#The Butcher of the Forest

[aroaessidhe]

faves of 2024: novellas

Walking Practice

The Dead Cat Tail Assassins

The Salt Grows Heavy

Dehiscent

As Born to Rule The Storm

The Butcher of the Forest

Graveyard Shift

Pluralities

Rose/House

The Brides of High Hill

Small Gods of Calamity

The Labyrinth Beckons

Party of Fools

The Fireborne Blade

The River Has Roots

[bigcats-birds-and-books]

Books of 2024: THE BUTCHER OF THE FOREST by Premee Mohamed.

Up next! I've enjoyed other books by this author (NO ONE WILL COME BACK FOR US and THE ANNUAL MIGRATION OF CLOUDS), AND one of my other fave authors (Hiron Ennes!) blurbs this one, AND it's Tor (beloved)!! It seems like a good transition out of SOMEONE TO BUILD A NEST IN, too, and I love daisy-chaining what I'm reading for Connection and Flow.

[charasthetics]

The Butcher of the Forest

[gcantread]

September 2024 reads

[loved liked ok nope dnf bookclub*]

Agnes Grey • The Empire Wars • Vita Nostra • 17776: What Football Will Look Like in the Future • Somewhere Beyond the Sea • A Sorceress Comes to Call • Tress of the Emerald Sea • Long Live Evil • Books Do Furnish a Room • A Sunny Place for Shady People • Mansfield Park* • The Butcher of the Forest

I read 12 books in September, though several were short (and one was a... multimedia experience? What are we calling 17776 anyway?) I've been feeling a little burnt out on ARCs and @bellasbookclub -screening reads, so after the first week I took a break from those. Just as well, because I was once again abruptly drowning in new releases! Luckily only four library holds were ready at once this month. Have I learned my lesson about hold requests? Not at all.

Agnes Grey ★★★☆☆ - I enjoyed the semi-autobiographical "being a governess SUCKS" parts of this book (that bird scene holy shit), but I think I would have liked it better with a less milquetoast love interest.

The Empire Wars ★☆☆☆☆ - Oooooof. I thought there was no way any of the books in my self-imposed Bombed Books Week Challenge could be worse/less enjoyable than Hurricane Wars and TGUWG, but this one took the cake. There's "I wrote this at age 15" (impressive) and then there's "I wrote this at age 15" (and it shows/and I can't believe multiple literate adults in the publishing industry greenlit it.) "Hazen Creed" is the new Xylen Rayder or whatever the 4th w!ng guy's name is

Vita Nostra ★★★★☆ - I was promised weird shit and this book delivered! You don't get it? Good news, nobody gets it, we're literally just vibing

17776: What Football Will Look Like in the Future ★★★★☆ - Some interesting themes and a lot of fun! (I liked when it started zooming in on Denver and I was like wait a fucking second is that Ball Arena??)

Somewhere Beyond the Sea ★☆☆☆☆ - Yeah, I can't lie, this was a hateread. No other series makes me feel more like the child in "The Emperor's New Clothes." Like, people enjoy this?? Adults?? Adults think this is good storytelling??? I'm not even trying to be mean (well, maybe a little), I'm genuinely baffled. Remember when I described Book 1 as "like driving behind a Coexist bumper sticker for several hours"? Book 2 is like driving behind a Coexist bumper sticker while also listening to someone read you the worst parts of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix but in Kindergarten Teacher Voice, and for even more hours. Lesson learned: I have got to stop picking these up imagining I'll somehow see the appeal this time.

A Sorceress Comes to Call ★★★★★ - My first ever T. Kingfisher! I've always been hesitant to believe the hype, but to my pleasant surprise, this one was fantastic. The stakes, the characters, the evil fucking horse had me on the edge of my seat. Pretty crazy when the interior of a book lives up to its gorgeous cover. Had to rush out and buy this one from my local bookstore!

Tress of the Emerald Sea ★★★★☆ - Fun and cute! The main draw is definitely the silly writing style.

