Sorcery of Thorns

A fairytale-style fantasy that hints at more darkness than it delivers, this was a mixed experience for me. For example, rather than the enemies-to-lovers relationship described in the cover synopsis, we have a brooding, secretive love interest in a rather enderingly fluffy take on the gothic tradition, including the narrative absenteeism. The plot and character-building take a backseat to the creation of an atmospheric world (nominally set in 1824), the latter cinematically rendered yet with a magic system that seemed rather random and inconsistent to me.

As for the main character, it felt really nice to have YA heroine who is naive and reasonably ignorant instead of a worldweary know-it-all. Admittedly, she is extraordinarily lucky: everything she needs tends to fall into her lap the moment she requires it, whether information, a magical object, or a job opening. It is one of the reasons that there story often lacks tension and unpredictability, or a clear purpose. Even the villainy read as more theatrical than menacing to me, so when the plot climax occurs it was a side element that stole the show for me, leading into a rather touching scene and then a clever wink of an ending. I enjoyed that!