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Thorn

(Dauntless Path #1)

Intisar Khanani (Goodreads Author)

4.02 · Rating details · 8,308 ratings · 1,619 reviews

For Princess Alyrra, choice is a luxury she's never had ... until she's betrayed.

Princess Alyrra has never enjoyed the security or power of her rank. Between her family's cruelty and the court's contempt, she has spent her life in the shadows. Forced to marry a powerful foreign prince, Alyrra embarks on a journey to meet her betrothed with little hope for a better future.

B ...more

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Kindle Edition, 246 pages

Published January 2014 by Intisar Khanani (first published May 15th 2012)

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Fairy Tale Retellings: Hidden Gems

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The Goose Girl Retellings

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Sep 14, 2020 Miranda Reads rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: best2020books, received-to-review

Just released my Top 10 Books from 2020 BookTube Video - now that you know this one made the list, click the link to find the rest!

The Written Review

“We all need our quiet, I think. We all have our unspoken wishes, hopes we cannot mention, choices we may yet regret.”

Princess Alyrra spent her life balanced on the precipice of fear - her brother finds joy in being cruel and her mother could care less.

Her greatest wish is to fade into the background and live her life outside the ...more

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Jan 29, 2015 Shelby *trains flying monkeys* rated it liked it

Recommended to Shelby *trains flying monkeys* by: Mada

Shelves: fairy-tales-do-they-come-true, young-adult, read-2015, witches, netgalley

A fairy tale re-telling of the "Goose Girl". I'm very pleasantly surprised at how good this book was.
3.5 stars

Princess Alyrra has never played well at being princess. She just wants to do her own thing and let her abusive brother and cold mother do as they want, as long as she escapes their clutches.
A traveling King shows up at the palace and makes an offer for Alyrra's hand in marriage to his son Prince Kestrin.
Alyrra doesn't have a bunch of choices. Stay and face more abuse at the hands of he ...more

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Jan 12, 2020 Lerizza Mae (books&teacups) rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy, arc, young-adult, romance

Actual rating: 4.5 Stars

I received this ARC via Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review.

This book was first published in 2012 as an indie book and it is being republished now by HarperTeen because an editor fell in love with it after reading the book. And I can see the reason why.

This book has a slow start, that much I can say. So I didn't notice for a while that I came to love the story and much of its characters. I only did after I got to the middle part.

The story is so mesmerizing and at t Actual rating: 4.5 Stars

I received this ARC via Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review.

This book was first published in 2012 as an indie book and it is being republished now by HarperTeen because an editor fell in love with it after reading the book. And I can see the reason why.

This book has a slow start, that much I can say. So I didn't notice for a while that I came to love the story and much of its characters. I only did after I got to the middle part.

The story is so mesmerizing and at times heartbreaking. It is more than a simple coming-of-age story. It is about knowing yourself, it is about trust, it is about deception, it is about revenge, it is about politicking, and most of all it is about learning that sense of justice is different for everyone. Moreover, it is about finding your path after a previously rendered road was taken away from you.

The protagonist, Alyrra, is written so magnificently. Although at first, she was described as somewhat a slow, shadow of a self, but other than that, she is caring, intelligent and had a high sense of justness. She had her doubts in her person but after a while, she came to believe in herself which magnanimously helped in the climax of the story.

Moreover, I loved the tandem between Alyrra and Kestrin. What they had is not an instant love between two people who are meant to be wed. They took their time to know each other and in turn trust each other. At the end of the book, Alyrra has not yet come to love Kestrin but is already furnishing the path to get there. And this is the kind of relationship that I love to read about: mutual respect and trust, not just about appearances.

This book is a retelling of the classic Goose Girl. Although I haven't read that particular book yet, I took the risk to read this before the classic. And I am glad that I did that, because this book left me enthralled and I'm sure that it will be one of my best reads this year. Hopefully.

