Publishers Weekly
08/01/2022
Ryan (Throw Me to the Wolves, written with Christopher Brooks) brings together 23 dark, feminist fairy tales exploring the folkloric figure of Baba Yaga. The eerily cheerful tone of Gwendolyn Kiste’s Stepford Wives–esque “Last Tour into the Hungering Moonlight” spirals into something more desperate and erratic as the housewives of an apparently perfect neighborhood succumb to Baba Yaga’s pull. An unloved princess finds revenge and salvation through Baba Yaga in “Of Moonlight and Moss” by Sara Tantlinger, while the heroine of R.J. Joseph’s “Where the Horizon Meets the Sky” joins the witch to escape her husband’s ghost. In EV Knight’s timely standout “Stork Bites,” a young woman in need of an illegal abortion seeks out Baba Yaga. Many of these stories take place in the ambiguous, “long ago” era of fairy tales, but some—like Donna Lynch’s “Flood Zone” and Jacqueline West’s “Fair Trade”—transpose the legend into the present day. The least successful of these is “Baba Yaga Learns to Shave, Gets Her Period, Then Grows into Her Own” by Jess Hagemann, which lacks the eerie atmosphere that makes the other stories work. “Water Like Broken Glass” by Carina Bissett, meanwhile, delivers a wonderfully queer update to the tale against the backdrop of WWII. Fans of folklore retellings will find plenty to enjoy. (Nov.)
From the Publisher
"Interpretations vary with delicious wildness.,, But what links the stories is a folkloric power located on the outer edge of our consciousness, yet which seems to burrow right into the centre of our souls." —Daily Mail UK "This collection is weighty both in mission and volume, and with most stories running at only a few thousand words, it’s a great one to, erm, peck at while you dream of running wild deep in the forest." —Lauren McMenemy, Horror Tree "A powerful literary reflection... Outstanding in its diversity and interpretations, Into the Forest is very highly recommended not just for horror collections, but for libraries strong in women's literature, as well as for reader's book groups who would study the legend and realities of the Baba Yaga folktale as it journeys into the heart and soul of women's experiences and psychology." —Diane Donovan, Midwest Book Review
"Fans of folklore retellings will find plenty to enjoy." —Publishers Weekly
"A lovely, thorned, haunted gathering of tales of what it means to occupy a woman’s body. Baba Yaga serves a reminder of the wildness sleeping within all of us. This collection brings her roaring to life." —Kristi DeMeester, author of Such a Pretty Smile
"These are stories about what it means to be a woman fluent in darkness. Each of these authors speaks Baba Yaga's language. It's the language of starlight, shadow, bone, and blood. They have borrowed the witch's spirit, blended it with their own and created a grimoire from which all of us can draw upon.” —Angela Yuriko Smith, multiple Bram Stoker Award®-winning and Elgin Award-nominated author
"Into the Forest explores the folklore of Baba Yaga through new tales, filled with transformation and retribution, from a masterful group of authors. We travel back and forth in time, from Europe to the American South as violence and madness drive the used, abused, and betrayed into dense stretches of trees. There we find a path to strength and power, to unearthing or becoming the otherworldly Maiden, Mother, Crone.” —Linda D. Addison, award-winning author, HWA Lifetime Achievement Award recipient and SFPA Grand Master
"Perfect for horror fans who can't get enough of folklore and fairy-tale retellings that veer in unexpected directions." —Booklist Starred Review
"The stories in Into the Forest collect the guts and bones of some of the world’s oldest witch tales and refashion them into something new, beautiful, and gruesome." –Foreword Reviews
"Edited by Lindy Ryan, a champion of women's voices in horror, this is a sharply imaginative, diverse anthology of dark fantasy and horror stories.... Readers who love to tread the dark and treacherous paths of the human heart will happily lose themselves here." –Shelf Awareness
Library Journal
09/01/2022
You may know the legend of the Baba Yaga, the revered and feared ogress who lives with her sisters deep in the forest in a house that spins atop bird legs, but you've never seen her like this. Slavic in origin but universal in her ability to transcend time and place and to transform, for better or worse, this anthology collects the many sides of the Baba Yaga as she is, was, and could be. Is she a witch, a goddess, or a cannibal? Is she all or none? A mesmerizing blend of folklore and fairytales, this introduces the Baba Yaga as you've never seen her before in a haunting collection of original tales and origin stories brimming with magic, mystery, mischief, and sisterhood. VERDICT Written by some of the most popular women in horror today, this is a one-of-a-kind anthology and sparkling jewel that will appeal to fans of fantasy, folklore, and feminist fiction.—Alana Quarles
JANUARY 2023 - AudioFile
This audiobook includes 23 reimagined tales of the fabled Slavic witch Baba Yaga who can manifest in many forms. Each story is narrated by one of seven performers who carry listeners through a multitude of places and times. Both timely and timeless, the collection is enhanced by this stellar production. Whether a stereotypical crone, a misunderstood witch forced into hiding, or a misguided young woman, Baba Yaga is given a voice befitting the story. By capturing the intricacies of the characters through accents and tones, each narrator showcases her talents and breathes life into her story, drawing one deeper into the forests of the mythological witch of the woods. A magical production for fans of fairy tales and folklore. A.L.S.M. © AudioFile 2023, Portland, Maine
