This was a really hard book for me to finish. It was incredibly slow, and ended up not being what I expected of it. I didn't care for the ending or the characters.

3.5/5

A fairy tale-esque story inspired by the legend of Medusa. Demons and society’s edged expectations of young girls play together quite well. A bit short but makes relevant points.

What I Loved About THE COLD IS IN HER BONES:

Milla lives an isolated life on her parents's farm. They fear the risk of demons too much to allow her to go anywhere or have a life of her own. Milla's brother, Niklas, is her only friend until Iris comes to stay. Just when things start to look up for Milla, Iris is kidnapped by a demon rumored to be taking girls. If she wants to save her new friend, she will have to brave the world outside her home and discover who the real demons are around her.

I love the powerful emotion from Milla. She is achingly lonely but still has so much hope inside her. She is a character you easily want to root for. I especially love how the Medusa myth was tied into her story. When Milla starts getting snakes in her hair, she's conflicted by the strangeness of it and the comfort she finds in her snakes. The author has a beautiful, lyrical writing style that makes it easy to get caught up in Milla's journey.

What left me wanting more:

While I loved Milla, the secondary characters and some plot points didn't hold up as well for me. I kept hoping for something more to happen between Milla and Iris, but their relationship fell kind of flat towards the end. However, there are still some really touching scenes between them, and the effect friendship has on Milla is significant.

Final Verdict:
While THE COLD IS IN HER BONES wasn't a new favorite for me, the strong emotional expression, unique premise, and lovely writing made it an enjoyable read.

Like Peternelle van Arsdale's previous novel, this is a dark fairy tale set in vaguely olden times but with a modern feminist slant. The focus is on rural life, female friendship and sisterhood, shot through with elements of witchcraft and a sort of vague magical realism.

I very much enjoyed this tale of an everygirl forging a quiet path for herself in the face of other people's issues, trying to find an honest life after years of being sheltered and left in the dark about her family skeletons, and of finding friendship for the first time. And all this takes place against a forested backdrop of demons, witches, and snakes. And one oddly intelligent horse!

My only real criticism is that the pacing felt a little off at times, which makes certain aspects of the story less impactful than they might otherwise be. Though we're told that months have passed, for example, Milla's close friendship with Iris seems to have flourished for only a few days, which makes Milla's heartbreak over Iris' departure seem overdramatic (or, possibly, coded as romantic feelings). Milla's encounter with the "midwife" Ragna sets the latter up to be a major villain but Ragna disappears from the story too quickly, in favor of getting Milla to the next plot point. Towards the end of the book we're told that Milla hasn't been home for months... but apart from some eliding of the weather from winter into spring, I'd have thought it only a few weeks.

In any case, insofar as this tale is inspired by the Medusa myth, many readers who are familiar with only the most Hollywood of versions won't quite see the connection. Like, where's the people getting turned to stone? But this book is arguably more inspired by Second (and Third) Wave Feminism's take on Medusa than it is by anything else: that is, the notion of women owning their anger at unjust situations. Girls and women are the message. The snakes are merely a delivery system.

This story took many twists and turns before its end, but I'm not sure how many felt worthwhile. Some of the aspects never made sense, while others felt as though they should have more significance. I finished this expecting a bit more of a punch at the end.

Don’t let that gorgeous cover fool you. This a super creepy and crazy book. But in all good ways. After my daughter and I read The Beast is an Animal, we knew that whatever Peternelle wrote we wanted to read it. So when I was lucky enough to receive an ARC of The Cold is in Her Bones I was through the roof with excitement. And to find out it has a Medusa feel, well then SIGN ME UP.

Milla has been raised in a far off house, away from the towns. She’s not allowed to go anywhere and is raised to be a helper of those who are older than her. She always seemed to do the wrong things and upsetting her parents. When a new girl arrives at a neighbors house she finds hope. Hope of a friend and maybe even a sister. But Iris is keeping a secret from Milla, in the hopes that will keep her safe.

But of course that doesn’t last.

