Thornhedge

Last year I enjoyed T. Kingfisher’s novella, What Moves the Dead. It was my first time reading her, and I’ve been eager to explore more of her writing. Her newest novella is Thornhedge, a take on a classic fairy tale, but flipped on its head. I liked this book even more, and it is definitely one I recommend to fans of fairy tales and retellings. 

Special thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for providing me with an ARC of this book!

Summary

Toadling has been guarding a princess, locked away in a tower, for the past 200 years. When an unconventional knight shows up, wanting to rescue her and the princess, Toadling reluctantly goes along with his plan. But as we learn more about who and what Toadling is—and what role she plays in the princess’s captivity within the tower—who is considered the hero and who the villain of the story starts to shift in unexpected ways. 

Review

Thornhedge is such a wonderful novella, at once familiar in its fairy tale atmosphere and surprising in the ways T. Kingfisher flips conventions upside down. It’s about a princess locked in a tower, but the princess isn’t the focus here; rather, it’s a fairy-like creature named Toadling. As her name suggests, when she’s not in human form, she takes on the appearance of a toad. Toadling has been cursed with guarding the sleeping princess. Does that make Toadling the villain? 

When a gentle-hearted knight named Halim arrives, intent on rescuing whoever is in need of rescue, Toadling hopes he’ll leave her alone. She can’t leave, and she can’t let him into the hidden tower. But slowly, she starts to trust him… and hope that maybe he can break her free of the past 200 years of isolation. 

From here, Thornhedge follows dual timelines. While Toadling and Halim get acquainted and move closer to the tower’s secrets, we simultaneously learn about Toadling’s history and what led her to this curse. Who was she? How did she get involved with the princess and the forgotten kingdom? What is this curse? The answers are shocking, and only served to make me feel more for Toadling. 

Audiobook

Jennifer Blom does an excellent job of narrating Thornhedge. She injects extra personality into Toadling, making her an even more empathetic and compelling character. The narration is gentle, befitting of a fairy tale, but with enough energy to keep the listener engaged from start to end. I’m glad I opted for the audiobook version of this.

Final Thoughts

Thornhedge is a unique and understated novella, with likable characters, and an imaginative spin on a classic story. It has affirmed my liking for T. Kingfisher’s writing, and I’m excited to dive into both her back catalogue and her upcoming books. I have a long list of her books to catch up on (including one already on my shelf), so stay tuned for more reviews of her novels and novellas. 

Get the Book

You can buy Thornhedge here – it’s available as a paperback, ebook, and audiobook.

Thornhedge by T. Kingfisher
Audiobook Narrator	Jennifer Blom
Audience	Adult
Genre	Fantasy
Setting	Western Europe
Book Length	3.75 hours; 128 pages
Format I Read	Audiobook (NetGalley)
Original Publication Date	August 15, 2023

Official Summary

From USA Today bestselling author T. Kingfisher, Thornhedge is the tale of a kind-hearted, toad-shaped heroine, a gentle knight, and a mission gone completely sideways.

*A very special hardcover edition, featuring foil stamp on the casing and custom endpapers illustrated by the author.*

There’s a princess trapped in a tower. This isn’t her story.

Meet Toadling. On the day of her birth, she was stolen from her family by the fairies, but she grew up safe and loved in the warm waters of faerieland. Once an adult though, the fae ask a favor of Toadling: return to the human world and offer a blessing of protection to a newborn child. Simple, right?

But nothing with fairies is ever simple.

Centuries later, a knight approaches a towering wall of brambles, where the thorns are as thick as your arm and as sharp as swords. He’s heard there’s a curse here that needs breaking, but it’s a curse Toadling will do anything to uphold…

“The way Thornhedge turns all the fairy tales inside out is a sharp-edged delight.”
—Katherine Addison, author of The Goblin Emperor