I received this book for free from the publisher. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Thornhedge by T. KingfisherPublished by Tor Books on August 15, 2023
Genres: Fiction / Fantasy / Action & Adventure
Pages: 128
Format: ARC
Source: Publisher
Goodreads
Amazon | Audible | B&N | Kobo | Libro.fm
From USA Today bestselling author T. Kingfisher, Thornhedge is the tale of a kind-hearted, toad-shaped heroine, a gentle knight, and a mission gone completely sideways.
*A very special hardcover edition, featuring foil stamp on the casing and custom endpapers illustrated by the author.*
There's a princess trapped in a tower. This isn't her story.
Meet Toadling. On the day of her birth, she was stolen from her family by the fairies, but she grew up safe and loved in the warm waters of faerieland. Once an adult though, the fae ask a favor of Toadling: return to the human world and offer a blessing of protection to a newborn child. Simple, right?
But nothing with fairies is ever simple.
Centuries later, a knight approaches a towering wall of brambles, where the thorns are as thick as your arm and as sharp as swords. He's heard there's a curse here that needs breaking, but it's a curse Toadling will do anything to uphold...
"The way Thornhedge turns all the fairy tales inside out is a sharp-edged delight."
—Katherine Addison, author of The Goblin EmperorAt the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.
This was fantastic! T. Kingfisher has packed this novella with such an interesting and magical story. This is a different kind of Sleeping Beauty story and I couldn’t help but like our protagonist, Toadling. I was drawn into this story right away and couldn’t wait to see to story unfold. T. Kingfisher is quickly becoming an auto-buy author.
Toadling has been along for a very long time until she meets Halim. As we slowly learn what happened all those years ago, we learn just how much everyone has lost. I thought that the descriptions in this story were incredibly well done so that I could clearly imagine just what the characters were experiencing. I felt like things ended in a very hopeful manner which added to the magical fairy tale feel of the story.
I would highly recommend this book to others. It was an incredibly well-done story that felt like a big story despite its limited number of pages. I am adding this one to my keeper shelf since I can easily see myself picking it up to read again in the future.
I received a review copy of this book from Tor Books.
I’ve got this one on my fall reading list along with Kingfisher’s What Moves the Dead. They both sound really good to me.
Looks like an engaging darker version. Glad you liked it.
I haven’t read this author but she’s popular with Robin who is reviewing this one also.
Only a novella? Interesting. I have not tried this author
I see so many raves for Kingfisher. I’ve yet to read anything by her. Sounds like this one was a big hit!
It sounds fascinating and has a stunning cover.
I’ve never read this author but a novella is a great way to try authors out. I’ll keep this in mind.
I have seen so many good reviews of this author lately and I love the sound of this one. I love the idea of a good Sleeping Beauty retelling.