Girl, Serpent, Thorn

Girl, Serpent, Thorn by Melissa Bashardoust is unlike anything I've read. With its basis in Persian mythology, there is an automatic foreignness to the story due to the fact that Persian myths are not exactly popular in modern-day storytelling. But its exoticism is much more than simple unfamiliarity. Girl, Serpent, Thorn is a dark story, darker even than anything by the Grimm brothers with their feet mutilations and eye pecking. It is also a refreshing story wherein romantic love has a minor role and marriage to royalty is not necessarily the happy ending it usually is.

One of the best parts of Girl, Serpent, Thorn is its moral ambiguity. A demon is not entirely evil, just as a hero is not entirely good. This ethical vagueness differs show more greatly from other myths that are so black and white as to be uncomfortably so. It also denotes a realism that normally does not appear in fairy tales. Ms. Bashardoust means for her characters, no matter their earthly or unearthly origins, to be realistic rather than caricaturish. In turn, this realism helps develop the characters in a way not usually seen in such stories.

Perhaps due to the unfamiliarity with the stories, but Ms. Bashardoust adds so many twists and red herrings as to make the story impossible to predict but so much fun to read. She throws every preconceived notion out the window in her tale. The very definition of happily ever after means something completely different. A strong sense of identity and self-confidence means more than marrying the prince. Plus, she is not afraid to shed blood. These are not honorable knights going out to slay a dragon but men fighting against tooth and claw, scales and spikes in droves. It gets ugly, and I love every minute of it.

The other great thing about Girl, Serpent, Thorn is the fact that Ms. Bashardoust treats her heroine with respect. It would be easy to make a seventeen-year-old girl who has not touched another person's skin in those seventeen years mentally ill. After all, touch is more than a form of communication. We need to touch others almost as much as we need air or food. Yet Soraya survives this slow form of torture, providing her with the mettle she needs to overcome her current situation. Also, Ms. Bashardoust gives Soraya a family that loves and cares for her. It may not appear as such, but there are love and affection there. More importantly, there is not an evil step-anything to disrupt the family dynamic.

Girl, Serpent, Thorn is a refreshing story with its unique monsters and mythology as well as its treatment of its characters. Soraya is an impressive heroine, not afraid to get her hands dirty as well as capable of immense character growth. Because she is so fierce, in part due to her confinement and in part due to her circumstances, any romance, when it does come, is that much more poignant. If Girl, Serpent, Thorn is an indication of Ms. Bashardoust's writing skill, I cannot wait to read more of her work. show less

Girl, Serpent, Thorn by Melissa Bashardoust is a stand-alone YA fantasy story about Soraya, a cursed princess who is poisonous to the touch and so spends her life in the shadows, never welcomed, even by her own family. Her lonely existence has her yearning to be rid of the curse, no matter the cost, and she has a number of difficult decisions to make as she embarks on her journey of discovery.

The story reads like a Persian fairy tale and there are a number of plot twists and turns that I don’t want to give away so I have decided not to go into any significant details. The tone of the book is one of learning to balance hope and despair and whether power over others is worth the cost.

I found the first quarter of the book moved very show more slowly but once the story took off I became more invested in learning about Soraya’s choices and how everything was going to be resolved. I enjoyed how the author blended Persian culture with touches of magic in her world-building and although there was a hint of romance, this is mostly a story about one girl’s evolution and her choice of either turning to the light or entering the dark side of life. show less

Perfect for fairy tale fans, for YA fans and fantasy fans. “Girl, Serpent, Thorn” is about myth, expectation, shame, growing up, living in shadow, making mistakes, disappointing people, learning who you really are, learning who your parent really is and making amends. Of righting a wrong, knowing it’s possible you may not be forgiven, but righting it anyway.

It’s always a joy to read a book that has characters and a culture I don’t often see in literature. This book features Persian culture and a bisexual main character.

There were enough characters in the book that I normally have trouble keeping track of them, but I didn’t experience that this time. Probably because they all had very distinct roles.

I don’t want to say too show more much about this because I don’t want to give anything away, but the moment where Soraya truly comes into her own, I could have read about that for a lot longer. There was so much build-up to that moment and I wanted to be in that moment for longer.

I can absolutely see this book being made into a movie. The imagery would be so magical. The cover is lovely too. The book opens with such an engaging paragraph, like any good fairy tale.

I love this book for teens too, because it tackles a lot of themes/issues that we face growing up and it’s great for kids to see that in the books they read.