Edit 16/01/2020

Even Ms. Intisar Khanani liked my review! I am so honored and thrilled! There's no doubt that I'm going to buy the book after its release. ...more

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Oct 07, 2020 C.G. Drews added it · review of another edition

Shelves: read-2020, retelling, epic-fantasy, young-adult

This is delightfully whimsical and thoughtful Goose Girl retelling, a story that tells sharp truths in beautiful prose. I quickly loved Alyrra and her peaceful and contented personality, how she isn’t afraid of hardworking and she’s so loyal and endlessly kind. There are also faeries and curses, princes with secrets, and royalty that refuses to acknowledge the darker parts of its kingdom. I think it had quite a deft and well-said commentary on how women are subjected to violence and men look awa ...more

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Apr 30, 2012 Sarah Elizabeth rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: favourite-books, r2r-complete, read-2012

Thorn 99-cent Sale For A Cause -

All proceeds from this sale will go towards helping a good friend cover the cost of international adoption of a pair of biological brothers with Saethre-Chotzen Syndrome--a condition that results in brain damage unless treated in the first year. Evan (age 7) and Raymond (age 9) were each given up at birth, and were unable to receive treatment for their condition.

UK: http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00869SADQ...
US: http://www.amazon.com/Thorn-Intisar-K...
B&N: http://ww ...more

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Aug 22, 2012 Pauline Ross rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: genre-fantasy, 5-star, self-pub, price-free

I loved this book, absolutely loved it. It’s an object lesson for me, actually, in not pre-judging a book, because this one ticks so many of my ‘no’ boxes: it’s YA, it’s a fairy-tale retelling, it’s first person present tense (“I back away...”, “I gaze at him”), it’s more or less a romance, it’s about a princess who doesn’t quite fit in, it has villains with no redeeming characteristics. Had I known all that beforehand, I would never have touched it and I would have missed a lovely, lovely story I loved this book, absolutely loved it. It’s an object lesson for me, actually, in not pre-judging a book, because this one ticks so many of my ‘no’ boxes: it’s YA, it’s a fairy-tale retelling, it’s first person present tense (“I back away...”, “I gaze at him”), it’s more or less a romance, it’s about a princess who doesn’t quite fit in, it has villains with no redeeming characteristics. Had I known all that beforehand, I would never have touched it and I would have missed a lovely, lovely story. As it was, it popped up on a list of free books, I started reading the sample and just kept reading, couldn’t put it down, in fact.

For those who know their fairy tales, this is a reworking of the Goose Girl story. I didn’t know anything about it, so maybe I missed a few subtleties, but I felt it worked perfectly well without any prior knowledge, and apart from a few oddities (like the talking Horse!) there was nothing in there that couldn't be found in conventional fantasy. One of the great strengths of this book is that the characters all feel truly rounded, so even though they are fulfilling traditional roles (the princess, the prince, the witch and so on) they have great depth and believable personalities. The villains seem at first glance to be simplistically cruel and evil, but they all have enough backstory to make them credible, if not exactly sympathetic.

The magic in the book is quite powerful, but the fundamentals are explained clearly enough to be believable, even the talking Horse. The author has thought everything out very carefully, and it works so well that when the heroine is rescued by magical means, it makes perfect sense. Not that she has to be rescued very often, mostly she is perfectly resilient and self-sufficient, and manages to get herself out of trouble and help others as well. I liked, too, that the magic is simply an integral part of life, everyone accepts it and it’s properly regulated. Interestingly, there is also religion, never explained or central to the plot, but just there, as a natural and perfectly normal thing. There are also social customs which are alluded to without full explanations, like a system of debt between people (if someone helps you out, you owe them a debt of comparable value). At one point there’s a discussion of a gift, and whether it incurs an obligation (a debt) or whether it’s just a gift, freely given, and a decision is reached without any attempt to explain the ‘rules’ of such an arrangement to the reader. I rather like this relaxed attitude towards world-building. Some things just are, and don’t need to be elaborated.

