The Darkest Part of the Forest

by Holly Black

[shannonmiz]

*I was lucky enough to borrow this book for review from Wednesday Wright via Mimi Zane. Thank you both so much!

This was my first foray into Holly Black's work, and it certainly will not be my last. I won't lie, I was wary about the Faerie situation. (It seems like I am wary about a lot of stuff, no?) But it wasn't a completely magical world, it was set in a very contemporary setting in the town of Fairfold, where humans know that the fae live among them. I love this, because you don't feel completely out of place in the world Black has created. Instead, there are typical high school parties coexisting with a sleeping faerie in a glass casket. Relationship, friendship, and family drama continues all while the Folk are conducting their business, but the writing and world building make the whole thing feel completely believable.

Hazel and Ben are wonderful characters, so incredibly flawed and messy, but for good reason. Their family is kind of a disaster in general, with their parents far more worried about their own lives than those of their children. Since they've nothing better to do, Hazel and Ben spend much of their younger years being enthralled with the Folk, and are captivated by the boy in the coffin. Obviously, this will come into play, though I won't say how.

The plot of this book was great because it had many elements to it. There was a mysterious element, romances, family issues, character evolution, diversity, and of course, faerie politics. The writing was beautiful, and the book flowed quite well.

If I were to have a gripe, it would be that I did want to feel a bit more toward Hazel. While I was sympathetic toward her, I didn't feel completely connected. I also felt that while the end was sufficient (more than, really, as I quite enjoyed it) and neither too neatly wrapped nor too open, it was a bit abrupt. But really, these are minor compared to how much I enjoyed the rest of the book.

Bottom Line: I will definitely be reading more of Holly Black's work. Honestly, I was sad when I had to pass this book along, because I wanted to keep it! Even though some of the elements in the book were dark, The Darkest Part of the Forest was an absolutely enthralling book that I don't hesitate to recommend.
This review was originally posted on It Starts at Midnight