This novella was everything it promised to be and more. A dark, heart wrenching fantasy retelling of sleeping beauty from the "fairy godmother's" point of view. Kingfisher has created a fascinating world in just a few pages and I would absolutely read whole novels (a whole series even!) set in this world. Do you love dark fairytales and need a short but engrossing read to catch up on your reading goal now that we are more than halfway through the year? RUN, don't walk to pick this little beauty up!

Rating: 4.75/5 stars

Thank you to NetGalley and Tor Publishing for the advance copy for review.

This is a beautiful adaptation of Sleeping Beauty. T. Kingfisher has a gift for writing such complex stories in so few pages.

The story centers around Toadling who is sent to protect the human world from the sleeping princess. Toadling is such a quirky and endearing character. She is not beautiful on the outside but remember, beauty is not only skindeep.

Get ready to curl up and follow Toadling as she keeps watch over the sleeping princess.

This story was magical and charming and perfect. Can’t believe I’ve waited so long to read any of T. Kingfisher’s works but part of me is glad that this was the first. I love love loved Thornhedge and I think anyone who likes fairy tales would too.

For such a short book, this one certainly crams alot in. It is basically a retelling of Sleeping Beauty, but unlike anything you have read before.

Toadling is such a likable character from the start. Even though she is supposedly the evil fairy who bestows a curse on the beautiful princess, she really isn’t evil or even a fairy. We get to know Toadling so well in this story, from both her remembrances of her childhood and the ‘monsters’ ( they were greenlings, a type of fairy) who raised her and her experiences with Fayette, the child she was suppose to help. She is so kind and just wants to do what is best, but doesn’t really know how.

Halim is the knight who hears about the tower and the curse and comes to make things right. I loved how he befriends Toadling and cares for her and her feelings. He is very patient and kind and a good listener. He is not like other knights in fairy tales. He is not totally sure what to make of Toadling’s story, but he does listen and even helps her in the end.

If you like this author’s stories, you will love this take on a well established fairy tale. My only regret was that it was not longer as I did not want to part ways with Toadling and Halim at the end.

Thank you to netgalley for giving me an advanced reader's copy of this novella in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed this! I have read two other of T. Kingfisher's works: Nettle and Bone, which I loved, and A House With Good Bones, which I did not. Based on this one, I think her fairytale retellings are right up my alley, but her horror writing is not.

This little novella has a lovely main character, who used to be human but isn't quite anymore. Thornhedge subverts the Sleeping Beauty fairytale by asking the question: what if the princess was the one who was evil? I love fairytale retellings, especially when they do something a little unexpected. A Spindle Splintered by Alix E. Harrow also does a retelling of Sleeping Beauty where the witch isn't wholly evil, but I found it a little heavy-handed (though I enjoyed that one too). Overall, this was an enjoyable read but I always find myself wanting a little bit more when I read a novella.

Thornhedge is a wonderful novella that gives other possibilities the Sleeping Beauty fairytale could take. Toadling, the main character, is interesting and well fleshed out, something that can be really hard to do in a novella. One of the things I really liked was that the author seemed to do what was best for the story instead of adhering as closely to the Sleeping Beauty story as possible. Overall, I would highly recommend the story to anyone who likes alternate takes on fairytales or just fantasy in general.

This was an absolutely gorgeous retelling of a classic fairy tale - encouraging readers to imagine that we had the motives of the classic good and evil characters wrong.

Toadling and the knight were fantastic, well-developed characters for such a short novel - I loved Toadling from the beginning, as we watch the world outside of the thorn hedge with her and then dare to venture out. I laughed and cried and didn't want the story to end.

T. Kingfisher never fails to impress!

I loved this darker twist on the sleeping beauty fairy tale. It doesn't center the sleeping princess but rather a fairy that is assigned to guard the princess. The knight that comes to "rescue" the princess is also not your typical knight. If you love darker (but not too dark) tales of the fairy world, this one's a great quick read.

I genuinely enjoyed the time I spent reading Thornhedge. From the moment I read the first line, I was hooked and had to see how things would play out for Toadling. T. Kingfisher’s alternate take on Sleeping Beauty (not a retelling, just using elements of the fairytale and playing around with it, to be clear) is probably one of my favorites that I’ve ever read. It offers the potential of a “what if” scenario that captures the magic of the source material, but also gives it some interesting new spins. I liked the characters well enough, but I especially liked how the story felt like reading a modern fairytale (of a sort). Definitely the Kingfisher work I’ve enjoyed the most so far (of the two I’ve now read).

I LOVED this! A fun Sleeping Beauty retelling! I loved that fairies and changlings were incorporated into this retelling. It felt fun and fresh.

This is such a sweet fairytale! I’m so glad I got into Kingfisher in the era of all these little stories that have such big hearts and ideas.
An absolute must read author!

I love this author. I recently read Nettle & Bone so I was thrilled to get an ARC. This author has a way of writing deeply human and uniquely observant characters that are amazing and hilarious. Kingfisher can literally write some dark downright bleak shit and then have you laughing on the next page. This book is no different. There is a gentleness and kindness to these characters that is just so captivating. Kingfisher has become an “instant buy” author for me.