The character of Alyssa, the princess, is central to the story, naturally, and the first person narration makes it imperative that she is both likeable and believable. I feel the author pulls this off magnificently. Of course Alyssa makes mistakes sometimes, but she copes well with the strange events which overtake her, and is strong-minded, caring and intelligent without ever turning into the tedious type of kickass female protagonist so often depicted in fantasy these days. On the contrary, she often feels overwhelmed and suffers a great deal, but she always tries to do the right thing, as far as she can. There is a certain amount of angsting, but it's actually understandable, given Alyssa's predicament.

The plot rattles along very nicely, with some unexpected twists and turns. There are villains, of course, so bad things happen, but there are also friends who help out from time to time, just as in real life. Also realistic is that physical encounters have physical effects - if you roll down a cliff, for instance, or get beaten up, there will be cuts and bruises, maybe even broken bones, and time needed to recover. The climax is a bit of a show-stopper, a wonderful outbreak of magical manipulation with everything at stake, and no real certainty of how things will go. And the author neatly side-steps the clichéd ending. It's a fairy story, so of course good triumphs over evil, but the way that is achieved is refreshingly different. And there's not the obvious happy ever after, either. Rather, there's an acknowledgement that a lot has happened and there are bound to be scars, and a tentative sense of moving forward.

This book surprised me. It may be YA, but it addresses some very profound issues, like the nature of justice, the corroding effect of revenge, questions of loyalty and trust and honesty, and the inner goodness (or not) of people, regardless of what they look like, or their rank. The romance element follows a traditional path but with great originality and commendable restraint. The writing style is eloquently literate, and I barely noticed the use of first person present tense. I had a very few minor quibbles - there were a few places early on where I wasn't clear about relationships or what exactly was happening - but nothing major enough to spoil my enjoyment. A terrific read. Five stars.
...more

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Sep 01, 2019 Charlotte rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: fairy-tale-retelling, trauma-rep, women-and-nb-of-speculative-fiction, how-do-you-do-fellow-teens, poc-author

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. "This is how you survive: one breath to the next, refusing each thought as it comes to you. This is how you get through the worst of things."

Thorn by Intisar Khanani was originally independently published in 2012, and it is now being re-released by a publisher in 2020. I was lucky enough to score an ARC in exchange for an honest review, and I'm equally happy to be discussing the book today. Spoilers follow, as well as a discussion of abuse and sexual violence.

So What's It About? (from Goodreads) ...more

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Apr 29, 2020 ♛ may rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: 500-pgs, kickass-heroine, asian-authors, audiobook, duology, fantasy

Book 2 completed for #RamadanReadathon

i absolutely love the new and fresh take this book had to offer YA fantasy

- right from the start, i was entranced by the writing
- it's descriptive and lyrical and kept my interest even during the slower parts of the boko
- the main character was great. she was caring and kind and showed her power through friendships and alliances. i thought that was pretty cool to see her hold power in court without having to be a sword wielding warrior
- this is a retelling Book 2 completed for #RamadanReadathon

i absolutely love the new and fresh take this book had to offer YA fantasy

- right from the start, i was entranced by the writing
- it's descriptive and lyrical and kept my interest even during the slower parts of the boko
- the main character was great. she was caring and kind and showed her power through friendships and alliances. i thought that was pretty cool to see her hold power in court without having to be a sword wielding warrior
- this is a retelling based off the story 'goose girl' but i have no idea what the goose girl story is and that just goes to show that this book can stand on it's own
- the conversations it brought on justice and revenge were really interesting
- this book got dark at some points so definitely be aware that there are themes of abuse and rape that a character suffers (and oh my god it made me want to cry 😭😭😭 it was heartbreaking to read those scenes and the character was such a precious doll and kfjdlafjla im so sad)
- the magic element of the story was really cool too
- i didn't entirely understand all the implications of the magic and how it worked so rip to me
- there are some really really lovely friendships in this book and i absolutely adored how the book took time to build those and show those trusting, tender moments with us
- the book was very slow burn, the romance is just a hint and holds more future implications than anything (my shipper heart was SCREAMING)
- also there's a magical talking horse and omg !!!!!!!!!! i loved him sm ???
- the main conflict resolution was a hit rushed in my opinion, i feel like it was solved relatively easily and while it was realistic in some ways, i was kind of confused how it just Happened
- overall though, i really thought this was a refreshing take on a fantasy story and i really like how it played out. i'm so interested in the next companion book i cant wait jfkljslfja

