Oh book, you make it so difficult to rate you.The thing about Holly Black is that she writes in very different styles. Before I read White Cat, I tried the first of her Faerie books - Tithe - (really didn't get into it), and her Spiderwick Chronicles (cute kids books but not really my thing). Then I discovered the Curse Workers trilogy and holy shit awesomeness: it was great! I liked the characters, the plot, and the twists... so much good.The Darkest Part of the Forest feels closer to her earli...

[read 2 | may 2020]I have lost words. I am so wholly in love with this book; it's caught my imagination and my heartbeat and I just kept listening to the audio (a+ recommendation for the audio by the way) and thinking, "how did I forget this book was my life favourite?" I hadn't read it in 5 years and it hurts how much I'd forgotten! It is a work of complete art: mixing the best character emotional arcs I've read in ages with the whimsy and darkness of fairies tangling with modern worlds. Also i...

Down a path worn into the woods, past a stream and a hollowed-out log full of pill bugs and termites, was a glass coffin. It rested right on the ground, and in it slept a boy with horns on his head and ears as pointed as knives. First time reading Holly Black and I'm not disappointed.I was a bit skeptical at first because I heard her writing is similar to Cassandra Clare's, who I'm not really a fan of, but I'm glad to say the rumors were only and exactly rumors, and that Holly Black could giv

4 magical faerie lore stars ⭐️ "Down a path worn into the woods, past a stream and a hollowed out log full of pill bugs and termites, was a glass coffin. It rested right on the ground, and in it slept a boy with horns on his head and ears as pointed as knives." This was my first Holly Black book and I was not disappointed!Hazel and Ben have lived in Fairfold all their lives, and as all the residents know, they share their town with the faerie folk. They take precautions, they know the rules, do...

not exactly what i was expecting...

At least I can marie kondo this book out of my house with no hesitation. I thought I might like it more due to my love for The Cruel Prince, but no. It’s as messy and underdone as I remember it. The ridiculous villain - (view spoiler)[emo tree (hide spoiler)]! And Black seems to write the exact same protagonist. Kaye is Hazel is Jude. Jude is by far the most successful version of this girl.The only good thing about revising this old work is witnessing Holly Black to transition from grunge of Tit...

It turned out that no matter how far you fall, there's always a lower place. What are Faeries? While reading this book with my friends, (because after having the taste of buddy reading, I hardly ever read alone), my friend asked me this question. And I thought about it for a moment. The thing is, for me faeries were like fairies from Winx Club or from the W.i.t.c.h or like those pixies from Tinker Bell but even when I didn't know, I always wanted to know this side of th

I thought there would be more gay fae and I am sever(in)ely disappointed that there wasn’t3.5 stars, RTC

Instagram || Twitter || Facebook || Amazon || PinterestI bought this when it was on sale a while back, right around the time that I had finished The Folk of the Air trilogy. Published in 2015, it kind of reads as a "proto-CRUEL PRINCE" with a heroine that's a lot like Jude and a hero who seems a bit like a nicer version of Cardan. It's a little different, though; it's written in third person, with a tone that makes it feel like it's for a younger audience. There are two romances, instead of

☆☆☆☆☆ No spoilers and colorful language abound! I received this ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Normally I wouldn't review an ARC this early, but honestly, I cannot help myself.**I am bumping this because I reviewed it entirely too early. It comes out on January 13th! Also, do you ever go back and read a review and say, "what the fuck was I even trying to say" ? Then feel an overwhelming urge to rewrite the entire thing? Yeah, so a little of that too.**                 

I feel like my life is just a constant cycle of finally getting past the book I was obsessing about and then immediately finding another book to obsess about.My heart is growing a lot and I want to cover this story and these characters in it. This book made me want to lie down on the forest floor for a moment or two and just breathe in and out and in and out, letting nature wash over me with dirt in my hair and dew on my skin while the sun slowly slips into the sky and the morning is slowly born...

4.5 stars Holly Black at her finest. Once, there was a girl who vowed she would save everyone in the world, but forgot herself. Seriously, how does Holly Black create such bone-chillingly wondrous books time and time again?Hazel Evans and her brother (Ben) live in Fairfold - a town blessed (cursed?) by the fair folk. The food tastes better, the art is more beautiful and the world, far crueler. There's a monster in our wood. She'll get you if you're not good. Drag you under leaves and st...

I LOVED THE CHARACTERS in this!! If anything they were the pull that kept me coming back to this book. I also liked how weird this book got! BRING ON THE WEIRDNESS AND YOU'RE SURE TO WIN ME OVER. I do think this book missed the WOW factor and I wasn't super keen on the plot, but it was still a fun time.

[September 20th, 2019]: The Darkest Part of the Forest is still a masterpiece in 2019, and I'm honestly overwhelmed with how much I love this story.I read this for #FaerieAThon, which I cohosted with Jane, Kristin, & Alexa! ❤[October 20th, 2015]:“Once, there was a girl who vowed she would save everyone in the world, but forgot herself.” This was such a whimsical and beautiful story about a sleepy little down named Fairfold, who has a pact with all the faeries that if the fae leave them alone, al...

This was such a satisfying read! I started this not knowing pretty much anything about the book and I'm so glad I didn't read more into the synopsis. It was such a fun and enjoyable read.

”They were in love with him because he was a prince and a faerie and magical and you were supposed to love princes and faeries and magic people." This LINE!!! It resonated so much with me when I read the book! It describes my love for faeries in the best possible way and I can’t thank Holly Black enough for writing it down! I think this is going to be one of my favourite quotes ever. XDAnd I’m convinced Holly Black and I will have a very long and prosperous relationship in the future! If all

This book is about evil fairies and subverting genre expectations. SUBVERTING TROPES AND BLENDING BINARIES It took me a long time to figure out why, exactly, this book captivated me so much. Yes, it's definitely a solid read, but what made this a five-star-favorite-book-ever read? I think in the long run what stood out to me was how Holly Black sees the tropes of this story and avoids them. Ben and Hazel are essentially a role-reversal of typical fantasy heroes. The boy is the one in

2.5**I love love love Holly Blacks ability to describe enchantment and magic in the fae world. She is also amazing at describing sinister faeries and their playful (often sadistic) games with humans. Her descriptions of settings and the different fae in this book were magical.The issue I had to this book is that I didn’t really care for the characters. I also do not particularly enjoy books that are set in schools (excluding Hogwarts of course!). The plotting and the pacing of this book just did...

“Hazel, Hazel, blue of eye. Kissed the boys and made them cry.”I hereby demand to have my own horned faerie prince. Someone tell me where to find his glass casket.This was magical (duh). I loved it from start to finish. I think we all know (and Holly does, too) that Holly Black is pretty good™ at writing anything faerie-related. She is just as fascinated with their beauty, horror and wickedness as we are. Lots of times, when I finish a book, I think to myself that I should have read it sooner. T...

A heroine who likes to kiss all the boys and kick serious evil faerie arse, persons of colour, GAY, no tropes, NOT a romance driven plot, NO love triangles, and a stand-alone all wrapped up into a lovely little YA gem. What more could we ask for?!! This book ticks all the boxes of not your average, dull, tropey YA urban fantasy. I was very pleasantly surprised! Especially since I found it unpredictable as well. It didn’t go how I expected it to go based on the synopsis and my experience with mos...