marissab's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Plenty of magic. Relatable protagonist. A smidge slow somewhere in the middle, but talking animals help it along. Perfect as a winter bedtime read
Content Warnings
Minor: Blood, Cannibalism, Injury/injury detail, Kidnapping, Animal death, Murder, and Toxic friendship
jwhitlow91's review
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Blood, Gore, and Body horror
Moderate: Kidnapping
Minor: Cannibalism
emily_mh's review
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
relaxing
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This was a delightful retelling of the Snow Queen. It hit key parts of the original tale while putting a fresh and entertaining spin on characters and events. Kingfisher nailed the fairytale-like narrative voice and wove so much humour into the story (I mean like I was laughing out loud).
I adored all three main characters. I loved how naive Gerta was and how she could be foolishly optimistic one minute and then think the absolute worst was going to happen the next. Seeing her grow from a timid, almost self-loathing character to one taking on the Snow Queen and believing herself worthy of love was fantastic. Janna was also a great character. I loved seeing her become more free and open, and appreciated how analytical and logical she was in contrast to Gerta’s “no thoughts, head empty” approach. And of course, my favourite, Mousebones. He was everything I wanted and more in an animal companion character: self-important, but fundamentally loyal. Most of the times I audibly laughed was because of him.
I really liked Gerta and Janna’s relationship. Their chemistry was palpable, yet I also believed in their deeper connection. It was a little insta-lovey, but I wasn’t too affronted by this as they weren’t making irrational decisions in the name of “love.”
Spoiler
I.e., Gerta still went to find Kay, and the only reason Janna went with her initially is because she wanted to escape her father.The plot itself was really well paced. There was always something happening, and because Kingfisher was remixing events I never quite knew what would happen next. There was some really creative plant and animal magic too, which I hadn’t expected but tied in beautifully with the plot.
Finally, the atmosphere was amazing. It was so wintery that I felt cold and like I needed to get cosy. I could picture the landscapes so clearly and felt truly immersed.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Toxic friendship, Death, Kidnapping, Murder, Animal death, Blood, and Violence
Minor: Suicide, Grief, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/injury detail, Physical abuse, Cannibalism, Death of parent, Ableism, Pregnancy, Alcohol, Vomit, Excrement, Animal cruelty, Misogyny, Sexism, and Gore
Major: missing loved one Minor: internalised misogyny, loss of a loved one, illness, epidemic, imprisonmentliterarypenguin's review
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This is my first introduction to T.Kingfisher's work and it has only made me want to read more from this amazing fantasy writer! The Raven and the Reindeer retells the myth of the Snow Queen with some additions like the inclusion of an F/F relationship and the 'I am not like other girls' trope, these additions were very welcome and fit right into the story as they have been there. The story follows Gerta, a young village girl who witnesses her childhood best friend/crush Kai getting lured by the Snow Queen to her icy kingdom. Refusing to let him be taken she goes on a journey to bring back Kai while encountering a hilarious raven to help her along the way. The relationship that forms between Janna and Gerta is so heartwarming and Janna was a much better person for Gerta. Gerta even began to realize that her friend wasn't the right person for her and was kind of a jerk to her, to be honest. Gerta's journey was refreshing to read, watching her find herself and discover who she wants to be as a person and a woman. This truly did read like a modern fairytale and I can't wait to read more of T.Kingfisher's works.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death and Blood
blewballoon's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This was an excellent twist on the Snow Queen fairy tale. I loved the characters and the interesting magical encounters. I think that most of T. Kingfisher's fantasy work is on the darker side, but this one especially.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Blood and Animal death
Minor: Murder, Cannibalism, Toxic friendship, and Vomit
littlecat's review against another edition
adventurous
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
1.0
I though I would enjoy this book a lot more then i ended up doing :(
I didn´t really hate it, I just though ... my main complain is that I don´t like what they done with Kay. I understand that a story about hetronormativity is important to many people, but the story at least in the translations I grew up with is not a romance, you can see one but nothing but the fact that she is a girl he was a boy suggest so - Kay has done nothing wrong, feeling kinda meh about the child of a friend of your grandmother is not a bad thing to do.
