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lydiaredwineauthor 's review for:
The Language of Thorns: Midnight Tales and Dangerous Magic
by Leigh Bardugo
5 Stars!!!
This book was. SPECTACULAR. And so unexpectedly so because a) I had no idea what to expect from short stories of Leigh Bardugo and b) its fairy tales which kinda always find iffy BUT BRO THIS WAS GOOD. And Leigh is queen, as usual.
(And I may or may not have MET HER on the release day of this book like last week. It was AMAZING AND SHE IS QUEEN.)
I don' think I have any criticisms about it???
But I do have ravings!!! So here goes!
Each story has stunning art that as the pages go on they fill with more and more art representing the story. And then by the end there is a full page colored picture featuring the end of the story. (Don't look at these pictures at the end of each story if you don't want to be spoiled. They don't necessarily ruin the story, but they could reveal some things that are more interesting discovered while reading.) Sooooo even you don't like the book, at least its good for bookstagram!
Leigh has this spectacular way of twisting stories and tropes we are already familiar with in endings that I found shocking and happy while simultaneously dark and sad. The endings are not tragic but are shadowed by elements of the story that leaves you uneasy as she explained she felt after reading fairy tales like Hansel and Gretel.
All of these stories were deliciously dark, handsomely haunting, and beautifully breaking.
I was so throughly invested in each of these stories and it was very difficult to stop myself from finishing even when I had to.
Now for the indivduel stories themselves:
In order as it is in the book:
Ayama and the Thorn Wood was something like a combination of Beauty and the Beast, Red Riding Hood.as well as some elements of the story of the Minotaur seeing how there is a monstrous creature kept under the castle in a maze. This story set up beautifully the theme of creating and telling stories of cleverness and resourcefulness rather than stories centered on physical beauty and bewitchment that Leigh seems to thread throughout the rest of the book.
"Now in the valley, the people care less for pretty faces. Mothers pat their pregnant bellies and whisper prayers for the future. They pray for rain in the long summer. They pray that their children will be brave and clever and strong, that they will tell the true stories instead of the easy ones. They pray for sons with red eyes and daughters with horns."
But the first story is the only one it seems to end with pure happiness.
The Too Clever Fox was indeed a clever story with yet another ending that had me mind boggled. Leigh has this way of twist endings that make perfect sense BUT SOMEHOW STILL SHOCK YOU. This story also features a friendship I did not expect. One that I love very much.
The Witch of Duva twists the stepmother trope AND MESSED WITH MEEEE MIND SO MUCH. I was seriously so very incredibly shocked by that ending. It was probably the most unexpected of them all. This story has some elements of Hansel and Gretel I think and is hauntingly dark. The ending most of all left me feeling like there wasn't any real happiness because even while the main character's circumstances were far better, they were overshadowed by the reveals. SO GOOD.
While Little Knife was not my favorite of this collection, I did enjoy the message it conveyed, the magic it held, and the discovery of beauty in a new way did make me fall in love with it still. I appreciate that we are presented with a main character so profoundingly beautiful that still chooses herself. That she chooses not to love a man. That her story does not require a romantic ending. And yes, this story actually ends quite happily.
The Solider Prince was by far MY FAVORITE. Its kind of a Nutcracker retelling but after the Nutcracker and more about the Nutcracker than it is about Clara. Another story with a twist and then an ending so haunting and dark that the "happy ending" of the story for the main characters is overshadowed. this story also featured elements of the Velveteen Rabbit in the sense that one becomes human when they are loved, as Leigh explained in her author's note. This story holds the heavy questions of what it means to be you, of who you are, what your identity is and how you come to find it. And the identity of the character as hand trying to discover his/her identity finds it after discovering they were crafted out of a form of twisted love.
“Who are you when no one picks you up to hold you?” asked the Rat King. “When no one is looking at you, or whispering to you, who are you then?
And finally, When Water Sang Fire, a retelling of sorts of The Little Mermaid based more on Ursala's backstory and very very well done. The Little Mermaid is my favorite fairy tale of all time, so this was undoubtedly going to be a favorite. BUT IT WAS SO MUCH BETTER THAN I EXPECTED. I adored Ulla. I felt for her and sympathized with her. The "twist" ending itself wasn't that shocking. I had guessed her "heritage" from early on, but I LOVED the entire ending with Signy and her daughters AND I WAS OVER HERE LIKE THE LITTLE MERMAID. Also, someone very family and very loved from the Grisha world makes an appearance here. SO MORE POINTS FOR THAT.
And now for the Hogwarts house awards: YAYYY.
The Gryffindor award goes to Amaya and the Thorn Wood for the bravery and courage and strength the characters display.
The Slytherin award goes to When Water Sang Fire because of all the ambition blazing within each of its characters.
The Ravenclaw award goes to The Too Clever Fox but also for The Soldier Prince because that book is so dame clever!
And finally, Hufflepuff, my house, goes to Little Knife because no story can get anymore Hufflepuff than that.
The stories within the book ranked from favorite to least favorite:
The Soldier Prince
When Water Sang Fire
The Witch of Duva
Little Knife
Ayama and the Thorn Wood
The Too Clever Fox
Overall, this book s one of my favorite reads of this year and of EVER. Fans of the Grishverse NEED to pick it up. But also fans of anything dark, magical, and mysterious also need to pick it up. Also, I need scree representation. And more. More stories. BECAUSE THIS WAS AMAZING.
