The Forest of Hands and Teeth (The Forest of Hands and Teeth #1)

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3.8 (24)

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24 reviews

5 stars

38%

4 stars

21%

3 stars

33%

2 stars

1 star

Overall rating

3.8

Plot

3.9(24)

Characters

3.6(7)

Writing Style

3.9(7)

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24 results - showing 21 - 24

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zombie acopalypse

May 17, 2009 (Updated: June 19, 2026)

Overall rating

3.0

Plot

3.0

Characters

N/A

Writing Style

N/A

Illustrations/Photos (if applicable)

N/A

Reader reviewed by stephanie

I had heard a lot of mixed reviews about Forest of Hands and Teeth before reading it so I was pretty skeptical about the whole thing. I have to admit, I still have a lot of mixed feelings for this novel. On one side, it's a very captivating novel and on the other side, there's lots of things that could've been polished for a better novel.

What I enjoyed about Forest of Hands and Teeth was the plot - zombie apocalypse, I mean, hello?! I've watched so many zombie movies but this is my first time reading about an actual zombie apocalypse. The plot was very captivating as well as suspenseful and definitely drew me in.

The writing was fascinating as well. Forest of Hands and Teeth is beautifully written and I enjoyed reading about Mary and the zombies.

The character Mary is uniquely portrayed. Though at times I felt as if she was extremely selfish, there were other times when I admired her courage and her bravery.

Travis and Henry were also pretty important in the novel. I have extremely mixed feelings about Travis because sometimes he seems so brave and other times, he seemed like a wimp. He doesn't really chase after Mary despite his feelings for her and gave up in the really beginning. Henry seems more brutish and stuff and though he was more capable of expressing his feelings, I found his character lacking emotion and any depth.

What I didn't really like about Forest of Hands and Teeth was the lack of emotion throughout the entire novel. Yes, it was depressing and stuff but besides that feeling, it lacked anything else. Hope was mentioned briefly throughout the novel but it wasn't really in depth. I also didn't like the fact that were so many loose ends. No one knew what happened to the rest of the village and though there were speculations from Mary and the others, no one knew for sure. And, the history of the zombies weren't really mentioned either.

The ending was also pretty moot. It was a huge cliff-hanger and I felt like the ending killed the book. It definitely didn't feel the the book was supposed to end...but it did.

Overall, though I have mixed feelings about Forest of Hands and Teeth, I can't wait until the sequel of this novel.

Guest

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Who knew the Zombie Apocolypse could be so AWESOME!

May 03, 2009 (Updated: June 19, 2026)

Overall rating

5.0

Plot

5.0

Characters

N/A

Writing Style

N/A

Illustrations/Photos (if applicable)

N/A

Reader reviewed by Elise

This is a book about the zombie apocalypse--and, no, I'm not joking.
The Unconsecrated are infected future citizens of the world and they will come eat you if you don't watch out! The Forest of Hands and Teeth,
however, is not a lame scream-filled horror (quite the contrary, in
fact). It is a beautifully constructed, meaningful, speculative book
with a realistic, tortured voice that the reader cannot avoid wanting
to die for. Mary is just so real. Her desires and needs and decisions aren't fanciful or outlandish and really let us connect
with her on such a personal level that it's frightening. The amazing
and horrific setting is both enthralling and disturbing, from the
blatant declaration that marriage has nothing to do with love to the
vivid descriptions of individual undead. Zombies aside, however, this
book is also a love story that will rip you to the core with the
all-too-real emotions and complications that come along with falling in
love in a world like Mary's involving a heartrending love-square full
of pain, sacrifice, and duty that is just all wrong
but cannot be put right. But above all, this story leaves the reader
with one question, waiting desperately to be answered with Ryan's next
novel: How exactly will the world survive the siege of the
Unconsecrated?

Guest

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Amazing...

April 24, 2009 (Updated: June 19, 2026)

Overall rating

5.0

Plot

5.0

Characters

N/A

Writing Style

N/A

Illustrations/Photos (if applicable)

N/A

Reader reviewed by Krista

Ever since she was child, Mary yearned to see the ocean. Most of the
people in Marys village think she is foolish to think anything but
their village exists. They have always been told that their small
village was the only thing left after the Return. The village is
surrounded by fences, so the Unconsecrated (zombies) cant reach them.
After Marys mom is taken by the Unconsecrated, Mary must join the
Sisterhood. There, she learns that the Sisterhood has been keeping
secrets, and that her village is not the only thing left in the world.
Does this mean that a vast area of water, unaffected by the
Unconsecrated still exists? And how far will Mary go to find the ocean?

First of all, I loved The Forest of Hands and Teeth. The
novel was thrilling and took no easy way outs. I liked how Ryan chose
the focus on the apocalypse after it happened. This gave the novel
unique feel. My favorite thing about the novel was Mary. She was a
flawed person, but a realistic character. I did not like all of her
decisions, but I understood that her decisions were her choices. I know
that must sound confusing, but what I mean is that Mary knew what she
was doing the entire time was what was best for her. Although, admittedly, some readers will be frustrated with how far Mary was willing to go to reach her dream.

I also enjoyed the part where Ryan subtly touched on religion and
its flaws. When I reached the end of the novel, I was sad. I wanted
more! However, because the point-of-view surrounded around Mary, more
of a resolution would have been impossible.

I cant wait for the companion novel!

Guest

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A Scary Book You Can't Put Down

April 14, 2009 (Updated: June 19, 2026)

Overall rating

4.0

Plot

4.0

Characters

N/A

Writing Style

N/A

Illustrations/Photos (if applicable)

N/A

Reader reviewed by Lizzy

I'll admit that I was a little nervous when I picked up Carrie Ryan's The Forest of Hands and Teeth. This was mostly due to the fact that this book because is a Zombie Apocalypse book, although it's written for the Young Adult audience. I'd been reading rave reviews on all of the book blogs I read, and so when it was released I went down to the bookstore and bought a copy.
The story revolves around a small village that is enclosed in a fence to protect them from the unconsecrated (zombies), and the main character, Mary, longs to escape her life this village. The town is ruled by a religious sect, called the Sisterhood, who aren't exactly what they seem. When the fence is breached and the village is attacked Mary escapes, and begins to search for life outside of the place she grew up.
I don't want to say any more about the plot, because it will really give the story away. Let me just tell you that this book might not be for the faint of heart. It is, after all, about a zombie apocalypse. Despite this, the book does show little snippets of home, including Mary's dream to see the ocean.
This is definitely a book worth reading, especially if you love the zombie genre!

Guest

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