3.5 stars

Juniper & Thorn was a melodic storyteller that while disturbing at times, had a beautiful message.

Marlinchen was the youngest daughter of a wizard and never wanted to draw attention to herself. She never explored the booming city due to her father’s distrust and hatred of the advancing metropolis, but she couldn’t turn down a secret adventure into the city center with her sister. That night, Marlinchen’s life was changed when she saw a ballet performance based on the fairytales her mother told her as a child, and she was drawn to the complicated principal dancer who wanted to escape his life as a dancer. With a flurry of gruesome murders in the city and her father becoming more erratic as time went on, Marlinchen saw her chance for true happiness.

Ava Reid is a gifted writer and it was easy to fall in love with Marlinchen and her world. While Juniper & Thorn took place in the world of The Wolf and the Woodsman, there was very little to compare the two as Juniper & Thorn took place during a time that resembled our own 19th century. While Juniper & Thorn had the lyrical storytelling that we have come to expect from Ava Reid, it leaned heavily on fairytales. At times, this world and storytelling resembled the Grishaverse, with a much darker angle. Juniper & Thorn was billed as a dark fairytale and I strongly recommend that readers take care and review the content warnings before diving in. Marlinchen had a love interest, but their romance was not a focal point in this book, so readers should not expect an overly romantic subplot. I enjoyed Juniper & Thorn, but I know its darkness won’t be for all readers.

Juniper & Thorn will delight readers looking for something dark.

Juniper & Thorn is a retelling of the haunting Grimm story “The Juniper Tree.” This book reminded me of a real fairy tale—strange and wild, tempting as a poison apple, shiny with promise and bitter to the taste. It’s a gorgeous, dark read that is totally unflinching. It’s not for the faint of heart, but it’s an important, artfully written story that made me immediately purchase the author’s previous novel.

I loved Juniper & Thorn and will be thinking about it for a long, long time. That said, I understand why so many reviewers have had such strong reactions to it. It’s a book that deals with difficult subject matter frankly and compassionately. Reid doesn’t attempt to make her main characters textbook-perfect victims and in doing so, I’d argue that she honors all survivors of domestic violence and CSA by showing that even imperfect victims deserve freedom, understanding, and vindication. If you’re not afraid of intense reads, give this one a try and you won’t be sorry.

I would like to thank the publisher, Netgalley, and the author for the ARC of this book. I read an advanced copy of this book, so the final edition of the book might be slightly different. All thoughts and opinions are my own, as always.

I adored The Wolf and the Woodsman and was overjoyed when I was approved for this ARC. Something about Reid’s first novel just really struck me, and I couldn’t wait to read her sophomore novel. While I wasn’t actually familiar with The Juniper Tree going in, I always love retellings of folktales and fairy tales because of the atmosphere it generally brings. I’ve also wanted to dive more into horror/fantasy horror lately, and this seemed like the perfect way to do it.

Juniper & Thorn takes the inherent darkness of many fairy tales to heart, and honestly, I think this is one of the most gruesome, horrifying retellings I’ve ever read. There are just so many horrific layers to Marlinchen’s world, and every time you think you’ve hit the darkest, deepest part of the story, more comes. For this reason, this is definitely not a book for everyone, but I highly recommend it nonetheless.

Marlinchen’s story is such a haunting one that I know I’ll find myself thinking back to it often. Her journey was a perilous one, even if it’s mainly contained within her father’s house, and it dealt largely with Marlinchen both recognizing the evil around her and learning to live with her trauma that’s born from that evil. Since this journey is largely an internal one, Reid’s lyrical writing felt more important than ever, as it allowed for me to put myself in Marlinchen’s shoes, and feel some measure of the pain she went through during her life. This writing is also what made some of the harder scenes in the book bearable and a bit easier to read.

Overall, I loved this book and I loved seeing Sevas and Marlinchen both find each other and slay their demons together, both figuratively and literally. This book has really solidified Reid as an instant-buy author for me, and I cannot wait to see what she writes next.

4.5

This story is about a young witch, Marlinchen, and her two older sisters who are horribly mistreated by their wizard father. They are confined to their home in a city that's changing with their father casting them away from this new world that he hates. They are stuck to using their gifts as entertainment purposes in order to support their family. One night, Marlinchen and her sisters sneak away to live a little and she encounters a handsome dancer (I adored him) in a ballet. Their late night trysts offers her some freedom but she must keep him and her activities under wraps for fear of her father.

