Winter's Teeth

by R.A. Betzer

Rae Bennett, a morally ambiguous college student raised by the local ax throwing gym, is doing her best to assimilate into adulthood after a tumultuous upbringing set her back in every way. Then, Fox Winter crashes into her life on an ice float in the creek. He’s a frozen corpse when she finds him, only to violently wake and take off into the woods before she can figure out what’s really going on.

She finds him again two weeks later when her sister goes missing at the rustic wedding venue run by the Winter family. Dragging Fox back into her life against his will, Rae enlists him to aid in the search for her sister. He has only one rule for their tentative new relationship—don’t go into the woods—which she flouts liberally to get to the bottom of things. With a reluctant Fox in tow, she discovers the darkest parts of the forest full of centuries old legends and dangerous secrets surrounding his family.

In the dead of winter, a twisted tradition unfurls with supernatural shifters and their arranged marriages to kidnapped humans—her sister being one of them. Rae fights to rescue her sister before the tradition is complete, all while warring with a traitorous heart that begins to fall for one of the Winter villains. Somewhere along the way, she starts fighting for more than just her sister, hoping to rescue the man she loves, as well.

But in the end, she may only be able to save one of them.

Fans of Sarah Beth Durst’s “The Lake House” and Ali Hazelwood’s “Bride” will enjoy “Winter’s Teeth” by RA Betzer.

Genres: Horror, Paranormal, Dark Romance, Romance, Fantasy, Paranormal Romance

ebook

Published October 6, 2026

About the author

R. A. Betzer is a fantasy and romance author, rooted in magic and the untamed. She lives in rural PA close to the Appalachian Mountains, which inspired much of her debut novel, "Winter's Teeth." When she’s not obsessively writing to the point of dehydration or religiously updating on Ao3, she can be found hiking, watching anime, or mothering her goblin cat-child.

Reviews

[Sarah]

Winter’s Teeth hit all the right notes for me. Creepy forest settings (as a diehard fan of liminal spaces, this just felt so comforting), insanely evocative and decadent wintry vibes, twisted family traditions and drama, a morally gray protagonist, and one of my favorite new ships to date.

By the time I finished Winter’s Teeth, I was so on board the ship I was not getting off again. The love interest of this story is an adorable cinnamon roll who I so just wanted to snuggle with. And the SPICE. Ya’ll, the SPICE. My jaw was on the floor. I’m not joking.

And the writing style is SO GOOD —filled with humor, fast-paced action sequences, and suspense that constantly had me on my toes. I thought I had that ending figured out, but I couldn’t be happier to be wrong. I stayed up til 3 am to finish this book, and I can’t remember the last time I did that!

I’m very grateful to have had the chance to read this book, and I cannot wait for 2026 so you all can read it too! You’re not ready for what’s coming!

[Soph–]

Arc review!

“𝙄 𝙩𝙖𝙢𝙚𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙛𝙚𝙖𝙧, 𝙡𝙚𝙖𝙨𝙝𝙚𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙧𝙖𝙜𝙚, 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙩𝙪𝙧𝙣𝙚𝙙 𝙞𝙩 𝙗𝙖𝙘𝙠 𝙤𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙤𝙣𝙚𝙨 𝙬𝙝𝙤 𝙩𝙧𝙞𝙚𝙙 𝙩𝙤 𝙝𝙪𝙧𝙩 𝙢𝙚.”

This was such the perfect mood for the coming autumn/winter season! So creepy, dark, cold— and creepy secrets that should stay hidden are being revealed and all hell break loose. The main characters reflect a real sense of belonging, their humanity showing in the way they show up for each other. Rea is badass for real, but who wouldn’t give up everything to save the people they love most?! She’s ready to finally let out all the anger and rage to save herself and the people she loves because the only other option is death and she won't accept it.

“𝙏𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙬𝙖𝙨 𝙢𝙚. 𝘼𝙡𝙡 𝙢𝙮 𝙧𝙖𝙜𝙚, 𝙖𝙡𝙡 𝙢𝙮 𝙝𝙖𝙩𝙧𝙚𝙙, 𝙖𝙡𝙡 𝙢𝙮 𝙗𝙡𝙤𝙤𝙙𝙡𝙪𝙨𝙩.”

“𝙒𝙝𝙚𝙣 𝙄 𝙡𝙖𝙨𝙩 𝙨𝙥𝙞𝙚𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙝𝙖𝙣𝙙𝙡𝙚 𝙤𝙛 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙜𝙪𝙣 𝙞𝙣 𝙖 𝙥𝙞𝙡𝙚 𝙤𝙛 𝙨𝙡𝙪𝙨𝙝𝙮 𝙨𝙣𝙤𝙬 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙙𝙞𝙧𝙩𝙮 𝙨𝙖𝙡𝙩 𝙘𝙝𝙪𝙣𝙠𝙨, 𝙄 𝙖𝙘𝙩𝙚𝙙 𝙤𝙣 𝙞𝙣𝙨𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙘𝙩𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙤𝙣𝙡𝙮 𝙬𝙖𝙮 𝙄 𝙘𝙤𝙪𝙡𝙙— 𝙄 𝙗𝙚𝙜𝙖𝙣 𝙩𝙤 𝙘𝙧𝙖𝙬𝙡.”

Really enjoyed the setting; a dark ancient forest untamed by human hands, hiding many secrets and ready to kill to keep them hidden. But Rea is determined to get her loved ones away, she’s ready to trek through snow with a busted ankle, ready to face monsters she never thought were real, ready to kill to get away from the nightmares the forest unleashed.

