Juniper & Thorn: A Novel

I loved this book.

Overall Score: 4/5✨Character Development: 4/5Plot: 4/5Ease of Reading: 3/5Overall Enjoyment: 5/5I think I’ve found one of my new favorite authors. After reading A Study in Drowning, I knew it would become easily one of my most loved books of all time and I had to pick up another book by Ava.Intensely descriptive and full of imagery, Ava’s writing continues to astound me. Although vastly different from the more gothic, ethereal vibes of ASID, Juniper & Thorn was equally provoking and fully engrossed me in the story. Ava Reid’s beautiful prose felt oddly out of place in this horror based on the Germanic fairytale The Juniper Tree, but it also felt like it fit perfectly into the fantastical world of communistic Oblya.Marlinchen is the youngest, and plainest, of three otherwise beautiful witch daughters. She cannot create, or summon, or heal, but she can find a person’s cause of illness through touch. She is a good daughter, an obedient one, and her father can count on her to remain dutiful in all things.Until Marlinchen and her sisters go to the Oblyan ballet against their father’s orders, and she becomes enamored with the ballet’s principle dancer. Things are not always as they seem, and Marlinchen must discover what is truth and what is not, and whether she has the strength to escape that which binds her.This darkly whimsical tale stippled with gore, vengeance, and the awakening of the monster within was surprising and had me on the edge of my seat in some moments, and in others vastly entranced just by the themes woven inside. There were some times that the pacing felt a bit slow, but I sat back and enjoyed the ride and overall loved this book!

3.5 starsI enjoyed this but it was much darker than I was expecting it to be. There’s a lot of content that could be triggering for readers such as physical, emotional, and sexual abuse. There’s also brief mentions of pedophilia and rape. The main character has an eating disorder and we see her throw up after most meals. Her eating disorder is complex though and is tied to the abuse she faces from her father and the guilt she feels over her actions.The strongest aspect of this story is the romance between the two main characters. It is quite intense and touching. Apart from the romance, it felt like the traumas of the characters were the dominating aspect of the story. Overall, the amount of triggering content in this made it hard for me to fully enjoy but there were some elements that I liked. Ava Reid writes gorgeous prose and I will definitely read her next book.

I went into this not knowing a thing about the story, but I really loved it. It was dark and a little sexy and a little sad. I was trying to put pieces together the whole time and I enjoyed the happy ending.

As someone who knows the original story this book is based on (The Juniper Tree) and considers it one of my favorite Grimm Faerie tales, I knew going in this book was going to be dark. The original story features abuse, cannibalism, death, and of course a lot of trauma that comes with dealing with the aforementioned things.This was also my first experience with Reid as an author. And I will say... i enjoy her work and will be looking for her books in the future. (I already have a copy of "Wolf and Woodsman" ready to go.I know this book has gotten some flack for being too dark, but at the same time, I went in with the mindset it was going to be that way. (Like I said, I read the original tale and tempered my expectations accordingly)If it's something that requires a trigger warning... It's in here. But the way these subjects are handled is something I think is done with tact. Very rarely does it feel like such things were shoehorned in to shock the reader or to make the story more edgy. Abuse and trauma shapes the characters, and they all react in their own ways to it, some with less healthy coping mechanisms than others (Sevas drinks, Marlinchen rebels in her own ways, via an eating disorder, and her sisters turn their anger onto her because she won't fight back) It comes to form a tale about regaining power and leaving the toxic environment that is keeping someone in a toxic cycle of abuse.There are a few things to tie it back to Faerie tales, such as insta love (But I think it's more trauma bonding) and the wicked sisters and father, who seem a little flat. And of course an abundance of monsters who both help and terrify the characters.That being said, I do feel like there's a bit too much purple prose and some repeated phrases, but again, faerie tale retelling, kind of par for the course.Overall, I gave it a 4/5.

This book honestly made me feel so happy and complete afterwards. It was slow to begin, and a little hard to understand, but you eventually catch on. I love the female main character and Sevas of course :) a great book to read between longer series.

I bought this after reading The Wolf and Woodsman, but there was something about this book I just didn't connect with. I didn't care for the main character. She was overly naive at times, which is a huge part of her Character, and the story wouldn't have worked. It also felt a bit too "insta love" for me. The ending was fantastic.

I love going blind into books by authors I like. I always know I’m in for a good story and am just along for the ride. And what a delightful, dark ride it was. Equal parts gothic, fairytale folklore, and monster story—Juniper & Thorn was riveting!

Weird and wonderful story, really enjoyed it and have read more of the authors work since and this is still my favourite.

Super état

Really loved the author's first book The Wolf and the Woodsman so automatic preorder. Tackles some very dark and taboo themes well and feels very emotional/close to the heart and overall good.3/5 :)

So good that I could not put it down. Great read, if gory at times! Can’t wait to read more by this author.

This was just awful. Predictable plot, and the story line was just dreadful. I don't recommend this to anyone to read.