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. Apparently, he was getting a late start on the citadel. The morning was half-over before he rose, and it was nearly noon before he had finished mending a stray bit of bridle and finally saddled his horse. When Toadling reaches adulthood she's asked to return to the human world to bless a newborn child. Trouble is, she garbles the words and the blessing turns into a curse. On the other hand, she could eat worms and beetles and sleep under a stone, which humans could not, so perhaps it balanced out. She is asked to return to the world of humans to bless a newborn child. A little girl. A bumbling, beautiful baby girl...

When he had banked the fire and settled down, when his breathing had become slow and even, she slunk into the open. She would have felt safer in toad shape, but elf-knots required fingers. I think it is a great example of Kingfisher's skill as a writer. I also highly enjoyed the narration of the audiobook. This story is pure, engaging entertainment. trigger + content warnings: blood, plague, death, kidnapping, captivity, brief mention of child birth, death of a child, self harm for magic / testing magic, mention of animal cruelty, physical abuse (slap), suicide mention, violence, extreme isolationI mostly came for answers,’ our knight tells Toadling, ‘ or maybe just the story.’ Unlike most knights, this one is more interested in winning a story and seemingly not a beautiful princess, though I’m sure it has crossed his mind. Kingfisher plays with some expectations here as well, making him a Muslim knight and also describing him as not particularly attractive as well. Though this does touch on how it is sort of unclear when this story is supposed to take place or if it is actually our Earth or a fantasy world with most of the same elements and general vibes. I mean, I do enjoy that we are going for an inclusive story but Toadling was just describing people waving crusades banners and now monks are just hanging with the Muslim knight talking about god like everything is just cool? It seemed a missed opportunity to discuss the religious violence or at least find a way to frame the story in history. Which I guess we are supposed to brush aside for the sake of the story, but at least the world building for the world of fairies is rather lovely and I especially enjoy the way time works in this book with decades passing in the fairy realm being only a few days in the human one. Anyways, an interesting dynamic is that the knight has to confront the version of the story he has heard with the existence and warnings of Toadling, who is pretty charming in her quirky shyness (poor fairy girl has been in solitude for centuries, so you’ll forgive her awkwardness) but doesn’t really fit the bill for a heroic knights quest. His stubbornness in thinking he can lift a non-existent curse on her (does he think she’ll turn beautiful?) makes for some rather cute and charming scenes. She was up at dawn, fretting, waiting for him to move on, and he had the unmitigated gall to sleep in.

Thank you so much to the publisher, Tor and Macmillan Audio, for providing me with copies to read and review. T. Kingfisher is a gift. She has a gift and she is a gift!Kingfisher never fails to dazzle."—Peter S. Beagle, Hugo-, Nebula-, and Locus-Award winning author of The Last Unicorn Her first instinct was to go to toad shape, but that would have meant another motion, even a small one, as she dropped to the earth. Instead, she stayed absolutely still, unmoving, not even drawing breath. Popular culture tends to see fairytales in a very particular light: Colorful, romantic stories of princesses in magical castles, dashing princes, and first kisses, where good always triumphs and evil is always ugly. We like to forget that the original tales—whether passed down through folklore or penned by the Brothers Grimm themselves, are sharp, dark things, often uncomfortable, always complicated, and as likely to steal the breath from your throat as inspire dreams of happily ever after. The way Thornhedge turns all the fairy tales inside out is a sharp-edged delight." —Katherine Addison, author of The Goblin Emperor Eventually he turned to care for his horse, and she dropped to the leaves. The hard, warty toad skin enveloped her, and she hopped slowly away.

He’ll leave tomorrow morning, she told herself. He’s searching for a place to camp that won’t cost any money—that’s all. They must be telling stories,” said the fairy hopelessly. “About a princess in a tower and a hedge of thorns to keep the princes out.”

Senior Editors

So Ms. Kingfisher, please write more. I must find out what happens to Toadling after you typed The End. Thornhedge is the sweetest, most delightful fairy tale you’ve given us yet, and I know, deep in your heart, there's story left to tell. There's also poor, dear Toadling, who was whisked away from her family by fairies the day she was born. She grew to feel safe and loved in her new toad-like form in the watery warmth of faerieland.

How can anyone resist the talent and creativity of T.Kingfisher's beautiful writing style and storytelling? Or should I say Retellings? It's simply impossible. The characters here are as diverse as good and evil, the magic is ever present, and the atmosphere is both bright and a bit dark. This time, what if it was not a dark force, but a kind one that had caused all those zzzzzzzzzs? What if there was a good reason for doing so? What is someone was charged with making sure that no one disturbed the sleeper, however many years, decades, centuries might pass? One thing I like to do with fairy tales is to look at them and go “How can I make this even worse?” - from the Grim Dark interviewI am not so sure that Kingfisher’s tale really is a worse version. Well, maybe worse that the Disney version. But far from the worst. There is one (and there are others as bad) in which a wandering king happens by the castle where a sleeper named Talia is housed. He decides this is a great opportunity for him, absconds with her virginity, and leaves the unconscious Talia pregnant with twins. What a guy! Immensely charming, unexpected, full of heart, I was utterly delighted by this incredibly original retelling of Sleeping Beauty." —Katherine Arden, bestselling author of The Bear and the Nightingale

Voter's Packets

She slept more and more. The jays stole shiny things from each other’s nests but found no new ones. But sometimes it’s just not enough. “It should have mattered. All that love and all that trying should have changed … something…” * this is a hard one to rate, but i think i have settled on the highest of 3 stars! but three stars feels extra wild because the mc of this is probably my favorite character that t kingfisher has ever created! this is a sleeping beauty reimagining that really makes the reader think about what humans can perceive as good and/or evil on first glance. it also has heavy themes of nurture versus nature and how important it is for children to grow up with love and safety. but there was just something about the evil one being a child* in this story that made me uncomfortable, and upon finishing it just really made me not want to give out a higher rating, despite loving so many other aspects of this novella. (*i know there is more to this, but i am trying to be vague for this mini review!) But sometimes a good solution to evil may be “stab it with the pointy end”, but to thoughtful, kind and careful people that solution is very hard to arrive at.