“We all need our quiet, I think. We all have our unspoken wishes, hopes we cannot mention, choices we may yet regret.” ...more

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Sep 03, 2014 Gail Carriger rated it really liked it

Shelves: ya, historical, fantasy

*This review is of the ORIGINAL self published version of this book. The new version may have substantial changes.

A retelling of the Goose Girl fairy tale as a YA fantasy. This is beautifully written and easy to gobble up with a clean plot and some stunning imagery. At times, I found myself a touch annoyed with the main character, she's quite passive, but this may be a consequence of the source material (after all, that's what most fairy tale heroines are = passive). In the end, I wished the ro ...more

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May 23, 2015 Camly Nguyen rated it really liked it

When a king asks Alyrra's hand for his son in marriage, she accepts happily knowing that she won't have to live with her cruel brother and bitter mother.
On her way to the other kingdom, she is cornered by her maid that used some magic from an ancient witch to switch their bodies. At first, Alyrra hated the change but slowly, she learnt to cherish the simple life. No princes, no courtly lessons, no dances... But when prince Kestrin(the dude she was to marry) grew suspicious of the fake princess ...more

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Mar 01, 2020 Fanna rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: 2020-releases

March 30, 2020:

➝ Sum it up in points!

✔ retelling of the Grimm's fairy tale: The Goose Girl
✔ female protagonist finds her strength & purpose
✔ societal themes of justice and entitlement
✔ free-thinking Horse + sentient Wind
✔ slow-building, genuine romance
✔ villainous witch & robinhood-type thief

Thorn is YA dark retelling of a fairy tale that doesn't confine to the mere recounting of fantastical occurrences but also explore themes important enough to discuss in a world of injustice, royal hierarchy

March 30, 2020:

➝ Sum it up in points!

✔ retelling of the Grimm's fairy tale: The Goose Girl
✔ female protagonist finds her strength & purpose
✔ societal themes of justice and entitlement
✔ free-thinking Horse + sentient Wind
✔ slow-building, genuine romance
✔ villainous witch & robinhood-type thief

Thorn is YA dark retelling of a fairy tale that doesn't confine to the mere recounting of fantastical occurrences but also explore themes important enough to discuss in a world of injustice, royal hierarchy, and risks imposed by hidden slavers and a revengeful witch. A wonderful storyline that empowers the female lead to strengthen her backbone for others and oneself, it definitely shows women empowerment without the usual support by males deemed necessary in such context. Shocking twists that are largely inspired by the original story, this fantasy hooks anyone interested in secrets capable of exploitation, regretful actions from the past, lost and found identities, and a serving of emotions with all of the above. Another aspect is the commendable representation of trauma that has risen from childhood familial pressure and grown because of constant comparisons to create bad impressions. The slow-pacing of the story is essential to its atmosphere but was a personal drawback. Overall, an emotionally heavy story that depicts excellent character development, especially of a female finding her purpose.

➝ Trigger Warnings

✔ domestic abuse
✔ belittling & bullying
✔ animal death (off-page)
✔ choking & authoritarian questioning
✔ physical & emotional abuse
✔ sexual assault

March 29, 2020: This took me so many days because I had to keep it aside at around 35% for the tough, traumatic, and slow-paced story line but once I returned, I was hooked because the plot does create more peaks during the later half of the story and I understood the representation from another perspective. Full review to come!