Note: I received this ARC as a Goodreads giveaway. These thoughts are my own. show less

I love fairy tale retellings, and Melissa Bashardoust tells a lovely fairy tale. In Girl, Serpent, Thorn, Soraya was cursed before her birth to have a poisonous touch. It’s a trope that’s been written many times before, but what makes this retelling so magical is the wonderfully detailed setting. Sister of the future Shah, Soraya has been kept locked away in a lovely garden for fear others will learn of her condition. It’s a beautiful prison, but a prison all the same.

Now her brother is getting married and one of the beings who cursed her has been captured. Could there be a way to reverse the spell? I loved the slow unfolding of this tale, the characters, and the beautiful descriptions. There were so many twists and turns in this show more fairy tale, but I loved that the underlying theme was learning to love yourself and recognize your strengths just as they were rather than see differences as weaknesses. A beautiful fairy tale retelling.

Please excuse typos/name misspellings. Entered on screen reader. show less

Shut the front door! Don’t mind me, I’m just sitting here with my audiobook hangover.
Girl, Serpent, Thorn by Melissa Bashardoust is a YA Fantasy fairytale with origins in Persian mythology history. Our protagonist Soraya was cursed as an infant with poison in her blood making her touch deadly, and her emotions reflected by changing colors of her veins. This keeps her isolated from society, hidden by her royal family. To find the truth of the origins of her curse she must confront magic that has betrayed her family several times before. A key element in YA is often coming of age, self discovery, and this is very much the case here. Soraya experiments in relationships with both men and women, however neither play a central focus in show more the story. The central theme explored being in this fairytale the girl saves herself, and her pathway there is a metamorphosis to a complex, dark character. It makes a really interesting, compelling, and nuanced story. Unlike many fairytale retellings so much of the narrative is fresh and unknown. The reader feels like they may have heard it, something similar in parts, but you may not be sure. It’s very well done.
The audiobook experience, narrated expertly by Nikki Massoud, is a must listen. Her lyrical voice acting gently rocks you along, as a fairytale does. Then before you know it the story has turned dark and twisty, and you’re all in! This lends itself especially well to leaning back and being read to, being immersed in the the story. Not to be missed is the author notes at the end. I found her details on word history and where she drew her inspiration fascinating.
I highly recommend to those readers that enjoy YA, Fantasy, fairytale retellings, those that are new to audiobooks, and absolutely to those that think ‘these aren’t my genres’. I was so pleasantly surprised by this audiobook and hope a wide audience finds it.
Many thanks to Netgalley and Macmillan Audio for the advanced listening copy. All opinions are my own. show less

Girl, Serpent, Thorn is a YA fantasy novel, and it's one of my favourite reads so far this year. I absolutely adored this book.

The main character, Soraya, is a princess, locked away in a palace because she has been cursed by a div to have a poisonous touch. The poison runs through her veins and everything that she touches dies. She has her garden and her flowers, but no friends or real human connections. Even her own mother can't touch her. When a captured div is brought to the palace, Soraya decides to talk to her, to see if she can tell her how to break her curse. The book has good pacing, and it didn't feel rushed or boring.

This book falls into the category of fairy tale retelling, drawing on Persian myths and fairy stories. The show more book itself begins with a fairy tale, and then stories and myths reoccur throughout the book. I found this particularly effective for this kind of story, where myths become reality within the pages of the book. And the mythology that Bashardoust draws from is so rich and wonderful. The world described in this book is beautiful, mystical and magical. Persian mythology is not something I've ever really learnt about but this book has sparked my interest in it.

I also loved the characters. Soraya has a journey from being shy and downtrodden, rejected by everyone around her, to realising her power, her anger and her strength. She is resourceful and determined, despite her circumstances, or perhaps because of them. And then there is Azad, a mysterious young soldier. After meeting him, Soraya is sucked into danger, discovering secrets and lies, betrayals and mistakes. When Azad was first introduced I assumed that he was going to be the love interest, in typical YA fashion, but damn, that twist! I won't give any spoilers, but this story was like a rollercoaster and I loved it! Speaking of love interests, Soraya is bi, and there are lots of lovely sapphic moments which I really enjoyed, involving my favourite character in the book (although I won't say more than that to avoid spoilers).

Girl, Serpent, Thorn is a wonderful queer fantasy novel that you should definitely read. show less

Initial review: A bit predictable, but a great spin on a classic story. (3.5/5)

A few months later: At first I said I just liked this book. However, months later I’m still thinking about it and have recommended it to so many people. So Love! (4.5/5)

Over a year later: when I first read this book, I was impressed by the world building and prose, but it wasn’t a favorite. However, the book stuck with me and I kept thinking about it. I recommended it to friends, and kept having to buy new copies because I was regifting my version to others. The way this book has retained my attention and resulted in numerous recommendations, raises this book from like but not love, to one of my favorites. (5/5)