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Cover of The Darkest Part of the Forest

The Darkest Part of the Forest

by Holly Black

🌶️fade to black·spoiler
Available on Kindle Unlimited

Why Read This?

A beautifully crafted exploration of sacrifice, identity, and forbidden love that lingers in your mind like faerie magic.

Synopsis

Children can have a cruel, absolute sense of justice. Children can kill a monster and feel quite proud of themselves. A girl can look at her brother and believe they’re destined to be a knight and a bard who battle evil. She can believe she’s found the thing she’s been made for. Hazel lives with her brother, Ben, in the strange town of Fairfold where humans and fae exist side by side. The faeries’ seemingly harmless magic attracts tourists, but Hazel knows how dangerous they can be, and she knows how to stop them. Or she did, once. At the center of it all, there is a glass coffin in the woods. It rests right on the ground and in it sleeps a boy with horns on his head and ears as pointed as knives. Hazel and Ben were both in love with him as children. The boy has slept there for generations, never waking. Until one day, he does… As the world turns upside down, Hazel tries to remember her years pretending to be a knight. But swept up in new love, shifting loyalties, and the fresh sting of betrayal, will it be enough?

At a Glance

3.86 ★ Goodreads
Spice Level🌶️fade to black
Endingspoiler
PairingM/F
Romance Pacingmedium burn
Energymedium

Top Tropes

fairytale retellinghidden identitymonster romanceblood feud romancesecret relationship

Mood

magicalsecretiveeeriebittersweetdark

Book Details

Goodreads Rating

3.86 ★

Page Count

328 pages

Published

2015

Primary Genre

Ya Fantasy

Pairing

M/F

POV

Third Person

Romance Pacing

Medium Burn

Cliffhanger

spoiler

Audiobook

Available

Yes

Format

Standard

Narrator

Lauren Fortgang

Narrator Count

Single

Tropes

RomanceMagicActionAngstWorld
Theme Constellation

Mood & Vibe

Mood

Writing Style

lyricalatmosphericsharpimmersive

Story Pacing

medium

Emotional Weight

moderate

Energy Required

medium

Vibes

Atmospheric dark faerie tale where the woods hold ancient secrets and the line between monster and hero blurs in the moonlight.

Characters

FMC Archetype

warrior/fightermorally gray fmcsurvivor

MMC Archetype

faerie princecursed mmcmysterious stranger

Relationship Dynamics

forbidden lovetension

Spice Details 🌶️

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Spice Level 1

Spice Style

None

Getting Steamy

None

Bringing the Heat

None
Browse more books by spice level →
deathemotional abusekidnappingtraumaviolencebloodcaptivitygriefparental abandonmentstalking
Browse books by content warning →

World & Setting

World Type

urban fantasy

Primary Setting

small town / villageforest / wilderness

Fantasy Creatures

Representation

bisexual mcgay liqueer

Reading Context

Emotional Payoff

Best Time of Year

autumn

When & Where to Read

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