The towns that Milla has been forbidden to go to, have been plagued by demons. Demons possess the girls so Iris and Milla were assumed to be safe since they were far. You know what they say about assuming…

When Iris is “infected” and is sent away, Milla is determined to find her and bring her back home. Her journey is one of self discovery. She isn’t as safe from the demon as she hoped, but for the love of her sister of her heart she is willing to travel far and wide and find a way to save them both. Friendship and familial love was a thread woven throughout this story. Milla broke free from what was expected from her in order to find her own way and take charge of her own life. There were trials and struggles but for love you’d go through anything. Even face a demon.

Girls who run from what frightens them don’t get what they want.

As I was reading this, I kept thinking of my own daughter. She’s the strongest girl I know. She won’t let anyone control her or hold her back. She wants to try everything and if mistakes are made, she owns them and learns from them. And since she LOVED The Beast is an Animal, I know she will love this as well. I can’t wait for her to read it!

I really didn't enjoy this one at all.

The prologue is the reason I gave this book two stars instead of one because it truly pulled me in with its magical, fairytale-like quality. It immediately felt like I opened up a huge leatherbound tome of Grimm's Fairytales which excited me to no end. As I continued to read though, the magic I felt with the prologue quickly wore off and morphed into a pretty dull story with four never ending parts.

I have never read any kind of Medusa inspired work before and was excited about getting into one, but the only thing that really connected me to Medusa was the snakes, so that was disappointing. I also was not a fan of how new, fairly important, characters weren't introduced until about 3/4 of the way into the book and were only present for maybe 30-50 pages. Plus the villain barely had any actual 'screen time', mostly this character was just talked about, there was very little action involved.

I believe books are great ways to explore worldly problems in a much more fun and accessible way, but this book read as a guidebook/manual in a weird way? I'm so disappointed because the message is IMPORTANT (love yourself, you are always enough), but I didn't like how any of it was presented which is also incredibly disappointed because I LOVE weird books and chilling atmospheres. I thought this would have been perfect for me.

*Thanks to NetGalley for the e-arc!*

I'm still not quite sure what to make of this one. It was interesting and weird and inspired by the Medusa myth (which YESSS), but I honestly couldn't tell you much about it now. It didn't leave a big impression on me. And not a whole lot happened in it. It was basically a story about a girl who's afraid she's becoming a demon, something feared by her village, and leaves to rescue a friend who has been taken (on the guise that she's been possessed by a demon). But not everything is as it seems, and Milla doesn't know quite who to trust, even herself. It's short and fast-paced, but is it worth the read? That's what I don't know how to answer. HMM.

Rating: 2.5 Paw Prints!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for sending me a digital copy of this book. I am sad to say this book did not work for me. I wasn’t into the writing style and the plot didn’t interest me.

One girl must uncover secrets of the past to save her friend from a terrible curse in this dark and mesmerizing story of love, revenge, and redemption inspired by the myth of Medusa.

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If you are going into this book thinking it will be about Greek mythology this is not the book for you... however, if you enjoy a creepy fairy tale like story than I recommend you pick this up.

The story is strange but it kept my attention all the way through because I needed closure! I found it very odd that Milla did not freak out when two snakes grew out of her head. She took everything in stride! There is definitely a need for suspended belief when reading this book.

One of my favorite aspects of the story was the friendship between Milla and Iris. It is wonderful to read strong female bonds!

The Cold Is in Her Bones by Peternelle van Arsdale is a young adult fantasy novel that is inspired by the myth of Medusa. One young girl needs to find the strength to break a curse upon her family and friends before the curse takes her too.

Young Milla has never known anyone other than her immediate family and sometimes that isolation of their remote farm can become overwhelmingly lonely. When Milla’s parents agree to let another older couple stay and help them run the farm Milla never expected to have their granddaughter join them too but when Iris arrived Milla found the friend that she always wanted.

With Iris becoming Milla’s friend and a possible match for Milla’s brother to marry one day things seem to be looking up for Milla and a little less lonely. However, the day comes when Iris begins to show signs of the curse that has haunted the village’s young girls all the way out on their farm. When Iris is carted off to a place for the cursed Milla vows to do whatever she can to help her friend.

