She’s loved by the servants, but not her family or the court, and so when a neighbouring king proposes she marry his son, she is sent on her way with the minimum of pomp and fuss. Our main character is Princess Alyrra, whose abusive family have made her life hell. Thorn is a pretty straight-forward retelling in some ways, but it fleshes out the tale into a really smart and thoughtful coming-of-age story, while adding some more magical and feminist elements. I love the ‘princess in disguise as a commoner’ trope (another favourite is Mossycoat), I love that this is one of the few fairy tales with a heroine who wields her own magic power (the Goose Girl can call the wind), and there’s also a talking horse! The version I read as a child, Andrew Lang’s, has some heart-breaking poetry included that has stuck with me all my life, and the whole thing ends on a deliciously bloodthirsty note of revenge. I’ve always really enjoyed The Goose Girl as a fairy tale it’s the story of a princess whose role is usurped by her handmaiden, and who has to work as a goose girl in a foreign kingdom, until she can convince the prince she was supposed to marry that she is his true love after all. When I heard it was being reworked for traditional publishing, I was thrilled, and I’m so happy to be able to tell you it’s even better in this form! I first read Thorn in 2018, as a self-published novel, and I loved its smart, wry, thought-provoking take on one of my favourite fairy tales, The Goose Girl.

Content warning: Heroine’s family vary from emotionally to physically abusive.

Thorn by intisar khanani