This book wrecked me. The ending gutted me and I am still thinking about it well after I finished this book. And it cemented C.G. Drews as a must-buy author.
Andrew has always been willing to give everything for Thomas, even his own heart. After a summer away, they reunite at Wickwood Academy, only Thomas has blood on his sleeve and doesn’t seem concerned his parents are missing. Andrew’s twin sister Dove has been cold all summer to him and continues that at school, resulting in him confiding in Thomas. Both boys, concealing their own emotions and desires, find monsters in the nearby forests. Monsters…. that look suspiciously familiar to the charcoal drawings Thomas made. The same drawings that accompany Andrew’s wildly crafted stories. Together, they must fight off these monsters and find a way to destroy them once and for all.
There are so many elements to this story. Botanical horrors from the forest, body horror with both Andrew and Thomas, themes with death, and bullying. All of these were handled incredibly well and with beautiful prose. The accompanied art pieces throughout, depicting the monsters the boys were fighting, were unnerving and made them ten times worse what my brain was imagining.
I devoured this book the same way the forest devours the boys minds, forcing them to think about the dark enclosures day in and day out. While this review is late, I am still thinking of the last chapter, and especially the last 2 pages after over a year of reading it. I have also read Hazelthorn and will write a review soon!
5/5 suspicious axes