Ava Reid has such a talent with setting the atmosphere for this dark and haunting book. I was captivated right from the first page. It read like an old dark fairytale which makes sense because it's based off of The Juniper Tree. This book has some very dark and uncomfortable moments so I would definitely check out the trigger warnings. But if you're in the mood for dark, gothic and witchy vibes I highly suggest this!

TW: childhood sexual assault, gore/body horror, disordered eating

Thank you Netgalley and Harper Voyager for sending me a digital ARC of this book in return for my honest thoughts and opinions.

Juniper and Thorn started out slow, but soon became a story I could not put down!

Ava Reid took the Grimm fairytale and reimagined it. Marlinchen is a witch. She's the youngest of three daughters. Their father is a cursed wizard who never feels full/satisfied. They're the last of the true witches and wizard. Marlinchen spends all of her time waiting on her father while her sisters placating their clients with their simple gifts. The girls are not allowed to go out into the town as her father does not want them too for various reasons. Marlinchen's sisters have been sneaking out at night to go to theatre for a ballet. One night, Marlinchen is asked to attend. During this visit, she captures the attention of the star of the ballet. Their father finds out and becomes enraged. Marlinchen is stuck between placating her father, being the reliable "simple" daughter, and her own desires. Will she get what she wants or will she always be the reliable, "simple" daughter?

I didn't know that this was based on the Grimm fairytale The Juniper Tree. Before writing this review, I found it online and quickly read it. There are similarities between Juniper & Thorn and The Juniper Tree. I prefer this telling of it. At first the story started out slow. Eventually it picked up and I couldn't put it down. I finished it that day. I loved the relationship between Marlinchen and the star of the ballet. She was this reliable "simple" woman that became this unpredictable, loveable character.

I would definitely recommend this!

ARC provided by NetGalley for an honest review.

Absolutely enjoyed every bit of this book. It was dark, gruesome and captivating! Ava definitely didn’t hold any punches in this book. There were many moments that I felt uncomfortable or anxious and knowing that it was purposeful made this story that much more gripping for me.

Living in a city progressing through its industrial revolution with only a few remnants of magic, Marlinchen and her two sisters are the last witches. Their wizard father keeps them sequestered in his house and exploits their talents to fund his own insatiable appetite. The story begins with Marlinchen embarking on her first act of rebellion, going to the ballet with her sisters while their father sleeps. Realizing what she's been missing out on, Marlinchen's resentment towards her father grows. At the same time, a series of strange deaths are also happening.

The blurb made me think that this story would be much more about the murders, and saving the city at large, but I actually found the scope to be much smaller, the primary focus is on Marlinchen, her character development, and her relationship with her father. In the beginning I was hooked quite quickly and found Marlinchen to be a very relatable character, but then the story kind of lost me in the middle. I didn't find that enough was happening and the descriptions kept confusing me. It has a weird sort of fairytale or almost dream-like quality to it, where things happen that don't necessarily make sense or have an explanation.

The story also is very dark and gruesome. If you are squeamish in anyway I would not recommend this one. There is a lot of what I would assume to be metaphors and symbolism in these very dark descriptions, but I didn't really take the time to tackle what these were representing. I think if you like darker reads and gothic horror, you will enjoy this more than I did.

First off, thank you to Avon & Harper Voyager for the opportunity to read and review this title before publishing!

This was a strange, uncomfortable, unique, and interesting tale. I wasn't sure what to expect from a Juniper Tree retelling, other than it would likely be violent and odd, and it certainly did accomplish that.

This authors writing style is very artful and poignant, it definitely carried the tone of this story throughout, even in the more "mild" plot moments. The way the classic Juniper Tree story worked its way in was also super interesting and different, if sometimes a little bit hard to nail down.

I have some mixed feelings about a lot of aspects of this. I can see it being somewhat of a personal preference, but it felt uneccesarly sexual at times. The themes of sexual assault and abuse were really sickening and uncomfortable for me, and this is something I can usually tolerate relatively well. I found Marlinchen to be somewhat personality-less at times, and I can see that as somewhat by design, but it was so pervasive that it made it hard for me to care about her. Her romance with Sevas also felt a bit rushed and stunted. Overall, the story felt like it was slogging along without a clear direction until the last 35%.

The eerie feel was really impressive, even if it wasn't exactly my thing. I can tell that this is an artful writer, just in how well she was able to capture this ambiance. Despite the slog I felt for much of the book, I also felt a real sense of suspense, danger and fear at the ending, and really almost anytime the three sister's wizard father was around. The ending was definitely impactful and had a fair amount of payoff. All in all, I cannot say I would actually "recommend" this to most people, but I can definitely see it being enjoyed by people who want the creepy, eerie, incredibly dark horror feel.

