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eeyores_flowers's review
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
lermonysnickers's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
thepetitepunk's review
3.0
Thank you NetGalley for providing me with an audiobook ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Princess Soraya has been hidden away from the rest of the world due to her terrible curse--she has a poisonous touch. While her twin brother can celebrate getting married and living a normal royal life, Soraya must stay in the shadows. But when a demon locked up in the dungeon indicates that there might be a way to break this curse, Soraya beings to understand the depths of her powers.
I thought Girl, Serpent, Thorn was a beautifully written retelling. The atmosphere was so rich and magical, plus the audiobook did wonders making the characters come to life. If you're looking for complex, morally gray characters, this one is for you.
However, especially for a fantasy book, I felt like some parts really dragged, which made this read more of a 3.5 star rating for me. The beginning was a bit slow and sometimes I would have to go back because I wasn't paying attention. I think if the story was either a bit shorter or if there was a bit more action then my attention would have been held for longer. I still think the writing was gorgeous, but sometimes all the details just weren't enough to keep me interested in the plot. I also really wanted to see more of Soraya's bisexuality explored.
Girl, Serpent, Thorn contains beautiful writing and intriguing characters but I wouldn't necessarily say it's unique. An entertaining read, but most likely won't blow you away.
Princess Soraya has been hidden away from the rest of the world due to her terrible curse--she has a poisonous touch. While her twin brother can celebrate getting married and living a normal royal life, Soraya must stay in the shadows. But when a demon locked up in the dungeon indicates that there might be a way to break this curse, Soraya beings to understand the depths of her powers.
I thought Girl, Serpent, Thorn was a beautifully written retelling. The atmosphere was so rich and magical, plus the audiobook did wonders making the characters come to life. If you're looking for complex, morally gray characters, this one is for you.
However, especially for a fantasy book, I felt like some parts really dragged, which made this read more of a 3.5 star rating for me. The beginning was a bit slow and sometimes I would have to go back because I wasn't paying attention. I think if the story was either a bit shorter or if there was a bit more action then my attention would have been held for longer. I still think the writing was gorgeous, but sometimes all the details just weren't enough to keep me interested in the plot. I also really wanted to see more of Soraya's bisexuality explored.
Girl, Serpent, Thorn contains beautiful writing and intriguing characters but I wouldn't necessarily say it's unique. An entertaining read, but most likely won't blow you away.
jess_mango's review
4.0
Not all princesses are sweet and in need of protection...
Girl, Serpent, Thorn is an original fairy tale with inspirations from the fairy tale Sleeping Beauty and from Persian folklore. Soraya was born with a curse that made her touch deadly. Any living creature she touched with her bare skin would die almost instantly. She has spent her whole life hidden away separated from her family. She spends her time alone in her garden, tending her plants.
As her twin brother's wedding approaches, Soraya decides that she must know the truth of why she is the way she is. She seeks out a demon that is being held in the dungeon beneath the castle. So begins a journey she couldn't even begin to imagine...
I was lured in by the cover and this ended up being a charming and magical story. Soraya is a refreshing change in a fairy tale princess. She has that poison within her and isn't in need of a hero to rescue her. If you are looking for a fairy tale with a feminist touch, this just may be the perfect book for you.
I listened to the audio book with narration by Nikki Massoud who was expressive and engaging. After the final chapter there were some author's notes where the author, Melissa Bashardoust, explained her influences for the book.
Thank you to the publisher for the audio review copy!!
Girl, Serpent, Thorn is an original fairy tale with inspirations from the fairy tale Sleeping Beauty and from Persian folklore. Soraya was born with a curse that made her touch deadly. Any living creature she touched with her bare skin would die almost instantly. She has spent her whole life hidden away separated from her family. She spends her time alone in her garden, tending her plants.
As her twin brother's wedding approaches, Soraya decides that she must know the truth of why she is the way she is. She seeks out a demon that is being held in the dungeon beneath the castle. So begins a journey she couldn't even begin to imagine...
I was lured in by the cover and this ended up being a charming and magical story. Soraya is a refreshing change in a fairy tale princess. She has that poison within her and isn't in need of a hero to rescue her. If you are looking for a fairy tale with a feminist touch, this just may be the perfect book for you.
I listened to the audio book with narration by Nikki Massoud who was expressive and engaging. After the final chapter there were some author's notes where the author, Melissa Bashardoust, explained her influences for the book.