This is a beautifully written story about faeries, changelings, magic and curses.

Toadling was born human, but at her birth she was swapped with a changeling. This is her story. She is centuries old and has seen change upon change occur. When a knight finds her, it’s the first contact she has had in a very, very long time.

She begins to tell him the story of the curse she accidentally set upon the changeling who took her place. She has been watching over this changeling for many, many years, but not to protect her… Toadling needs to make sure the curse is never broken.

This is a very quick read, which I enjoyed.

I’ve quickly become a big fan of T Kingfisher’s books, both the horror books and the fantasy books and this one is no different! I love this twisted retelling of Sleeping Beauty, where a (sort of) fairy named Toadling tries to offer a newborn a gift but messes it up. It’s hard to believe that this is only 128 pages, because there is just so much packed into this novella, and I didn’t want it to end. Toadling and Halim were such lovable characters, and I really hope their story isn’t over because I would love to know more about them. This book makes me think of how a good retelling should be - take the general idea of a story (girl in a tower, fairy who put her there) and twist it on it’s head and play with expectations and add a dash of lightheartedness and (a bit more than) a dash of darkness to it. Highly recommend this one both for new and old fans alike!

Toadling has been guarding the tower and the thorns from princes and knights, trying to protect the world from her slip of tongue.

Why I started this book: Requested this ARC on Netgalley because I'm a fan of Kingfisher's characters, humor and stories.

Why I finished it: Charming retelling of Sleep Beauty. It is the tale of mother's love, sacrifice, duty and curses. With the insight and deft story telling of Kingfisher all packed into a novella. If this is your first book by Kingfisher, do yourself a favor and pick up [book:Nettle & Bone|56179377] or [book:A Wizard’s Guide to Defensive Baking|54369251].

Thank you to Tor Books and netgalley for an e arc of this one.

In this Sleeping Beauty retelling, the fairy that cursed the princess is actually the good guy. Toadling is such a cute MC. I love how awkward she is but she's just trying her best!!!! I also loved Halim for many of the same reasons. He reminded me a bit of Lazlo from Strange the Dreamer.

This was a very interesting story and I would love to know what happens next for Toadling!

CW: death, torture, animal cruelty (mentioned)

What’s a fairy godmother to do when she bungles her gift to a beautiful princess? In Toadling’s case, it means making sure that no one ever, ever wakes that princess up. Thornhedge, by the always excellent T. Kingfisher, flips the story of Sleeping Beauty on its head.

Toadling has quite lost track of how long she’s been hiding behind brambles, thorn hedges, and enchantments when a blundering young Muslim knight (he admits he’s not very good at the whole violence thing) decides to camp beside the thorn hedge. Toadling is spotted watching the knight, and he strikes up a conversation with the skittish fairy. To her frustration, Halim reveals that he’s been looking for a keep surrounded by formidable thorns that he learned of from a story. All Toadling wants is for people to forget all about the keep and the thorns and stay very far away from the sleeping princess in the middle of all of it, but nothing she says will make Halim go away. He’s determined to free someone from an enchantment, whether it’s the princess or Toadling herself.

I love what Kingfisher has done with the Sleeping Beauty story here. There are changelings, goddesses, lots of blunders, magic, the march of time, and a relentless desire on both Toadling and Halim’s part to do the right thing (even if neither of them are quite sure what that is). I found this story of two people who have no idea what their next move is to be a very human kind of tale, even with all the magic happening around them. Who among us hasn’t drawn a complete blank when faced with an insurmountable problem we have no idea how to tackle? And who among us has not faced an insurmountable problem by just winging it and hoping for the best?

I had a great time with this breezy, funny, heartwarming fairy tale retelling.

I’ve been reading a lot of T Kingfisher lately and absolutely loving it. She has a knack for perfectly combining whimsical and sinister, and this book is no exception. Thornhedge is a charming fairy tale novella, but fairy tale in the old fashioned sense, in that it’s steeped in old magic and has darkness lurking in its heart. It had a similar vibe to Seanan McGuire’s Wayward Children series in a lot of ways. It’s a super quick read and I really enjoyed it.

Representation: POC character

Trigger warning: suicide (mentioned), animal cruelty (mentioned)

My first T. Kingfisher story and it definitely will not be my last because I adored this. This is such an endearing story with a great twist on Sleeping Beauty. There's dark fairytale elements but I also would describe the writing of it as cozy - it's whimsical but there are stakes to this plot. The dynamic between Toadling and the knight Halim is lovely and I could read 100000 novellas of them having adventures.

I would've welcomed a longer story but I never felt like this novella was too short. The plot and character arcs all wrapped up well and it's the perfect short read for anyone looking for a fantasy story to read in one sitting.

T. Kingfisher does it again with a lovely new twist on a beloved fairy tale. The main character is unexpected given the tale being retold, in a good way. I really love the way this retelling makes you think harder about what is on offer in these stories, and what assumptions people make.

My only complaint is I wish there was more!