I honestly have no idea how to even put into words what this book is like.

My best effort: an adult take on Grimm’s Fairytales on steroids with hard-to-swallow subject matter with a glimmer of hope and the promise of healing.

The flow of this book is smooth and intriguing. The author has a genuine way with words.
I very much wanted to know what was happening and if there was truly a “monster”.

I’ll admit, at certain points I had to take a break because the gore/body horror/shock value was just too much.

Let me reiterate this is a VERY DARK fairytale retelling.

With that being said, there is a HEAVY focus on SA which occurs to both main characters as minors. Some of it is on page. There’s one scene that spans over 3-4 pages that gives some details. Most of it though is vague references to said abuse.

Also I don’t know why it isn’t mentioned, maybe because it’s low-key a spoiler or because no one really knows how to classify what it is but…(MODERATE SPOILER) >>>> There is “beastiality” of sorts between one of the characters and a satyr. Made me uncomfy due to animalistic nature of the act.

Just…please read all the triggers for this book. I was able to handle it without being too triggered, probably because there were so many magical elements that made it seem less “real” but it was close and it was tough to get through at certain points.
Know what you’re getting into.

Thinking on the hyper-sexual fixations that take place in the main protagonist’s mind, I surmise it is most likely a result of said s*xual abuse that occurred when she was 16. I know this is a common trauma response. So I don’t necessarily find fault with it, it was simply too much for me/somewhat triggering.

To recap:

• The author writes beautifully when it comes to prose. Her world-building is decent - there’s very plainly a lot of Slavic/Russian influence but she kind of made it her own

• All the beautiful, lyrical writing couldn’t quite make me forget some of the tangents that distracted from the plot - there was a TON of repetition of certain words and phrases that stuck out like sore thumbs

• LOTS of triggers (not a criticism, just a fact)

• Over-sexualization of basically everything and in a very grotesque manner at many junctures. Not a criticism. I understand it’s place in the book - but it will make you uncomfortable

A strange book overall, where I felt little connection to any characters, hated many of them, and truly and deeply felt unsettled through most of the book. Perhaps that’s due to my own personal struggles. It is what it is.

I understand this was likely the point. The author succeeded in creating a story that delves into the dark depths that SA survivors find themselves in. It’s not pretty. It’s not meant to be.

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley I’m exchange for my honest review ***

It took me a little bit of time to get into the groove of this story, and I had to take my time at moments to truly understand what the author was bringing across. That being said, I throughly enjoyed my reading experience

I really liked seeing the main character’s growth into ultimately realizing she is being treated unfairly by her father and overcoming that situation by the end of the book. I wished the relationship between her and her two sisters could’ve been expanded upon more, seeing as most of what was said about her sisters was discussing how beautiful and clever they were. In my opinion, while I understand this was the main character’s story, insight on how her sisters saw things would’ve been interesting.

Marlinchen is the third daughter of a Great Wizard. A Great Wizard surrounded by all of the things he hates - industry, foreigners, the ballet of course. Forced to use her magic to support her father’s insatiable desire (for food, for gold, for control) she and her sisters weather his miserable moods and threats with forbidden sojourns to the surrounding city. That is, until her own secret desire comes knocking on their door as Marlinchen’s very own love story mingles with her monstrous family in Ava Reid’s intense tale of abuse and shame.

While I can’t say I enjoyed reading this book, I also couldn’t put it down. I finished the last two-thirds of it in one sitting, reading with a morbid fascination at the ways the characters oscillated between grotesque obscenities and pleasure. It is a book that is obsessed with the body, both the shame of it and the joy. Readers would benefit from advance notice of content warnings including eating disorders, sexual assault, cannibalism, vomiting, and body horror.

However, putting my own usual distaste of this content aside, the mixture of these themes with Reid’s constant reference to stories helps underscore the book’s connection to Grimm’s Juniper Tree and its examination of innocence and monstrosity. Reid seems to ask, how is abuse justified, especially by those who love us. If you have the stomach for it, Juniper & Thorn is a beautifully written dive into one family’s trauma, dysfunction and terror as they hold what little they think they have left in a death grip of shame, hurt, and fear.

When Marlinchen – youngest daughter of the wizard of Oblya – sneaks out to the ballet with her sisters, she is enamoured by Sevas, the principal dancer of the ballet troupe. Can she keep this secret from her vengeful father, or will she be punished for her insubordination?