“𝙀𝙫𝙚𝙣 𝙖𝙣𝙞𝙢𝙖𝙡𝙨 𝙬𝙚𝙧𝙚 𝙢𝙤𝙧𝙚 𝙝𝙪𝙢𝙖𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙤𝙨𝙚. 𝙐𝙣𝙣𝙚𝙘𝙚𝙨𝙨𝙖𝙧𝙮 𝙫𝙞𝙤𝙡𝙚𝙣𝙘𝙚 𝙬𝙖𝙨 𝙥𝙚𝙧𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙩𝙚𝙙, 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙖𝙨 𝙛𝙖𝙧 𝙖𝙨 𝙄 𝙠𝙣𝙚𝙬, 𝙤𝙣𝙡𝙮 𝙖𝙣𝙤𝙢𝙖𝙡𝙞𝙚𝙨 𝙞𝙣 𝙣𝙖𝙩𝙪𝙧𝙚 𝙜𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙞𝙣𝙩𝙤 𝙩𝙤𝙧𝙩𝙪𝙧𝙚. 𝙈𝙤𝙨𝙩 𝙞𝙣𝙨𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙘𝙩𝙨 𝙬𝙚𝙧𝙚 𝙩𝙤 𝙠𝙞𝙡𝙡 𝙨𝙬𝙞𝙛𝙩𝙡𝙮 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙦𝙪𝙞𝙚𝙩𝙡𝙮.”

The milkshake scene GUYS!!!
« 𝙄 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙠 𝙢𝙞𝙡𝙠𝙨𝙝𝙖𝙠𝙚𝙨 𝙖𝙧𝙚 𝙢𝙮 𝙣𝙚𝙬 𝙛𝙖𝙫𝙤𝙧𝙞𝙩𝙚 𝙙𝙚𝙨𝙨𝙚𝙧𝙩.»
– 𝙄 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙠 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙮 𝙖𝙧𝙚 𝙢𝙮 𝙣𝙚𝙬 𝙛𝙖𝙫𝙤𝙧𝙞𝙩𝙚 𝙩𝙤𝙤»

“𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙝𝙚𝙡𝙡 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙮 𝙥𝙪𝙩 𝙪𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙧𝙤𝙪𝙜𝙝 𝙬𝙖𝙨 𝙜𝙤𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙩𝙤 𝙗𝙚 𝙧𝙚𝙥𝙖𝙞𝙙. 𝙊𝙣𝙚 𝙬𝙖𝙮 𝙤𝙧 𝙖𝙣𝙤𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧.”

“𝘽𝙡𝙤𝙤𝙙, 𝙙𝙚𝙖𝙩𝙝, 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙢𝙤𝙣𝙨𝙩𝙚𝙧𝙨 𝙞𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙬𝙤𝙤𝙙𝙨 𝙡𝙪𝙧𝙠𝙚𝙙 𝙧𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩 𝙖𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙚𝙙𝙜𝙚𝙨, 𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙙𝙮 𝙩𝙤 𝙙𝙧𝙖𝙜 𝙢𝙚 𝙙𝙤𝙬𝙣. 𝘼𝙣𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙬𝙤𝙧𝙨𝙩? 𝙄 𝙬𝙖𝙣𝙩𝙚𝙙 𝙩𝙤 𝙜𝙤 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚. 𝙄 𝙬𝙖𝙣𝙩𝙚𝙙 𝙩𝙤 𝙗𝙖𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙞𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙙𝙖𝙧𝙠𝙣𝙚𝙨𝙨 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙡𝙚𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙧𝙖𝙜𝙚 𝙘𝙤𝙣𝙨𝙪𝙢𝙚 𝙢𝙚.”

[Crying In The Bookclub]

I want to start this review off by first thanking the author for the arc and the opportunity to read her work. Congratulations on your debut novel. It takes a lot of guts to post your work!

I am going to provide my honest review of the book.

I was incredibly excited to read this book. A cryptid romance!!!! Morally grey FMC!!! Sign me up. I thought the premise was really interesting. Sadly it just wasn't executed to my liking. Someone might love this book, but it wasn't for me.

The pacing was really strange. Some parts dragged while others were really fast. The chemistry between the FMC and the MMC was not there and it was insta-love. The whole cryptid aspect of the story was what sold me on it originally, but it ended up being shifters instead of a cryptid.

I was left with a lot of weird questions at the end of the book. I didn't understand the rituals or why they were in place. Arthur's motives were weird, like why would you let Rae stay at your venue knowing she was going to be looking for her sister? I don't know if I missed it but I also don't understand how the FMC could smell shifters while the MMC who is a shifter couldn't. If a few of these questions are fixed/explored more I think the book would gain another star.

I love good representation of healthy friendships, but the friends that were included in this were left at a safehouse and had no major role. You could take them out of the story and it would remain the same.

I really liked that the MMC was not a toxic stereotype that is usually found in these types of books. It was a breath of fresh air to have a genuinely good guy as the romantic interest.

[Avery Clason]

This was such a gripping book that is made its way into my dreams 🦇

This book was everything I wanted it to be and more! I first saw it a while back on TikTok, and it drew me in with the MMC being a cryptid in the Appalachian mountains.

What drew me in as I was reading the book was Betzer’s writing style and her FMC, Rae, who is brilliant badass that will do anything to save her sister. If you’re looking for a book this fall with mystery, a dreary setting in the cold mountains, and some cryptids… then this is the book for you.

I truly will not stop recommending this novel! I also cannot wait to read more by R.A. Betzer! Keep an eye out for Winter’s Teeth as it releases on October 6!

Thank you Rory for letting me ARC read this beautiful novel and for letting me be a part of your street team!

[S.E. Bristow]

I have a complicated relationship with this book. On one hand, I had a ton of fun with it. I finished it in two sittings and really enjoyed both the concept and the fast-paced narrative. The book moves at a great pace, and I really enjoyed Fox as both a love interest and a secondary main character.

Fans of Twilight, Ali Hazelwood, and crime thrillers will enjoy this book.

However, this book wasn't quite what I was told it would be, which put a bit of a damper on the experience for me. The shifters don't read "cryptid" to me at all, which is the part I was most excited about, and felt a little let down by. I still would have enjoyed this book if the word cryptid was replaced with like... creature, or monster or something of the sort, but cryptid carries a connotation and expectation that I just fear weren't met by this book.

