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Drowned Country
(The Greenhollow Duology #2)
by
This second volume of the Greenhollow duology once again invites readers to lose themselves in the story of Henry and Tobias, and the magic of a myth they’ve always known.
Even the Wild Man of Greenhollow can’t ignore a summons from his mother, when that mother is the indomitable Adela Silver, practical folklorist. Henry Silver does not relish what he’ll find in the grimy s ...more
Even the Wild Man of Greenhollow can’t ignore a summons from his mother, when that mother is the indomitable Adela Silver, practical folklorist. Henry Silver does not relish what he’ll find in the grimy s ...more
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Paperback, 176 pages
Published
August 18th 2020
by Tor.com
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Start your review of Drowned Country (The Greenhollow Duology, #2)

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find a full review of this book & others on my blog
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The experience of reading this duology is so uniquely its own.
Step inside, and you will feel less like a reader and more like a lost wanderer in an enchanted wood. If you try hard enough, you might smell the green moss drenched with rain, feel the brush of damp leaves against your legs and the watchful gaze of a dryad, like a prickle on your skin. You might hear something that could be a night bird or a fairy skittering out of your path ...more
The experience of reading this duology is so uniquely its own.
Step inside, and you will feel less like a reader and more like a lost wanderer in an enchanted wood. If you try hard enough, you might smell the green moss drenched with rain, feel the brush of damp leaves against your legs and the watchful gaze of a dryad, like a prickle on your skin. You might hear something that could be a night bird or a fairy skittering out of your path ...more

“With a terrible crash, the black waters closed over them all.”Yet again I really love the ability of Emily Tesh to create a very atmospheric experience within the confines of a novella. Her follow-up to the melancholically enchanting Silver in the Wood gives more of the same immersive feeling.
I was mesmerized by the setting established in the first novella, and yet unsatisfied with the amount of plot that went into it. Because, as I will redundantly state yet again, novellas are tricky bea ...more

this book deserves a fair and coherent five star review instead of just jenny-slate-screams.gif repeated 500 times, which is what my heart wants to post, so i will try my best. full disclosure: i got access to this ARC by existing in the periphery of several fantasy authors (including the author), and also, i’ve had Some Wine ahead of a budget airline flight, but honestly given the way i tend to review, that will probably help matters.
my overall impression is: JESUS CHRIST!!!!
i’ve said it befo ...more
my overall impression is: JESUS CHRIST!!!!
i’ve said it befo ...more

rep: gay mc & li
If you’ve already read Silver in the Wood, you pretty much know what to expect from the second book (and if you haven’t, please do so immediately before continuing). But what you need to know up front is: this part is even better.
There’s no need to say that the characters are well fleshed out because we’ve all been in love with them for months already. But somehow they all get to shine more and brighter in Drowned Country. The switch of pov to Henry Silver was an inspired choice. ...more
If you’ve already read Silver in the Wood, you pretty much know what to expect from the second book (and if you haven’t, please do so immediately before continuing). But what you need to know up front is: this part is even better.
There’s no need to say that the characters are well fleshed out because we’ve all been in love with them for months already. But somehow they all get to shine more and brighter in Drowned Country. The switch of pov to Henry Silver was an inspired choice. ...more

Jun 06, 2020
h o l l i s
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In some ways this follow up to SILVER IN THE WOOD, a lush reimagining of the Green Man legend, couldn't be more different than its predecessor. Tone wise, in the telling of the story, almost everything. It actually took a few chapters for me to warm upto this one because it felt like such a change. But eventually it did win me over. Not to the extent of book one, but I was solidly enjoying it.. right up until a, in my opinion, fairly abrupt ending.
The ending aside, I thought this was really wel ...more
The ending aside, I thought this was really wel ...more

#1) Silver in the Wood ★★★★★
haunting
Blog • Trigger Warning Database • Twitter • Instagram ...more

A fantastic sequel to Silver in the Wood, Drowned Country takes a less atmospheric route and gives off more of a dracula/frankenstein vibe. Personally, I liked the first book a lot more as I really loved Tobias' connection to the woods. If you prefer more plot than character you'll probably like this one more, but either way fans of Silver in the Wood are sure to like this as well.
...more

Very different in tone from the first volume, because this is told from Silver's point of view instead of Tobias'. Where Silver in the Wood was mythopoetic, mysterious, and subtly sad, Drowned Country is flippant, shifty, and clever, wearing its feelings a little more on its sleeve. A lovely novella.
...more

Last year I reviewed one of the most atmospheric books I had ever read—Silver in the Wood by Emily Tesh. It was whimsical, verdant, and dark. When I think about it a year later, I still get the mental picture of a deep lustrous forest with secrets to keep. Silver in the Wood was the first book in the Greenhollow Duology. The second, Drowned Country, is as good as the first one, although the tone is slightly different.
Drowned Country brings us many of the characters from the first story, specifi ...more
Drowned Country brings us many of the characters from the first story, specifi ...more