March 10, 2020:

✔ retelling of the Goose Girl story
✔ royalty & sorcery
✔ grounded, naive but strong female protagonist
✔ themes of finding one’s voice and standing up for others

February 2, 2020: So excited to be a part of the blog tour for this fantasy retelling of the Goose Girl fairy tale. Received a digital review copy via Edelweiss! ...more

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Jan 24, 2021 Bibi rated it did not like it · review of another edition

Shelves: who-cares, where-s-the-romance, why

A cache of vacuous characters who were placed in an indefinable kingdom while writhing in a plot that was as disappointing as it was aggravating.

Moreso with the needless killing and beheading of a horse. What was the point of that?!!

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Jan 30, 2021 JustJJ rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Full review to come @ https://bookerification.com/

5 stars!!
It’s been a while since I’ve given a book 5 stars but this deserves every single star. ...more

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Feb 25, 2020 Umairah | Sereadipity rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

4.5 stars

Thorn was a retelling of 'The Goose Girl' (a fairy tale by the Brothers Grimm) that slowly unfurled its petals to reveal a tale that had me captivated throughout. Out of curiosity, I read The Goose Girl before reading this novel and I think it truly is a stunning retelling that keeps the best parts of the fairy tale whilst adding some much needed depth and character development.

Trigger warnings: physical and emotional abuse, sexual assault (off page), animal death (off page)

Plot: ...more

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Nov 11, 2014 Katerina Kondrenko rated it really liked it

Shelves: writing-touching-moments, plot-driven-by-characters, pov-female-only, format-standalone, pov-1st-person, target-young-adult, genre-fantasy, genre-retellings, read-in-2015, reviewed-by-me-full

8 out of 10

Ревью в моем блоге/This review on my blog
Living A Thousand Lives (please use Chrome/Yandex browser or Android/IOS to see the page; otherwise, spoiler-tags I use to make my post compact may not work)

Genre: fantasy, retelling, YA
Stuff: a la The Goose Girl
Fail: a bit passive MC
WOW: prince, atmosphere
POV: 1st person, female
Love-Geometry: none

Quote-Core:

"I am the Lady who has lost her soul. I am the princess who has lost her self. I am the goose girl who has lost her way. I am the

...more

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Sep 30, 2014 Althea Ann rated it really liked it

A beautifully-done retelling of 'The Goose Girl.'
(http://www.pitt.edu/~dash/grimm089.html)

As in the original Grimm brothers' fairy tale, a princess, on her way to meet her betrothed, is betrayed by her maid, who uses magic to force the two to change places. 'Thorn' adds an extra element of magic in that the women don't just exchange clothes; but actually switch bodies.

Prevented by a curse of speaking of what has been done to her, the princess Alyrra must make the best of her new situation and ad ...more

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May 09, 2015 Sophia Sardothien rated it really liked it

Shelves: arc-review

Thank you Intisar Khanani and Netgalley for sending me this book in exchange of an honest review

Having never to read Goose girl, I pleasantly enjoy reading this book.

The plot was alright, interesting enough to kept me reading for the entire time. Despite the fact that the synopsis seems to empathise a lot on the romance, but the main focus was definitely beyond that. I would have elaborate more but I think it would be better getting in the story without knowing much.

The writing style is ext ...more

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Apr 21, 2015 Cee (The Mistress Case) rated it really liked it

Shelves: kick-ass-heroines, fairytales-and-retellings, arcs-r4r-first-reads

I wish safety for Krestin, as little as I understand him— safety for him and from him.

I just— this one line— hit mehhh in the feels— I can’t.

Okay, okay, in all seriousness, let’s get started.