This book was weird and wonderful and a little creepy and messed up. I really enjoyed this dark fantasy fairytale retelling. I wasn’t familiar with the original tale, so I was just going in blind, but the story drew me in and Marlinchen was such a great, quirky, character. I really enjoyed the writing style. Some parts seemed a bit drawn out and could have maybe been a bit shorter, but I still wanted to keep reading it and find out what happened. If you liked The Bear and the Nightingale, I think you’ll like Juniper & Thorn.

Thanks to NetGalley and Harper Collins Canada for the eARC!

I really really loved Ava Reid's debut last year, but this sophomore novel was a different experience for me. I liked a lot of things about JUNIPER & THORN. This is one of those books I can definitely call unique with Reid's striking and fairytale-esque writing style, unique plot and gothic horror vibes. I really commend Reid in her portrayal of familial emotional abuse, especially with Marlinchen and her father. As someone who has experienced this kind of abuse from a parent, I appreciated how she captured the complexity of feelings victims often have when a parent or a family member treats them that way. It was difficult to read, but I could identify with Marlinchen in some points of her story. I also really liked Sevas as a character, and the steam between him and Marlinchen was a welcome addition to the story. I appreciated the feminist themes in this one as well. All this being said, I struggled at times with the plot and the pacing. I felt like the story often strayed from the main threads of the story. I'd find a stretch of chapters I liked and then there felt like a pivot, so much so that by the end I honestly wasn't sure what was going on. For me, that makes the book drag and it just happened quite a few times in Juniper & Thorn. I don't know how I feel about that ending, though I am happy with how Marlinchen finds independence from the abuse she has endured at her father's hands at the end. Regardless, I remain a fan of Reid's writing and look forward to reading more from her, this one just was a struggle at times for me.

So I picked this book without having read anything else by Ava Reid, not having heard of the original story this book is based on (The Juniper Tree), and pretty much going into this book completely blind. I had no idea what to expect.

Looking at the blurb now, I think “gothic horror” is a pretty spot-on explanation of what to expect. Juniper and Thorn romanticizes some pretty gruesome stuff and there’s some *really* dark scenes. Trigger warnings include: molestation, murder (in detail), eating disorders, mental abuse, cannibalism, and drug and alcohol abuse. To name a few. I think this is one the most detailed books that I’ve read in awhile that goes into how someone was murdered. So there’s lots of blood too.

All that being said, Ava Reid is a pretty stunning writer. Her prose are incredible and this truly reads like an old fairy tale. The details about the houses and the people are remarkable and the story line itself is captivating. As grossed out as I was at some scenes, I had a hard time putting the book down. I wish there was a little more character building though. We are left to just trust how quickly some characters trust or hate each other without much look into the why of it all. What this book lacks in character background it makes up in world-building though, so it’s a trade off I’m okay with.

Thank you Netgalley & Avon and Harper Voyager for sending me a digital ARC of this book in return for my honest thoughts and opinions.

If you want a beautifully written, atmospheric, dark and quirky novel, then this one is for you!

This is my first book by Ava Reid (though I do own The Wolf and the Woodsman!) so I didn’t know quite what to expect going in. This book took me a bit to get into it, but then it really took off. I pretty much read the last 200 pages in one sitting. 🤷🏼‍♀️

Marlinchen is the third daughter of the last wizard of Oblya. One night the three sisters sneak out to attend the ballet. There Marlinchen meets the principal dancer who captures her heart. Her father’s rage and magic commences. There’s magic and witches and goblins and monsters and a marriage competition. But also ballet and love and tenderness.

I requested this on NetGalley after seeing Shelley Parker-Chan say it was vibey goodness. I don't normally take authors' recommendations seriously because I suspect they are all just agreeing to support each other regardless of whether they actually enjoy each other's work. And indeed, this book is not at all like what Parker-Chan writes. But the recommendation did make me take a look at the book and it looked cool! Atmospheric, dark fairytale? That is usually my jam.

What I did not realize going into this was that it is by the same author and in the same universe as The Wolf and the Woodsman...which I dnf'd on the first chapter last year due to cruelty and YA vibes. I'm glad I didn't know that now because I probably wouldn't have picked it up if I had.

I really enjoyed this. It is a full length novel, but read very quickly. It feels like a dark fairytale and reminded me of Spinning Silver in its tone and Eastern European references. It is about a wizard and his three witch daughters living in a world that is industrializing and moving past magic. The story is from the perspective of the youngest daughter and really explores themes of abuse, trauma, and resistance. There are both horror and romance elements to this story, although I wouldn't say it fully commits to either.