Languorous, beguiling, and illusory that brings forth a story of dream-like splendour that speaks of forgotten things, things lost in the myths and shadows that beckons the reader to a dark, beautiful, and sinister realm of the fairytales. Emily Tesh's little novella is spunned with a language woven from delicate threads of moonlight, raindrop pearls, and quiet melancholy which exists in the delight of love, the seasonal changes of nature, and mortal lives.
Drowned Country is a haunting tale of o ...more
Drowned Country is a haunting tale of o ...more

Not as charming and mythical as the first part.
This one reads more like a fanfiction including the we-were-lovers-but-of-course-we-can't-be-it-anymore trope to which I became extremely allergic during the last years.
Still a good read, but the first part feels more rounded. ...more
This one reads more like a fanfiction including the we-were-lovers-but-of-course-we-can't-be-it-anymore trope to which I became extremely allergic during the last years.
Still a good read, but the first part feels more rounded. ...more

This pleasant and inessential sequel to Silver in the Wood has many of the same charms as its predecessor, but also most of its flaws. It does nothing to complete the half-baked feel of the first one; it's a separate story in a different setting, connected by the characters and their shared history. If the Tobias and Henry Silver romance was your favorite part of the first book, you'll probably like the sequel, which picks up after they've had a falling out and features lots of fretting from Hen
...more

Drowned Country concludes a charming duology populated with fairies, satyrs, and an immortal wood. The fae tale is also a quiet gay love story. Silver is now the face of the Hallow Wood while Tobias assists his mother in her paranormal work. We get flashbacks to the dissolution of their relationship, while Silver travels to help with a new case involving a missing girl. It's a small window into a mystical land, driven by the relational conflict between Silver and Tobias.
As with the first book, ...more
As with the first book, ...more

Dec 09, 2019
The Artisan Geek
marked it as to-read

Utterly brilliant continuation of Silver in the Wood. Emily Tesh blends folklore, m/m romance, adventure, supernatural, detective story, strong, plucky women, and fairy magic completely effortlessly. Tobias, Henry and Maud have such a wonderful found family vibe to them. I loved every second of these two way too short novellas and I dearly hope ms. Tesh will write more in the same vein.

[Gifted]
I loved the first book in this series, and gulped this one down the second it landed on my kindle. These characters are just brilliant, and the magic is unique and inventive. You could read this for the lush descriptions of nature alone and still have a great time.
I loved the first book in this series, and gulped this one down the second it landed on my kindle. These characters are just brilliant, and the magic is unique and inventive. You could read this for the lush descriptions of nature alone and still have a great time.

3.5 of 5 stars at The BiblioSanctum https://bibliosanctum.com/2020/08/20/...
Drowned Country picks up a little while after the end of Silver in the Wood, and reintroduces our characters Tobias Finch and Henry Silver, albeit in their new roles. Henry, however, is having a little trouble adjusting, and Greenhollow Wood has suffered for it. Things got to be so bad that his mother, Mrs. Adela Silver, had to get involved. Together with Tobias, she manages to pull Henry out of his mope and convince him ...more
Drowned Country picks up a little while after the end of Silver in the Wood, and reintroduces our characters Tobias Finch and Henry Silver, albeit in their new roles. Henry, however, is having a little trouble adjusting, and Greenhollow Wood has suffered for it. Things got to be so bad that his mother, Mrs. Adela Silver, had to get involved. Together with Tobias, she manages to pull Henry out of his mope and convince him ...more

Hmm. This was good, but I think it suffered a little from the switch of narrator. I liked Tobias better.
Most of all I liked Silver's monster-hunting mother. She deserves a whopping series of her own - taking on cases and slaying things that go bump in the night. I would 100% read that.
In every way this is a fine story, but it's also all over the place. It tries to be deep, but is mostly shallow. Mainly because we see everything through Silver's eyes and he's... Well... He is what he is.
I've seen ...more
Most of all I liked Silver's monster-hunting mother. She deserves a whopping series of her own - taking on cases and slaying things that go bump in the night. I would 100% read that.
In every way this is a fine story, but it's also all over the place. It tries to be deep, but is mostly shallow. Mainly because we see everything through Silver's eyes and he's... Well... He is what he is.
I've seen ...more

Having made a decent enough book the first time around, why not just reset and basically do the same thing again, this time from the perspective of the least interesting character from the first book? Oh, and let's sideline the most dynamic character from the first book but replace her with what is basically a younger clone?
Between books, Tobias Finch and Henry Silver have become estranged, but must come together again when a young person goes missing, possibly because of a vampire. Silver is an ...more
Between books, Tobias Finch and Henry Silver have become estranged, but must come together again when a young person goes missing, possibly because of a vampire. Silver is an ...more

