The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan

The Forest of Hands and Teeth (Forest of Hands and Teeth, #1)

by Carrie Ryan

Enter the world of The Forest of Hands and Teeth, where you can trust no one and never be sure what's lurking in the trees. A masterpiece of suspense fiction that will have you reading through your fingers

In Mary's world there are simple truths.

The Sisterhood always knows best.

The Guardians will protect and serve.

The Unconsecrated will never relent.

And you must always mind the fence that surrounds the village; the fence that protects the village from the Forest of Hands and Teeth.

But, slowly, Mary's truths are failing her. She's learning things she never wanted to know about the Sisterhood and its secrets, and the Guardians and their power, and about the Unconsecrated and their relentlessness. When the fence is breached and her world is thrown into chaos, she must choose between her village and her future - between the one she loves and the one who loves her.

And she must face the truth about the Forest of Hands and Teeth. Could there be life outside a world surrounded in so much death?

Readers love The Forest of Hands and Teeth:

'I can't give it less than five stars because I spent most of this book gripping the bed covers in suspense. The characters were all great, realistic and interesting' Goodreads reviewer, ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐

'I found Ryan's writing beautifully and painfully evocative . . . I like a book that makes you wonder and makes you think, and even that makes you uncomfortable' Goodreads reviewer, ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐

'This is a zombie novel, yes, but it's an oddly haunting and lyrical one . . . It's an excellent story overall and well worth checking out for YA and adult readers alike. Five stars' Goodreads reviewer, ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐

'The characters in The Forest Of Hands and Teeth were extremely three dimensional to the point were you felt that they jumped off the page . . . will appeal to fans of The Hunger Games or to people looking for a great book that contains romance, fantasy, and horror' Goodreads reviewer, ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐

'An enthralling post-apocalyptic masterpiece . . . At times, the suspense will cause you to put the book down for fear of what you might read next only to pick it up again because you can't wait to find out' Goodreads reviewer, ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐

Reviewed by violetpeanut on

2 of 5 stars

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This was a very interesting concept - what happens in the future if there is a zombie apocalypse. I had very high hopes. The plot was interesting but what really kept this from being better was the characters. The main character was whiny and so indecisive that I was almost hoping for a not so happy ending for her. The book is relatively short as it is but if you cut out all the self pity it would be significantly shorter. I understand teenage angst but it was excessive here.

There are two more books in this series and I may or may not read them. I think they each revolve around a different (as of yet not introduced) character living in a different town/city/area. I'm interested in what's happened to other areas of the country/world so I may pick up the second one sometime in the future to see if that character is better.

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Reading updates

  • Started reading
  • 3 February, 2012: Finished reading
  • 3 February, 2012: Reviewed