A review by just_one_more_paige
The Language of Thorns: Midnight Tales and Dangerous Magic by Leigh Bardugo

adventurous dark mysterious medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

 
This was a follow-up read for after my partner and I finished our joint read-out-loud-together-at-night-before-bed journey through the Grishaverse. We started with the Shadow and Bone trilogy, then the Six of Crows duology (both rereads for me), then we got through the King of Scars duology for the first time together (I don't have separate reviews for those - they were solid additions to the world and we really enjoyed reading them together, but I didn't have enough feels to warrant the time spent on full reviews). I'd had this book on my shelves for *years,* but hadn't ever gotten to it. And after finishing all the other books, and being fully immersed in the Grishaverse for so long (we watched the first season of the Netflix series too), we decided to finish it all out with this collection of tales from the world. It was a cool enough reading experience that I am going to go ahead and give some quick thoughts on the six stories included, and the overall vibe, in a more official review situation. 
 
Language of Thorns is a collection of fairy tales set in the Grishaverse and, in the same way that that universe is inspired by and has shades of our real world in it, these stories are informed by the mythology and folklore we will find recognizable as well. I will give little blurbs about each tale, of course, but want to start by saying that one of the real gems of this collection is the illustrations. They are on each page of the book, and grow and develop alongside the story they're with. They are simply gorgeous and add so much visually to the way Bardugo's words bring these stories to life. Definitely a reading experience that you'd want the physical copy of the book for. 
 
Ayama and the Thorn Wood -- A combination of a sort of minotaur in the labyrinth and Scheherazade's tales, with a fun letter versus spirit of the law twist on the meaning of "bring me someone’s heart." Looking past skin deep for beauty and connection is always a great message in fairy tales, but this does it in a more subtle/subversive way. Plus, the king as the bad guy, trying to be secretive but not smart enough to be more sneaky about it, is a cool take on the more conventional "power corrupts" theme. “They pray for sons with red eyes and daughters with horns.” 

 The Too Clever Fox -- Ohhhh that was dark (the good creepy/horror vibes kind, but without going so far as to be too much for me), and took a turn that I guessed *right* before it happened, but was enough of a surprise to sit well with me. This one had shades of Little Red Riding Hood and The Fox and Crow of Aesop’s fables. Some nice (and not as often seen) morals about not judging goodness based on beauty and not being too confident in one’s own cleverness (great encouragement to ask for help when you need it). 

 The Witch of Duva -- This one took a turn for the dark and gruesome, like pretty hard at the end. It was actually the toughest of all of them to read (kinda cannibalistic and also some very icky implied child sexual abuse aspects). As the story itself goes, it was a lovely flipping of Hansel and Gretel, where the witch/stepmother is blamed for everything (as a superstitious anti-woman evil), to shine a light on the always unsuspected (but usually at fault in reality): man. In this case, the cozy and/or protective vibes of the women, while still trying to provide autonomy for the young girl, were really nice to read. I kept waiting for the hammer to fall in that regard though, but when it did, it was in such an unexpected way and that was great, storytelling-wise. 

Little Knife -- I loved this one, a new take on the classic "three tasks to win the bride" story, with the twist of sentient nature and Grisha magic to add some fun and uniqueness. This story has that unique fairy tale story narration style. The free woman finale, allowed to be herself without the gaze of others to tell her what to wear/do and where to go and using her for their own ends, was super uplifting and fulfilling. And the story to get there played out in a creative way.  
 
The Soldier Prince -- This was like the Nutcracker and Pinocchio (kinda), with creepy pedo vibes from the toy maker and a wise-sage rat king. It was super creepy, with the dolls coming to live/people turning into dolls. Probably my least favorite of the bunch (but also my least favorite source/inspirational materials too, so take it with that grain of salt). “I know who I am without anyone there to tell me.” 

When Water Sang Fire -- This was far and away the longest tale, but with good reason. There was a really cool magic system introduced (singing magic into being!) and some awesome sapphic mermaid vibes. Also, my partner and I have some suspicions about cameos from The Darkling and Baghra here, though that's mostly unsubstantiated. It felt a little long/slow until the end and OMG was this an Ursula origin story?! Totally redeemed and likely one of my top two of the collection after that ending! 
 
And some wrap-up thoughts... I love the twist on story development/endings to have a fairy tale vibe but still reflect reality more so (with a distinctly femininist anti-patriarchal bent that I was *here for*). I enjoyed them all, though of course I had my favorites, as indicated above. What a fun way to finish out our time in the Grishaverse. If you're looking for a familiar, but also distinct, fairy tale reading experience, this collection is worth your time (and even more so if you can recognize all the easter eggs from the Grishaverse sprinkled throughout). 
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