If you read and liked The Goose Girl by Shannon Hale like I did, don’t be afraid to pick up Thorn by Intisar Khanani. The storytelling is different, as I hoped it would it be. For one, there are Fey and sorcerers in Thorn and I don’t recall any in The Goose Girl (which I read years ago, so I may be mista ...more

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Jan 08, 2020 Christina (Ensconced in Lit) rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: publisher-sent

It isn't often that I pick up a book that grips me as much as Thorn did. It was highly unexpected, and I sobbed in many parts because it touched me so personally. I will be completely frank. It isn't a perfect book. But it is one of those rare reads that because of the way I feel about it myself, I rate it as a perfect 5 star because I don't really care that it isn't perfect. It's a raw and compelling story and the fierce and unyielding main character compensates for any other missteps. This is ...more

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Jan 11, 2016 Tadiana ✩Night Owl☽ marked it as to-read

Shelves: ya-fantasy, fantasy, fairy-tale

Another retelling of the Goose Girl fairy tale, and a $0.99 Kindle special. I'm interested to compare this to Shannon Hale's version, which I adore. ...more

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Jul 07, 2019 Candace Robinson added it · review of another edition

I love this cover! ARC received via publisher!

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Mar 26, 2020 JenacideByBibliophile rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: ball-gowns-and-royals, fantasy-ya, fairy-tale, fiction-ya-teen, hidden-gems, historical-fantasy, retellings, series, badass-female-leads, magic

Actual Rating: 4.5

Disclaimer: This book was sent to me by the publisher, HarperTeen & Hot Key Books, via Edelweiss+ for an honest review.

description

“‘You are neither goose girl no veria, but something better than them both.’

‘You are mistaken,’ I say, the words bitter on my tongue.

‘I am nothing.’”

Alyrra is no stranger to cruelty and being looked down upon, even if she is Princess. Though her honesty may be seen as a virtue to some, in the eyes of court and her mother, it is her biggest weakness ...more

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Apr 24, 2020 Shanice Singh rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: print-books

I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Alyrra is a princess with a cruel family who take delight in tormenting her. When a King comes to visit with the intention of marrying Alyrra to his son, Prince Kestrin. No one understands why he wants stupid Alyrra instead of someone prettier with a richer kingdom.
Eager to be rid of her, Alyrra's family encourage the engagement and plans are made for Alyrra to leave home.
On her way to her betrothed's Kingdom, Alyrra is robbed of he ...more

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Aug 15, 2020 Miss Naseweis rated it really liked it · review of another edition

I bought this book because of its cover (just look at it, it’s so beautiful!) and expected more or less mediocre YA fantasy. I was surprised to find something completely different.

This book isn’t about a kick-ass heroine who’s a trained murderer as it seems to be common these days. It’s about a quiet, insecure and humble princess that learns to face her duties. Sure, sometimes she frustrated me (I sometimes wanted to strangle her and force her to effing TALK), but I guess I’m just so used to ch ...more

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Jul 27, 2020 Diana rated it liked it · review of another edition

Not a bad book, but it ended saturating me. I loved the story and the idea, but it also got to be quite dense. There were parts I loved and parts that, as I've said, saturated me. It's like loving chocolate but eating one that is a bit too much and you just stop because it clogs your tastes. I didn't even read the short story at the end because I want another taste now and let my palate rest...

Vid rev here https://youtu.be/Dqelv-bVPS0 on Desember, 16, 2020 ...more

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Jul 20, 2020 Maddie rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: series-i-might-finish, ya-fantasy, ya-retellings, 2020-releases, reviewed-2020, reading-rush-2020

“I've found that acting when you are afraid is the greatest sign of courage there is.”

Actual Rating: 3.75⭐

TW: abuse (physical & emotional), assault, human trafficking, off-page but discussed rape, death of an animal, hangings, death of a parent.

I don't have much to say about this book except MAN IT GETS GOOD IN THE SECOND HALF. For the first 50-ish% I was enjoying it enough, but there wasn't much to set it apart from the other Goose Girl retellings I'd read. By the end, however, it was a differe ...more

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May 13, 2020 Ivana - Diary of Difference rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: favourites, genre-young-adult, read-in-2020, genre-fantasy, format-print, stars-5

Thorn by Intisar Khanani is such a powerful story about finding your true self, fighting against the injustice and loving with your whole heart.

Synopsis

Princess Alyrra grew up in a cruel family, fearing that her brother might hurt her every day. She despises the fact that she needs to behave in a certain way to appeal to the court. Her despise grows even more when she learns that she's been betrothed to the powerful Pri ...more

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Jul 29, 2014 Gemma rated it it was ok

This book is based on The Goose Girl, a Brothers Grimm fairy tale. I sort of wish I’d known that going in, because after doing some research it seems like some of the plot points that felt a little random were actually part of the fairy tale and that’s probably why they were included.

Anyway, the first few chapter of this book were so interesting, I was drawn right in. The writing is strong, the world is interesting, and it felt relatively unique compared to other fantasy novels I’ve read.

These This book is based on The Goose Girl, a Brothers Grimm fairy tale. I sort of wish I’d known that going in, because after doing some research it seems like some of the plot points that felt a little random were actually part of the fairy tale and that’s probably why they were included.

Anyway, the first few chapter of this book were so interesting, I was drawn right in. The writing is strong, the world is interesting, and it felt relatively unique compared to other fantasy novels I’ve read.

These first chapters introduce Princess Alyrra’s (AKA Thorn) family, who quickly make themselves out to be great villains. I was firmly in Alyrra’s corner and I was ready to spend a whole novel with that character. The plot really started picking up when Alyrra left her home to meet her prince, and when the big betrayal happened I was totally outraged and heartbroken on Alyrra’s behalf. I took that as a really good sign because I was invested in her character so early in the book.

But then…the plot started to wander. It wasn’t clear what Alyrra wanted, if she was angry that she wouldn’t be the queen, or if she was happy to be free of the responsibility. It seemed like it was a little bit of both, which would have been fine but I wish her emotions had been clearer. As she’s written, Alyrra came off as weak willed and kind of indifferent to what was happening to her. That was frustrating because…if she didn’t care about what was going on in her life, why should I?

There’s also magic in this book, because what’s a fantasy novel without magic? Sometimes it was woven into the story pretty well, but other times I had no idea what was going on, or why the magic was important to the plot. For example, Alyrra’s mother does some kind of spell, I think? That’s supposed to make the prince love her? At least I think that’s what it was. It gets mention a few times in the book but I was never totally sure what it was about. The rules of the magic didn’t seem very clearly defined, and so certain things felt very random. The one thing I really didn’t like was (and this isn’t a major spoiler) the talking horse. Apparently that’s something taken from the original Grimm fairy tale. The horse ends up helping Alyrra, and I wouldn’t have minded a magic horse but it didn’t do much that was significant to the overall plot. I kept waiting for Alyrra’s friendship with the horse to make her do something, but it never really paid off.

In fact, there were a few parts of the book that never paid off. A whole gang of thieves was introduced for little purpose, Alyrra gets lost in the fields twice and finds a weird cavern place where the prince has been practicing sorcery, I think?

Alyrra’s relationship with the prince was fine, and they did get some good interactions, but he wasn’t a very memorable character to me. I wish we’d gotten to see more of him, and I wish Alyrra’s feelings for him had been clearer. The romance between the two of them wasn’t developed very much, which was kind of disappointing.

Overall, the book felt cluttered, like there were too many plot threads that should have been paired down. If the plot had been more focused, I think I would have enjoyed this a lot more. As it was, the middle really dragged and if the beginning hadn’t been so interesting I think I would have given up.
The end wasn’t horrible. There wasn’t a huge cliffhanger or anything like that, which was nice. But it still ended up being a little underwhelming.

