The Raven and the Reindeer

I loved it!
This is a retelling of the "Snow Queen" fairy tale, my favourite, that improves upon the material. I love the elements addressed in here and how they were presented naturally into the story. The main character is an overweight bisexual girl that goes into an adventure to save a boy she thinks she is in love with. This coming of age story addresses self confidence issues, toxic relationships (motherly love, romance and friendships), gender identity and sexuality and manages to do it in a magical and funny way. The characters are memorable, there are some dark moments and a cute romance between two women.

There is a scene where a character skins an animal. It is not too detailed and long, but beware of that.

I am still so show more impressed how this author managed to write such a book with all the elements that I love and improve on my favourite fairy tale. I can't tell you the book is perfect for everyone, but it was for me. show less

Series Info/Source: This is a stand alone book. I bought a copy of this book for my Kindle.

Thoughts: I absolutely loved this retelling of the Snow Queen fairy tale. In this version, Gerta’s friend Kay is stolen by the Snow Queen and Gerta goes on a quest to save him. On the way to the far north she is enspelled by a well meaning witch, captured by bandits, and befriended by both a raven and a reindeer before finally making it to confront the Snow Queen.

This was an amazing story with a very classic fairy tale feel to it but with more humor and more relatable characters. There is a ton of adventure and magic in here as well. I really loved the characters, they feel very real and are easy to engage with. The story is beautifully written show more with wonderful descriptions that make the settings really come alive and some light humor to keep things from being too serious.

I loved the idea of some of the magic in here, especially the reindeer magic. I also love the unique relationships the different characters form, they are so easy to love. I thought this was a wonderful retelling of this fairy tale and thoroughly enjoyed it. I really enjoyed Kingfisher’s writing style as well and definitely plan on checking out more books by her.

My Summary (5/5): Overall this is a beautiful retelling of the classic Snow Queen fairy tale. I loved all the magic, adventure, and wonderful characterization. I also really enjoyed the way Kingfisher reimagined this tale; some wonderful changes were made to the tale but it still felt very in keeping with the original. This was incredibly entertaining to read and I really look forward to reading more books by Kingfisher. show less

You know that sad, frustrating feeling when the heroine of the story is throwing her life away on some bland pain in the ass boy, and you just wanna shout into the page that she deserves better, like for instance that girl right there who's nicer and cooler and more interesting than the boy has ever been and would actually appreciate her, but you knew that was never a real option because stories don't go that way? Well, this story validates the holy hell out of that feeling and then gives you everything you want for the girls, and is also a beautiful fairy tale that sinks warm into your bones.

I loved it! The Snow Queen is _not_ a favorite fairy tale - it's a little too flat and bland for me. This version is not at all bland. Oddly enough, Gerta's lack of self-esteem didn't annoy me too much - mostly because she just kept on doing things, even while telling herself that she wasn't worth anything. Kay makes rather more sense here than in the usual version - I'm delighted that Gerta sees through, or beyond, him. Mousebones is great, and I like Janna - I'd like to see more of her story, too. Ursula Vernon has a strong, quirky voice - I've only read a couple books by her, but I follow her online. I kept recognizing comments Gerta, or Janna, or Mousebones, or some of the various old ladies made as being the sort of thing I'd show more expect from Ursula - partly because they were entirely unexpected, but made perfect sense. I need to read more by Ursula. And I suspect I will reread this quite a few more times, and find new delights each time. show less

I hesitated to read this book, having been scarred by the dark, cynical sci-fi [b:The Snow Queen|139986|The Snow Queen (The Snow Queen Cycle, #1)|Joan D. Vinge|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1388298425l/139986._SX50_.jpg|522872] as a teenager, but I should have trusted the amazing Ursula Vernon/T. Kingfisher. Her version of the fairy tale is funny, horrifying, romantic and ultimately much more hopeful than either the original Hans Christian Anderson or the Joan D. Vinge version.

First of all, the relationship between Gerta and Kay is so perfectly re-characterized as that awful teenage girl fantasy of "he treats me like shit but that's just because he's a wounded soul who needs me, and deep down he show more really loves me." Ursula/T. could have been reading my high school diaries. Thank goodness Gerta realizes her true worth and finds someone who appreciates her just as she is.

Then there's the animal characters, who are so perfectly anthropomorphized through speech and action. They feel like Disney sidekicks with an edge. The titular raven kicks the story into high gear with his arrival and as for the reindeer...I'm still crying.

Best of all is watching Gerta use her decidedly unmagical self to fulfill her quest and in doing so, break through the boundaries of her fairy tale life, find her "herd," and stop apologizing for herself. Hans Christian Anderson would roll over in his grave to see his fairy tale used for such a feminist empowerment, and I would pay to see it.

A gem of a book. show less

Absolutely delightful retelling of Anderson's Snow Queen. Or perhaps I should say, this is not the Snow Queen you May have been Expecting, and it's all the better for it -- because, who, in the end, doesn't fall in love with the robber girl, want to run as a reindeer and speak to ravens, or think that Kay might not really be worth as much trouble as Gerta puts out? I always felt a little dissatisfied with the original, so I'm pretty freaking delighted with this one. Ursula Vernon always tells a great story, and this is no exception.

Glad I gave this author another shot after being underwhelmed a few years back by The Seventh Bride because I have enjoyed everything since. I adore this retelling of The Snow Queen. Greta really gets to shine and has her own agency. And Kay is a dunderhead. The robber princess has a much larger role herself. And there is a sarcastic raven who steals the show. Dark and lovely.