🥀BOOK REVIEW🥀

The Path of Thorns by A.G. Slatter
Release Date: June 14, 2022

⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

Meet young Asher Todd as she enters in to the world of the Morwood Grange, becoming governess to the young children who reside there. She has very little to her name, but what she does have she keeps close to her so prying eyes can’t see. The Morwoods are a stuffy old family, obsessed with their lineage and perfection, or at least the illusion of it. However, behind closed the closed doors of the manor, portraits of family members are missing, doors remained locked, and strange things are happening. The children love her, her coworkers respect her, and her ‘talents’ are able to restore the eyesight of the matriarch of the family. Who is this mysterious stranger that walked in to Morwood Grange? What is stalking the forests there? What is lurking in the shadows? Do secrets remain secrets?

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Ok, y’all. I’m going to level with you. I wanted to love this book. I really did. The story is there. The mystery is there. The characters and their development is there. But the pacing is so slow. There were great moments of suspense that would build and then it would just sort of fizzle. Around 74%, I wanted to DNF it because even then the real “action” hadn’t happened yet. Like I said, the story is there, the curiosity had me in the beginning, but for me it was just really slow and at points really boring. If you want to give it a shot for yourself, because it is truly compelling, go for it when it drops on June 14!

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✨Thank you to @netgalley for the opportunity to read this before it is published!✨

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Main character Asher Todd is an interesting woman. She is more sassy and feisty than you might expect from a character in her position in that household (definitely more than the Morwood family was expecting…), and I enjoyed her interactions with the family, the rest of the staff, and the people in the surrounding village.

From the very beginning it is clear that there are lots of secrets and ulterior motives at play, and the story definitely requires some patience because it takes a while before we very gradually get any answers. I did get a little impatient along the way, but from about halfway through the story picks up. I liked how the plot developed, and the way different acts of magic or witchcraft are included. There is also a little insta-lovey romance sub-plot, which worked reasonably well for me, but I don’t think it added that much and the story could easily have done without.

Within the overall story there are many little fairytales and bits of folklore that characters tell each other, and I liked those a lot! In the rest of the story the writing is purposely old-fashioned and did take me some getting used to. I understand how it was intended to help set the Victorian-esque atmosphere, but it did feel needlessly archaic sometimes. I had to look up the meaning of many older words and wasn’t expecting to have to do that in a book published in 2022.

All in all I give this book 4 stars. I really enjoyed the setting and atmosphere and all the intrigue, and Morwood estate definitely gave me those gothic vibes I was hoping for. Also, what a great cover!

The Path of Thorns returns readers to the world of Sourdough, her shared fantasy universe filled with magic, monsters, and women proving their power in the face of adversity. Set in the same universe as last year's All The Murmuring Bones, Titan Books latest fantasy offering is a tense and layered mystery that will keep you hooked right up to the amazing conclusion.

The Path of Thorns tells the story of Asher Todd, a young governess who has recently been hired to teach the children at Moorwood Grange, a large estate nestled in the countryside. Asher has impeccable credentials, and perfect letters of recommendations, and seems to be the perfect fit to look after the three young Moorwood children. However, her documents are fake, and Asher is hiding a dark secret. Having come to Moorwood Grange for her own reasons, she begins to carefully manipulate the family, healing the eyesight of the fierce matriarch , Leonora, winning over the children, and forging friendships with key members of the household and local village. But can Asher walk this dangerous path without being caught, and what is her end goal?

People who like dark, Gothic tales are going to find a lot to enjoy with The Path of Thorns. This is a story that makes its home firmly in big family estates, dark haunted halls, spooky woodland, and hidden mysteries. The book feels like a Jane Eyer plot that's accidentally had some pages from a horror story shuffled into it. We get the things we expect from a Regency era drama, a new member of a rich household staff figuring out their place in the internal power structure, family secrets and scandal, budding romance, and people trying to maintain appearances of respectability for the common folk. But as the story unfolds we begin to suspect that there's something darker beneath the surface. There are portraits missing from the walls, names removed from the family tree, spectral figures walking the halls at night, and wolfish monsters prowling in the woods.