When thinking of Medusa things like chilling and creepy come to mind and The Cold Is in Her Bones by Peternelle van Arsdale really seemed to capture that eerie feel rather well. This one was a bit of a slow burn read but while it took a bit to return to the darkness that the prologue had given a glimpse into it really had me curious enough that I wanted to continue to get to know the characters and the story. If demons, witches, curses and vengeance sound good then you may want to give this one a try.

I received an advance copy from the publisher via NetGalley.

I was super excited to see this described as a feminist Medusa retelling but if I hadn’t read that before reading the book I would not have known. I did really enjoy Hulda’s story in the prologue and later in the story. I liked Milla as a character she’s always questioning why her family does the things they do, why she can’t question things and why her mother and father look at her differently than her perfect brother Niklas. The relationship between Niklas and Milla was nice I liked that they cared so much about each other and that Niklas knew that since Milla has been so secluded that she’s lonely. It was very much a story of Family love and not romance which was pretty refreshing. It was a very slow paced book that if you need something happening constantly then this might not be a book for you.

Disclaimer: This book was sent to me by the publisher, Simon and Schuster Children’s Publishing, via NetGalley for an honest review.

Opinion:

Something slithery this way comes.

Gather ‘round my cunning Slytherins!

I’ve got a retelling of our dear mummy dearest:

Medusa

If Milla knows anything, it is that she must be a good girl. She must do her chores efficiently, must always stay clean and tidy, mustn’t ask questions that do not deserve answers, and must always pray to keep the demons away. But Milla’s’ life is one of loneliness and solitude. She does not have the luxury of traveling to the nearby village or making friends, and her mother shows her much less attention and affection in comparison to her brother. Though the arrival of a young girl named Iris gives Milla someone to finally talk to and befriend, Milla finally learns of the reasoning behind her forced solitude. These is a curse on the girls in the village, one that makes each of them go insane, and Iris is showing signs of possession. Milla races to help her new friend, but soon finds that she might be changing as well.

Without a doubt, this is my first official positive WTF read of 2019.

The Cold is in Her Bones is supposed to be a retelling of dear mother Medusa, but it’s a loose retelling. The tale goes as such: A young girl named Hulda lived with her mother and father, and her dearly beloved Sister. As young children the sisters were inseparable, sleeping so entwined with one another that they would wake with their hair knotted together. But as they grew older, the sisters drifted apart. Hulda was not given the same adoration and attention as The Sister, and grew lonely and isolated. To fulfill her loneliness Hulda spent her time in the woods, making friends with the snakes, learning their names and letting them burrow in her hair. But when one of the snakes was seen in her hair, it was ripped out and thrown into the fire by The Sisters betrothed. For the anguish and grief that Hulda felt for her snake, the others saw her as being possessed. Her family took her into the woods, buried her in the snow, and left her there in the hopes that the demon would leave her body. When Hulda woke with vengeance in her heart, and a body consisting of snakes, she cursed the village and all the inhabitants so they may never again feel peace or content.

You know those horror movies set in the 1800’s where there is a family, with their farm, and they churn butter and chop wood? Where an older sibling will tell the younger children folk-tales about witches and curses, so as to scare them into being good? This is EXACTLY like that…

…except much more sad, and way less gruesome.

This feels like a Tim Burton film waiting patiently to be made, or at least one of similar taste. It has the oddities and dark tones that every great children’s horror has, but it is also loaded with all the necessary lessons and positive morals that one is told as a child. Or should have been told. It centers on themes of family values, being kind to others, having compassion for differences, and the cruel nature of vengeance. There are many small tales within this tale that is told to the reader, and each one enhances the grittiness and somber themes that envelope this story.

