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A review by barrettbooks
The Darkest Part of the Forest by Holly Black
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This was highly recommended to me by several people and I absolutely love it. Lauren Fortgang's voice is perfect for fairy stories, with mysterious quality that really adds to the dreamy prose. There was a voice or two that I didn't particularly care for, but it was a matter of personal preference and also barely detracted from my enjoyment of the really overall excellent narration. The character's fire and ferocity, angst, curiosity, sadness, fear, and joy were all captured beautifully.
🗡️
The story is mainly told from Hazel's perspective, and Black is terrific at balancing the supernatural elements with the very grounded feelings of adolescence. She really grasps the magnitude of teenage feelings, the secrets that seem like they have gone too long to ever be shared, the responsibility one feels for everything that has ever happened, the longing for connection and the absolute impossibility of talking about it. The story has romance elements, and I enjoyed those as well, but its main relationships are about family, about how you try to protect each other but still hurt each other, how the trauma from your childhood doesn't leave because you try to forget, how you can love someone so much and not know what they need or how to say it. And then, how you can find your own personhood beyond them, and beyond your coping mechanisms and your expectations of who you are supposed to be.
🎹
The exposition and development of the main characters is really lovely, and the world feels very real and fulfilled, despite the strange juxtaposition of modern technology and society with fairy tale creatures and lore. I was completely taken in by the magic, the mystery, and the emotional core of the story. I loved it.
🗡️
The story is mainly told from Hazel's perspective, and Black is terrific at balancing the supernatural elements with the very grounded feelings of adolescence. She really grasps the magnitude of teenage feelings, the secrets that seem like they have gone too long to ever be shared, the responsibility one feels for everything that has ever happened, the longing for connection and the absolute impossibility of talking about it. The story has romance elements, and I enjoyed those as well, but its main relationships are about family, about how you try to protect each other but still hurt each other, how the trauma from your childhood doesn't leave because you try to forget, how you can love someone so much and not know what they need or how to say it. And then, how you can find your own personhood beyond them, and beyond your coping mechanisms and your expectations of who you are supposed to be.
🎹
The exposition and development of the main characters is really lovely, and the world feels very real and fulfilled, despite the strange juxtaposition of modern technology and society with fairy tale creatures and lore. I was completely taken in by the magic, the mystery, and the emotional core of the story. I loved it.