The ending "here is all the important stuff that happend while you were knocked out" was rushed and unstatisfying.
I found the robber girl underwhelming, like in the story i grew up with they have mad chemisty in the little room of it and here... i was just not feeling it.
I also prefere the way in fairytale magic just exist here the "sceptism" felt tacked on, I enjoyed the chapter with Livli for that reason the most, she and in general I did like the reindeer transformation, cutting your love to break the spell thing even though it is nothing new it is something I do like.
I think had i read it as a teen i would have found Mousebones and the otters great, he was still nice i am a bit more annoyed by the otters but its more that the dialoge is not that well written.
Spoiler
The ending "here is all the important stuff that happend while you were knocked out" was rushed and unstatisfying.
I found the robber girl underwhelming, like in the story i grew up with they have mad chemisty in the little room of it and here... i was just not feeling it.
I also prefere the way in fairytale magic just exist here the "sceptism" felt tacked on, I enjoyed the chapter with Livli for that reason the most, she and in general I did like the reindeer transformation, cutting your love to break the spell thing even though it is nothing new it is something I do like.
I think had i read it as a teen i would have found Mousebones and the otters great, he was still nice i am a bit more annoyed by the otters but its more that the dialoge is not that well written.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Trafficking, Animal cruelty, Blood, Body horror, Body shaming, Violence, Murder, and Confinement
Moderate: Vomit and Sexism
Minor: Grief, Cannibalism, and Death of parent
divine529's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
I absolutely loved this!
Whenever I can find a good retelling, that's atmospheric and feels like a fairytale and adds something extra to a work, I'm usually all for it.
Surprisingly, I hadn't heard much about this one before I read it, and I think that's a tragedy. This is a "Snow Queen" retelling, with a queer romance and interesting twists throughout. This was absolutely fantastic from the writing to the interesting take on the plot to the characters and the world, but what really stood out to me the most in this was the themes - love, self-confidence, self-esteem/image and sexuality, just to name a few.
I loved Gerta as a character and found her incredibly relatable. I had very little to no connection to Kay. I absolutely adored Mousebones and Janna. And the other side characters were interesting too.
If you enjoyed the "Snow Queen" I think a lot of people would really enjoy this as well. It's one I can definitely see myself rereading again in the future.
Whenever I can find a good retelling, that's atmospheric and feels like a fairytale and adds something extra to a work, I'm usually all for it.
Surprisingly, I hadn't heard much about this one before I read it, and I think that's a tragedy. This is a "Snow Queen" retelling, with a queer romance and interesting twists throughout. This was absolutely fantastic from the writing to the interesting take on the plot to the characters and the world, but what really stood out to me the most in this was the themes - love, self-confidence, self-esteem/image and sexuality, just to name a few.
I loved Gerta as a character and found her incredibly relatable. I had very little to no connection to Kay. I absolutely adored Mousebones and Janna. And the other side characters were interesting too.
If you enjoyed the "Snow Queen" I think a lot of people would really enjoy this as well. It's one I can definitely see myself rereading again in the future.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Confinement, Death, Grief, Vomit, Gore, Toxic friendship, Animal death, and Blood
Minor: Cannibalism and Animal cruelty
bibliophilecrocodile's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
lighthearted
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
The Raven and The Reindeer by T Kingfisher is Snow Queen retelling and my second T Kingfisher book. And need I say that she's becoming a favorite author of mine. I fricking love fairytale retellings and if they're queer, how perfect can it get?! I just loved the found family vibes and all the characters so much! I loved Mousebones and Janna and Gerta and the very enthusiastic otters, it was just a really damn good book!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body shaming, Blood, Injury/injury detail, Animal death, Trafficking, and Bullying
Minor: Cannibalism
lipstickitotheman's review
adventurous
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
I wasn't really into it at the beginning, but at the middle I started really having fun! I truly adored the reindeer parts. Really ended up enjoying it!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Blood, Body horror, Bullying, Confinement, and Injury/injury detail
Minor: Animal cruelty, Cannibalism, Death of parent, Misogyny, Murder, Toxic relationship, and Vomit
megj23's review against another edition
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Animal cruelty, and Animal death
Moderate: Kidnapping