Tuesday, July 8, 2014

Thorn by Intisar Khanani

5 Stars
This isn’t the first time I have read a retelling of “The Goose Girl” but I will tell you it is my favorite.  This is the first book I have read by this author and in fact I am not sure the author has anything else out there yet, but I will be following her (or him, I can’t tell by the name). 
The premise of “The Goose Girl” is about a princess who is sent far away to another kingdom in order to marry a prince, but on the way she is betrayed and through one mechanism or another she is no longer believed to be the princess.  Another takes her place and the princess is made to serve as a goose girl.  The prince, however, is still in danger although the princess becomes quite comfortable in her new role, she must find the courage to confront the evils that are present. 

I liked this particular retelling as it was slightly different than previous versions I have read (which you will just have to read to find out).  It also read slightly older and mature.  There was nothing inappropriate in either language or sexuality in the book.  I enjoyed both the princess and the prince in this retelling more than I had in any other version.  Valka is a character that you love to hate.  She just makes it so easy. 
I did feel like the ending wasn’t quite resolved between the princess and the prince, but I am hoping that this story might go beyond “The Goose Girl”.  I would like to hear more from Red Hawk as well as Rowan, Oak and Ash. 
Beautiful cover!  I am guilty of the crime of judging a book by its cover. 

No comments:

Post a Comment