Reviews

Into The Woods: A Monster Anthology by Salem Sinclair

baylie_durocher's review

adventurous dark mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.25

fishbitxh's review

adventurous dark emotional fast-paced

• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

3.0

Most of these stories were fun and good, but some were just way too out there in terms of character interactions to the point of being un-enjoyable. Skipped some because of that. Lower rating because a lot of the stories were ‘to be continued’ and incomplete. I was expecting short stories not baiting previews 

bel_aminori's review

3.0

I started this anthology over the summer and finally, I finished everything I was mostly reading these as like pallet cleansers between longer books and I won't go into reviewing each and everyone but my favorites were:

Caught by the Werewolf
Hookah Smoking Caterpillar
Into the think of it
Rooting for love
Sap, Snow and Spile
What big teeth
Where darkness wanders

valovebooks's review

5.0

This anthology is filled with 16 HOT & LUSTY short stories and they also have continuations sometimes If you enjoy the author. Stalk them and read more of their amazingness. Lol I'll go down the line. I've read the first four so far!!! And wtf they're awesome!!! Each one is so so so different and all Include the element so far of being in the woods... wandering into or getting lost. I love it!!! These may have some spoilers but I promise I'm not giving great detail! Read for yourself!!!! You will not regret it!

1st story
A step between realms by Elizabeth Austin!!
Omg. This girl is in a relationship and finds out she's cheated on while they're on the way to a getaway! Wow. She makes the amazing decision to get out and walk. Sounds like they break up. And she walks into the woods off the road!!!!

cthuwu's review

4.0

First of all I'd like to apologize to my mother for reading this. And now that that's out of the way, we're going to get into the nitty gritty. No long review for this anthology, there isn't much to talk about. It's all PWP involving various kinds of monsters. I'm going to post my overall rating and then the individual ones.

Stars:

cas_is_reading's review

4.0

4 Stars (Overall Rating)

Trigger/Content Warnings, Tags and Character Ages for each story bellow.

1. A STEP BETWEEN REALMS - Elizabeth Austin ⭐️⭐️ (2.5 stars)
04/04/22 - 05/04/22

The only thing I didn’t like, was the her talk of ‘I don’t even know you, but i feel we belong' bleh, not a fan, but other than that it was a good read.

Character Ages - Madeline - 27 | Brizor - 29/30
Tags - breeding kink, insta love ish, pierced

mackenziechumleyreads's review

3.0

I enjoyed this book, but the “to be continued” stories almost drove me to rate it much lower. I really got into a lot of the stories, some were not my cup of tea but they were still good and well written, but the ones that were TBC?! No! I’m sorry but in a short story anthology I really feel like you should write a short story, not a story excerpt to get us to buy the full book when it comes out. I wouldn’t mind seeing a continuation of the story, or the same story but fully fleshed out instead of short and spicy, but come on.

rowenelizabethh's review

4.0

3.5 Stars
I was a fan of most of the stories in this book; however, some of them just weren't it for me. Overall I loved the concept of the anthology and would recommend if you wanted a plethora of monster romances with different types of beasts ;)

nuriacarot's review

4.0

Sólo he leído el relato de Clio Evans y es justo lo que necesitaba... Muy spice, MFM, me encanta todo lo que escribe Clio

ladyyluna's review

3.0

First off, this anthology was a joy to read. So many stories with bits of lore and curious landscapes that just had my imagination running. Some stories ended on a cliffhanger (and had me screaming). On the other side of that coin, I'm also happy that there'll be more, so I can't really be mad at it.

I noted every short story I read because you bet I plan to (politely) stalk the authors of the stories I enjoyed the most. Most of the stories delved into mythologies, some retellings, and some fascinating ideas across the board. It also shares one common premise: people that are crazy enough to go into the woods (when they've been told not to), which is fair, considering the book title.

1st story: "A Step Between Realms" Elizabeth Austin [2/5]. This one was a surprisingly sweet story to start off with. It didn't have a lot of story build, but the spice was okay.

2nd story: "Between Heaven & Earth" YD La Mar [2/5]. This one left me going, "wait, what?" The lore was weird, not bad, more like a "what alternate universe did I just step into, and should I be eating mushrooms for this?" The romance was sweet, though there were some sad bits, and the spice was "eh."

3rd story: "Captured by the Wolven" L.V. Lane [3/5]. I really enjoyed the writing style for this one. The development of the romance and the spice were really good. I also appreciated that this is the first story in the anthology to give you a prologue and an epilogue.

4th story: "Caught by the Werewolf" Lillian Lark [3/5]. Full disclosure, there's a bit of bias for this one because I've read other books from this author, so I knew I'd like it, and I wasn't disappointed. The story definitely grabbed me. It was a little angsty but good in a heart-tugging way.

Spoiler

A witch and a wolf, well, a wolf with a bit of something unique that even I won't spoil, because that was a thread that I didn't see coming *snicker* if you know, you know.

