"The Huntress of Thornbeck Forest" by Melanie Dickerson

Melanie Dickerson's new release is Robin Hood meets Swan Lake in a fairy tale mash-up. Concerned for the poor and starving children around their village, Odette begins poaching deer in order to provide meat for hungry families. Somewhat protected by her uncle's position as a respected merchant, she feels safe venturing into the forest for her nightly brushes with lawbreaking. It isn't until she meets Jorgen, the newly appointed and very handsome forester, that she begins to doubt if her actions have really been as morally right as she had previously thought.

Jorgen takes his job as forester seriously, especially since his adopted father was killed by poachers. Having found evidence of recent poaching in Thornbeck Forest, and seeing the rapidly diminishing number of deer around him, Jorgen is determined to find the person responsible and hold them accountable.

While all of this author's previous releases have been for the young adult genre, this is the first in a new series for adults. I confess that I did not enjoy it as much as her other works, largely because the writing was overly simplistic. It lacked details and nuance, and the characters were rather flat and predictable, not experiencing much growth. There were several side plots which I did not think were satisfactorily followed through on, including the hints that there was a second and more irresponsible poacher out there, or who owned the Red House.

The plot did hold a few interesting and unexpected twists, but largely it failed to impress, especially considering her wonderful YA books. I hope that her upcoming November release - a Rapunzel story! - will be a return to what made me a fan in the first place. I'm looking forward to it already!




I received my copy of the book from the publisher in exchange for this honest review. All opinions are my own.