LOVED THIS!! I adore dark fairy tales, and Mohamed really managed to keep that fairy tale feel while conveying how horrifying some of these tales actually are. She expertly mixed horror and fantasy elements, making it an engaging story and exciting novella. Although I recommend not reading it while playing a horror game also centered on forests - you'll get scared :')

I liked that this novel mixes the genres of dark fantasy and horror. It kind of reminded me of Alice in Wonderland but in a even more creepy way. But I struggled a lot with how the book was written. It felt a bit unbalanced most of the time and was either paced super fast or extremely slow.

I had such high hopes that my first read of 2024 will knock it out of the park. I fell in the love with the cover and the little I read from the NetGalley blurb made me hopefully.

Alas, it didn’t work for me. So much so that, looking back, I’m surprised I didn’t quit when I realised that this wasn’t the story I was hoping it was.

Let me make something clear: this is just my opinion and I am thrilled that so many other readers enjoy the story and the writing style. If it works for me, wonderful. But I didn’t. In fact, every time I read it within the first 60%, I kept nodding off. Not sure if it was because I was tired or because of the writing.

For me, the writing was very descriptive but, at the same time, not very. I would have to go back a few pages to check if I missed a description for a new character or creature when they appear. At times, it felt like the story was getting drowned out by the description which, for the most part, didn’t push the story forward. And we must remember, this is a novella and novellas only have a limited amount of pages as every word matters.

As the story, it was ok. But it took a long time before I felt a connection or excitement with the pacing and the characters and, by then, it was too late. I didn’t care and I was just reading this as I wanted it to be done.

Sadly, this wasn’t for me (which is annoying). But I know it will hit that sweet spot with some of you so if you’re curious, go for it!

I thought this was a fantastic read, straddling the line between dark fantasy and horror so well. The novella follows Veris, tasked by the Tyrant to find his two children who have wandered off into the forest where no one goes and no one returns. Mohamed has a gift for lyrical writing and imagery, which absolutely jumps off the page here — you can feel the alive quality of the forest; the intensity of emotions felt by Veris, the fear of the children; the eldritch quality of what lingers in that forest, making everyone afraid. It reads like an Alice in Wonderland-esque fairytale for adults, macabre and haunting. It's a swift read for anyone looking for something fast-paced and visceral!

"The Butcher of the Forest" is a fantasy novel, with horror elements, written by Premee Mohamed.

The story follows Veris Thorn, a woman with a difficult past, suddenly dragged before the cruel Tyrant who rules the valley in which she lives. The man's two children have disappeared in the dark forest to the north of the territory, a magical and insidious place called Elmever, from which the locals cautiously keep away. For no one who enters those woods is ever seen again. No one, except Veris, many years ago. The Tyrant then gives her an ultimatum: she has one day to retrieve the children, or he will burn down her village and destroy everything she loves. Veris has no alternative and immediately begins the search, immersing herself in the forest haunted by ancient monsters, deceptive creatures, traps and devious tricks.

"The Butcher of the Forest" is a dark, twisted and eerie fairytale packed into less than 150 pages. A tale cloaked in a beautiful sinister atmosphere, exquisitely portrayed by the author's evocative and sophisticated prose. A grim, desolate and cynical book, lacking cheerfulness and with little hope, characterized by a fast pace, succinct dialogues and scenes that often tend toward horror.

The story takes place over the course of one day and follows Veris' desperate mission to find the two missing children. Given the small number of pages, the world building is decidedly bare, limited to a few small pieces of information here and there, just so as not to get completely lost. A choice that seemed to me to be coherent with the type of narration used and which I enjoyed very much. The huge and malevolent northern forest dominates the scene with its vivid descriptions, revealing itself to be a treacherous and cruel place, inhabited by treacherous and cruel creatures, who have no mercy for anyone.

The tale focuses entirely on Veris, the protagonist with her only third person pov. A woman with a painful and turbulent past, forced to face simultaneously her inner and real demons as she crosses the Elmever. She is a complex and tormented character, full of contradictions, who really touched me a lot!

All in all, "The Butcher of the Forest" is a book I really enjoyed, characterized by wonderful writing, a fast pace, an intriguing plot and an excellent dark setting, which I recommend to fans of the genre!

Thank you to the Publisher and NetGalley for giving me an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I enjoyed this dark story although I wasn’t a huge fan of the writing style, the pacing was a little off and it ended so abruptly
The story itself was good, dark and fairytale like but I would also have liked a little more backstory. I do appreciate a short book though

Thanks to NetGalley for the arc