Things this book does really well:
-beautiful, poetic prose
-dark, romantic atmosphere
-wish fulfillment romance
-romance where both characters are equally strong and vulnerable and both have their own traumas
-portrayal of abuse and dysfunctional family (accurate and nuanced)

Things this book could have done better:
-romance was really sweet, but unbelievably quick and simple
-a lot of gratuitous nipple violence
-at one point a male character is described as screaming like a little girl...which I feel is misogynistic. Why not say he was screaming like a little boy? Little boys and girls sound the same and the character was male. I have to assume that the inference is that it is even more shameful to sound like a girl.
-bulimia was portrayed, but not discussed at all. I didn't understand why this was part of the story.

Thank you to NetGalley and Avon and Harper Voyager for giving me an e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

Sexual violence? Yes. Other content warnings? Abusive father, abusive patron, sexual/verbal/emotional/physical abuse, body horror, loss of a parent, death, murder, animal/monster butchering, dysfunctional family, bulimia, poverty, gross descriptions of eating and illness, vomit.

***4.5 Stars***
***please check your trigger warnings before reading this book***

Overall
Going into this book I did not really know what to expect. However, I think I found a new genre that I enjoy. Fantasy Horror. I really liked this book. Ava Reid’s writing is beautiful and descriptive. The story is medium paced and follows Marlinchen the third daughter of a great wizard. She has always been quite fearful and meek, cowing to the personalities of her father and sisters. One night she takes a chance and leaves the house with her sisters to enjoy a night out. From there the story unfolds and Marlinchen slowly realizes a lot of things are not as they seem. The book borrows pretty heavily on Russian folklore, something I will admit I know very little of, however it reminds me of the original Grimms fairy tales, where the fluffy Disney endings are not quite true and they are much darker in their original form.

Cover
My Arc has the US cover and I have to say I really enjoy it. It brings to life the spirit of the book in a very interesting way. It drew my eye immediately and if I saw this for the first time in a store I would definitely pick it up and read the back to see what it was about.

Recommendation
This is an adult fantasy horror novel and recommended for those over the age of 18. If you are a fan of folk or story retellings, with an air of mystery and a splash of gore I would recommend this book to you. I for one will be picking up Ava Reid’s first book and she is know firmly on my list of must read authors.

**I recived an eARC of this book from Netgalley in exchange for my free and honest review. Thank you Avon and Harper Voyager for the opportunity to read this book.** #JuniperThorn #Netgalley

Atmospheric and elegant, this very dark novel was very difficult to put down. Thank you to netgalley and the publishers for allowing me to devour the sweet taste of this novel early and completely, and all the way to its rotten core.

Many thanks to @harpervoyagerus
and @netgalley for an early copy of Juniper & Thorn
by Ava Reid.

I still haven't read Ava Reid's first book but I jumped at
the chance to review this one. I went in with zero
knowledge of the fairy tale it is based on which is The
Juniper Tree (Grimm Brothers). I think it was better that
way because I may not have read it otherwise.

This one is dark and incredibly creepy. I haven't
stopped thinking about it since I finished it on Tuesday.
Perfect for a rainy day, a hot beverage and a blanket. I
read it on an airplane and was so engrossed, I almost
forgot I was flying!

Juniper & Thorn is centered on Marlinchen and her
sisters and their weird creepy father. You know
something is off from the beginning of the story but I
never figured it out until the twist was revealed. I had
ideas about what was going on but did not expect the
direction we went in! If you like dark and twisty stories,
this one is for you. It is not a romance. It is gothic
horror and it absolutely gave me the creeps. It was not
my normal genre but I am so glad I took a chance and
read it. I am not sorry!

A big thanks to NetGalley and Avon and Harper Voyager for gifting me this eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Take the success of The Wolf and The Woodsman, and exploit it to the point of creating a whole new book with a whole new set of characters, and the only similarity between the two is that it's set in the same world. And there likes the mess that is Juniper & Thorn.

Juniper &Thorn by Ava Reid is a adult fantasy novel, set in the same world of The Wolf and the Woodsman, and follows the hard but magical life of Marlinchen. As she battles a city-wide curse and a monster always looking for more blood. Marlinchen comes from a long line of witches, but now lives her days as a living tourist trap. But all goes awry when she meets a handsome dancer that immediately steals her heart. And the monster looms closer and closer.

I really wanted to like this one, as I really like the author's debut. But I just couldn't get past the un-needed sexualization of characters and gore. It really wasn't my cup of tea.