Rae, our main character, is not particularly morally gray either? She makes some interesting decisions sure, but has a very clear moral code, which is so strong she has several panic attacks about the consequences of her actions throughout the novel. She also has quite a few monologues about how dark and twisted her mind is, without us ever seeing anything like that in her actions. It reads a little Wattpad-esque (not a bad thing! just not my personal taste).

I enjoyed the romance, especially where they ended up at the end of the novel, but it did feel just a tad insta-love for me. They go from being incredibly frustrated by each other to her having detailed inner monologues about how she wants to kiss him and how she'd be willing to die for him in like, forty pages. Once again, it's not bad! it's just not my thing.

Publishing a book is a huge accomplishment, and congratulations to the lovely RA Betzer for this huge step forward! I think if some of the pacing issues and internal dramatization moments can be smoothed over, this book could be even more incredible.

Thank you so much to the RA Betzer and Rowan Prose for allowing me an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own!

[Katy]

Thank you to the author and publisher for the Advanced Reader Copy that I received.

I’m a bit undecided on the exact star rating I want to give this book because there were some really great aspects but also some things that annoyed me. So for now, I think it’s at 3 stars but maybe after thinking on it, I could see it going up a bit (will update here if so).

To start off with what I liked. The story was very immersive and the vibes were crafted very well. I really liked the setting and could picture it clearly. I don’t think it used overly descriptive writing, so it struck a good balance of enough to picture without dragging.

I was intrigued by the plot and a lot of tense moments had me wanting to know what would happen and what the characters would do. I think the shapeshifting magic aspect was fun and definitely added to the creep factor as the characters spend a lot of time in the woods and any animal could be an enemy.

I also enjoyed the characters. I appreciated the rage and retribution of our main character. I feel like in many books (with a similar someone needs to be saved setup) the main character will kind of like forget the whole point (often being distracted by romance) about how they should be saving their sister/friend/whoever and you get kind of annoyed with them for that. Not the case here, Rae is full steam ahead, no regard for her own life, 100% of the time, all to save her sister. Like she also has some romance but it definitely didn’t take preference for her. I appreciated the friends that helped along the way. And I liked Fox as a character.

Now onto the few problems I had with the book. My biggest issue was that because the book is first person POV from only the main character’s POV the other characters need to actually say what they feel. But unfortunately, a lot of the romance happened not from Fox actually saying much but just from Rae inferring things in her thoughts. It’s super frustrating because even though I liked both Rae and Fox as characters, the romance felt frustrating and unearned. Like since it’s almost all from just her thoughts, it reads very much like she fell first and she fell harder and I guess he fell too because he keeps kissing her. But like that’s kind of it.

Other than that, I felt like some more motivation/explanation of the villains would be nice and I also felt the ending was pretty abrupt.

With all that said, I think the story ultimately does more good than not and therefore it is worth the read. I think it’s just good to read it when you are in the mood for a creepy, winter, forest story about a woman trying to save her sister and not when you are in the mood for a romance.

[Local Bunns]

I have complicated feelings about this one. I liked it! But it felt like it had so much potential to do more. I felt like it was lacking a little substance at times. The cryptid romance is what really drew me into the story but I don't think the themes were well executed throughout the book.

On the note of characters though, I hated the FMC. I'll say it! I thought she was really insufferable and a bit cringey at times. The other characters felt like props and didn't give much to the story. Arthur and the rituals felt rushed and unexplained. I would have taken an extra 50 pages in this book to fill in some of the gaps.

The pacing did make it hard for me to enjoy the story but overall it wasn't that big of a critique for me. I do think I had fun reading this book but I wish there was more. And honestly, I would pick up another book by this author. I think that the writing style could be developed into something really good in future books and I do urge whoever is reading this to give it a read. It wasn't a bad book, it just wasn't for me.

This was an ARC received by the author but as always this is my honest opinion. Thank you for trusting me with your work!

[Ashlyn M]

Thank you to the author for the arc!

⭐⭐⭐
🌶️
For fans of: shifters & modern fantasy

Thoughts:
I had been looking forward to this book for a really long time and unfortunately it didn't hit for me. I think the biggest disappointing thing was that for the promotions for this book, it was said there were cryptids and Appalachian folklore. And by the end, we had creatures (shifters), and no folklore. The idea is definitely there, but we the author just didn't quiet reach it.

The romance seemed very instant. I love Fox and his character is very interesting, but he so quickly changed his tune on things it just didn't seem realistic.

They also just did a lot of things that made no sense what to ever, even in a book that is supposed to be thrilling.

Am I telling you to not read this book? No, definitely not. Read this book and have fun with it! I look forward to what this author puts out in the future!

Would I recommend it? Depends.
Emotional damage: 2/10

[Lydia]

I feel… crypt-fished? Folk-fished?

[Allie]

I went into this book expecting to be in a chokehold and absolutely in love with it, unfortunately I am not. I think the idea and premise of the story is WONDERFUL, however the writing makes the MFC absolutely unbearable and annoying for me. There is also a big amount of over detailing & explaining and putting in filler sentences that the story would have been better without. I’ve decided to DNF this book, but I hope someone else can find enjoyment out of it.

[Afrodite 🌷]

Thank you to R.A. Betzer and Rowan Prose for allowing me an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

There were definitely things I enjoyed in this book, especially Fox, the setting, and some of the tension surrounding the Winter family, but overall, I found the execution quite inconsistent. The book had several ideas that I really liked, but they often felt underdeveloped or poorly paced, which made it difficult for me to become fully immersed in the story.

One of my biggest issues was the romance between Rae and Fox. Rae becomes attached to Fox almost immediately, despite having known him for only a couple of days. She is very quick to want to hug him and eventually describe losing him as being almost as devastating as losing her sister. I found this difficult to believe because their relationship simply hadn't had enough time to develop into something that could reasonably carry that much emotional weight. What made it even more frustrating was that one of Rae's friends actually comments on how little she knows Fox, so the author seems to be aware of how quickly their relationship develops, but never really addresses the problem (or maybe it's point?). The romance therefore felt more like an insta-love situation than a relationship that naturally developed throughout the story. And that thing is just not for me.

