“He is Icarus with wings of swan feathers, who chose to fly into the sun because it looked like a pretty boy.”

After reading C.G. Drews’s botanical horror, Don’t Let the Forest In, I was really excited for Hazelthorn and it did not disappoint. Don’t Let the Forest In is one of my favourite novels and now Hazelthorn has rooted itself up there. It is the type of novel that got me sitting on the sofa just thinking, ‘damn, I was not expecting that’ and ‘holy shit that was so good’.

Hazelthorn by C.G. Drews is a queer gothic YA horror novel about Evander who is confined in his guardian’s estate and given three rules: never leave the grounds, avoid the gardens, and stay away from Laurie. After the murder of his guardian, Evander inherits the estate and tries to discover whoever is behind it—with the help of Laurie of course. The two reluctantly team up together to find this killer and unveil the secrets lying within the garden.

As expected from C.G. Drews, the writing was superb. We have ‘garden’ body horror and my gosh, I loved their writing style–from its lush, flowery imagery to its dark, grotesque and raw madness of Evander’s mind. I won’t go into too much detail but I loved how C.G. Drews wrote being queer and autistic as something monstrous.

“He wishes he wasn’t like this, wishes he could stand even parallel to normal and be someone who fits next to those his age, who goes to school and kisses an appropriate amount of pretty people and isn’t bothered by things like an odd seam in his clothes or the very existence of socks. He wishes his brain moved in one direction, not a dozen all at the same time, and that he didn’t pull apart in a panic if even one thing goes wrong.”

I really liked the mystery aspect of the novel as well as the horror elements, which actually got me shuddering in my seat. It was so beautifully written and yet so vile that I cannot look away. As for the romance…my gosh I was devouring every little interaction they have with each other. C.G. Drews feeds us just enough to make us want more and really knows how to reward us for being so patient. Overall, this was a well written novel and everything that I wanted from this author but I think Don’t Let the Forest In is just above it. The ending was shocking to me enough that it had planted itself into my mind, and it still lingers ever so quietly.