Review - In Fallen Woods by R N Merle

In Fallen Woods by R N Merle

Independently published on 19th April 2018

Star Rating - ***.5

Goodreads Challenge - 6/50

I was gifted a kindle copy of this book by the author in exchange for an honest review. 

Synopsis (from Goodreads)

Long ago in England, and far away to the west…

In the dark heart of Fallen Woods, Darklin, a sixteen year old witch and her mother Gressyl, live hidden among the tangled trees. They are bound to a secret coven practicing dark and cruel magic. Darklin is taught to be merciless and to despise humanity, to believe that beauty is treacherous, and that love and kindness do not truly exist.

But when Darklin has a fateful encounter with a beautiful and kind hearted young man, powerful feelings are unleashed. As urges of attraction and destruction war inside Darklin’s heart, which urge will she give way to, and where will it lead her?

My Thoughts

I was kindly gifted a copy of this one from the author in exchange for an honest review. The description sounded like something I would love, despite the romance, and I'm glad I gave it a go as I quite enjoyed the experience. 

I would describe this story as an original and unique fairy tale although, it definitely takes some inspiration from familiar tales. It reads just like a fairy tale too with a very lyrical and whimsical writing style that draws you in and keeps you captivated throughout the entire story. We focus on one main character, Darklin, and follow her story as she navigates the world and learns all about the people around her. Darklin has been brought up by a witch, Gressyl and has been taught nothing but bad things about the people of the village next to the woods in which they live. Darklin's character is very complex. At first she seems quite dis-likeable however, as the story progresses you realise just how naive she really is and doesn't really know any better. The development of her relationship with the Somerbornes, especially John, was very slow going and really explored the characteristics and traits of the human race. 

This story also draws upon some historical aspects of the time surrounding the capture and treatment of woman accused of witch craft. This made for an interesting side plot however, this novel is definitely very character focused. The main point of this story is the development of Darklin as a person, her becoming to understand and change her views of society as well as the development of her relationship with John which was very slow and gentle. There were times within the story where I was waiting for one of the family to betray Darklin as that is a common theme in these types of stories but that wasn't what this one was about. 

Due to this being quite a character focused novel there were a couple of issues with the plot. There were some aspects that could of been expended on and there were times when you were left wondering what had happened, such as how Gressyl didn't notice Darklin's disappearances. However, overall I quite enjoyed this story and I look forward to seeing what this author releases in the future. 

Overall Rating (3.5*)