Into the Woods

Tales from the Hollows and Beyond

By: Kim Harrison

Narrated by: Marguerite Gavin

Length: 20 hrs and 2 mins

Publisher's summary

Enter the woods...if you dare.

For centuries, the woods have been a pivotal part of the wonder and danger of fairy tales, for once you enter anything can happen. Elves, druids, fairies - who knows what you will find once you dare step into the forest?

And now, New York Times best-selling author Kim Harrison ventures into these mysterious, hidden lands of magic and mystery in her first short-story collection. Into the Woods brings together an enchanting mix of brand-new, never-before-published stories and tales from Harrison's beloved, best-selling Hollows series.

The tales here include an original Hollows novella, "Million-Dollar Baby", about Trent Kalamack's secret elven quest in Pale Demon; two original short stories, "Pet Shop Boys" and "Temson Woods," that explore just what happens when humanity and the supernatural collide; and two novelettes, "Spider Silk" and "Grace," set in new worlds of imagination and adventure. Into the Woods also contains all of the previously published Hollows short stories - together in one volume for the very first time.

Step into the woods and discover the magic for yourself.

©2012 Kim Harrison (P)2012 HarperCollins Publishers

Personally not a favorite

Is there anything you would change about this book?

I am not sure what could be changed. I think this is just a personal choice issue. I did not like the format with the mishmash of stories and was surprisingly disappointed with this listen. A few stories were OK to fill in some blanks, but generally I felt these were just some left over stories that got cut from the books.

What do you think your next listen will be?

Just finished listening to Ever After. That was much more like what I am used to from Kim Harrison. That one I would give 5 stars.

What does Marguerite Gavin bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

She brings the Hollows books to life. I have read and listened to many of Kim Harrison's books books and it is far more enjoyable to listen to her interpretation.

Could you see Into the Woods being made into a movie or a TV series? Who should the stars be?

The question does not make sense since these were short stories.

Entertaining!

I was sort of bummed when I read that most of these had been published in various anthologies but I wanted the Trent and Jenks short story so I purchased this anyway. I'm not sure if it was that this was the first time that I had listened to these stories or if it's been so long since I had read them, because they were almost brand new. I had an inkling on how the already published ones ended but it didn't matter, they were great. Plus, the others that I hadn't read before were very entertaining. Between the content and the awesome narration, I would highly recommend!

Great compilation of short stories

Loved this collection of short stories by Kim Harrison. You do need to know the Hollows series to understand the significance of many of these stories but some are stand alone. The stories are great and the narration is excellent. Well worth listening to.

A Great collection of short stories

The collection contains 11 short stories. Some are offshoots and back stories to the Hollows series. Some are stand alone. I have read all The Hollow’s books and found that I very much enjoyed spending more time with some of the characters. Most who look into this book will have been drawn to it because they are Hollow fans, but I truly think a reader would enjoy the stories even if you have never read the Hollows series. I would predict that soon after that same reader would be hooked on the series. Marguerite Gavin is a great narrator and makes listening to the books very enjoyable. Kim Harrison embodies her writing with good plots, exciting stories, some romance and great characters. This holds true throughout this anthology.

A must for Hollows fans

Where does Into the Woods rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

It's a nice addition to the Hollows series, as it is a series of short stories that correlate to the books. It's especially good for Jenks fans as the two stories featuring him are quite poignant.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Grace, in the last story - though she is not a Hollows character. I'd love to read more about her world!

Great Series!

Where does Into the Woods rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

Great collection of novellas and / but not all focused on Rachel! Ms. Harrison has allowed us to tag along with her as she explores other characters and we discover the 'woods' extend farther than the Hollows. Really enjoyed the change of pace! And, as always, Ms. Gavin brought each character off the page and gave a superb performance!

Something for Everyone!

This collection of stories has not only missing pieces in the Rachel Morgan series, but other intriguing stories as well. A great book: even for those who haven't been introduced to Rachel yet!

Grace - I WANT more! Where can I find her?

Totally loved there novellas. Kim is the top of my top 5 list of authors. Where can I read more if Grace?

Drivel

What disappointed you about Into the Woods?

It is devoid of literary quality. It's about as engaging as a Harlequin Romance so if you like that kind of book "Into the Woods" is for you.

What do you think your next listen will be?

The book of Ruth.

What didn’t you like about Marguerite Gavin’s performance?

Just not a style I enjoy. She seemed to be trying too hard to bring some drama to the stories.

If you could play editor, what scene or scenes would you have cut from Into the Woods?

The entire book. This is the first audio book I didn't finish.

Any additional comments?

Perhaps the target audience is much younger - like early teens. I guess the author jumped on the vampire band wagon, which is not my cup of tea. I should have paid more attention to the description ... I thought it would be an assortment of thrillers rather than multiple repetitions of the same theme.

Not what I needed

This is not the book I had been waiting for. I guess I tried to fill the gap while I waited for book 11 & 12 to come out. I actually didnt finish it. This didn't do it for me. Maybe I will give it another try at a later date when I am really bored.