The Hungry Forest
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- $9.99
Publisher Description
In this spooky horror for fans of Small Spaces, a boy must face his feelings and save his younger brother from a cursed forest.
Ryan's dad had a lot of rules:
Never let others see you cry.
Never let people outside of the family hear you speaking Spanish.
But the most important rule of all? Never go into the hungry forest.
Since his father's death, Ryan has worked extra hard to follow his father's rules and be the kind of man his father would be proud of. But Ryan's anger is getting out of control, and he can't seem to stop taking it out on his younger brother Teddy.
When Teddy and Ryan think they hear their father calling them from The Hungry Forest, Ryan ventures in. Teddy was supposed to wait outside, but he didn't listen, and is quickly captured by a terrifying, masked monster.
With no sign of Dad and monsters closing in, one thing is clear: The forest is as cursed as the legends say. If Ryan can't find his brother and escape the woods before sunrise, they'll be trapped there forever. Ryan and Teddy will have to face their fears-and each other-to make it out alive.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Rivera (Cece Rios and the Queen of Brujas) spotlights two grieving siblings embarking on a thrilling supernatural adventure. Following their father's death, 12-year-old Ryan Ramirez feels responsible for his eight-year-old brother, Teddy; Ryan hopes that by looking out for his sibling, he can support their grieving mother. But Ryan's desire to live a life his father would be proud of chafes against his deteriorating relationship with Teddy. While Ryan tries to hide his grief behind a cool, tough-guy persona, Teddy leans into behaviors that Ryan finds embarrassing, while also taking up their father's obsession with the nearby forest, where many children have disappeared. When Teddy enters the woods and Ryan gives chase, both boys are drawn further in after hearing their father's voice echoing through the trees. The siblings soon encounter an ethereal world where powerful beings wearing magical masks carved from the forest's trees attempt to capture them. Now the brothers must find a way to escape the forest before sunrise, at which point they'll transform into trees and be trapped in the woods forever. Though a jam-packed plot and dangling plotlines sometimes prove disorienting, readers will nevertheless revel in the Latinx-cued protagonists' lived-in relationship and touching sequences addressing their shifting dynamic. This family-focused tale is an ideal entry point to horror for young readers. Ages 9–14.