This also made some of Rae's decisions difficult for me to understand. At one point she says, “As much as I hated everything that happened on the Winter property, I didn't hate meeting him. In fact, I would even repeat the hell I went through to get to him.” I genuinely could not understand this. She is essentially saying that she would willingly go through everything that happened, including her sister being kidnapped and the horrible situation they were put through, for A BOY? And this is properly where the morally grey Rae comes into the picture, but still.

That being said, I did really enjoy Fox as a character. He was sweet and caring without becoming overly possessive or strange, which I appreciated. He initially had a darker and more mysterious presence, and I liked watching him gradually open up to Rae. I also loved that he was interested in manga, since that is not something I often see included in characters in books like this. I especially enjoyed the internal conflict Rae experienced surrounding him. She simultaneously sees Fox as someone who saved her and as someone who could potentially be a monster, and I thought that uncertainty was one of the more interesting aspects of their relationship.

There was also some nice foreshadowing surrounding Fox being a bear. I particularly liked the bear imagery in Rae's cottage room, as it gave the supernatural reveal a little more meaning when looking back. Unfortunately, some of the supernatural elements raised more questions for me than they answered. For example, when Fox first shifts in front of Rae, he takes off his coat and snow pants as though they will be destroyed when he transforms. Yet when he shifts back, he is fully dressed again. This made me wonder what the point of taking his clothes off was in the first place. Small inconsistencies like this pulled me out of the story.

The writing itself was another weakness for me. There were several sentences that did not quite make sense, as well as places where punctuation, particularly commas, seemed to be missing. Beyond the grammatical issues, I also found the prose fairly standard and sometimes boring. I was expecting the writing to be more atmospheric or lush, especially given the setting and the darker elements of the story, but I rarely found myself particularly captivated by the actual prose.

The pacing was similarly inconsistent. Some sections moved extremely quickly, with major events happening almost before I had time to process them, while other sections slowed down considerably and spent a lot of time on things that did not feel as important to the overall story. This uneven pacing became especially noticeable towards the ending. The conclusion felt rushed, and rather than leaving me satisfied, it left me with several unanswered questions. Why can Rae smell all of the Winters when Fox and his family apparently cannot? Did Everly actually develop Stockholm syndrome, or was something else happening? And did Arthur really die? I personally dislike when a death is not properly confirmed because it leaves open the possibility that the character is still alive somewhere, especially when the story already has so many unanswered questions.

Another detail that bothered me was Rae's supposed background with ax throwing. The book's summary makes it sound as though being raised in an ax-throwing gym is an important part of who Rae is, but this is not actually introduced until around 70% into the book. It is then mentioned only a couple more times. In the end, Rae uses a gun to kill the people she needs to kill anyway, so I struggled to see what purpose the ax-throwing background actually served. It felt like something that was included in the summary to make Rae sound interesting rather than something that genuinely mattered to the story.

Despite all of these criticisms, one of my favorite aspects of the book was its setting. I really enjoyed the mountains and the forest, and I thought the descriptions created an unsettling atmosphere that suited the story well. There was something eerie about the isolation of the setting, and I wish the writing had leaned even more into that atmosphere because I think it could have made the book much more captivating, I also would have wished there were more folklore presented in the book.

For me, the book was an interesting concept with some genuinely enjoyable elements, but it needed stronger development and a more consistent execution to become a truly captivating read.

[Sol✨]

Thank you so much to R.A. Betzer for access to this advanced reader's copy of Winter's Teeth. This is my unbiased and honest review.

***---***

"He was stuck. He didn't want his family, but they were all he had. They were all tangled up in the brambles together, and no one could escape without others feeling the sting of pulling thorns."

***---***

Rae Bennett seems to have her future laid out before her: escape her overbearing family, graduate with an environmental science degree, and get away from the town that has only taught her to cower. However, that future is swiftly upended when Rae finds herself plunging into the river to save a man seemingly freezing to death among the rapids. Despite Rae's protests, he leaves quickly after the heroic rescue, leaving Rae to wonder about the likelihood of his survival until she runs into him again days later at her sister's wedding venue. What should have been a chance meeting quickly unravels when her sister disappears into the woods and the man she saved, Fox Winter, seems to have all the answers. Only he's scared, and Rae is hellbent on finding out what could possibly buy his silence.

I have a complicated relationship with this book. On one hand, I love Fox Winter with my whole heart. I love a tragic male lead that is stuck in his own circumstances. He's a multidimensional character who, as much as he wants to do the right thing, is terrified to do so out of fear of the consequences. He's also the source of some of the most fun interactions in the book, and really shines as a love interest. However, his relationship with Rae is almost a little too insta-love for me. They go from practically hating one another to utter devotion in a matter of chapters, which may work for some, but isn't necessarily my cup of tea.

That being said, I loved how quick paced the plot was and the way events logically flowed into one another. The villain was one hell of a villain that fit the setting. I was born and raised in Appalachia myself, so I grew up being taught to fear the woods and I feel that was well communicated in this book. The woods were dark, unforgiving, and home to creatures that no human should ever lay eyes on. It was a fun, dark read for a late autumn night.

Unfortunately, the part of the book that leaves me the most undecided on whether I loved or hated it was being misled by the description. When I hear Appalachia and cryptids, I expect wampus cats or jackalopes or mothman. Not shifters. If you love shifter romances, you'll enjoy this book 100%. However, shifters didn't really hit the dark and creepy wood vibe that I was expecting going into this book.

If you love Ali Hazelwood's Bride, then this is a great book for you. If you love a little shifter romance and a lot of messed up family dynamics in your reading, then you'll also love this book. A definite must for those who like a romance with things that go bump in the night. Happy reading!

