The Language of Thorns: Midnight Tales and Dangerous Magic

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A lesser creature might have despaired at such cruelty, but the fox saw vanity in his mother’s carefully tended coat and snowy paws. This is an easy choice for teens who enjoyed the Grisha Trilogy, Diviners, or any of the Shadowhunter books.”

This new collection will intrigue, awe, frighten, and inspire both stalwart fans and new readers looking for a heady spoonful of fantasy.” —Hypable This new collection will intrigue, awe, frighten, and inspire both stalwart fans and new readers looking for a heady spoonful of fantasy.” From bestselling author of SIX OF CROWS, Leigh Bardugo, comes a darkly atmospheric collection of short stories filled with betrayals, revenge, sacrifice and love - each featuring a stunning illustration by Sara Kiplin. This collection just did not do it for me. It could be my slumpish mood... however, I did enjoy some of the stories, The Witch of Duva in particular, but the majority were slightly mediocre to me. Nothing about the stories blew my mind, nor could I connect to them on any level.Now in the valley, the people care less for pretty faces. Mothers pat their pregnant bellies and whisper prayers for the future. They pray for rain in the long summer. They pray that their children will be brave and clever and strong, that they will tell the true stories instead of the easy ones. They pray for sons with red eyes and daughters with horns. (с) The beast looked upon his father and said, “A man like you is owed no words. I trust Ayama to tell my story.” I don’t think any of the renowned YA worlds come close to the Grishaverse. JK Rowling, Cassie Clare, all of you: eat your heart(s) out. An original retelling of a forest that demands to hear only the truth and nothing but the truth, which made for a clever, wordy, high-spirited read. It also delivered a compelling mix of Little Red Riding Hood and Snow White, excelling at capturing the chilling and gleaming atmosphere. This is a lovely tale about beauty and owing it to no one but yourself. This is also a tale about never underestimating what greedy men will do for things they feel they are entitled to. This story actually reminded me very much of my favorite saint, Rose of Lima, and her life and the consequences of being so beautiful. And an unexpected love story will always be the best love story.

i’d read three of these stories before this collection was published, as free tor shorts. i reviewed ‘em here, if you really do need to have your critical analysis beast fed, or if you just want the links to where you can read the stories for free: Having to wait on the release for this illustrated collection of original fairy tales since the start of the year was nearly excruciating. I even went ahead and read The Too-Clever Fox by Leigh Bardugo a month after the news to calm my eagerness. But here I am finally ready to dive into my long awaited review for this collection! After a courtship of many stories, Ayama and the beast married beneath a blood moon, and pride of place was given to Ma Zil, who had sent Ayama again and again into the thorn wood. She had not been much to look at in her youth, and she knew well that only courage is required for an adventure. ... And yet, though he could smile readily, charm easily, and play the part of a gentleman, he had never truly understood people or the workings of their steady-running but inconstant hearts. (c) Well, she thought, for she had learned to keep silent even when alone. At least I do not have to work today, and I will see something new before I die. (c)

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She considered her options and decided there was nothing for it but to become a writer. She sold her pearl earrings and moved to Ketterdam, where she took a small apartment with a window facing the harbor so that she could watch the ships come and go. There, she wrote fantastical tales that charmed children, and under another name, she penned rather more lurid works that kept her in nougat and sweet cream, which she always took care to share with the mice. (c)

AHH. I listened to this one through the audiobook and it was amazing! Holy Crud! A+++ Artwork yet again was amazing. The coveted Fan-Voted Award goes to When Water Sang Fire from Fjerda. Not a spoiler, Bardugo mentioned on social media a known character would make an appearance and posted a fairly obvious excerpt. (No, I won't tell you who is) These stories were awesome. Well, one that I read when it was free on Tor I only gave 3 stars because of the hunting but other than that, they were pretty dark and cool! In all seriousness though, I really loved this book. Everything about this book, from the words to the drawings to the stories is just stunning and beautiful and breathtaking and every other synonym that is related to beautiful. It was that good. I have admired Leigh's writing style before, but this one takes the cake with cherries on top. It really felt like I was reading actual fairy tales. Full Book Name: The Language of Thorns: Midnight Tales and Dangerous Magic (Grishaverse, #0.5, 2.5, 2.6)

Again I appreciated how the ugly little fox was the main character and used his cunning wit to survive