Reviews with content warning for Miscarriage - After the Forest

november 2023
i’m gonna be honest i was really excited for this book when i first heard about it it but i think that if nothing actually plot-related happens after 151 pages, i’m better off DNFing it.

aside from that, the way the author chose to represent the german language was a mess? you can’t just decide some words are capitalized and others aren’t. either you capitalize all nouns like the germans would or you don’t, so it blends better with the english.

ah well. i’ll keep this book around for another month or two and i might come back to it… or not.

january 2024
I ended up finishing it and I’m so confused at what this book is trying to be???
i didn’t sign up for werewolves, werebears and a fairytale mish-mash when i was promised a hansel and gretel retelling. this book had very little retelling.
i also agree with other friends who said they didn’t hate this book but also didn’t enjoy themselves while reading it because that’s how i feel.
it’s a shame because the IC copy is so beautiful but i have no reason to keep this book in my collection ☹️

Content Warnings

madscientistcat's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No

4.5

Content Warnings

hailstorm3812's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.25

I went through on again and off again on enjoying this. I like the concept and the main character, but I don't really care for the love interest and thought the plot got too winding (strayed too far from the path one might say). I also think the villain gets introduced far too late to be effective and her backstory is not handled with the delicacy it deserved.

It was so weird to be like and then I saw a vision of her being violently raped next to her sister's corpse, don't care though into the tree you go. I think that could have been cut and we would not have asked any questions.

I would have focused on her connection to the town and baking magic like in the beginning for a stronger through line. I did like using the fairy tales in the chapter titles and tying it in. Ultimately it was fine but the vibes were better than anything else.

Content Warnings

bookswithbethx's review against another edition

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dark emotional hopeful mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Content Warnings

sophs_mood_reading's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

We all know and love a fairytale retelling but what about a “what happens next”.
After the forest takes the story of Hansel and Gretel and explores the story beyond the children’s escape. We meet the children two decades after the escape the clutches of the witch in the forest. But this isn’t the happily ever after we all expected. Hans has gambled away the siblings money and Greta is avoided by many villagers for her strange ways “what child kills and old woman!”

Greta finds herself turning to the book she stole from the old woman’s gingerbread house to try and save the family from ruin. But with suspicion already surrounding the siblings, a new stranger in town and people mysteriously being killed. Greta finds herself under more and more scrutiny as she uses more and more magic to try and save those around her.

This was a fantastic reimagining of such a classic tale, I loved how the author wove new magic and characters into the original story, making it her own.

Some parts of the story needed a bit more or seemed like a quick add on such as the Mira/Rob relationship but overall a beautifully well thought out book with mystery, magic and some big surprises that I did not guess at all.

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