Gingerbread Review: Twist and Dark Retelling of Hansel and Gretel

 

Genre: Horror, Thriller, YA Fiction

Expected Publication: August 4, 2026 by Entangled Publishing 

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ (5/5) 

16-year-old Georgie is already annoyed enough when her influencer stepmother ships her and her brother Hamish off to some random wilderness reality show. Two weeks in the woods, no phones, constant cameras, and everyone there was basically forced to sign up, some for the money, some because their families didn’t know what else to do with their "troubled child". Then one morning the counselors are just gone. And something’s definitely out there in the dark, watching them, picking them off one by one. And the worst part? It’s not just hunting. It’s playing.

This gives me a Hansel & Gretel meets Hunger Games vibe, set in the creepiest woods, and it works so well. It gets weird in the best way: supernatural spooky, tense, and you can tell how dangerous things are straight away. These kids are actually fighting to stay alive and figure out what is going on. 

I love how Lovise builds the characters. Everyone feels like a real person with their own mess and flaws, and Georgie is such a great main character. She’s not perfect; she knows it, but she still tries to look out for everyone even when she’s mad at them or totally terrified. She never stops fighting for her brother and the others, and I loved that about her. 

The ending though? I truly didn't expect that. The scene when the "witch" finally stepped into the light was shocking; I never saw it coming.

Overall, this was such a fun, fast, spooky read! If you love dark fairy tale retellings or survival thrillers, you need to pick this up! 

Thank you to Entangled Publishing and NetGalley for providing me with the review copy.