These elements are no surprise to those that have read Slatter's work before, particularly those set within the Sourdough universe, where the ordinary and the monstrous meet at almost every turn. Whilst other books of Slatter's, like All The Murmuring Bones, have more obvious fantastical elements this book plays it quite subtle, and for the longest time you're left wondering if there might not be anything supernatural at play, but things with a more mundane experience. But this is a fantasy Gothic story at its heart, and after a while those elements begin to become more and more interwoven into the narrative. It becomes a key part of the story and these characters, and you realise that Slatter is telling a story that feels at home amongst books by Eyer or Bronte, but absolutely has its own sense of uniqueness.

Asher Todd is the central character and narrator for the book, and is a character that readers quickly learn has a few secrets hidden away. We're dropped into the narrative with her having arrived at Moorwood Grange, so we don't know what lies she told to get there, or what's driving her on to infiltrate this household. As the story progresses we get several clues, and whilst it is a mystery the book never treats the reveal as a big moment. We're seeing the story from Asher's point of view, so when she addresses the reason for her being there it's not new information for her, and as such it's a very understated moment in the book. I really liked how Slatter handled the various mysteries in this way. She had Asher lead us through this world carefully, slowly getting us used to things, and the fantastical elements that were new to us were treated just as calmly as the mundane. It meant that the story never felt like it was relying on shocks or twists to keep you interested, and simply let the characters and their tales keep you hooked.

And the book very much did keep me hooked. The tale that Slatter was telling was incredibly engaging, and I found myself reading on long after I should have put the book down to take a break because I kept wanting to know what was coming next. Slatter was able to twist the narratives in directions that I wasn't expecting, and asked some tough questions about how far you'd be willing to go to keep a promise, and what the right thing is. By the end of the book I struggled to know if there were any purely good people in this book, with so many of the characters having dark secrets and evil deeds in their past. It's not a straight forward and easy read, and I loved that.

The Path of Thorns is a book that starts simple but introduces more and more complexity and depth as it goes on, expanding this small corner of Slatter's universe in interesting ways. If you're a returning reader I'm sure that you're going to enjoy a lot of what's on offer here; and if you're new to Slatter and her work I suspect that you'll come away from this wanting to read more. And you absolutely should. A wonderful read to get lost in on a dark and rainy night.

This book is an intriguing blend of magic, folklore, and ghost story, with a thread of familial betrayal running through it.

Asher Todd, our main character, finds herself the new governess for three children at the Morwood estate. It soon becomes clear that the troubled family and surrounding area is full of secrets, although Asher is not quite what she seems either. Mysteries get unspooled as danger rises.

I was surprised by, frankly, just about everything that happens in this book. it's my first book by A G Slatter, and I loved it as they threaded folklore stories throughout the novel. Asher is a strong, likeable protagonist even as she frequently lies and finds herself in increasingly challenging situations.

It was a really strong book that kept my attention - I'm going to check out more from this author.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for an e-ARC in exchange for my honest review.

"This is the story you asked to taste, whether it be sour or sweet, it is done."

Being able to return to the same eerie, gothic world as All The Murmuring Bones had me so excited, and I wasn't disappointed at all!

All is not as it seems with Asher Todd, new governess to the Moorwood children. The truth slowly unravels itself throughout the book, little titbits of information fed to us like crumbs on a forest floor. There is an almost oppressively dark atmosphere within the pages from the get-go, with Asher being stalked through the trees by an unseen beast, to the haunted and seemingly terrified mistress of the house; it all adds up to the gothic setting I came to expect from Slatter after reading her previous work.

I loved the links to ATMB throughout, little seeds of interest for those who know to look for them. The characters are compelling, and interesting. A whole host of them - distrustful locals, snarky maids, uppity butlers, endearing children, handsome groundsmen. You have them all. There's a mystery at the centre of the plot which reveals itself gently, carefully, and then all at once like a flood. I found myself sort of predicting some parts, but it didn't detract from the reading experience at all.

I love the way that magic is woven into the Sourdough universe the way it is; that it's an everyday reality. It's not strange. It is feared, and there is a healthy dose danger for those who practice it, but it doesn't stop people from seeking out a local wise woman for cures to what ails them.

"All darkness is a gift, but you must find the light in it."

I can't wait to read more stories from this fantastic world in the future!

2.5 ⭐️ A slow-moving stand alone without a strong sense of world / magic system building

Thank you to Netgalley and Titan Books for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I’ve never read any of A G Slatter’s books before this one but I loved the cover and I was really intrigued.The main reason I struggled with this book was that it didn’t feel like it had a strong enough sense of world building so that I didn’t really understand any aspect of the society including the religious beliefs or magic system.