Soft and dreamy, but with so many teeth, this book is just a beautiful as Silver in the Wood if not moreso. It's like the ragged, raw edges of old, soft tweed; it's full of filtered light and misted rain, eldritch gods whose magic pales against that of the humans who wander this mystical setting. It aches and I love it with my entire soul.
...more

It’s two years later, and Henry Silver has been living alone, amidst the old wood, letting everything fall either into ruin or wildness. Tobias is gone, and we find out from Mrs. Silver that she and Tobias have been busy, hunting and vanquishing monsters. Mrs. Silver hopes to reignite Henry's interest in life by asking him to help with the search and rescue of a young woman. Henry grudgingly agrees, and meets up with a very competent and proper Tobias to begin their search. Henry desperately mis
...more

This review and others can be read on my blog, Black Forest Basilisks.
Drowned Country is the gorgeous sequel to the much-vaunted Silver in the Woods, completing the Greenhollow Duology. The two novellas feature a romance between a young man and a ancient being of the forest as they find love in between the spaces of their small, daily interactions.
Tesh has gorgeous, lyrical prose that makes it hard to tear yourself away from the page. She creates a vast, fairytale-esque landscape where the hills ...more
Drowned Country is the gorgeous sequel to the much-vaunted Silver in the Woods, completing the Greenhollow Duology. The two novellas feature a romance between a young man and a ancient being of the forest as they find love in between the spaces of their small, daily interactions.
Tesh has gorgeous, lyrical prose that makes it hard to tear yourself away from the page. She creates a vast, fairytale-esque landscape where the hills ...more

Drowned Country takes us beyond the current borders of the wood, to places it once stretched to before the ocean swallowed it. On the edge of the coast a young woman has been snatched by a centuries old vampire and the longer she is with him the less likely they'll find her alive. And so Mrs Silver and Tobias enlist the help of Henry, who has most definitely not been moping back in Greenhollow. But there is more than just vampires in Rothport, and Henry and Tobias find themselves facing a much o
...more

This gorgeous lil book is gentle, queer, eerie, beautiful & delicious!
It feels like someone softly singing a lullaby while you nap under a tree in quiet wood, belly full of foraged treats, and the fairytale book you were reading pillowed under your head.
A wondrous conclusion to the story begun in Silver In the Wood!
It feels like someone softly singing a lullaby while you nap under a tree in quiet wood, belly full of foraged treats, and the fairytale book you were reading pillowed under your head.
A wondrous conclusion to the story begun in Silver In the Wood!

'Drowned Country' is the sequel of 'Silver in the Wood' and the second and final book in the Greenhollow Duology. The previous book had seriously blown me away and I was kinda reluctant to even start this book because I knew it would be a powerful read (the first book gave that away). Like the first book, I didn't have words to review this one and I took a break from book reviewing for a whole month just to get past the dreams and illusions and the spells that Emily Tesh had cast upon me. I neve
...more

Sep 25, 2020
Emma☀️
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3.5 stars

4 Stars
Review:
This was another interesting, unique sort of book. This one had less of a fairytale feel and more of a solid novel feel than the first book, but it still had an atmospheric, fairytale-esque story. I’ve come to appreciate the light and airy way these books are written and how it contrasts so nicely with the slightly darker and heavier elements.
The sweet romance thread was continued in this one, though I was frustrated that it took so long to get to the explanation of what happened b ...more
Review:
This was another interesting, unique sort of book. This one had less of a fairytale feel and more of a solid novel feel than the first book, but it still had an atmospheric, fairytale-esque story. I’ve come to appreciate the light and airy way these books are written and how it contrasts so nicely with the slightly darker and heavier elements.
The sweet romance thread was continued in this one, though I was frustrated that it took so long to get to the explanation of what happened b ...more
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Goodreads Librari...: Please correct page number - Drowned Country | 1 | 9 | Sep 25, 2020 06:35PM |
EMILY TESH grew up in London and studied Classics at Trinity College, Cambridge, followed by a Master's degree in Humanities at the University of Chicago. She now lives in Hertfordshire.
...more
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“Silver did not flinch away from her. She was a powerful and dangerous and strange creature, one of the mysteries of the Hallow Wood, unique even among her tree-sisters, but she did not frighten him. Nothing very much frightened him. Was he not the Lord of the Wood, nearer demigod than mortal man, master of time and seasons, beasts and birds, earth and sky?
"You mother is here," said Bramble.
Silver froze.
After a long silence he managed, "Make her go away.”
—
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"You mother is here," said Bramble.
Silver froze.
After a long silence he managed, "Make her go away.”
“He had glimpsed eternity in the drowned forest, and it had opened something up inside him which could not bear to be any smaller than he already was. And by God, it would be a terrible smallness, a terrible selfishness, to force upon another man a fate he could not bear himself.”
—
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