Long Live Evil ★★★★☆ - Took its time to get going, but the second half really gained momentum. This book's main flaw is that it isn't In Other Lands, but it's nevertheless nice to see SRB cut loose and write a silly isekai/harem trope pastiche that is somehow also a thoughtful cancer survivor catharsis.

Books Do Furnish a Room ★★★☆☆ - When I picked up this coffee table book at the library on a whim, nothing could have prepared me for its Caricature Of British Aristocracy tone. Like at one point this author calls Africa "a country." Seriously, they do not edit the text of these things. Pretty pictures, though.

A Sunny Place for Shady People ★★★★☆ - I'll read Mariana Enriquez's grocery list. On the whole, Sunny Place wasn't as gripping as Our Share of Night, but some of its individual stories (it's an anthology) stood out—I loved the nuance of My Sad Dead and the nightmare fuel of Black Eyes! Some choice body horror in here.

Mansfield Park ★★★☆☆ - A reread for Bella's Book Club's September discussion! I think I liked it better this time around? I definitely noticed more of the character arcs. I like that this is lowkey the messiest Austen. [Community episode voice] now THIS is a man who KNOWS HOW TO MARRY HIS COUSIN

The Butcher of the Forest ★★★★☆ - I'm slowly working my way through Tordotcom novellas and so far they all slap. This one had such an interesting ending, ngl I'm having to quash the Fanfic Urge about it!

DNFs: None, but boy would I have dropped The Empire Wars like a hot potsticker on about page 2 if it wasn't the last (or second-to-last, if you count control group Crown of Starlight) book in my own challenge.

September superlatives

tbh a lot of these books could swap spots with each other. I'll definitely be rereading Sorceress, and probably LLE when the next book in its series comes out!

Next up:

I still haven't gotten around to Crown of Starlight, so it looks like I'll be finishing up my Bombed Books Week Challenge in October. Nor have I gotten to my ARCs of Ruin Road or Sundown in San Ojuela, so those are both on this month's agenda. My current read is A Dark and Drowning Tide (I seem to be the one reader on the planet who didn't much like A Far Wilder Magic, but I like to give authors a second chance, and that cover + the fact that they're lesbians, Harold got to me.) I'd love to squeeze in a King in Yellow reread if possible, and our Bella's Book Club pick this month is Murder on the Orient Express, so...perfect October rereads? I'm kinda stoked!

previous months:

july august

[libraryofbaxobab]

March 17, 2024:

My streak of fantasies with themes of colonialism continues. Of course the locals know that no one who goes into the woods ever returns, but the conqueror monarch's children are a different story. The question is, are they fully innocent of their father's crimes, or poised to benefit from the continuation of violence?

The first thing I noticed about this dark fairytale is that it's so pretty. I was on, like, page two and already smiling like I was looking at a beautiful painting. So while the story is painful and cruel, the writing is lush so you can feel free to agonize succulently.

A lot of the traditional hallmarks of old fairy tales can easily get lost in translation for a modern reader. We prefer things to be fair, to make sense, to be explained. For even harshness to follow its own recognizable logic. There is a bit of that last one present here, but I'm pleased to see the resurrection of some classic tropes:

The rules that must be followed seem nonsensical and arbitrary

The creatures are certainly unkind but not necessarily malicious

Punishments are severe & enforced by the world itself

Supernatural powers are not explained or even questioned

Unclear if protagonist's abilities are magic or cleverness

Magic is real but also isn't

As you can probably tell, worldbuilding is both the focus and the highlight, so the tradeoff is that the narrative itself isn't complex & the characters aren't super dynamic (much like a classic fairytale, how about that).

7.5/10 #WhatsKenyaReading

[ash-and-books]

Rating: 3/5

Book Blurb:

"Exactly the kind of punishment we as readers deserve."—Hiron Ennes, author of Leech

A world-weary woman races against the clock to survive a deadly forest in this dark, otherworldly fairytale from Nebula and World Fantasy Award-winning author Premee Mohamed.

At the northern edge of a land ruled by a merciless foreign tyrant lies a wild, forbidden forest ruled by powerful magic.