Since finishing this book i’ve done a little research and it seems that A G Slatter has written multiple books that are all in the same world but can be read as standalone’s however I felt like this wasn’t reflected in the writing and I was left wondering if I’d understand the world and magic system better if I had read the other books. Having read Tessonja Odette’s Entangled With Fae Books (standalone’s that are in the same world with some overlapping characters) I feel like that’s a good example of how The Path of Thorns could have been stronger.

Even after finishing this book, I’m still not clear on magic within this world, and even less clear about Asher’s magical abilities- I’m not sure why she has it, or what the extent of it is or how common those powers are. Even the society’s opinion of magic is a little confusing because within the same town there is talk of ‘Cunning women’ existing (a side character’s grandmother) but equally Asher mentions being worried about being tried/killed for Witchcraft.

I had some issues with the writing style and it was quite antiquated which was probably done to give an idea of time period but made it difficult to read at times. Sadly this book was also quite slow, and there didn’t seem to be any real hints or bread crumbs to allow you to theorise or start to understand what was happening until half way through the book! It did start to pick up the pace after the half way mark and it was faithful to the gothic genre however this wasn’t enough to make it more than a 2.5 star read for me. ☹️

No one quite does dark adult fairytale fantasy with gritty horror in the mix quite like Angela Slatter. She has a way of landing those unsettling moments in one sentence, which is just enough for your imagination to fill in the rest. This is a fabulous addition to the ‘Sourdough universe’ and it contains a sufficient amount of reprehensible characters that make this a rather grueling and frustrating read. Asher Todd is a wonderful character and you cannot help but invest in her quest to solve the mysteries that surround her. It’s dark, atmospheric and sometimes so frustrating as to be agonizing to read but well worth it.

I was initially unsure of requesting this title, my opinion of Slatter's previous novel All The Murmuring Bones was slightly above average but the cover and synopsis for The Path Of Thorns drew me in regardless- I'm glad it did.

There's a noticeable improvement in the plot and pacing of TPOT, Slatter withholds enough information from the beginning to encourage investment in the mysteries. Asher arrives at Morwood with secrets and motives unknown to us and a burning hatred that screams of a history to uncover.

I found the writing a little inconsistent, the prose is occasionally out of sync with the time period in which The Path Of Thorns is set.
Although this was noticeable enough to break my focus it was of little detriment to the overall reading experience as I was easily drawn back in.

I was pleased to find Slatter has again added short fairytales within the story, as you might guess from the cover Little Red Riding Hood is heavily featured. The tales are beautifully written and hint at subtext leading the reader to consider their relation to the main plot and what hidden motives might be revealed.

Told in first person from Asher's perspective, it's clear she is on a revenge mission but her kind heart isn't darkened by it. Her character is well developed through the interactions and relationships built with those around her, this alongside Asher's inner monologue creates a kinship with the reader that held my interest well.

I thoroughly enjoyed A Path Of Thorns, great for fans of Arden, Ernshaw, Whitten or Novik.

"A lush and twisted dark fairy tale suffused with witchcraft, dark secrets and bitter revenge from the award-winning author. Exquisite, haunting and at times brutal, readers of Naomi Novik and Erin Morgenstern will be entranced.

Asher Todd comes to live with the mysterious Morwood family as a governess to their children. Asher knows little about being a governess but she is skilled in botany and herbcraft, and perhaps more than that. And she has secrets of her own, dark and terrible - and Morwood is a house that eats secrets. With a monstrous revenge in mind, Asher plans to make it choke. However, she becomes fond of her charges, of the people of the Tarn, and she begins to wonder if she will be able to execute her plan - and who will suffer most if she does. But as the ghosts of her past become harder to control, Asher realises she has no choice.

From the award-winning author of All the Murmuring Bones, dark magic, retribution and twisted family secrets combine to weave a bewitching and addictive tale."

Governess and revenge? You didn't even have to name-check famous authors I love with that handle!

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC. This has not impacted my review.

This was a deeply gothic fairy tale reminiscent of Angela Carter. The story of Asher Todd, who moves to a remote estate to become governess to three children. The estate has many secrets – locked doors and paintings missing from the walls – but so does Asher.

