Bryony and Roses
by T. Kingfisher
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Bryony and her sisters have come down in the world. Their merchant father died trying to reclaim his fortune and left them to eke out a living in a village far from their home in the city. But when Bryony is caught in a snowstorm and takes refuge in an abandoned manor, she stumbles into a house full of dark enchantments. Is the Beast that lives there her captor or a fellow prisoner? Is the house her enemy or her ally? And why are roses blooming out of season in the courtyard? Armed only with show more gardening shears and her wits, Bryony must untangle the secrets of the house before she-or the Beast-are swallowed by them. show lessTags
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Member Reviews
This was a great start to my reading year! I loved this retelling of Beauty and the Beast. Bryony was so plucky, hardworking and determined, it was easy to root for her as a character. Also, T. Kingfisher wrote her as an avid gardener, which is such a brilliant choice! Plenty of story elements I didn't expect to see in a Beauty and the Beast retelling, which kept me interested and guessing until the end. By the time I had finished, this book had firmly solidified itself as my favorite retelling!
T. Kingfisher makes this world a better place, I am sure of it.
How about a retelling of Beauty and the Beast that is cozy, creepy, romantic, and very-very-very funny? Grab a copy, why don’t you… :)))
Bryony has a gardening obsession and goes to a very happy place at the sight of huge library. Yes, Bryony, it’s been lovely to get to know you. Both you and the Beast are absolutely adorable, brave and hilarious. The reader will also want to bang your heads together, as in “Are you blind or something? You are made for each other!” It’s the Beast, though, and Bryony has a regular human head, so it might not be such a good idea.
I want to quote a great many things, but will limit myself to just a few:
[Things happen when Bryony sees show more the Beast for the first time.]
“It’s not right that I am going to be both dead and mortified”, she told the Beast. “Either kill me now or give me a change of underwear.”
--------------------
“I did bring seeds”, she admitted. “But some of these plants are my friends. I wasn’t going to just leave them.” She ruffled her fingers through the lavender.
“Oh, good,” said the Beast drily. “Here I was afraid that I had kidnapped a sane person by mistake.” show less
How about a retelling of Beauty and the Beast that is cozy, creepy, romantic, and very-very-very funny? Grab a copy, why don’t you… :)))
Bryony has a gardening obsession and goes to a very happy place at the sight of huge library. Yes, Bryony, it’s been lovely to get to know you. Both you and the Beast are absolutely adorable, brave and hilarious. The reader will also want to bang your heads together, as in “Are you blind or something? You are made for each other!” It’s the Beast, though, and Bryony has a regular human head, so it might not be such a good idea.
I want to quote a great many things, but will limit myself to just a few:
[Things happen when Bryony sees show more the Beast for the first time.]
“It’s not right that I am going to be both dead and mortified”, she told the Beast. “Either kill me now or give me a change of underwear.”
--------------------
“I did bring seeds”, she admitted. “But some of these plants are my friends. I wasn’t going to just leave them.” She ruffled her fingers through the lavender.
“Oh, good,” said the Beast drily. “Here I was afraid that I had kidnapped a sane person by mistake.” show less
Oh, wow. I love Robin McKinley's Beauty, and like her Rose Daughter - the author here explicitly mentions that Rose Daughter played a big part in triggering this story for her. It is _not_ the same story (any more than Beauty and Rose Daughter are - all three retell Beauty and the Beast, each is quite distinct in story and style). But I think that this will join those two in the "read over and over" category. Bryony is great; I like the Beast a lot; nice angles on the story; and Ursula Vernon/T. Kingfisher's usual slightly twisted view of things is the cherry on top. There's some very deep thinking here, about power and expectations and letting oneself get set in one way of thinking; there's also some seriously funny scenes (which are show more sometimes the same ones with the deep thought involved). Love it. show less
To say this is a beauty and the beast retelling is just the tip of the iceberg— another wonderful reimagining of story by Ursula Vernon. I cannot express my delight in the gardener centered point of view, which often overwhelms the story in all the best ways. Love it.
I picked this up needing a break, but not an absolutely mindless break, but something of a little substance, a little character crunch–a Toblerone of chocolate bars, if you will. Thankfully, Kingfisher delivered. Within seconds of opening the book, I was delighted to discover that Kingfisher shared my love of McKinley’s retelling of Beauty and the Beast; a pleasant foreshadowing of the story to come. (Let me be clear that I’m referencing [b:Beauty: A Retelling of the Story of Beauty and the Beast|41424|Beauty A Retelling of the Story of Beauty and the Beast|Robin McKinley|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1294192311l/41424._SY75_.jpg|2321285]. Her second retelling, [b:Rose Daughter|8089|Rose show more Daughter|Robin McKinley|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1398552029l/8089._SY75_.jpg|2321287], was a bitter disappointment, much like growing roses). If it isn’t five stars, it’s probably because I’m not sixteen anymore and not prone to re-reading 'Beauty and the Beast' in any rendition.
“But still, it doesn’t fill me with confidence if I have to stab someone who deserves it.”
“I’m sure you’ll do better next time,” said the Beast encouragingly. “Practice makes perfect.”
This rendition has a lot of banter between the two, which offsets the long descriptive passages as Beauty Byrony explores the castle and interacts with Beast. She doesn’t explore the grounds quite so much as gardens, and her enthusiasm for her herbs is a pleasure.
“I did bring seeds,” she admitted. “But some of these plants are my friends. I wasn’t going to just leave them.” She ruffled her fingers through the lavender.
“Oh good,” said the Beast dryly. “Here I was afraid that I had kidnapped a sane person by mistake.”
–Shoutout to all my gardening friends that pet their herbs–
Kingfisher imbues the tale with some appropriately old-school horror-fairytale elements (you remember how Cinderella’s step-sister cut off her toes to fit into the shoe?), but really, it’s more threat than anything. I generally liked Kingfisher’s other elements (spoilery stuff the sister being the smart one; the actual earthiness of Bryony's frights) and have to say she did well by the Beauty retelling–and our memories of it.
“Unless he is a humanitarian…and he’s looking for a next meal…” show less
“But still, it doesn’t fill me with confidence if I have to stab someone who deserves it.”
“I’m sure you’ll do better next time,” said the Beast encouragingly. “Practice makes perfect.”
This rendition has a lot of banter between the two, which offsets the long descriptive passages as Beauty Byrony explores the castle and interacts with Beast. She doesn’t explore the grounds quite so much as gardens, and her enthusiasm for her herbs is a pleasure.
“I did bring seeds,” she admitted. “But some of these plants are my friends. I wasn’t going to just leave them.” She ruffled her fingers through the lavender.
“Oh good,” said the Beast dryly. “Here I was afraid that I had kidnapped a sane person by mistake.”
–Shoutout to all my gardening friends that pet their herbs–
Kingfisher imbues the tale with some appropriately old-school horror-fairytale elements (you remember how Cinderella’s step-sister cut off her toes to fit into the shoe?), but really, it’s more threat than anything. I generally liked Kingfisher’s other elements (spoilery stuff
“Unless he is a humanitarian…and he’s looking for a next meal…” show less
I didn't know that I needed a snarky Beauty and the Beast heroine but I should have trusted T. Kingfisher/Ursula Vernon that she could pull it off. From the moment when Bryony compares her bedroom in the Beast's castle to a uterus, I knew I wasn't reading my mother's fairy tale. Not to mention our heroine's ode to chicken manure. This version acknowledges the icky Stockholm Syndrome aspect of the story but accentuates the fact that the Beast is as much of a prisoner as Bryony (and both the details of his curse and the outcome are a welcome deviation from the standard).
The author acknowledges Robin McKinley's acclaimed Rose Daughter as inspiration, but her distinctive style marks it as very much her own book and a welcome addition to a show more story that has been told and re-told numerous times. show less
The author acknowledges Robin McKinley's acclaimed Rose Daughter as inspiration, but her distinctive style marks it as very much her own book and a welcome addition to a show more story that has been told and re-told numerous times. show less
This is a delightful retelling of Beauty and the Beast.
I was impressed that it did some different things with the original story without undermining the romance. I think that bringing new things to the table with this fairytale sometimes just takes too much time and focus away from the heart of the story, and that impacts how convincing and positive the eventual romance is.
That’s not the case here. Quite the opposite.
I loved the dynamic between Bryony and the Beast.
I was also impressed with the way Bryony and Roses is partly inspired by, and a response to, Robin McKinley's Rose Daughter, and yet it is clearly its own story. (It reminded me of a cross between Rose Daughter and another fantasy novel book about roses that I quite like show more and would mention by name if the connection didn't feel so spoilery.)
Bryony is a gardener, but she's particular sort of gardener, with a different relationship to roses. She is also, even though she lives in a pre-industrial kingdom, much more modern in her manner of speech and attitudes. I saw some reviews complaining about this, but I really liked it - this isn't trying to be historical fantasy so why not do something like that, something different?
“I did bring seeds,” she admitted. “But some of these plants are my friends. I wasn’t going to just leave them.” She ruffled her fingers through the lavender.
“Oh good,” said the Beast dryly. “Here I was afraid that I had kidnapped a sane person by mistake.” show less
I was impressed that it did some different things with the original story without undermining the romance. I think that bringing new things to the table with this fairytale sometimes just takes too much time and focus away from the heart of the story, and that impacts how convincing and positive the eventual romance is.
That’s not the case here. Quite the opposite.
I loved the dynamic between Bryony and the Beast.
I was also impressed with the way Bryony and Roses is partly inspired by, and a response to, Robin McKinley's Rose Daughter, and yet it is clearly its own story. (It reminded me of a cross between Rose Daughter and another fantasy novel book about roses that I quite like show more and would mention by name if the connection didn't feel so spoilery.)
Bryony is a gardener, but she's particular sort of gardener, with a different relationship to roses. She is also, even though she lives in a pre-industrial kingdom, much more modern in her manner of speech and attitudes. I saw some reviews complaining about this, but I really liked it - this isn't trying to be historical fantasy so why not do something like that, something different?
“I did bring seeds,” she admitted. “But some of these plants are my friends. I wasn’t going to just leave them.” She ruffled her fingers through the lavender.
“Oh good,” said the Beast dryly. “Here I was afraid that I had kidnapped a sane person by mistake.” show less
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Author Information
100+ Works 37,486 Members
Ursula Vernon is a freelance writer, artist and illustrator. She received an undergraduate degree in anthropology at Macalester College in Saint Paul, Minnesota. She took several art classes in college. Her first children's book, Nurk: The Strange Surprising Adventures of a (Somewhat) Brave Shrew, was published in 2008. Her other works include show more Black Dogs: The House of Diamond and the Dragonbreath series. She also writes and illustrates the webcomic Digger and the creator of The Biting Pear of Salamanca. (Bowker Author Biography) show less
Work Relationships
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Common Knowledge
- Canonical title
- Bryony and Roses
- Original title
- Bryony and Roses
- Original publication date
- 2015-05-19
- People/Characters
- Bryony; Holly; The Beast
- Dedication
- For my mom, from whom I probably inherited the gardening thing.
- First words
- She was going to die because of the rutabagas.
- Quotations
- If our every wish is granted, we begin to invent work for ourselves, so that we have a thing that we have earned that is ours…
It was not that she was too furious to be afraid, it was that the fury was sitting on top of the terror and riding it like a horse.
That had always been her great gift and her besetting sin, that even in the darkest and most somber times, she had the urge to laugh.
The library did not trouble her the way that her bedroom did at night. There were too many books, and books were everyone’s friends. - Last words
- (Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)She and the Beast walked hand in hand through the ruined gates, and into the world beyond them.
- Original language
- English
Classifications
Statistics
- Members
- 483
- Popularity
- 62,412
- Reviews
- 33
- Rating
- (4.09)
- Languages
- English
- Media
- Paper, Audiobook, Ebook
- ISBNs
- 7
- ASINs
- 2
