Review: The Forrest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan

The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan

My rating: 2 of 5 stars

In Mary's world there are simple truths.

The Sisterhood always knows best.

The Guardians will protect and serve.

The Unconsecrated will never relent.

And you must always mind the fence that surrounds the village; the fence that protects the village from the Forest of Hands and Teeth.

I am going to start off by saying I did not finish this books. Don't go crazy on my because I didn't. My review isn't going to bash the book, I just think it's fair, and it supports my review, if I tell you now I did not finish the book.


Let's start with the plot. And old village, in the middle of a forest, surrounded by a fence. On the other side of this fence, zombies. The Elders control the town, occasionally the zombies attack, and eventually all hell breaks lose. The main character, Mary, is a strong willed young woman who wants more than anything to break free of the village and it's hold on her.


So it sounds like a good idea, but why didn't I finish it? I just had no desire to read it. The writing and plot were fine but I hardly thought about the book, I didn't sit wondering what was going to happen next, I was just bored with the entire idea.


First of all, any of you see 'The Village?' I'm talking about the movie. And for the first hundred pages or so this is all I could think about. Then afterwards, well, the zombies sort of got to me.

I am completely honest when I tell you that I don't have a single bone in my body that fears zombies. They shuffle, drool, moan, so they're like any typical teenager on any given school morning. Plus I've seen and I adore 'Shaun of the Dead.' Oh yeah, you know it.

So my issues with the plot was that it was good, but it didn't call me back to the book. I can't really explain exactly what it was, but I didn't sit there, anxiously awaiting the next chapter. It was a push just to get myself where I am now, and I don't think it's fair to the book, or to me, to have to push myself to read the rest.

The other issue I had was with the main character. She seemed so strong, so willing to go against the grain of her society, but at times she failed to really demonstrate her desire to overcome. She was willing to face zombies, for goodness sake, but when it came to just speaking out for her love for Travis, she hushed up, acted childish, and because of this her love interest got in the way of the book rather than contributing to the plot. (I am the type of person who wants to read a book to watch characters speak out, overcome, fall in love... Not whine, stay silent, and turn the book sour.)

I do feel guilty for not finishing this book. I was really looking forward to this book after several people I know said it was amazing. I'm hoping that at a later date I'll be able to pick it back up with a desire to read it, but as for now, I can't push through it.




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