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lily_peach's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Vomit, Self harm, and Death of parent
Minor: Sexual content
moonchild_cos's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Grief, Animal death, Death, Fire/Fire injury, and Self harm
Moderate: Abandonment, Mental illness, and Suicidal thoughts
Minor: Sexual content, Vomit, Murder, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
liliom's review against another edition
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Self harm and Toxic relationship
Minor: Vomit
kaetheluise_nckl's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness, Injury/Injury detail, Grief, Suicidal thoughts, Death, Abandonment, Self harm, Emotional abuse, and Fire/Fire injury
Moderate: Murder, Body horror, and Violence
Minor: Vomit, Sexual content, Blood, Confinement, Death of parent, and Kidnapping
- suicidal ideation - emotional abuse - neglect - self-harm - depression/anxietyspooderalec's review against another edition
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
sad
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? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Grief, Blood, Death of parent, Self harm, and Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Suicidal thoughts, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, and Pregnancy
Queer (lesbian) darkish fairytale with strong similarities to Sleeping Beauty but without the sleeping and a lot more weaving/textile arts specificallystashie's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This isn't a review as much as it's a note of my thoughts and feelings after reading this book.
I started it knowing it's a sapphic romance fantasy and nothing else, and I guess it can be defined as that if you hold the contents of the story at an arms lenght. For me it was more of a journey of a girl forging her place into the world after years of being rejected from everywhere she thought she would fit. It was painful reading the book at points, I would not recommend it to anyone triggered by mentions of self harm, and the emotional negligence mina our protagonist suffered through wasn't easy reading.
Mina was unwanted everywhere she went, by her parents once she was born, by her stepmother who would have preferred her out of the way, by the witch she escaped her loneliness at home to, only to find out that she was unneeded there as well. Humans need to be needed; she had come to witch as a "companion", and yet the witch seemed to be repulsed by the sight of her. Yet the loneliness she suffered in the witch's huge strange castle led her to fight for some company herself. Instead of giving up on herself like everyone else had one last time, she forced herself into the witch's life and made her place there. It was ugly and beautiful, painful and sweet at the same time.
I barely ever feel the need to highlight parts in books, there's not much profoundness to be found in fluffy romance (although now that I think about it, there should be. Is love not one of the most profound emotions humans feel? Maybe I haven't looked hard enough yet) but this was a book about loneliness and the journey of forging a relationship out of nothing . There was alot of supernatural stuff going on but the characters were human at heart, and it showed. There were monologues of acute transparency about the human experience of love, loss and loneliness, and I felt exposed reading some of the parts.
I think most people would find a bit of themselves in the book as well, be it thier past selves or current, or maybe just understand someone else around them a little bit more.
It is not an easy read, not because of the emotions I talked about until now, but because of the prose itself. I had to read the same paragraph multiple times and a few times I was stuck on the same page for the time it would take me to read a chapter on another book. I liked the flowery words at times but mostly they addled my understanding of what I was supposed to envision happening. Although this was only about the details, none of the main plot points were hard to grasp quickly.
There was also the issue of the relationship between everyone in the story being really complicated, to the point none of them are deeply explored, even the one between mina and the witch. At first it felt like a flaw to me, until I finished the book and realized that it's a reflection of how real relationships are; there is no definitive defining moment for how things are between two people, there aren't always comprehensible reasons for what reasons are there for a relationship to be a certain way. There are surprises, a little bit of understanding, and alot of work required to hold two people together, and we forget that. The book was a reminder of what it means to not despair for your current state , time and change go together.
I started it knowing it's a sapphic romance fantasy and nothing else, and I guess it can be defined as that if you hold the contents of the story at an arms lenght. For me it was more of a journey of a girl forging her place into the world after years of being rejected from everywhere she thought she would fit. It was painful reading the book at points, I would not recommend it to anyone triggered by mentions of self harm, and the emotional negligence mina our protagonist suffered through wasn't easy reading.
Mina was unwanted everywhere she went, by her parents once she was born, by her stepmother who would have preferred her out of the way, by the witch she escaped her loneliness at home to, only to find out that she was unneeded there as well. Humans need to be needed; she had come to witch as a "companion", and yet the witch seemed to be repulsed by the sight of her. Yet the loneliness she suffered in the witch's huge strange castle led her to fight for some company herself. Instead of giving up on herself like everyone else had one last time, she forced herself into the witch's life and made her place there. It was ugly and beautiful, painful and sweet at the same time.
I barely ever feel the need to highlight parts in books, there's not much profoundness to be found in fluffy romance (although now that I think about it, there should be. Is love not one of the most profound emotions humans feel? Maybe I haven't looked hard enough yet) but this was a book about loneliness and the journey of forging a relationship out of nothing . There was alot of supernatural stuff going on but the characters were human at heart, and it showed. There were monologues of acute transparency about the human experience of love, loss and loneliness, and I felt exposed reading some of the parts.
I think most people would find a bit of themselves in the book as well, be it thier past selves or current, or maybe just understand someone else around them a little bit more.
It is not an easy read, not because of the emotions I talked about until now, but because of the prose itself. I had to read the same paragraph multiple times and a few times I was stuck on the same page for the time it would take me to read a chapter on another book. I liked the flowery words at times but mostly they addled my understanding of what I was supposed to envision happening. Although this was only about the details, none of the main plot points were hard to grasp quickly.
There was also the issue of the relationship between everyone in the story being really complicated, to the point none of them are deeply explored, even the one between mina and the witch. At first it felt like a flaw to me, until I finished the book and realized that it's a reflection of how real relationships are; there is no definitive defining moment for how things are between two people, there aren't always comprehensible reasons for what reasons are there for a relationship to be a certain way. There are surprises, a little bit of understanding, and alot of work required to hold two people together, and we forget that. The book was a reminder of what it means to not despair for your current state , time and change go together.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Self harm
chaoticbyebye's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts and Self harm
tyler_hmac's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Self harm, and Vomit
0ivy0's review against another edition
dark
emotional
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Bitterthorn was the first dark fairytale retelling I have read - and what a fantastic introduction.
Bitterthorn contains witches, curses and sapphic love with an exploration of loss, feeling unwanted, unloved and lonely while finding love whithin yourself and with someone else.
This is a slow-paced book that feels more character-based than plot-based which is one of the reasons I enjoyed it so much.
The plot starts in autumn and contains perfect autumnal vibes throughout- full of nature, finding 'home' and a place to belong.
'Love doesn't just sit there like a stone, it has to be made, like bread; remade all the time, made new'
I thoroughly enjoyed this book, it's definitely one I will re-read, especially during the autumn and winter months.
Bitterthorn contains witches, curses and sapphic love with an exploration of loss, feeling unwanted, unloved and lonely while finding love whithin yourself and with someone else.
This is a slow-paced book that feels more character-based than plot-based which is one of the reasons I enjoyed it so much.
The plot starts in autumn and contains perfect autumnal vibes throughout- full of nature, finding 'home' and a place to belong.
'Love doesn't just sit there like a stone, it has to be made, like bread; remade all the time, made new'
I thoroughly enjoyed this book, it's definitely one I will re-read, especially during the autumn and winter months.
Content Warnings
Minor: Self harm
cosy_armchair_reader's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Very slow, but enjoyable once you get into it. Definitely alludes to beauty and the beast, but set pre WW1 when Germany is building it's new empire. Mina is 20 year old and struggles with life as "a ghost". Walking is her escape until the witch comes back after 50 years.
A really great book but just very very slow.
A really great book but just very very slow.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Death
Minor: Death of parent and Self harm