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A review by poisonenvy
The Language of Thorns: Midnight Tales and Dangerous Magic by Leigh Bardugo
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
5.0
This is my second anthology of my year of "read one short story a day."
The first thing I have to say about this book is that it's gorgeous. Just breathtaking. The art really brings the stories to life, and it definitely netted this book an extra star or two. It's really very stunning.
This is a collection of myths and fables from various locations in the Grishaverse: Zemini, Kerch, Fjerdan, and, unsurprisingly, Ravkan, which has the most stories. I'm a little disappointed that no stories from the Shu made it into this collection.
Most of the stories are inspired by myths from our own world, either a mix of multiple stories, or just a retelling of others. I had a lot of fun each morning figuring out where the inspirations for each tale came from. So, without further ado, my reviews.
Ayama and the Thorn Wood This was a fun tale, and a mash-up of Greek mythology, Cinderella, and Beauty and the Beast. It shouldn't work, but it did, and it ended in a far more satisfying manner than I had originally anticipated. The stories that Ayama tells are far more authentic than the ones that she heard, and I can appreciate that, would have appreciated it even as a child.
The Too-Clever Fox I've been looking forward to reading this tale pretty much since Nikolai was first introduced in <I>Shadow and Bone</i>, and I finally snuck it in ahead of time while I was reading <i>Rule of Wolves</i>. While I saw the ending happening fairly early on, I still <i>loved</i> this story a lot, and it really is a tale that suites Nikolai.
The Witch of Duva I actually didn't see the ending coming, and that was a pleasant surprise. This was a retelling of <i>Hansel and Gretel</i>, and it was fun, if not darker than the rest of the stories in the collection.
Little Knife I loved the ending to this story.I'm all about sapphic water nymphs. But other than that, I didn't love it as much as the other stories. I still enjoyed it, but it seemed a little route. The final illustration for this story though is probably my favourite out of the whole collection.
Soldier Prince To me, this seemed like a mash-up of The Nutcracker and Pinocchio, but looking at the author's note at the end of the story, I see that the Velveteen Rabbit was the inspiration for this one. It was very well told, with a theme along the lines of "you can't become real without first wishing for something." To be human is to want and to dream, it's true, and the story tells that excellently.
When Water Sang Fire I think this is the longest story in the collection, but I haven't actually confirmed that, so don't quote me on that. I was nearly late for work though, because it was longer than I expected, haha.
But it was really good. It's emotive, and the ending was really well done? I'll confess that I didn't see where the story was going, but once we got there, I was quietly stoked.
The first thing I have to say about this book is that it's gorgeous. Just breathtaking. The art really brings the stories to life, and it definitely netted this book an extra star or two. It's really very stunning.
This is a collection of myths and fables from various locations in the Grishaverse: Zemini, Kerch, Fjerdan, and, unsurprisingly, Ravkan, which has the most stories. I'm a little disappointed that no stories from the Shu made it into this collection.
Most of the stories are inspired by myths from our own world, either a mix of multiple stories, or just a retelling of others. I had a lot of fun each morning figuring out where the inspirations for each tale came from. So, without further ado, my reviews.
Ayama and the Thorn Wood This was a fun tale, and a mash-up of Greek mythology, Cinderella, and Beauty and the Beast. It shouldn't work, but it did, and it ended in a far more satisfying manner than I had originally anticipated. The stories that Ayama tells are far more authentic than the ones that she heard, and I can appreciate that, would have appreciated it even as a child.
The Too-Clever Fox I've been looking forward to reading this tale pretty much since Nikolai was first introduced in <I>Shadow and Bone</i>, and I finally snuck it in ahead of time while I was reading <i>Rule of Wolves</i>. While I saw the ending happening fairly early on, I still <i>loved</i> this story a lot, and it really is a tale that suites Nikolai.
The Witch of Duva I actually didn't see the ending coming, and that was a pleasant surprise. This was a retelling of <i>Hansel and Gretel</i>, and it was fun, if not darker than the rest of the stories in the collection.
Little Knife I loved the ending to this story.
Soldier Prince To me, this seemed like a mash-up of The Nutcracker and Pinocchio, but looking at the author's note at the end of the story, I see that the Velveteen Rabbit was the inspiration for this one. It was very well told, with a theme along the lines of "you can't become real without first wishing for something." To be human is to want and to dream, it's true, and the story tells that excellently.
When Water Sang Fire I think this is the longest story in the collection, but I haven't actually confirmed that, so don't quote me on that. I was nearly late for work though, because it was longer than I expected, haha.
But it was really good. It's emotive, and the ending was really well done? I'll confess that I didn't see where the story was going, but once we got there, I was quietly stoked.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Incest, Cannibalism, Animal cruelty, and Pedophilia
Moderate: Child abuse