5th story: "Foxing" Ashley Bennet [4/5]. *Takes a deep breath* I HAVE STRONG OPINIONS. One, this is the first story to grace us with a cliffhanger. Yes, it slew me. Second, I humble myself before the author, on my knees, forehead on the floor. I thought the writing style would be too heavy when I began the story. I was wrong. It was perfect for the period they were describing. Three, I love kitsune. My emotions. I can't.

Spoiler

Then the kitsune was basically a dom. The tails! Then you had the falcon---it's not enough to say I combusted when that cliffhanger hit. You give me a kitsune, then pair her with a hunter who wants to be samurai, and then introduce a falcon shifter that could turn it into a triage, AND THEN YOU CLIFFHANG ME? The audacity.

6th story: "From the Depths" C. Rochelle [3/5]. This one had things I liked and didn't like, but it was still enjoyable, and I'll likely look forward to the continuation. Yes, this had another cliffhanger (kind of. More of an understanding that things are so not done), and the story's use of mythology piqued my interest. I liked the writing style, though there were scenes that felt repetitive because they acted as flashbacks but from different perspectives. It was also very angsty----oof, that reveal was painful, but again, very interesting.

7th story: "Gods May Cry" Mallory Fox writing as Lea Jade [2/5]. This one was okay. I didn't like the FMC very much, and the story taunts you with information but not enough for me to have gotten into it. It also ended on a TBC when it was just getting interesting, so I may continue it for the lore, if nothing else.

8th story: "Hookah Smoking Caterpillar" Beatrix Hollow [4/5]. This story caught me by surprise. When I started it, I felt perplexed. In my head, spice with these characters was the equivalent of what I imagine an acid trip through a carnival would be like. However, it didn't take me long to go all in. The twist of events near the end had me screaming (and laughing). It was twisted yet delightful, and I will cry if there's no continuation.

9th story: "Incubus Dreams" Maeve Black [2/5]. I respect the Incubi and Succubi in stories, but this one was a little cringe-worthy. The internal monologues were just...hard to digest? Yeah, let's go with that. I enjoyed the bits of lore we get, but the end's TBC was just a bit annoying

Spoiler

because sure, run into danger, that never ends badly.

10th story: "Into The Thick of It" Clio Evans [3/5]. The only complaint I have with this story is that it finished too quickly, and I was left wanting more spice, but the monsters were definitely interesting. I may not look at another plant the same way again, and do not get me started on Mr. Antlers. This is another author I'm familiar with, and it was as enjoyable as I figured it'd be.

11th story: "Poison Games" Sienna Varrone [3/5]. Oh, this one was fun. Quote-worthy with fascinating use of mythology. I enjoyed the characters so much though I did feel a little robbed.

Spoiler

Hear me out. We find out she took their memories after their first meeting because she transformed and thought that had freaked them out, so she wouldn't keep them. But then they go back for her, and they have another round of spicy times, but she doesn't transform even after they said they didn't care? What. Gives.

12th story: "Rooting for Love" Helena Novak & Natalia Prim [2/5]. This one was adorable and had me thinking of Little Shop of Horrors for all the right reasons. It didn't have a lot of description (and for certain spice scenes, it needed it. The words "how does that work" went through my head a few times), but it was still cute.

13th story: "Sap, Snow, and Spile" Vera Valentine [3/5]. This one was wrapped in a sweet ball of interesting and gentle monsters (well, tree dryads?) I liked the characters, and the spice, while brief, was *chef's kiss* another author I've read books from, so I knew it'd be a treat.

14th story: "The Ogre's Pet" Kassandra Cross [2/5]. This one felt really short. It could be that the story mainly focused on the event that led the monster and the FMC together and spice. That's about it. Not a lot of lore.

15th story: "What Big Teeth" Salem Sinclair [3/5]. This one is definitely an interesting take on the omegaverse. It hints at the beginnings of lore build but then ends too soon (y'all are killing me) and with a TBC (killing. ME.) I can see why it's considered a retelling, but I view it as a loose retelling.

16th story: "Where Darkness Wanders" A.R. Breck [3/5]. This one carried a healthy dose of angst, and we've found the alpha-hole. It started a bit slow before I started getting pulled into the story. It definitely goes the "slow burn" route which had me groaning because this is a short story. My emotions didn't feel like being toyed with. And then the author giveth the spice, and the author taketh away the bliss by throwing a cliffhanger the size of a boulder. Le sigh. I did note there were a lot of adverbs. A lot. I tend to remember these things when my brain suggests we could turn a thing into a drinking game, but at this point, I am invested because masochism, right?

And since you made it to the end, some important notes: first, reviews are highly subjective, including mine. My opinion is meant to give an overview of what I saw/felt when I read it (and how it may or may not have made my brain explode). What I see might not be what you see, and what I like (or don't) might not be what you enjoy, which is just fine. My advice to anyone looking into a book? Read the premise, and if it interests you enough, give it a chance and form your own opinion.