Thorn by Intisar Khanani

Abstract

Reviewed by: Thorn by Intisar Khanani Fiona Hartley-Kroeger Khanani, Intisar Thorn. HarperTeen, 2020 [512p] (Dauntless Path) Trade ed. ISBN 978-0-06-283570-3 $18.99 E-book ed. ISBN 978-0-06-283573-4 $9.99 Reviewed from galleys R* Gr. 9-12 Princess Alyrra hopes that her upcoming marriage to a neighboring prince will afford escape from her abusive brother and indifferent mother. En route to her new home, though, she becomes caught up in the doom that has haunted her fiancé's family for generations: a mysterious, vengeful lady, bent on capturing him, magically exchanges Alyrra's appearance with that of her scheming attendant and binds her to silence. In this story that loosely following the contours of the Brothers Grimm tale "The Goose Girl," Alyrra (now going by Thorn) finds employment, friendship, and fulfillment as goose wrangler and part-time stablehand, but her sympathies grow toward the beleaguered prince, and her awareness of the violence and injustice faced by the realm's underclass drives her toward reconsidering her role. Khanani beautifully crafts Alyrra's quiet but clear journey of self-definition as our heroine weighs her own desires and abilities against forces both magical and political, pits honesty against ambition, and grapples with questions of compassion and justice. First self-published in 2012, this novel is sure to appeal to fans of Carson's The Girl of Fire and Thorns (BCCB 11/11) and Ahdieh's The Wrath and the Dawn (BCCB 6/15), while the understated romance element is reminiscent of Azad's The Candle and the Flame (BCCB 4/19). Though the novel contains a number of familiar fantasy staples (arranged marriage, ethereal fae, honorable street thieves), the narrative is so beautifully executed that they remain compelling. Loose ends and a few underdeveloped elements intrigue rather than frustrate; a short story set in the same world is included, giving hope that there may be more to come. Copyright © 2020 The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois