Thornhedge

Another Kingfisher book I'm reading this year and who knows, it'll probably not even be the last. And every book of hers always manages to leave me feeling satisfied but wanting more.

This is a Sleeping Beauty retelling told from the POV from the faerie guarding the tower, Toadling. She is such an endearing character who is scared and unsure of herself, hasn't gotten much of a chance to make choices in her long life, and always tries to help in whatever way she can. The way the author reveals her backstory little by little is beautiful and she is definitely what makes this little novella memorable. The knight Halim on the other hand is a nice guy - no doubt - but the kind of nice guy who thinks he is doing the right thing, irrespective of the wishes of those around him. So while I thought he could be better, I wasn't totally swept off by him.

The prose is lyrical and haunting and sweet, something I've come to expect from the author, and it always marvels me how she manages to show the darkness in her stories but still ensures that there's enough light to be found at the end of the tunnel and the readers are always left with hope. It's the same feeling I got after finishing this story - it's too short but we get enough of it that we are satisfied despite all the awful moments that have passed, and we are left with hope for the many adventures Toadling might go on after this end.

To finish this off, you can't miss this if you are a Kingfisher fan like I am. And if you haven't encountered her works yet, this little novella is not a bad starting point. Just go in expecting something weird and horrific but also sweet and cozy and get swept up in its magic. I do have to mention that the audiobook narrator Jennifer Blom does a lovely job bringing Toadling's story to us and I would surely recommend the audio format to those who enjoy listening to fairytales.

This was a fun, quirky, weird fairy tale retelling. I found it cute and the characters entertaining while I was reading it, but the story wasn't really compelling. I put the book down half way through, and didn't pick it up again for over a week.

We have a knight trying to rescue a girl in a tower. Except nothing is as it seems. We also have Toadling, the girl's guardian, who is trying to keep the world from finding what is in the tower.

I enjoyed the flashbacks and slow reveal of the story. We have a knight now trying to find a way into the tower, and we have flashbacks to why the girl is there in the first place. I was a little confused how much Toadling was telling the knight, and if the flashbacks was her explaining the story or not. The current day story also progressed very slowly, and the most interesting parts were the flashbacks.

I expected this to take place in a secondary world, so I was thrown out of the story a little when it started mentioning real world religions. That is probably due to my expectations though, and not the story.

I enjoyed the ending, with Toadling thinking about her future for the first time. Overall it was cute and charming, but not one I'm likely to reread.

A fairy tale retold, but with a twist? Yes, please!

Here we see the story of Sleeping Beauty retold from the point of view of the fairy. Toadling was supposed to be the princess, but she was stolen by the fae and a changeling was left in her place. She was raised by the greenteeth, trained in the ways of their magic. And when she was grown, the fae asked her to return to the human world, to place a spell of protection on the creature who took her place. But as often happens, the spell goes awry, and Toadling remains with the humans, to protect the princess as best as she can.

But as the changeling princess grows, she shows herself adept at casual cruelty to animals and people alike, and Toadling must more often protect others from her. Toadling's magic is weak. The creature – for that is what the “princess” is – is strong, and vicious, and without a shred of empathy. The best thing Toadling can do is to put the princess into an enchanted sleep and guard the castle, lest anyone get some foolish idea about castles and princesses and breaking a spell with true love's kiss. And history passes them by – Toadling, castle, and princess – until one day a knight comes along, drawn by an old, old story.

This is a fantastic reimagining of Sleeping Beauty! The fairy is always evil, come to wreak harm on the innocent human princess. Here, though, Kingfisher flips the whole thing around, and it absolutely works. Toadling is a winsome character, and the knight, though not big on derring-do, is charming in unexpected ways. It works.

It is a novella, not a full-length novel. I don't think I realized that when I started reading. But that's long enough. Would I love more of Toadling's story? Of course. Was this story just right? Absolutely.

The story is gentle, in turns wistful and thought-provoking, touching on topics of love, loss, responsibility, and the deceptive nature of the outer self. It may be one of my favorite books this year. I highly recommend it, and I must read more of T. Kingfisher's books.

Delightful. Sweet. Refreshingly nonlookist. Kindhearted. It felt at times like a love child of Brené Brown and Becky Chambers with a little DNA from Epictetus. (Doesn’t that make you want to grab a copy right away?)

I loved the explorations of trust; how it can develop over time. I especially loved how Kingfisher uses kneejerk reactions, moments caught off guard, to reveal personality. I loved the lead-with-heart conversations, the leaning into curiosity without initial judgment. Obviously I loved the snipe at the “beautiful people are good, ugly are evil” trope. I loved the exploration of whether some people simply need killin’. And, above all, I loved the overarching spirit of kindness even in difficult circumstances.

Recommendation: don’t read the jacket blurb. It’s anti-helpful. Not really spoilery, but just, I think it would've detracted from my enjoyment of the first 20-30 pages (I read the blurb after finishing the book).

Thornhedge is the only T. Kingfisher book I hadn't heard of before I accidentally found it at a library I visited last month. It's a dark, twisted retelling of Sleeping Beauty. 

I love retellings of classic tales, especially when they have darker themes than the originals, so I figured I'd like this book, but I didn't expect to fall so in love with its heroine, Toadling. She's kind, curious, but cautiously so, and has a strong sense of what's right. And she can turn into a toad. What's not to love?

I also didn't expect this retelling to twist the original tale as much as it did. So many pieces of the story I am familiar with were molded into something completely different, until only the most important foundational aspects of Sleeping Beauty remained. Instead of a simple story about a lovely princess cursed by an evil queen, Thornhedge is a short story with much more depth. We're presented with the question of nature vs. nurture, there are moral quandaries, and there are relationships deeper than the insta-love of a prince who kisses a sleeping princess.

Thornhedge is one of my favorite retellings of all time and I will easily recommend it to anyone who is a fan of T. Kingfisher, a lover of fairytales, or just, you know, a person. 

Rating: 3.75 leaves out of 5-Characters: 4/5 -Cover: 3.5/5-Story: 4/5-Writing: 5/5Genre: Fantasy, Horror, Fairy Tale, Retelling-Fantasy: 5/5-Horror: 0/5-Fairy Tale: 4/5-Retelling: 4.5/5 Type: AudiobookWorth?: YesHated Disliked Meh It Was Okay Liked Loved FavoritedWant to thank Netgalley and publishers for giving me the chance to read this book.A quick and easy read. I love Toadling but felt so damn sorry for her. The retelling of Sleeping Beauty is well done. I loved how T. spun it in her own way and gave us something new yet oddily familiar.

I once commented on a friend's review that, having already read my One True Alice Retelling (TM), all other Alices and Wonderlands are forever ruined for me. Frankly, I've since assumed that this would also be the case for other retellings—that there can only be room for One in my brain.

This little book, and the fact that it coexists [rent-free in my mind] with Heather Walter's Malice duology, disproves that theory.

In my opinion, Thornhedge is the perfect standalone novella, so much so that I would even give it more than 5 out of 5 stars. With excellent writing, characters, and attention to detail, it successfully transformed the tale of Sleeping Beauty into a unique and enchanting new story that will definitely be in my thoughts for quite some time.

I want to say, this is a fun short flipped fairy tale. I loved the world that the author built, both in the human realm and in the fairy realm. I love the greenteeth. i love the characters, especially Toadling. Really I relate to Toadling, she is kind and gentle but the world is not kind and gentle (except for her greenteeth family and at least one human), and she is young and not perfect. I love her, I want to visit her in my mind after the story is over and see what she is doing, see what other stories happen with her.

It is nice to sit down and read a story like this in a few hours, not dragging any, and feel wishing for more but still satisfied.

‘That was so sweet!' Were my exact words when I finished reading this and then I read the author's Acknowledgments and had it confirmed! Maybe not everyone will feel that way about Thornhedge, but I really loved this novella! It felt like a fairytale for those of us who don't feel like princesses. Who feel odd, and ugly and unlovable and that there might be hope for us to find our happily ever after too. A re-telling of Sleeping Beauty using faerie lore and much more ‘original' Brothers Grimm feel, it is exactly the kind of atmosphere and earthier overtone I like for my fairytales. It made me think of Jim Henson's The Storyteller series, which I also love. Dark, old world magic, gritty and yet oddly enough still really charming. The main character Toadling stole my heart, I love her so much, and the prince was humble and endearing in a way I don't think I've ever seen in fantasy. No brooding fae or snobby royalty here. For such a short read, it just charmed me from the first to last page. Despite borrowing from other works, it feels completely unique and I highly recommend it! After really enjoying T.Kingfisher's novel Nettle and Bone earlier this year, I may have found a new fav author!