[Ꭵ r ᥲ ᥲ ⊹ ࣪]

5⭐ | 1🌶️

woahh, what did i just read?! 😭 the way my heart was beating so fast from the first chapter to the last was CRAZY!! i was so hooked the entire time—curious, a little scared, and constantly wondering what was going to happen next.

i was really excited to read this book, and it honestly didn’t disappoint. 😍i really enjoyed the concept, characters, setting, plot, and pacing. everything felt well balanced, and i especially liked the plot twists because i genuinely didn’t see some of them coming,omg!

i loved Rae and Fox so much. they were definitely the highlight of the book for me ofc!!

i could relate to Rae in quite a few ways, so she quickly became one of my favourite FMCs. i loved how stubborn, determined, and brave she was, especially when it came to the people she cared about. she’s also morally grey, which made her character even more interesting to me.

and Fox… i really loved him.😭 he’s a handsome cryptid who’s sweet, protective, love-starved(tho, both of them were!), and surprisingly a giant green flag.🫢i wasn’t expecting to get this attached to him, but here we are. im obsessed! he’s definitely one of my new fictional boyfies😚

i also enjoyed the side characters—Corbin, Shira, Riss, Angie, Ben, and little cutie Maple. their banter added some lighter moments between the more intense scenes, and i really liked the friendship and loyalty they had towards Rae and Fox. they made the story more enjoyable overall fr.

not gonna name any of the negative characters because ✋🏻 SPOILERS ✋🏻 but just know they scared the absolute tf outta me😭i was glad to see them get what they deserved by the end, though.

im also probably going to avoid forests for a while after reading this🫣

𖤣𖥧𖥣 ꙳ 𝘱𝘭𝘶𝘴 𝘱𝘰𝘪𝘯𝘵— 🤭as a botany student, i really enjoy books that feature forests, trees, and nature, especially when there’s romance involved. i’ve only found like one or two books with this exact kind of vibe before, so when i came across Winter’s Teeth, i immediately knew i had to read it. and the appalachian folklore + creepy forest atmosphere made it even better!

overall, i had a great time reading it.
so if you’ve never had a cryptid as a boyfriend before, you better add this one to your tbr!!🫵🏻

that said, there were still a few things left unanswered, and now I NEED to know more about these characters. so im really hoping we get a book 2 because im absolutely not ready to let them go yet!!!!!

thank you so much for the arc! i had such a fun and thrilling time reading this book.🤍

[Mercurio]

The perfect read to start the -ber months.

I read Winter's Teeth by R.A. Betzer and now I'm completely obsessed with cryptids.

After saving Fox by the river, Rae never expected to see him again. But two weeks later, her sister goes missing at the wedding venue run by the Winter family. Rae rents the venue to find out what happened, and that's when she crosses paths with the creek boy again. He gives her one rule: don't go into the woods. Rae, of course, doesn't exactly follow it. As she digs deeper, she and Fox start working together, uncovering a twisted tradition involving supernatural shifters, dark secrets, and arranged marriages.
Somewhere along the way, Rae starts fighting to rescue not just her sister, but the man she loves as well. Though in the end, she may only be able to save one of them.

Rae is brave, determined, and willing to do anything to save those she loves. A morally grey FMC truly worthy of the title. I adored her. Despite having a sister she adores and fantastic friends, a painful family situation leaves her feeling unwanted and alone.

And Fox Winter? Does he have a good older brother? Asking for a friend.
Loyal, attentive, thoughtful, and wrapped in just the right amount of mystery. He comes from a family bound by strict traditions, and he's definitely not on their good side. The chemistry between him and Rae comes with the perfect touch of flirting. And that milkshake scene...

They're simply two people with complicated families who find their place in each other's arms.

The atmosphere is distinctly dark, creepy, with horror and mystery at its core. The plot is packed with twists, but the dynamic between Fox and Rae, especially their adorable banter, was my favorite part. I loved the side characters too, you can really feel how much they care about Rae and Fox.

📆 October 6 2026

Tropes:

🖤cryptid love interest
🖤morally grey FMC
🖤Appalachian folklore and setting
🖤dark winter atmosphere
🖤forbidden romance
🖤meet cute with corpse
🖤twisted family traditions

[Ash]

First off, thank you to R.A. Betzer for allowing me to read the book early! I'm very grateful for the chance!

I was so intrigued by the plot of this book, cryptids and romance all while her sister is missing and we have to find her? Sign me up! But, as much as I did have a lot of fun reading the book, there were a few things that I struggled with.

The first being the cryptids, the shifters didn't feel like cryptids. There wasn't a lot of lore given about them and they didn't feel very creepy or cryptid at all. When it started being revealed I had hoped for a little more skinwalker type creepy and not shifting into normal bears and birds. Ultimately they fell a little flat for me.

I also felt that the romance was rushed, I didn't feel like there was a lot of build up or chemistry given to Fox and Rae, I loved Fox's character, and Rae was very interesting, although I couldn't figure out if she was morally gray or if she was just a girl making questionable decisions. But the relationship between them felt quick and I didn't really find myself loving them as a pair.

I also wished that we explored Arthur more, I felt like he was built up to be this big, scary antagonist, but we didn't get much of him at all. I really didn't feel the fear that I think I should've. So I wish we had gotten more of the things he's done and built up his evilness more.

Ultimately, despite the issues I had, I did have fun reading it, especially the first parts when we're at the wedding and her sister disappears and the first moments of looking for her. Those moments were exactly what I hoped for but after that, things just fell a little flat as far as the expectations I had.

Thank you again to the author for sending me the book early, I'm grateful to have gotten the chance to read your baby early!

[Allie Green]

This book had me in a total chokehold! Winter’s Teeth easily claims a spot as one of my absolute favorite reads of the year, maybe of all time.

The pacing kept me on my toes, and the plot felt original, blending a deeply atmospheric mystery with a broody cryptid romance. The world-building was flawlessly executed; you can practically feel the frostbite as you get sucked into the dark Appalachian forest in the dead of winter.