Thank you to the publisher for the audio review copy!!
dr_0z's review
adventurous
emotional
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
astalavista's review
adventurous
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
harleyrae's review
3.0
This wasn’t bad! And I enjoyed it for the most part! It just felt slightly forgettable. A month from now I think I will have forgotten almost everything that happened. The story also just felt like it was missing something. Not sure what, but something.
amiascah's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
This was such a captivating story. This was both a fairy tale esque story and a breath of fresh air. Girl, Serpent, Thorn is the telling of Soraya, the twin sister of the Shah and a girl cursed to be deathly poisonous to everything she touches. Cursed by a div as an infant Soraya has learned to live life quietly, alone on the fringes of her brother's life. Until one day everything changes, her sole childhood friend who came less and less to her until one day she just stopped is now engaged to her brother. Her brother is attacked by a div and is luckily rescued by a commoner. When the commoner, Azad is brought back to the Shah's and Soraya's home along with the captured div he meets Soraya and isn't afraid. He gives her courage to seek out the div and find a cure for her curse.
This book is full of one of my favourite things, small little cultural tales, myths, parables, whatever you want to name them. I find them my kryptonite in books, it develops the world building just one wonderful step further, it gives it a history and texture and makes the whole story come more alive. Unfortunately a lot of books that include little tales have similarities and down right the same stories, fortunately I'm not familiar with a lot of Persian tales and there doesn't seem to be too many books that I've read so far that use them also so it was a breath of fresh air in that it flowed like a beautiful fairy tale that I hadn't already heard a version of. I know its been said to be similar to Sleeping Beauty or at least draws from it but other than saying that Soraya wakes up from her just existing day by day then I guess but otherwise I don't really see it. Sleeping Beauty is a passive princess to me, things happen to her and other people do things, Soraya is anything but that.
Spoilers to probably follow
Soraya does live the first chunk of her life living passively, I think mainly because she has zero hope, she's been brought up that this is just her life. Suddenly theres a live div captured, which I don't think ever has happened that she knows of and now theres possibilities, options, hope. I would liken her more to Mulan. Dutiful daughter that one day takes matters into her own hands, yes Soraya is doing things for her self where Mulan was defending her family and her people but Mulan is the closest I think to her. Soraya, makes some really hard choices and yeah she makes mistakes, which makes her all the more human and makes her easy to connect with. I can connect and understand after living in the shadows, being told that you are stuck apart from everyone and everything from no fault of your own, you'd be a little selfish thinking just maybe theres a chance to be like everyone else, to fit in. Maybe she's more of an Ariel recklessly diving head first into not well thought out choices in order to be part of the world she craves to belong to.
This book is full of one of my favourite things, small little cultural tales, myths, parables, whatever you want to name them. I find them my kryptonite in books, it develops the world building just one wonderful step further, it gives it a history and texture and makes the whole story come more alive. Unfortunately a lot of books that include little tales have similarities and down right the same stories, fortunately I'm not familiar with a lot of Persian tales and there doesn't seem to be too many books that I've read so far that use them also so it was a breath of fresh air in that it flowed like a beautiful fairy tale that I hadn't already heard a version of. I know its been said to be similar to Sleeping Beauty or at least draws from it but other than saying that Soraya wakes up from her just existing day by day then I guess but otherwise I don't really see it. Sleeping Beauty is a passive princess to me, things happen to her and other people do things, Soraya is anything but that.
Spoilers to probably follow
Soraya does live the first chunk of her life living passively, I think mainly because she has zero hope, she's been brought up that this is just her life. Suddenly theres a live div captured, which I don't think ever has happened that she knows of and now theres possibilities, options, hope. I would liken her more to Mulan. Dutiful daughter that one day takes matters into her own hands, yes Soraya is doing things for her self where Mulan was defending her family and her people but Mulan is the closest I think to her. Soraya, makes some really hard choices and yeah she makes mistakes, which makes her all the more human and makes her easy to connect with. I can connect and understand after living in the shadows, being told that you are stuck apart from everyone and everything from no fault of your own, you'd be a little selfish thinking just maybe theres a chance to be like everyone else, to fit in. Maybe she's more of an Ariel recklessly diving head first into not well thought out choices in order to be part of the world she craves to belong to.
sieniutek1's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0