Veris Thorn—the only one to ever enter the forest and survive—is forced to go back inside to retrieve the tyrant's missing children. Inside await traps and trickery, ancient monsters, and hauntings of the past.

One day is all Veris is afforded. One misstep will cost everything.

Review:

When a tyrant forces a woman to retrieve his children who have gone into the forbidden forest with a deadline that has her entire village's lives on the line, she'll have to outsmart monsters, gods, and pay a price. This is a mixture of a dark fairytale with elements of horror and Alice in Wonderland. The story follows Veris Thorn, the only person to have ever entered the forbidden forest that is ruled by powerful magic, and live. She is now forced to go back in and retrieve the tyrant's missing children and if she fails he'll kill her entire village. Once in the woods she'll be faced by her past demons as well as new gods and monsters who thwart her every attempt to rescue the children and escape. This was definitely an interesting dark fairytale and I appreciate the Alice in Wonderland Horror aspects to it. However, it just felt like it was missing something, I kind of wished it had a better flow and it kind of leaves you with some answered questions and then there was one very triggering moment towards the end that felt so unnecessary and really just threw me off. I kind of wish there was something memorable about this story but it kind of felt bland and I don't think I'll necessarily remember it after reading it. Overall, if you enjoy dark fairytales I think you'll like this and should give it a go.

*Thanks Netgalley and Tor Publishing Group, Tordotcom for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*

[andtheghost]

Got two (very different!) books from the library today. I’m not sure which one to read first. I was thinking maybe Butcher, since it seems a lot heavier than Cottage, and it’s also a lot shorter.

Suggestions?

[rhetoricandlogic]

REVIEW: The Butcher of the Forest by Premee Mohamed

April 11, 2024 By Carrie Chi Lough

Veris Thorn has seen death. She had survived the war and the tyranny that never ended. As a woman nearing forty, she knows suffering. It is why she cherishes her remaining family and keeps a low profile. However, the tyrant king has called upon her. As the sole person to have entered the forest of Elmever and survived, Veris is tasked with rescuing the tyrant’s lost children. But these woods hide more than monsters. The woods itself possess a power to expose fear and spawn nightmares. To save her family, Veris will enter these woods and face hell once more. Premee Mohamed unleashes a startling and tragic tale in The Butcher of the Forest.

Veris Thorn in The Butcher of the Forest is an excellent portrayal of a traumatized character. The story of her past is slowly and almost sparsely revealed throughout the novella. Each fragment of her life is like finding a clue and unlocking a mystery. She is a character a reader wants to know more about.

The strong characterization in Veris Thorn intensifies the horror elements in The Butcher of the Forest. Since the reader is provided snippets of Veris’s first time in Elmever, we get to know both the younger and present-day Veris. Back then, she was stronger and braver. Present-day Veris has lived through more trauma and developed different fears. The woods is unsettling in both timelines.

“I am no adventurer, no warrior, no soldier. The tyrant should have sent some giant in his employ. Ah, but the giant would never have returned.”

Premee Mohamed lightly scatters backflashes of when the Tyrant King first invaded Veris’s home. How the tyrant stole power deserves its own full story. The Tyrant’s rule portrayed in The Butcher of the Forest is its own nightmare.

The worldbuilding in The Butcher of the Forest is vivid. In many ways, Veris is a prisoner to her own culture. She is an example of what guilt feels like for not complying to social expectations. The magic system is clever and adaptive. The book could have been longer.

The Butcher of the Forest is largely psychological horror with atmospheric elements. It is a swift and dark narrative of Veris Thorn’s life. She offers a unique perspective of a traumatized character. The woods has a dominating presence. The Butcher of the Forest never quite crosses the absolutely terrifying threshold but is a captivating story all the same.

[brokenhandsmedia]

Another round of book reviews, covering a number of new and classic horror and fantasy novels.