The character development stood out to me the most. I loved watching the characters gradually unravel, discovering layers of themselves alongside the reader. The romance felt realistic for the situation as the book progressed, and Rae and Fox’s dynamic was a fantastic surprise. I loved that the human FMC was both the feral one and the rock in the relationship, while the “monster” MMC plays the grumpy damsel in distress. It’s a subversion of tropes we definitely don’t see enough. I also loved watching the side characters rally around Rae despite all of her doubts.

There are some deeper themes here that really hit home. I mean, just because you belong to a family of cryptids with twisted traditions and a habit of kidnapping women, doesn’t mean you have to participate in the family business. It’s okay to doubt a toxic system after generations of being stuck in it, and (goodness forbid) actually let a woman help you break the cycle.

When the book ended, I was in total denial, frantically flipping the pages back and forth. I was utterly distraught! I desperately need this to be a multi-book series! I have been searching for a book like this for a long time. R.A. Betzer has earned their place on my auto-buy list, that’s for sure.

A huge thank you to the author for the ARC! Thank you for allowing me into your creepy cryptid world early.

[Laura]

Review of ARC from the author. Thank you R.A. Betzer for sending me the ebook.


Rating: 4/5 stars

-paranormal romance
-morally gray
- Horror
- Mystery
-Cryptids (shapeshifters)
- Family drama
- Found family
- Darker themes, violence, and some gore. Know your triggers.

This book has everything I love in a story. A creepy forest setting, cryptids, winter time, some romance, some mystery, and horror elements. And I found the setting of the Winter’s cabin, Winter’s Teeth kind of cozy? Is that weird? Is it just me?

This book starts off quick, right from the get go the FMC Rae sees a guy who looks like he’s half frozen to death on an iced up creek. She risks her life to save the stranger. Fox Winter the MMC is who she saves. When he comes to Rae notices something odd about his eyes. And right then I was like “oh…what is he???” This had me hooked from the start. When it came to her Rae’s sister, Everly’s wedding and disappearance she ended up having to rely on Fox. They somehow keep running into each other.

I really enjoyed the deeper theme that just because you are born into a family, doesn’t mean you can’t make your own family. I do love stories with found family elements. And I could really feel that Rae’s friends really cared about her. The only thing that really frustrated me about Rae is how she didn’t tell her friends all weekend what was going on and some of her decisions pertaining to them.

Overall, I loved it. It was fast paced, well written, great group of characters, and fantastic setting. I definitely recommend it when it comes out in October. I hope there is a sequel, especially after that ending. I will probably be purchasing a physical copy for myself.

Again, thank you to the author for sending me the ARC.

[Casper Brainard]

I want to thank the author for providing me with an ARC for this book!

The first thing I wanted to note, was that I loved the characters. They felt human to me, well rounded, and well thought out. They were characters that I felt as though went through different journeys and experiences before, during and after the events of the novel — Fox particularly was a character I related to heavily and loved. For a debut novel, the author has built such a foundation to grow off of and will be promising and one to look out for for future releases.

Being that it’s their debut novel, there’s a few structural things that I wanted to make note of but not delve into too critically. The pacing could be improved on; the beginning 40% of the book flew by and set up for a great book — followed by the other 60% that was a bit sluggish and felt misdirected. There seemed to have been multiple storylines and points the author wanted to touch upon but some were left in the dust.

The biggest miss I found reading, was the ending felt rushed and incomplete — my belief is that there could be opportunities to expand on the world in the future. I hope the author does decide to continue the storyline of the world, but with a book currently being advertised as a standalone the ending needed a more satisfying and clear conclusion.

All in all, I enjoyed the book and getting to experience debut storytelling — I would just say that this was a story of “almost”s. The atmosphere and vibes were ALMOST there, it felt more impacted in the beginning half. The characters were alive, but felt a little flat in the conclusion. I loved the lore and the thought put into the originality, it just needed to be explored a little deeper.

[ReaderLiv]

Have you ever wished for a book that had the nostalgia of reading Twilight, but with a way darker folklore feel, where she chooses the shapeshifting creature instead? I definitely didn’t know that’s what I’d been looking for, but I sure found it in Winters Teeth.

Winters Teeth is a dark romance, fantasy/thriller. If you love the scary folklore of Appalachia or cryptids, mixed with a mystery and some dark romance, this is probably a great read for you. The way that R.A. Betzer's writing made me feel cozy and nostalgic, while also absolutely spooked had me hooked from the first page. I felt connected to the FMC through this writing style and even found myself laughing aloud in some moments. While there are some great lighthearted scenes in this book, there is most definitely a darker side as well. Horror elements, dark romance tropes, abuse, and violence are also important to this storyline. Definitely read any trigger warnings ahead of time to make sure this book is for you!

The only part of this book that I would have loved to dive into more, is the folklore horror. I think R.A. Betzer did an amazing job setting the tone of this book and weaving in some really spooky elements. I think if the setting had a bit more folklore background some of the horror moments would feel more unsettling to the reader. That being said, this was a great read and I am really looking forward to the next one!

Thank you to R.A. Betzer for providing me with an ARC copy of your book! I can’t wait to see what you write next!

*I received an advanced reader copy of this book and am leaving a review that is my own and not influenced by any outside factors*

[Ashley Dudash]

Review of advance copy received from Author.

An Appalachian setting, twisted families, morally grey FMC, a cinnamon roll MMC.

Now I absolutely LOVE Appalachian horror and spooky settings. The vibe of this book was eerie the whole way through. The pacing was like a suspenseful movie throughout the whole beginning and middle albeit a little rushed near the end. Always so close to the answer but just far enough away to crave it.

Rae, the FMC, has been through family dynamics that I'm sure quite a few of us out there can relate to. She is intense and will stop at nothing with her protectiveness. Parts of her are impulsive and strong headed but hey, what 20 year old isn't? She made a few decisions that I was like...girl, cmon! But I would have done the same when I was her age. I can totally see it looking back at my past 20 year old self.

