Books

Hazelthorn

Gorgeously gothic horror and queer dark romance from the NYT bestselling author of Don't Let the Forest In

CG Drews, Author

Paperback

Imprint: Hodder Children's Books

Publication date: October 30, 2025

Category: Horror & ghost stories, chillers (Children's / Teenage)

ISBN: 9781444983326

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Knives Out meets Belladonna in this gorgeously gothic queer YA horror and dark romance about an inherited estate, murderous relatives, and a garden with a taste for blood, from the New York Times bestselling author of Don’t Let the Forest In and The Boy Who Steals Houses.

Evander has lived like a ghost in the forgotten corners of the Hazelthorn estate ever since he was taken in by his reclusive billionaire guardian.

He can never leave, he can never go in the gardens and he can never be alone with Laurie, the boy who tried to kill him seven years ago.

But when his guardian is murdered and Evander inherits Hazelthorn, Laurie may be the only one who can help him find the killer.

As dark secrets unravel, moss bleeds though the walls, poisonous mushrooms flourish beneath the floorboards, and Evander must discover what he’s really inherited before Hazelthorn’s garden demands to be fed.

Reviews

A lush, gothic tale filled with devastating twists, delicious atmosphere, and toxic family secrets. Drews delivers another obsession-worthy masterpiece in Hazelthorn-one that's as hauntingly beautiful as the eponymous manor.

The eerie creeping atmosphere and Drews' way of mixing horror with romance, especially that obsession that Evander has, just makes this book so consumable. I was struggling to put it down . . . can't wait to be emotionally devastated by whatever CG Drews writes next.

Netgalley

Viscerally atmospheric and beautifully eerie-Hazelthorn will take root inside you, drag you into its strange, thorny depths, and make you want to stay there forever. I devoured this book.

A beautifully written, modern-yet-gothic murder mystery full of wretched boys, tangled secrets, and a horrifying sentient garden. Devour it, lest it devour you.

CG Drews unleashes a gorgeous atmospheric narrative that rots through the boundaries of YA horror and gives the reader a visceral and unsettling tale of murder, mania, loyalty and a garden with much more bite than you would expect. I loved every single second of this haunting book, and the twists absolutely had me screaming. This is the botanical queer horror that readers never knew they needed.

In Hazelthorn's darkly gothic gardens, CG Drews conjures up a haunting nightmare dense with botanical horror, and in Evander, a rage-filled boy to root for.

C.G. Drews

C.G. Drews lives in Australia with her dog, a piano, and the goal of reading every book in existence. Consequently, her brain has overflowed with words and she spends her days writing novel after novel. She blogs at paperfury.com, never sleeps, and believes in cake for breakfast.