[aroaessidhe]

2024 reads / storygraph

The Butcher of the Forest

novella

a woman is forced by the tyrant king to enter the wild and dangerous north forest to find his children - as she’s the only person to enter and return from it once before

and must face strange and unsettling creatures, bargains, traps, and her past

[bigcats-birds-and-books]

Books of 2024: Wrap-Up.

Hello world!! I read sixty-three (63) books in 2024, and here they are! The pages-out books are stand-ins for library books and other borrowed books (which were ADHD for Smartass Women, When Among Crows, Ghost Station, and The Killing Floor). Mostly these are shelved in the order I read them, save for the stack at the end (Ordinary Monsters is Too Tall to fit on my current shelf arrangement, and the borrowed books are out of order).

I posted individual photos (and sometimes reviews!) of everything pictured here, which you can find tagged with their titles or authors, or you can see all of them if you peruse my "books of 2024" tag. Now, for the Highlight Reel, in order of when I read them:

FIVE FAVES

The City We Became by NK Jemisin ★★★★★ Always love Jemisin, but this duology had me laughing more than I remembered for her other books, which I definitely needed! Excellent cast (your honor I love Paolo so much and also literally all of the boroughs), I tore through this by staying up past my bedtime too many nights in a row.

The Butcher of the Forest by Premee Mohamed ★★★★★ Perfect tiny little gutpunch of a book MADE FOR ME, I loved it so damn much. Everyone please go read this immediately.

The Actor and the Target by Declan Donnellan ★★★★★ I was not expecting this to rewire my brain, but it DID, over and over and over again. Very dense chewy book, which I read hoping to get inside an actor character's head better, but honestly I think anyone who does any kind of art or creative endeavor should read this, because OOF was it insightful. (I have ordered his second book that came out this year, but it's hugely on backorder apparently.)(Go figure: The first one was SO GOOD.)

Leech by Hiron Ennes ★★★★★ This was a reread for me, and I'm so glad I revisited it--it holds up even better than the first time through, because so much of it falls into place once you know what's really going on. Masterclass in POV, very gothic, very fucked up, very Deep Winter book, I very much think anyone who was An Animorphs Kid would enjoy the hell out of this (but mind the content warnings, of which there are Many).

Self-Portrait with Nothing by Aimee Pokwatka ★★★★½ This one also hit my perfect trifecta of weird-and-funny-and-fucked-up exactly right, which I wasn't expecting? Pleasant surprise there at the end of the year. Come for the family heart crimes, stay for the unhinged overseas texts to your husband about an art heist, what a blast.

TWO TWOS

turns out i didn't actually read any 1-star books this year, so here's the bottom of the barrel, and yes i DID write lengthy salty reviews about both of these, if you're interested in the particulars of My Beef

Ordinary Monsters by JM Miro ★★ This was too damn long and ~Messy™~, and all of that just to end on a cliffhanger because it's a trilogy. Why did I bother with this 600+ page brick (oh, right: because it sounded promising)(it was Not, or at least not Enough).

Ghost Station by SA Barnes ★★ This was TOO DAMN FRUSTRATING (bad science, bad scientists, stupid characters, etc), and there was JUST ENOUGH neat promising worldbuilding in the background that Could Have Been Cool to make this otherwise mediocre experience enraging. Super bummed, because I wanted to read this author's other stuff, but now I don't trust her and therefore shan't.

Overall! Had a great reading year--those Two Twos were the only things I rated that low, and I enjoyed everything else! Looking forward to another fabulous year of books :)

[charasthetics]

The Butcher of the Forest

[rheadionne]

Check out my review of The Butcher of the Forest by Premee Mohamed 

[quirkycatsfatstacks]

Review: The Butcher of the Forest by Premee Mohamed

Author: Premee MohamedPublisher: Tor.comReleased: February 27, 2024Received: ARCFind it on Goodreads | More Fantasy Summary: Veris is the only person known to walk into the northern forest and survive. Naturally, she’s ordered to repeat the process when the cruel overlord, the Tyrant, realizes his children have gone missing into those very woods. Unfortunately, Veris understands those woods –…

[juddgeeksout]

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