Fox, the MMC, well isn't he just the most snarky cutie pie. I love when he lets himself go and just gives in to what he wants. Milkshakes anyone? Teehee. I do love how he wont just give into her a first, keeping her at bay.

Theirs is a whirlwind romance which again, they're young and have gone through trauma. Of course they would crave each other. Hell, the "fuck it" scene. Ok, Fox. I see you. Her comparing him growing on her like a lichen, I absolutely devoured that line.

The book did leave me with quite a few questions about The Winters, Rae's sister, and found family. I can totally see an expansion on this series if the author decides to go in that direction.

All in all 3.5 rounded up!

Thank you to R.A. Betzer for a great read to kickoff spooky season.

Remember, don't go into the woods!

[kym ✨ the midnight review]

Thank you to RA Betzer for the eARC. All opinions are my own.

⭐⭐⭐
Winter's Teeth
By RA Betzer


Winter's Teeth is an atmospheric horromance featuring Appalachian monsters and a girl who's out for justice, no matter the personal cost.

From the beginning I was intrigued — our FMC has a strange, almost unbelievable encounter with an unconscious man in an icy creek, and from there the book takes you on a series of turns you don't expect.

When the same boy is on the crew at her sister's wedding venue the night her sister goes missing, Rae has questions and she won't back down without a fight.

The bones of this story were great. An icy, wintry mountainscape, a healing romance between two broken people, and a supernatural mystery that bites into you with ferocity.

Ultimately, I think this story needed some more developmental edits, and Rae needed a reality check. Her overconfidence and complete lack of awareness made her survival damn near unbelievable, and that's coming from a girl who's read a lot of unlikely hero stories.

The plot jumped around a bit with twists and impulsive character decisions, and I think ultimately some important details were glossed over while giving more attention to Rae and Fox's romance.

I think I would believe this story more if Rae and Fox were high schoolers, rather than 20-25, and the book was Young Adult. I do appreciate that because it contains a little bit of spice, it isn't YA. I guess I would classify it as New Adult.

This story's vibes are akin to Riverdale and Maximum Ride, but deep in the Appalachians. I recommend it for thriller fans who like an emotionally driven story and a mysterious MMC.

⭐⭐⭐

[mich tonks]

Our book club does not own a good reads page, but since I do I figured I'd post it here! Feel free to follow us on instagram at @theintrovertedbookclubduo

Complimentary e-ARC provided by @r.a.betzer. All opinions are our own. 🤍
💭 OUR THOUGHTS

🌛 Sara's Take:
"I was hooked from the very first frozen creek scene! The eerie, claustrophobic atmosphere in the woods had me completely tense, and Rae is such a fun, unapologetically morally gray protagonist. I loved the blend of cryptid lore, dark romance, and high-stakes survival—it’s sinister, atmospheric, and utterly addictive. The end left me craving more, I’m really hoping there’s a sequel in our future to answer all of the questions I still have 👀 literally finished the book in four days."

🌞 Michelle's Take:
"Creepy mountain horror meets Twilight vibes! 🌲🩸 Long descriptive chapters vs. my short attention span was a battle, but Fox Winter made it ALL worth it (hooray for the best trope—enemies-to-lovers mwuahaha). Get you a man to stalk, yearn, and be a complete monster for you. 🫠 Loved the supernatural dark romance, bldshed and the YEARNING as well as the amazing side characters—Corbin, specifically. But we desperately need answers to a FEW things...”

🖤 WHAT WON US OVER
The eerie Appalachian cryptid folklore blended seamlessly with enemies-to-lovers/monster-romance tension, paired with an unstoppable, morally gray heroine who would do anything for those she loves.

⚠️ CONTENT / TRIGGER WARNINGS: Explicit sexual content, graphic violence and gore (broken bones, beheadings, corpses), kidnapping, body horror, and supernatural violence.

[UntilGhosts]

🖤🌲𝔡𝔬𝔫'𝔱 𝔤𝔬 𝔦𝔫𝔱𝔬 𝔱𝔥𝔢 𝔴𝔬𝔬𝔡𝔰🌲🖤

Winter’s Teeth was such a nail biter!!! I was on the edge of my seat every chapter! Like i’m sorry but a cryptid man who hides his feelings until our FMC basically drags it all out of him? I was OBSESSED! 🤞🏼

Fox would have had me in an absolute chokehold so Rae’s feelings were entirely valid and I would have folded like a lawn chair so much faster tbh 🫡🖤

AND THERES A TWIST? Did not see it coming and those are the best books to read!

The storytelling was so immersive, I could picture myself in those woods in the dead of winter, in the diner with Fox and Rae and I could even picture myself in the luxury cabin her friends and family stayed in! The descriptions were easy to follow and the energy was charged the entire time.

Not knowing what could happen next is was kept me locked in throught the book!

I’d rate this read 9.7/10 and the only reason it isn’t a full 10 is because I could have read it for at least forty more chapters! I hadn’t even realized I made it to the end of the book when it happened 🤘🏼

So if you love:

• Cryptid Romance
• Slow burns
• Touch her and die vibes
• A strong, independent FMC
• and So. Much. YEARNING!

Then pick this gem up when it releases on Oct 6th 🖤🌲🖤🌲🖤🌲🖤🌲🖤🌲🖤🌲🖤🌲🖤🌲🖤

𝔰𝔢𝔢 𝔶𝔬𝔲 𝔦𝔫 𝔱𝔥𝔢 𝔴𝔬𝔬𝔡𝔰....

[Ana Simpson]

I really wanted to like this one because the premise was interesting and I genuinely liked the writing style, but I DNF'd at 83%. The prose is beautiful and descriptive, but unfortunately I just couldn’t connect with the characters or get invested in the story.