Once the reader is told the tale of Hulda, the story then switches off to Milla. It explains her home life and the struggles she endures to constantly be good and to please her parents. Milla lives in the shadow of her kind and seemingly-perfect brother, and she feels like she is a disappoint and burden to her family. She is unable to travel to the village and is kept under tight lock and key, with unknown reasons as to why. The story begins to unfold when Milla meets Iris, a girl that will eventually be married to her brother. The girls become very quick friends and create a fierce bond, but it all changes when Iris becomes possessed. Iris is taken somewhere called “The Place” where she will be held with other girls who have become possessed. Milla learns that it all stems from a curse that was placed on the village. A curse that was placed by her aunt, Hulda.

The writing in this book is AMAZING. The author did a fantastic job of making the story feel like a folktale in how the characters spoke to one another, how the setting is given to the reader, and even during Milla and Hulda’s inner dialogues. But where the author REALLY shines in The Cold is in Her Bones is when she describes very beautifully heartbreaking moments where Milla feels like an outcast.

“’Pretty is as pretty does,’ Gitta had always said to Milla. But Milla knew that couldn’t be right. Milla had never done anything but behave, and still she wasn’t pretty the way her mother was. If she were, she’d know it. She’d see proof of her prettiness in her mother’s eyes, or her father’s. Instead what she saw there was disappointment. Perhaps it wasn’t true that pretty is as pretty does…”

Though I can confidently say that I enjoyed this read, it DID take me a week to read it. Usually I can fly through a book in about two days, but this one was really taking me awhile to get through. The story moved a little slow for me, and at times I was feeling a little bored and irritated that I wasn’t moving on to what happened quicker. BUT, once I was finished, I realized how much I didn’t care at all about the pacing or how long it took me to get through it. I LOVE a creative and unique story, and that is EXACTLY what this is.

I recommend this to anyone who is looking for something different to read, who doesn’t get weirded out too easily, and who doesn’t have an affliction to snakes. Don’t go into this expecting an only slightly twisted retelling of Medusa, because this is completely different! The story has given me the inspiration to go on to read Peternelle van Arsdale’s other horror story, The Beast is an Animal, which is apparently in development to becoming a movie. Excitement!

If you want a little magic, to hear some folktales, dive into a curse, and even meet a witch (fangirling) then you MUST give The Cold is in Her Bones a try!

It’s so creative that it makes me wish I had snakes growing out of my own head.

Special thanks to Netgalley and Margaret K. McElderry Books for providing me with an electronic ARC of this book in exchange for an honest view.


If you have enjoyed the recent rise in popularity of fairy-tale retelling, it's time to move into the world of mythological retelling, specifically with Medusa. A lovely mix of fantasy and realism, The Cold is in Her Bones will prove to be a book you just can't set down. Peternelle van Arsdale's style mirrors that of a fairy tale and she will hold you spellbound for the entire journey of this book.
This book begins with something akin to once-upon-a-time. Many years ago a girl named Hulda lived with her parents and her most beautiful sister. Everything the pretty sister did was perfect and everything Hulda did was "wrong". Hulda found companionship with animals, specifically snakes, who gave her the comfort that her family refused. But when a snake is seen burrowed into her hair, Hulda is believed to be demon-possessed and her family turns on her. The village sees fit to try to freeze the demon out of Hulda and they leave her buried in the snow for three days, hoping the demon will flee and they can be left to bury Hulda in peace. However, Hulda awoke with a vengeance, returned to her village, and cursed those there and those yet to come so that they could never find a moment's peace.
The story then switches to a young girl named Milla. Milla's parents love her brother best and seem to put a careful and calculated emotional distance between themselves and Milla. In all her life Milla has only ever met five people; her parents, her brother Niklas, and the neighbor couple, Trude and Stig. Milla tries only to please her parents, but it seems she never quite can. Things do begin to look up for Milla when Trude and Stig's granddaughter comes to live with them in the hopes that she will one day marry Nicklas. Milla finds a friend in Iris, who loves telling stories. That bond is put to the test when Iris's mind is taken by the demon.
The Cold is in Her Bones is heartbreaking and hopeful and heartbreaking again by turns. It is breathtaking throughout. I cannot wait to bring this to my classroom library upon publication. I've already talked it up and am expecting a line of students vying for the first read.

