away and get caught up into the story.

We meet Clara as the villagers are falling into panic since individuals have begun to go missing in the forest. Supposedly, the problem was somewhat taken care of with the book and the wish, but it seems to have only worked halfway, which isn't enough. Determined to correct the situation, Clara heads back into the forest with Axel to find a way to end the curse once and for all, but the forest is deadlier than ever. They face deadly situations, one after the other, as the ability to save the village fades with the realization that they may not survive that long.

This is a rich, dark world with high-stakes, tense moments, sweet romance, and a line-up of splintered fairytales. Fairytale knowers will enjoy that different, dangerous takes on the familiar characters Clara and Axel come up against. It's very imaginative, magically enticing, and holds more than a few surprises. While the romance is sweet and doesn't take over the tale (and stays age appropriate), the dark tones hit with the stakes and dangerous scenes. It's not for sensitive readers but will thrill those who dab their fingers into gothic fiction.

It's a grabbing read most of the way through, and it's hard no to root for Clara and Axel as they struggle their way through in hopes of finally finding an end to the problem. This wasn't quite as fast-paced, though, as it might have been and does slow down at times. While this gives readers moments to sink into the characters, relationships, and emotions, it had the action girl in me skimming here and there. Still, it's a rich read with tons to enjoy.

I loved the first book, especially the budding romance between Axel and Clara and all the twisted fairy tales.

The sequel however, fell a bit flat. It started out strong, with Axel and Clara going back into the forest to save their villiage. However, it starts to drag at that point, as they seem to wander in the forest for quite some time without much happening.

For me this book was decent, but not as enjoyable as the first book.

Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martins Press for providing me with an eARC of this book to read and review.

*this will have some spoilers from the 1st book, proceed at your own risk. If you love Burton’s Sleepy Hollow & a mix of Disney/Grimm’s fairytales, you should read this duology* I was super excited for the 2nd book in this duology. I loved the 1st, it was dark with an interesting spin on fairytales & I had gone into it unsure what to expect. We pick up almost right where we left off in the 1st, the dark fairytale forest setting is back for round 2, but with a murder mystery & a ticking clock thrown in; now Clara & Axel must reenter the forest & will either completely break or seal the curse on Grimm’s Hollow. Kathryn brings a new twist to different tales this time around, while keeping true to the foreboding feel of the forest, of not knowing what’s coming, & keeping readers on the edge of their seat for the next dark twist. I appreciate that she’s not afraid to include death in the story, it’s never a case of ‘& they saved ALL the villagers & everyone lived happily ever after!’
I loved being back in a story with Clara & Axel, but there was a lot of tension with them this time around that I didn’t love, however I can also see how it was necessary for the story.
I felt that the connection with Harlan & Clara seemed a bit forced.
I would have enjoyed seeing a bit more of Henni & some of the other villagers, but I feel this story was a bit more about the past for Clara’s & Axel’s families & gaining some closure. I did pick up on one of the twists, but will admit that the last 100 or so pages of the book threw me & absolutely kept me on my toes, wondering how it would play out, in the end. For me, this was satisfying closure for the duology!

The sequel to The Forest Grimm does a nice job of wrapping up the story of the Clara Thurn. I found it a little slow at times, but overall it was a good conclusion to the series.

3.4
The fairy tales didn't really ring the way they did in the first one, and the pacing felt...choppy? But my biggest concern was just that our main character picked the most disturbing times to start feeling frisky. Like, it was weird.