This book was. SPECTACULAR. And so unexpectedly so because a) I had no idea what to expect from short stories of Leigh Bardugo and b) its fairy tales which kinda always find iffy BUT BRO THIS WAS GOOD. And Leigh is queen, as usual.
(And I may or may not have MET HER on the release day of this book like last week. It was AMAZING AND SHE IS QUEEN.)
I don' think I have any criticisms about it???
But I do have ravings!!! So here goes!
Each story has stunning art that as the pages go on they fill with more and more art representing the story. And then by the end there is a full page colored picture featuring the end of the story. (Don't look at these pictures at the end of each story if you don't want to be spoiled. They don't necessarily ruin the story, but they could reveal some things that are more interesting discovered while reading.) Sooooo even you don't like the book, at least its good for bookstagram!
Leigh has this spectacular way of twisting stories and tropes we are already familiar with in endings that I found shocking and happy while simultaneously dark and sad. The endings are not tragic but are shadowed by elements of the story that leaves you uneasy as she explained she felt after reading fairy tales like Hansel and Gretel.
All of these stories were deliciously dark, handsomely haunting, and beautifully breaking.
I was so throughly invested in each of these stories and it was very difficult to stop myself from finishing even when I had to.
Now for the indivduel stories themselves:
In order as it is in the book:
Ayama and the Thorn Wood was something like a combination of Beauty and the Beast, Red Riding Hood.as well as some elements of the story of the Minotaur seeing how there is a monstrous creature kept under the castle in a maze. This story set up beautifully the theme of creating and telling stories of cleverness and resourcefulness rather than stories centered on physical beauty and bewitchment that Leigh seems to thread throughout the rest of the book.
"Now in the valley, the people care less for pretty faces. Mothers pat their pregnant bellies and whisper prayers for the future. They pray for rain in the long summer. They pray that their children will be brave and clever and strong, that they will tell the true stories instead of the easy ones. They pray for sons with red eyes and daughters with horns."
But the first story is the only one it seems to end with pure happiness.
The Too Clever Fox was indeed a clever story with yet another ending that had me mind boggled. Leigh has this way of twist endings that make perfect sense BUT SOMEHOW STILL SHOCK YOU. This story also features a friendship I did not expect. One that I love very much.
The Witch of Duva twists the stepmother trope AND MESSED WITH MEEEE MIND SO MUCH. I was seriously so very incredibly shocked by that ending. It was probably the most unexpected of them all. This story has some elements of Hansel and Gretel I think and is hauntingly dark. The ending most of all left me feeling like there wasn't any real happiness because even while the main character's circumstances were far better, they were overshadowed by the reveals. SO GOOD.
While Little Knife was not my favorite of this collection, I did enjoy the message it conveyed, the magic it held, and the discovery of beauty in a new way did make me fall in love with it still. I appreciate that we are presented with a main character so profoundingly beautiful that still chooses herself. That she chooses not to love a man. That her story does not require a romantic ending. And yes, this story actually ends quite happily.
The Solider Prince was by far MY FAVORITE. Its kind of a Nutcracker retelling but after the Nutcracker and more about the Nutcracker than it is about Clara. Another story with a twist and then an ending so haunting and dark that the "happy ending" of the story for the main characters is overshadowed. this story also featured elements of the Velveteen Rabbit in the sense that one becomes human when they are loved, as Leigh explained in her author's note. This story holds the heavy questions of what it means to be you, of who you are, what your identity is and how you come to find it. And the identity of the character as hand trying to discover his/her identity finds it after discovering they were crafted out of a form of twisted love.
“Who are you when no one picks you up to hold you?” asked the Rat King. “When no one is looking at you, or whispering to you, who are you then?
And finally, When Water Sang Fire, a retelling of sorts of The Little Mermaid based more on Ursala's backstory and very very well done. The Little Mermaid is my favorite fairy tale of all time, so this was undoubtedly going to be a favorite. BUT IT WAS SO MUCH BETTER THAN I EXPECTED. I adored Ulla. I felt for her and sympathized with her. The "twist" ending itself wasn't that shocking. I had guessed her "heritage" from early on, but I LOVED the entire ending with Signy and her daughters AND I WAS OVER HERE LIKE THE LITTLE MERMAID. Also, someone very family and very loved from the Grisha world makes an appearance here. SO MORE POINTS FOR THAT.
And now for the Hogwarts house awards: YAYYY.
The Gryffindor award goes to Amaya and the Thorn Wood for the bravery and courage and strength the characters display.
The Slytherin award goes to When Water Sang Fire because of all the ambition blazing within each of its characters.
The Ravenclaw award goes to The Too Clever Fox but also for The Soldier Prince because that book is so dame clever!
And finally, Hufflepuff, my house, goes to Little Knife because no story can get anymore Hufflepuff than that.
The stories within the book ranked from favorite to least favorite:
The Soldier Prince
When Water Sang Fire
The Witch of Duva
Little Knife
Ayama and the Thorn Wood
The Too Clever Fox
Overall, this book s one of my favorite reads of this year and of EVER. Fans of the Grishverse NEED to pick it up. But also fans of anything dark, magical, and mysterious also need to pick it up. Also, I need scree representation. And more. More stories. BECAUSE THIS WAS AMAZING.