Crossing Over: Dark and Atmospheric Books with Surprising Worlds

Hey all. It's been awhile since my last Crossing Over post. If you're not familiar with Crossing Over it's a feature that stemmed from my desire to recommend an adult book with crossover appeal based on a YA or sometimes Middle Grade book that are similar. I hate that we pigeonhole books into a specific age range and so I try to combat that. Plus it's basically an if you liked, then try but for crossover books. It runs once a month (usually) here and I pick the books based on the theme of what I'm reading. So this month I don't have a theme so I can basically do whatever I want. But I kind of have no idea here. So I'm just going to do one that I've been floating around for awhile.

The Darkest Part of the Forest by Holly Black
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So I feel like this book is fresh in my mind lately because there is a sequel coming out pretty soon. And I have to admit that I didn't love this book as much as I thought I would. It seemed like something that was totally up my alley and I just didn't love it. Don't get me wrong, I liked it, I just didn't love it.

The thing I did love about this book was the atmosphere. It is a susprisingly dark and dramatic. There was a lot more going on in this book than I expected and things unfolded in a way that kept me guessing and on the edge of my seat. But the world of this book was even cooler. It was just as dark and dramatic. I'm not typically a fan of stories with fae but I liked how dark and brutal this one was.

So my favorite thing about The Darkest Part of the Forest is probably the characters. The heart of this story is in the family relationships. It's so much about the connections between Hazel and Ben. The characters are complex and interesting. They could have easily become cliche with the tough and smart badass female protagonist and the potential fae love interest but they weren't at all. They are honestly such fun and complex characters.

But in general, this book could have been very cliche and it wasn't. It felt like a classic fairy tale and still made for a unique and interesting story. It's one of those books that I think of as a modern fairy tale because it has the vibe and atmosphere of an older story but feels like it's own thing. The thing that makes these books most similar.

It's a good read and I think fantasy fans should totally check it out. I didn't like it as much as I thought I would but I still really liked it.

Rot and Ruin by Kat Howard
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So I feel like this book is fresh in my mind lately because it's my book club book for June. I'm really excited for maybe some of the other members to read it because I really liked it. It seemed like something that was totally up my alley and I did love it.

The thing I did love about this book was the atmosphere. It is a susprisingly dark and dramatic. There was a lot more going on in this book than I expected and things unfolded in a way that kept me guessing and on the edge of my seat. But the world of this book was even cooler. It was just as dark and dramatic. I don't want to give too much away because part of the enjoyment for this book is that you don't really know what is going to happen.

One thing about Rot and Ruin that I liked is the characters. The heart of this story is in the family relationships. It's so much about the connections between the main characters, Imogen and Marin. I thought this was going to be a Snow White and Rose Red retelling and it had elements of that but it was much deeper. The characters are complex and interesting. They could have easily become cliche  but they weren't at all. They are honestly such fun and complex characters.

But in general, this book could have been very cliche and it wasn't. It felt like a classic fairy tale and still made for a unique and interesting story. It's one of those books that I think of as a modern fairy tale because it has the vibe and atmosphere of an older story but feels like it's own thing. The thing that makes these books most similar.

It's a really fantastic book and I wish more people would read it. If you are at all a fan of fantasy, books about sisters, or you just want a unique read check this one out.

Have you read The Darkest Part of the Forest and/or Roses and Rot? What did you think? What steampunk novels with crossover appeal do you like? Leave me a comment with your thoughts. Thanks for stopping by and HAPPY READING!

ARC Review: The Darkest Part of the Forest by Holly Black

Title: The Darkest Part of the Forest Author: Holly Black Published: January 13, 2014 by Little Brown Books (Amazon / Goodreads) 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?

*** I received a copy of this book free from the publisher at BEA for an honest view in return. This fact has not changed my opinion. ***

The Darkest Part of the Forest was... satisfying. There wasn't anything specifically bad about this book but I wasn't blown away. I still did really enjoyed it however.  From the complex world, to the dark and ominous tone, to the likable characters, there was a lot to really like about it. In The Darkest Part of the Forest, Holly Black created a story that was engaging and interesting.

One of the things I liked most about this book were the characters. Holly did a fantastic job developing characters that are both unique and interesting. The cast of characters in this book is as vast as they are quirky. I'm not entirely sure who to say the main character of this book is because things are pretty evenly shared between four different people. Arguably the MC is Hazel, the tough and smart female protagonist. But that would be taking away from her brother Ben who is just as plucky and intelligent. Both characters are independant, determined, and full of secrets. Throughout the book I really enjoyed following along with them as they discovered the truth about themselves, each other, and what was happening in the town. And they were only the tip of the iceberg. There's also the faeries. There is Jack, Ben's best friend who is a Changeling and may have even more secrets then the others, and of course the mysterious "Boy in the Glass Coffin." And those are just the "good guys." (more on the "bad guys" later).

And speaking of these characters, it'd be a shame if I didn't mention one of the things I really liked about this book, the romance. It was complicated but not a love triangle. It wasn't insta-love but it was insta-attraction. It felt realistic and genuine. It wasn't entirely a slowburn, but it was the kind of romance that builds with the story and characters. And even though they didn't really get together until the end, there were some ship-worthy kissing scenes along the way.

But it wasn't all sunshine, daisies, and kissing scenes in this book. In fact it was pretty much the opposite. I mean this book was full of mystery and intrigue. The twists and reveals in this book, while not entirely shocking, did capture my interest throughout the entire thing. But what drew me in and what kept me reading however was how dark and ominous the story was, a fact that was punctuated by both the tone and world of this story. A year ago I had an extremely stereotypical view about faeries but this and many other books have shown me that faeries can be quite dark. And boy are these faeries dark, and murderous. Holly did a phenomenal job in creating a Low Fantasy world dripping with mystery and suspense. Fairfold is a town where faeries inhabit and run amok. And with that, Holly created some amazing antagonists that were deliciously diabolical. All of this worked together to create a setting and world that I loved reading about and was so captivating.

But maybe my favorite thing about this was the plot development. It was full of action and adventure and really built to a thrilling conclusion. The book was shorter than most of the books I read but with Holly's impeccable writing and plotting it was a very dense 320 pages. There was so much going on and incredible pacing. Everything slowly built to a thrilling climax. With all the big reveals and the thrilling action and fight scenes I was on the edge of my seat until the very end of the book. It was a classic fairy tale style book with "save the world" and "good versus" evil kind of vibes, but it still felt unique and creative. Holly's writing also made it incredibly visual and engrossing. I could lose myself in the story. This was the first book I have read which was written by Holly Black and while I wasn't entirely blown away, it did show me how brilliant Holly is as a writer. The plot of the story was intricate and engaging, that combined with an ominous world is something that I loved,

I give The Darkest Part of the Forest by Holly Black a 8.5 out of 10

Buy/Borrow/Bypass: Borrow. The Darkest Part of the Forest is a mysterious and dark Low Fantasy with likable characters, an intriguing world, and a thrilling plot. It didn't blow me away but it was an enjoyable read that fans of Magical Realism and Young Adult Fantasy should check out.

Have you read The Darkest Part of the Forest? What did you think? Leave me a comment with your thoughts. Thanks for stopping by and HAPPY READING!