Reviews

Deerskin by Robin McKinley

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aggressive_nostalgia's review against another edition

5.0

Despite the heavy themes, and its being the least fluffy but still adorable romantic fantasy I’ve probably ever read, this might be one of my new favorite Robin McKinley books. As usual, McKinley does a wonderful job of drawing out scenes to breathtaking effect and going heavy on the narration and description without overwhelming the reader with her wordiness. Deerskin is rich with suspense and human intensity, and fleshes out a multilayered world full of detail and character. Even the ending was exactly what I was looking for—totally satisfying but not quite what one would expect. It's a bit of a slow read at times—really not the sort of book one ploughs through—but I found it to be a thoroughly magnificent little novel.

bunky_jones's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional hopeful sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.25

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val_eris's review against another edition

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5.0

OH MY FUCKING GOD. I literally just this moment finished reading this book and I am lying on the floor with the drama of that ending. I feel like Robin McKinley with every novel somehow taps directly into my subconscious from when I was thirteen. Unlike The Blue Sword there is absolutely the threat of sexual violence, and most of the book is just sorting out the psychological fallout of that, but... well that’s also something we need to be able to imagine, the healing. The Moon Woman as a goddess is somehow so much better than Artemis. I mean don’t get me wrong I love a goddess who’ll turn a peeping Tom into a stag and let his dogs eat him as much as the next but the moon as a woman who’ll find your lost child is just *chef’s kiss*. She rocks, I am with the Prince in wanting to marry the moon.

ANYWAY I’m getting distracted. Bursting into a ballroom to stop a horrible wedding like an evil witch who didn’t get invited to the party here to curse someone? Iconic. Love to break the windows and have everyone scream when I enter a room. Love to just pour blood from my hands all over the room where a wedding is supposed to happen. She literally freebleeds all over her creepy father’s shitty wedding I cannot express how wild it was. Like having eaten a full meal, I’m so satisfied.

This book loves dogs. Like the prince is a footnote the dogs are the stars. Ash the dog drags this bitch back from death so many times, her poor back must be bowed from carrying the weight of this girl. This dog gets more characterization than the Prince. She almost dies for her Princess twice. Every Robin McKinley book has to stan one animal and this one loves dogs like a dog personally saved its life.

I love also that the Prince is described repeatedly as not being hot, they continually point out that he’s got kind of a paunch. You know what who cares he loves dogs which is the only mark of character this book cares about. He’s a little dense but ultimately seems like a decent dude, I accept him.

I’m not sure how to sum this all up. Get a dog, kill your rapist, worship the moon?

clevermird's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional hopeful sad slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

I've read and reviewed plenty of books by Robin McKinley before, and by now, I'm well-familiar with her signature style. A plucky but down-to-earth heroine (often with a love of horses), a fairytale-esque ambiance, a light romance plot, and a happy (if somewhat rushed) ending. In many ways, Deerskin is more of the same, but in just as many, it's completely different.

The most beautiful woman in the seven kingdoms is in need of a husband. Her father sets many tasks for the suitors, but in the end, the prince of another land wins her hand. Although the two are madly in love, the queen falls ill, leaving behind their young daughter and a plea for her husband to never marry again unless it is to a woman as beautiful as she is. As the princess grows into womanhood, her similarity to her mother becomes increasingly evident and her father makes a horrific choice. Beaten, traumatized, and half-mad with fear, the princess runs away and begins trying to survive in a world that she has never experienced before.

This book was rough. While I'm no stranger to dark and disturbing content, seeing it written out here in such a dreamy, restrained style added to the horror in ways I was not prepared for. From the very first page, we're hit by something "off" and the first segment of the story is extremely effective, slowly unwrapping the self-centered and shallow nature of the royal parents and the life their daughter leads, culminating in the horrific violation that provides the incitement for the rest of the book.

From there, the story follows the princess' survival and recovery - the two are inextricably intertwined - as she struggles through a winter alone in the woods and then seeks out a new life in another land. Each of these segments I think I enjoyed a bit less than the last, although I didn't dislike any of them. The climax is satisfying and, while perhaps I would have preferred a slightly more extended conflict, it didn't feel as rushed as some books by this author and I rather liked the slightly open-ended nature of the final scene. Healing, like many things in life, is not something that simply ends with Hallmark-movie neatness. McKinley's typical attention to horses as companions and protectors for the protagonist is swapped here for a focus on dogs, but the featuring of animals as characters in their own right is still endearing and brings a much-needed softness to an otherwise deeply sad story.

There are a few things to dislike, however. The story drags a bit toward the 2/3 mark and, while many of the more coincidental or "easy" moments in the story are acceptable in its nature as a fairytale retelling (this one being based on the story known in various iterations as "All Furs" or "Donkeyskin"), there were times when I found the resolutions slightly straining to disbelief. While I wasn't as bothered by it as I often might be - the focus here is on the princess' inner journey, not the events of the plot itself - it is still a mark against the book.

While Deerskin is a far cry from much of the authors' other work, I think it will wind up becoming one of my favorites, a portrayal of tragic and horrific circumstances suffused with hope and affection.

Content Warnings