I received a copy of this book via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you so much! All included quotes have been taken from an ARC and may not match the finished publication.

WARNING: If you don’t like snakes...then you may not like this book very much, because there are a lot of them!

Content Warning: Curses, Death, Emotional Abuse

"And this anger became bitterness, and this bitterness turned her into a monster. And the monster that she became wanted to hurt everyone that had hurt her. So she did. She punished everyone until there was no one left to punish. No one at all."

Yet another hauntingly beautiful tale by Peternelle van Arsdale. I believe this author has captured my attention wholly when it comes to writing style and character building (and setting and plot and...you get the picture). There are elements in both of her novels, The Beast is an Animal and The Cold is in Her Bones that are so unlike anything I’ve ever read. There is an otherworldliness accompanied with twisted reality which makes these tales familiar, yet very, very foreign.

The Cold is in Her Bones is a loose Medusa retelling. While yes, I see the correlations, I also see a lot of differences between this tale and the mythological one. That doesn’t really matter to me, as I read this book as its own story. I’d say that if you are looking for a hardcore, follows-along-the-same-tale type of retelling of Medusa mythology, I don’t feel like this quite fits that bill. I wouldn’t write it off just for that reason, though! This story is stunning, and mixes the twisted, beautiful, mysterious, and whimsical.

A brief, yet, very effective Prologue gives a look into the story of Hulda, introducing the lifestyles of the characters, setting, and snakes. It then shifts to Milla’s perspective for the rest of the story. The plot itself isn’t overdone, which is another element of this author’s writing that I admire. Not everything is fully explained, and it allows room for the reader to imagine. I feel that if more was explained, then it would take away from the message this story is conveying.

Very strong themes based on feelings resonate throughout the plot. Themes such as anger, forgiveness, vengeance, and regret. Milla dances with most, if not all touched upon. The Cold Is In Her Skin speaks loudly about how if anger is left unchecked it turns into vengeance.The metaphorical is taken literally and feelings materialize. Another theme that stands out is facing your demons.

"...I made messes for you, and you can’t wish your messes away. I’m here, Mamma. A big mess. And I’m taking you to your other big mess. And you will apologize, and you will make this right."

The only thing I wished that had more explanation was the ending. I felt it ended rather abruptly, and could have been fleshed out further. Otherwise, I loved everything else about this story.

Vulgarity: None.
Sexual Content: None.
Violence: Some. Certain scenes are more eerie than anything.

My Rating: ★★★★1/2

I guess my main issue is that I thought this would be more focused on Greek mythology, kind of like an origin story for Medusa. This book focuses mostly on demons and not Greek mythology. I would have been fine with the demon angle if I hadn't come into this expecting the myth of Medusa.

Another thing that didn't work for me is the pacing. The plot got incredibly slow at points. And when something interesting or exciting would happen, it'd be over in a few pages. I get the overarching plot was for Milla to rescue Iris, but her journey felt a bit aimless and pointless. By the time I got through Part 3 things got kind of messy, I was over it.

It sucks because the book started out on a high note. The prologue was my favorite part of the book. I honestly would have preferred reading an entire book based on the characters in that first part.

Man this book surprised me! This tale, inspired by the myth of Medusa, has themes of feeling different, female suppression, friendship, loneliness and child neglect/abandonment and family issues. Milla was a great character that I think many people could relate to her in one way or another. The creepy element of the demon possessing girls is a great parallel for girls feeling misunderstood and out of place for feeling different. The pacing was perfect, creating a subtle yet persistent building of creepiness and dread. This might not be for everyone as far as the magical elements of the story, but I loved how original this was compared to what's being published right now. The themes of a mother and daughter relationship was really emotional for me and the ending has such a great message of facing your mistakes. If you need something different, please pick this up when it comes out. Review is now up on the blog and is linked :)

I was hoping this book would've been more of an origin story about Medusa, however, it was more about demons and had nothing to do with Greek mythology. Which isn't terrible per se, but it wasn't all that I thought it'd be. I did enjoy that the book had strong female friendships.