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Jan 22, 2021 Renaissance Kate rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: retellings, read-in-2021, fantasy-reads

The beginning of this book started off so well that I was sure I was going to fall in love with it. Yes, it was a bit slow at first, but it also introduced a heroine I could root for, intriguing side characters, and a unique world and magic system. I couldn’t wait to see how it all unfolded.

Thorn is a retelling of the Brothers Grimm fairytale “The Goose Girl”. In this version, Princess Alyrra is sent to marry a prince in a distant land, and while she’s happy to leave her abusive mother and broth The beginning of this book started off so well that I was sure I was going to fall in love with it. Yes, it was a bit slow at first, but it also introduced a heroine I could root for, intriguing side characters, and a unique world and magic system. I couldn’t wait to see how it all unfolded.

Thorn is a retelling of the Brothers Grimm fairytale “The Goose Girl”. In this version, Princess Alyrra is sent to marry a prince in a distant land, and while she’s happy to leave her abusive mother and brother behind, she worries about her new life in this foreign kingdom. When her conniving maid works with a dark sorceress to switch bodies with Alyrra during their journey, Alyrra sees her new role as a goose girl as an opportunity to start a different life. However, when it becomes clear that her maid will sacrifice anything to the sorceress to maintain her status and power, even the prince to whom Alyrra was once betrothed, Alyrra must choose between the new life she’s grown to love and the difficult one she left behind.

There were many twists and turns in this book that I didn’t see coming, so they really pulled at my heartstrings; that being said, I wasn’t familiar with “The Goose Girl” before reading this, so if you do know it you will likely see some of these twists coming. Still, there are other twists that aren’t related to the original story, so whether you know the fairytale or not you’ll still find elements that keep you on your toes.

From 1st person POV, I really liked Alyrra as a heroine and the opportunity to be in her head. I think most people can relate to the idea of struggling to do what’s right in the face of fear, or taking a risk even if they feel they’re not ready or strong enough. This story is definitely character driven, and it was a pleasure watching Alyrra’s character arc play out from beginning to end.

I will echo some of the other reviews in saying the overall plot and pacing often felt like a winding road. Many subplots were introduced throughout the story, and while at times this kept things interesting, overall it meandered too much. Certain elements that were crucial to the mainframe of the story would be ignored in lieu of another subplot, ultimately lowering the stakes around the central conflict. The book snaked down these side paths, some of which felt unnecessary or overdramatic, just long enough to develop Alyrra’s character before zigzagging back to the main road. This got old by the end of the book and weakened the impact of the story threads and even the romance (which is not a slow burn, no matter what other reviews say…it only feels slow because it’s practically forgotten at certain points). This is ultimately what led to my rating this book 3 stars instead of 4 or 5.

Overall, Intisar Khanani is a talented storyteller. At times, I was swept up in Alyrra’s whimsical yet dark world, coming to care for her friends and agonizing as she did over the difficult decision she had to make. And while I did not appreciate this retelling as much as I hoped, you might find that you really enjoy it, so give it a try. I can’t wait to see how the characters and conflicts from this story are woven into book #2! ...more

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Sep 19, 2015 Talltree rated it it was amazing

Shelves: genre-fantasy, fav-non-contemp

I love this book. I'd hug it if I could. It is beloved to me and will stay forever and ever on my reread shelf <3<3 ...more

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About Intisar Khanani

Intisar Khanani

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Intisar Khanani grew up a nomad and world traveler. Born in Wisconsin, she has lived in five different states as well as in Jeddah on the coast of the Red Sea. She currently resides in Cincinnati, Ohio, with her husband and two young daughters. Prior to publishing her novels, Intisar worked as a public health consultant on projects relating to infant mortality and minority health, which was as clo ...more

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“Should I run so far that I reach the sea, I should not have run far enough, for the thing I run from rides on my back and in my blood and will not be shaken.” — 28 likes

“We all need our quiet, I think. We all have our unspoken wishes, hopes we cannot mention, choices we may yet regret.” — 22 likes

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