There are dashes of horror and gore, and a gothic atmosphere throughout that matches the craft of the writing. None of the characters, bar Asher and the children, are particularly likable. They all have their own secrets and motivations at play, which makes for a brilliant melting pot of tension. Once the plot lines began to unravel, I was fully invested, and wanted to know where the threads would lead.

The book has all the elements of classic gothic horror: the mysterious house, the family secrets, the staff with secrets of their own. It more than lived up to the premise and I thoroughly enjoyed this!

The Path of Thorns is a standalone book in Slatter’s Sourdough universe, a secondary world rather reminiscent of early Victorian England, where wise women are good for all kinds of interventions, be it a potion, or a story. I still haven’t read all of the Sourdough stories – a fact I need to remedy – but I loved Slatter’s last novel in this world, All the Murmuring Bones, and so have been looking forward to this book immensely.

And it didn’t disappoint in the slightest.

The Path of Thorns tells us the story of Asher Todd, a governess who has worked her way into the household of a manor lord, in order to seek vengeance on behalf of her mother, who was wronged in ways that are slowly revealed over the course of the novel. Atmosphere is where Slatter excels, and this book was excellent in that regard; there is a cold, damp and foreboding feeling that settles over the entire novel. The plot largely sticks to a lot of the hallmarks of gothic literature – misty moors, and a ghost in the locked spare bedroom – but it was much darker in tone than I was anticipating, and I was genuinely surprised by the lengths Asher was willing to go in pursuit of justice.

Because frankly, this is not a happy book. It made me angry, it made me sad, it made me feel frustrated and so, so tired of sexism and all the injustices, little and small, that eat away at women in our society on a daily basis. Yet, it’s also cathartic; Asher Todd is downtrodden, bitter, and a victim of her own delusional attempts to cling to what little scraps of affection she’s given, lest they slip away. But her deep rage somehow manifests itself as compassion for those who suffer under the same patriarchal systems, and a dogged determination to help others find peace. There’s also a sense of righteousness in watching Asher take down those whose only intent is to do harm along the way.

I wouldn’t recommend this if you’re looking for a lighthearted read, but if you’re looking for something to absorb – or possibly magnify – your rage at the world for a few hours, The Path of Thorns absolutely fits the bill.

You know those authors where you know you love their work but somehow they're not automatically at the top of your mind and then you see a new book by them and you think, oh yeah I should read that; and then you do read it (perhaps eventually) and you think WHY DO I FORGET HOW MUCH I LOVE THEM?

Maybe that's just me.

Sorry, AG Slatter. I really do love your work.

This novel is set in the world of Slatter's mosaic novels - Sourdough and Other Stories, and The Bitterwood Bible and Other Recountings. You don't have to know those stories to love and appreciate this one; they're not about the same characters, or even necessarily the same places in the world. This is a world where magic is real, at least some of the time, but not everyone approves. Magic is mostly done (at least in these stories) by women, which feeds into the disapproval of that 'not everyone'. It's used for good and for ill and sometimes doing it for one reason ends up having the opposite consequences. In her Author's Note, Slatter points that the world is a mishmash of the Victorian, Renaissance and Medieval - and asks readers not to go looking for historical accuracy. So there are moments that maybe kind of feel familiar from history, but they're set with moments that really don't.

What I particularly love about this and the other Sourdough stories is that they feel like fairytales, even though they're definitely not tales that I know. There's something about the ideas and themes - as Slatter suggests, "weird family dynamics, manipulation and lies, false faces, lost families and found, terrible acts and the potential for redemption". There's also something about the way Slatter writes, and here I am completely lost for words. I can't tell you what words or phrases she uses to evoke a slightly eerie world, the sense that this is a world just slightly off from ours; that makes me a bit amazed that this is NEW work, rather than something that was told ages ago and has that patina of tradition, of being a well-worn and beloved story - of familiarity. And that last is particularly odd, frankly, because I really didn't know what on earth was going to happen from page to page. She uses phrases and stories-within-stories that read like they SHOULD be as old and familiar as the wine-dark sea and Achilles' rage, but ... they're not.

So: Asher goes to Morwood Grange, to be governess to three young children. She has a frightening experience on arrival, and brings with her some things that she immediately puts under a floorboard. And see, right from that, you just know things aren't going to be straightforward. And so the story proceeds - making friends and enemies and figuring out how to do what she's come to do; you already guessed that Asher didn't come to Morwood accidentally, right? In some ways a bit claustrophobic - Asher mostly interacts with the family and few servants at Morwood - it's saved from being TOO gothic the-house-is-trying-to-eat-me by occasional visits to the village and out into the grounds of the estate, and also through Asher's occasional reminiscences, It's an intense story, intensely inwards-focussed - and look, I read it in a day.