Ancient Greeks really liked snakes. So did most cultures of the Mediterranean and Ancient Near Eastern world; it was only later that snakes got a devilish reputation. Living their lives hugged so closely to the earth, they were thought to have deep wisdom, and because they shed their skin, they were symbols of longevity and eternal life.

But even though we look back on Greek mythology as if it were a unified canon upon which everyone roughly agreed, the reality is much less coherent. There are also stories of Apollo heroically killing a giant snake, and of Medusa, a monster with snake for hair who [really wasn't bothering anyone] had to be defeated by combined mortal and divine intervention. There wasn't just one symbolic valence for serpents, or for people associated with them.

Peternelle van Arsdale leans into the nuance of symbolism and the slippery nature of evil with her sophomore book The Cold Is in Her Bones. Her tale of demon curses and bitter vengeance is powerful and subtle, and the world she creates is thoroughly real. Cultures of repression and silence seem to be a central motif for her, as are women who challenge the status quo with hearts and minds instead of violence.

The story is loosely inspired by the Medusa myth—very loosely. As a Greek mythology pedant, I have to point out that The Cold Is in Her Bones is more accurately a story about women with snakes growing out of their heads, not actually a Medusa retelling or reimagining. Too many elements of the classic myth are missing. Also, to be clear, Medusa is the name of a single woman, not a term for women-with-snake-hair. "Gorgon" doesn't work either, since it's not clear that the gorgons all had snake hair. This has been a Greek Myth PSA. We now resume your regularly scheduled review.

Milla is the sheltered daughter of homesteaders who has never been off the bounds of her family's property. Her stern mother and cold father will tell her nothing about the wider world, but every day they lay down lines of salt by every window and door to make sure demons don't get in. Her brother is a warmer, happier presence, but even he treats Milla with cheerful contempt. It's not until Iris arrives, a girl from the nearby village, that Milla realizes how much she's been missing. Iris has even more reason to fear demons, though, and soon it's clear why. The girls of the village, and maybe Milla too, are subject to a curse that turns some of them monstrous. But Milla is less afraid of demons than she is of losing Iris. And so she sets off to find the demon and save her friend, and maybe also herself.

The idea of monsters as metaphors for puberty may be somewhat apt, but it's also overdone, and the kind of thing that is mostly written by adults who don't remember being young. It seemed at first that this novel might be headed that way, but fortunately it pulled away from such a simple premise. Actually, it pulled away from any easy comparisons. This book never went where I expected, and more excitingly, it always went somewhere better than I expected.

That's probably because van Arsdale is unafraid of complexity. Her stories may have straightforward themes—vengeance, forgiveness, kindness, tolerance—but she doesn't mistake straightforwardness for simplicity. This is especially true of her villains. In both of her books now, the villains are never quite whom you expect, and never static forces of evil. They are as nuanced as the heroines, and often as traumatized, if not more so. Van Arsdale has profound compassion for anyone else perpetrating or suffering from evil, since they are often one and the same. And in exploring these enduring legacies of trauma and grief, van Arsdale and her characters find the thorny, narrow paths to genuine healing.

Among her antagonists, it’s often concepts that are the enemy more than people. At one point, there is a literal personification of Vengeance, but even it is treated more as a disease to cure than a person to defeat. Milla doesn’t need a sword to fight a monster; she needs knowledge and bravery to minster to it and heal it.

There will always be a place in SFF for swords and sorcery, but I’m always pleased to read about characters whose talents aren’t steeped in the violence they are usually (ironically) trying to prevent. Moreover, this book is an antidote to a lot of the overstuffed epics I’ve seen lately. Some books need to be long. Many do not. This one did not, and van Arsdale was smart enough to realize it. At only a little more than 250 pages, it's devastatingly concise. There’s no word out of place and no scene that doesn’t deliver. It's urgent but not rushed, and emotional without being overwrought. It’s the perfect little dagger to the heart, and the perfect little needle to sew you back up again.

I loved this book! The full review will be posted soon at kaitgoodwin.com/books! Thank you very much for this wonderful opportunity to connect books to their readers!