My biggest issue was the characterization. I was constantly being told that characters were close or that certain things were important, but I didn’t get enough actual moments to make me feel that connection. I wanted more personality, backstory, quirks, banter, and relationship development. The romance especially felt way too rushed, and I didn’t buy how quickly the FMC’s feelings for Fox developed.

There were also a lot of moments where the characters made frustrating or reckless decisions that didn’t feel properly justified, and I felt like the story sometimes explained things I had already figured out instead of letting me connect the dots myself. Some of the timing of certain scenes also took me completely out of the story.

Overall, I think this was just a case of the writing style not being for me. I can appreciate the beautiful prose and interesting premise, but I needed stronger characterization, more believable choices, and more organic relationship development to really care about what was happening.

[yappin yams]

I have never, and I mean NEVER resonated so much with a main female character as I did with Rae in this novel. From the very first sentence I knew I was going to understand her from a deeply familiar place…I swear it’s like Betzer has read my mind and then put my exact thoughts onto her pages. I had the honor of receiving an ARC and I’m still struggling to find the words in my review here because I loved it that much. Horror, romance, dark folklore vibes, monsters, complicated family relationships, this book has it all. The MFC and MMC are so refreshing and unlike anything I’ve ever read in a romance before. They were both so believable, non-toxic, and I fully understood their bond and how they came to feel about each other. Betzer runs a beautifully constructed ship when it comes to story telling and understanding what the reader wants and what her characters need. Everything was incredibly satisfying from start to finish and I cannot WAIT to see where the next book takes us. Thank you for your incredible work and for allowing me to read and review, I am emotionally tied to Rae and Fox (guys he is SO HOT) this book was absolutely made for meeee 🥹🖤 5/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

[Blair]

I was lucky enough to receive an Advanced Reader Copy of this book, and it completely blew me away! I couldn't put this book down, and it is easily an absolute five star read.

The plot of this book is incredible and kept me hooked from the very first page. It starts out with such a unique, captivating hook, a "meet-cute with a corpse", that instantly pulls you into a gripping mystery. What I loved most about the plot was the excellent pacing and how seamlessly the author builds the suspense. As Rae uncovers the family's dark history and the hidden secrets of the Appalachian forest, the tension rises beautifully. Every single chapter leaves you needing to know what happens next.

The atmospheric writing makes the spooky, winter woods feel alive and terrifying, and the folklore elements are brilliantly woven into the story. If you love dark supernatural mysteries, immersive folklore, and an unpredictable plot that keeps you guessing until the very end then this is the book for you!!

[Victoria Coburn]

Do you love your sister so fiercely that you’ll go up against a giant monster?
I loved the winter atmosphere and the fast adventures of this book. The author really set the scenes and I felt like I was in the book going down the quadruple black diamond with Rae and Fox. I thought it was really interesting how the shifters could choose what they shift into and they didn’t get stuck being just one thing. The FMC is a badass who wants to save everyone even if it means hurting herself and the MMC is like that too but he’s a little on the softer side! I did not guess that ending at all I had no idea how the police situation would end up.


The book left me with some questions, like, what happens between Rae and Fox? Why did Evelyn text Arthur? Does her sense of smell mean anything or is it just a really good sense of smell? Hopefully we get a book two and some answers!

Thank you for the opportunity to be an arc reader!

[erika • dead wrong reviews]

4/5 ⭐️ • 1/5 🌶️

• tropes + themes •

- Morally ambiguous FMC x Monster MMC
- Appalachian Mountain setting
- Forbidden romance
- Meet-cute with a corpse
- Kidnapping

• summary + thoughts •

This book opens with our FMC driving on a frigid day and spotting a body in a freezing river, and feels compelled to save him. He mysteriously regains strength and runs into the forest. He disappears before help gets there, and she cannot explain where he went, so the police are unable to do anything.

Later, our FMC is on her way to her half-sister’s wedding in a secluded cabin with her estranged family. So much goes down once she sets foot on this creepy property. She is reunited with “creek boy,” and her half-sister randomly goes missing.

From this point on, our FMC is relentless in finding her half-sister and, against everyone’s wishes, keeps trespassing into the woods of the creepy house. We soon find out there are a LOT of…creatures…in the woods around the cabin. We also meet and learn a lot about what is going on in the Appalachian Mountains.

Overall, if you are looking for a creepy, cult-like book with a tenacious FMC and an MMC with a pretty big secret, this is your book! I enjoyed the story overall and the complexities of the Winter family. I do feel that it was repetitive in some places, to draw out some of the action/storyline, but as a whole I liked it. I was not expecting the Winter family’s secrets, so that kept me interested throughout the book.

This ended on an implied HEA, kinda...I think there may be a book two, but I am not sure.

[Katie]

Thank you to the author for an ARC of this book, Winter's Teeth.

This debut novel wasn't bad! It had me hooked immediately, I just wish it stayed that way. The FMC quickly became more annoying that charming and I definitely wouldn't call her morally gray.
I liked Fox's character, but I also wouldn't call him a cryptid. I unfortunately didn't like Rae and Fox together. I didn't believe their relationship because it was pretty insta-love-y. I wish his emotions came out a little more because all we got was Rae's side of things and she basically immediately fell in love with him. I also thought the IICYIFU was very strangely placed. I will never understand characters that are intimate with each other during the highest of stakes, in the middle of the worst areas, at the strangest times.

[Megan]

Winter’s Teeth by R. A. Betzer is a horror romance about Rae Bennett, who rescues a mysterious guy (Fox Winter) who pretends nothing ever happened. Then she needs his help finding her missing sister who disappeared at Fox’s family’s wedding venue. Rae begins to learn about the dark Winter family traditions while trying not to fall for Fox.

The setting and pace of this story pulls you in and compels you to read more. Where it came up short for me was the story being inconsistent with the promotion (not a story about cryptids). Some parts were repetitive while others were underdeveloped and left me with more questions at the end. This reads like a first in a series. All in all: an intriguing story, and I would read a sequel if one is published.
3⭐️ and 2🌶️(one on-page orgasm).