I know what you’re thinking. “Didn’t you just read another book by Premee Mohamed?” And, yes. You’re totally right. Since December, I have powered through two of Mohamed’s novellas, And What Can We Offer You Tonight and The Annual Migration of Clouds. Amazingly, both of those have been 5-star reads. Because of that, I knew I needed to read her newest novella, The Butcher of the Forest. Butcher is a murky, dark fantasy and reads like a forbidden fairytale.
| Title: The Butcher of the Forest | Author: Premee Mohamed |
| Publication Date: February 27, 2024 | Publisher: Tordotcom |
| Genre: Dark Fantasy | Page Count: 160 pages |
Synopsis
A world-weary woman races against the clock to rescue the children of a wrathful tyrant from a dangerous, otherworldly forest.
At the northern edge of a land ruled by a monstrous, foreign tyrant lies the wild forest known as the Elmever. The villagers know better than to let their children go near—once someone goes in, they never come back out.
No one knows the strange and terrifying traps of the Elmever better than Veris Thorn, the only person to ever rescue a child from the forest many years ago. When the Tyrant’s two young children go missing, Veris is commanded to enter the forest once more and bring them home safe. If Veris fails, the Tyrant will kill her; if she remains in the forest for longer than a day, she will be trapped forevermore.
So Veris will travel deep into the Elmever to face traps, riddles, and monsters at the behest of another monster. One misstep will cost everything.
Review:
There is a forest outside a cruel tyrant’s castle. While many hunt and gather in the south side of the forest, all the local villagers are taught from childhood not to go into the north side of the forest. It’s well known they’ll never return if they do. When the tyrant’s two children disappear in the forest, he calls on Veris Thorn, the only woman who has ever gone into the forbidden forest and returned. Monsters, both human and otherwise, will haunt Veris’s journey and memory.
The Butcher of the Forest is dark and deeply unsettling. Veris is about forty years old, remarkably sad, but also content and determined. I adored her. I found Eleoner and Aram, the Tyrant’s children, incredibly refreshing. I’ve read plenty of children in fantasy literature, but few were as likable as these. The path before the trio is intense, harrowing, and full of trickery.
Final Thoughts:
Premee Mohamed is one of the modern masters of speculative novellas, right up there with Adrian Tchaikovsky and Seanan McGuire. The Butcher of the Forest is a must-read for those who love dark fantasy and forbidden fairytales. If you’re a fan of Servant Mage by Kate Elliot, I think you’ll enjoy the tone and themes in The Butcher of the Forest.
Rating: 4.5/5 stars
Thanks to Tordotcom for an advanced copy of the book! All the above thoughts are my own.
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