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libraryofdreaming 's review for:
Thorn
by Intisar Khanani
This book was on sale on the Kindle and I took the bait. What can I say? I'm a sucker for fairy tale retellings. I should admit up front that I am biased against this book, however, because The Goose Girl by Shannon Hale is one of my favorite YA books. It was hard to stop looking at this fairy tale with Goose Girl glasses... However, Thorn is still an interesting, if dark, retelling. Underscore dark. Mix in a whole lot of realism. Add a strong dose of trauma. Pour more darkness over the whole thing. There you have Thorn.
OK so maybe I'm exaggerating. But still, Thorn does not hesitate to pull punches worthy of its fairy tale legacy. While some of its villains get redemption and there is a prince involved, there is no place for Disney in this story. Instead, it deals with some harsh realities about abuse of power, law & order, and punishment. I am of the weaker sort that shys away from these darker subjects usually, but they are still important and profound.
Unfortunately I didn't think the writing of this book lived up to the subjects it tried to tackle. I got a distinctly juvenile vibe from its writing at times and was surprised to discover the writer was not in fact a teenager or first time author. The story itself can get a bit rambling at time and I was really confused as to a plot twist near the end. I thought it could have done with a lot more foreshadowing and better story blending. The reveal at the end fell really flat for me because it came totally out of the blue.
If only this book had better editing and a few story changes I think it would really shine, despite the dark subject matter.
OK so maybe I'm exaggerating. But still, Thorn does not hesitate to pull punches worthy of its fairy tale legacy. While some of its villains get redemption and there is a prince involved, there is no place for Disney in this story. Instead, it deals with some harsh realities about abuse of power, law & order, and punishment. I am of the weaker sort that shys away from these darker subjects usually, but they are still important and profound.
Unfortunately I didn't think the writing of this book lived up to the subjects it tried to tackle. I got a distinctly juvenile vibe from its writing at times and was surprised to discover the writer was not in fact a teenager or first time author. The story itself can get a bit rambling at time and I was really confused as to a plot twist near the end. I thought it could have done with a lot more foreshadowing and better story blending. The reveal at the end fell really flat for me because it came totally out of the blue.
If only this book had better editing and a few story changes I think it would really shine, despite the dark subject matter.