Thornhedge

By: T. Kingfisher

Narrated by: Jennifer Blom

Length: 3 hrs and 43 mins

Publisher's summary

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.

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 Emperor

©2023 T. Kingfisher (P)2023 Macmillan Audio

Critic reviews

2024, Hugo Award - Winner

"I opened, I devoured. Absolutely delightful and full of charm and truth."—Naomi Novik, New York Times bestselling author of A Deadly Education

"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

T. Kingfisher’s delicate, bittersweet style of fantasy is like nothing else on shelves at the moment and, as a result, she’s an author whose work I would read without knowing one single fact about it. But, in case you need facts, this Sleeping Beauty retelling with a twist is a perfect blend of sharp-edged humor and horror-tinged heart.”—Paste Magazine

Whimsical and romantic

Absolutely such a fun jaunt. Well written and so fun! Loved the pacing and manner of storytelling!!

Unique Sleeping Beauty Retelling

I enjoyed this unique dark Sleeping Beauty retelling. The fairies were especially interesting.

Contains:
-Brutality
-Mention of suicide

Nice reimagining, but...

I liked the reimagining of a classic story, but it still felt a bit too outdated in terms of presenting kids self-esteem and insecurity as a virtue. the main character has barely any agency, just doing what it is told to do, watching and waiting or, when she does something out of line, only as a reaction of the events unfolding. The live story feels shallow (as do Disney love stories often feel): woman has been without human contact in centuries, so she falls in love with the first man that touches her (and is not a bad guy)...

A Magical Development of Two Worlds

I really enjoyed the attention to details for a fairly short novel. I would have preferred the audio be a collaboration of female and male actors as the female voice’s attempts at male felt strange and uninteresting.

Wonderful modern fairy tale

Two for two 5 star listens from T. Kingfisher. My new favorite writer! Also, just finished prior to this Nettle & Bones, which was amazing. Can’t recommend enough both of these books! 

Fairytale at it’s best

A little dark. A little light. Worth the read. Another Kingfisher great read. Recommend it.

Just what I was looking for

I loved this book. It was short and lovely and dark and whimsical and perfectly met my expectations from Kingfisher. The narrator also gave an absolutely excellent performance, adding so much to the atmosphere of the story. Solid book.

Beauty can be the monster.

I really loved this retelling of Sleeping Beauty. Where beauty is the monster, and the ugly person has a good heart. I love fairy tale retelling but this one just hits differently.

Fun Story, excellent narration, enjoyable

Fun fairy tale, creative characters and storyline, imaginative magical happenings, wicked characters too. Highly recommended

Not everything can be fixed

“The first thing Toadling learned in that place was loneliness.”
This leans towards Brothers Grimm fairy tellings, where magic is a twisted, dangerous thing and crossing paths with the Fae rarely bodes well. I for one love twisty, especially when the twists upend the expected fairytale endings.

I adored both Toadling and the knight. I found the pacing slow and felt overall maudlin as the story sunk into my bones. I’m not sure why, maybe it was the mood of this novella, but I kept hearing that poem in my head “Once upon a midnight dreary, as I pondered weak and weary …”

But, every rose has its thorns. Despite the mood, there is beauty and consequence and a satisfying end.
There is Grimm level violence but I found this acceptable down to tween listeners.