I loved it. A lot. It's not always easy to read; the family is a deeply broken one, Asher's not exactly perfect, and there are definitely actions that people regret (or should, but don't). And yet, I loved it.

Thank you to Netgalley for providing me with an ARC of this book.

The Path of Thorns is a gothic fairytale-Esque novel about a girl named Asher Todd who is full of more than one mystery. How many lies does it take to get to the center of this story?

A.G.Slatter has created a dark, immersive world of witches, shape shifters, and blood magic that captivates the mind and holds the light at bay. You see into the soul of those who would do anything for praise from the right person. The way a person can see themselves as broken, and yet still carry on in the world and do incredible things. The way women’s feet can hurt.

The strongest part of the writing, in my opinion, was the narrative voice. Asher Todd is a distinct character who is as likable as she is flawed. She has a way of looking at the world which is carried through to the end of the novel. The plot makes sense because of the person she is. And the plot itself is woven so that you can really only see pieces of what is happening until you realize what Asher’s plan really is.

I enjoyed this book quite a bit, definitely in the realm of four stars!

I had the toughest time getting into this book. I love fantasy and i’m not sure if it’s the format or what but I couldn’t get into this world. This was a DNF for me at about 20%.

I hope to pick it up maybe in physical form once it is released and try again, because it sounds like something I should love!!

The Path of Thorns by A.G. Slatter was a slow burn for me. I thought the information regarding the estate was long-winded, and I wanted to learn more about its inhabitants. The mystery was intriguing enough, but I wanted more of the supernatural elements. I love the witchy plot points, the hint at werewolves, and the entire wolf lore, but I think I would have enjoyed it more if I got to spend more time with the complexities of the characters. I also felt the climax of the story, when Asher completed her ultimate task, the language took me out of the story. The use of mother-uncle felt absurd to me. There could have been a more tactful way to use this or trust that the reader understands the magic.

Thank you, NetGalley and Titan Books, for the ARC.

This is such a fun intriguing fantasy book! I truly loved it. I thought about it, the characters and what would happen next daily. I rate this book a 10 on creativity, mystery, believable characters and atmosphere.

I loved this gothic tale of a witchy governess who made a promise that takes a lot of careful construction to fulfill.

Asher was a strong and intriguing main character. Set to fulfill a promise she made to her mother on her deathbed, Asher takes on the role of Governess at the Morewood Estate. The atmosphere is brooding and deliberate and I fell completely into the story. The side characters were just as engaging as the main.

I enjoyed how the web of the story was slowly spun out and the reader didn’t know everything right at the start. I didn’t even know the promise Asher needed to fulfill until near the end. It kept the mystery going throughout.

I will definitely be reading this author again, especially if she writes more gothic horror.

Beyond amazing! This book was an incredible read and I can't recommend it enough. This is a book you'll want on your shelf and to give as a gift. Everyone needs to read it.

A beautifully written story with hints of a fairy tale, with wolves, witches, and enchantments. Full of intrigue and family secrets, the narrative keeps you hooked as more is slowly revealed.

Asher Todd arrives at the Morwood's manor to school the three young children. But she has ulterior motives, and a plan which cannot fail. Asher is a protagonist full of flaws, desperate for the love she was denied as a child, and hides a secret that will mean her downfall if it is ever discovered. Held to a promise made on a deathbed, she must carry out certain practices, however distasteful.

Although slow at times, the story was gripping enough to keep me reading to the end. There are a few twists along the way, and the ending is everything it should be. An enthralling story. Recommend.

Many thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the chance to read this ARC.

Asher arrives at an old country manor house on a dark and stormy night. She has been hired as the new governess. But her motives are increasingly mysterious as she seems to have hidden knowledge of the house and its residents. But why is she really there and what is her dark secret. This incredible mix of Gothic, Fantasy and Mystery had me hooked from the opening scene. The author expertly weaves fantasy and drama together with some fairy-tale like side stories. I loved how women forward the book was and the author tells a great story of parental expectations, family trauma and grief. Great for fans of Naomi Novik.