I didn’t realize that it was based off of a Persian tale the the vocab can be confusing but there’s a dictionary in the back. It was a nice book but I wasn’t super into it. Definitely good for a simple read with twists.

Absolutely loved this book, I really liked the exploration of Soraya’s character and her feelings. As the book says “sometimes the princess is the monster” and I love that.

I really liked that even through Soraya gave her curse/gift up, she realized that was a mistake and she got it back and she accepted and felt comfortable in herself and with her power. I’ve seen books end too many times with the (usually female) characters having to give up their powers and I hate that troupe so I’m so glad this book did not do that and it let Soraya be powerful and dangerous.

This book is beautiful. The characters are complex and the story is a surprise. The main character has a wonderful story arch. I highly recommend it.

“She had thought nothing would be more incredible than the simple sensation of touch, but she'd been wrong: more incredible still was the idea that she could be dangerous, all her thorns on display, and that someone would dare to touch her anyway.” 

This book was absolutely beautiful in every way. I absolutely loved how descriptive it was, without droning on or slowing down the pace. It helped me connect with all of the characters, individually.

I didn't find myself relating with anyone in particular, which is unusual when I read. Typically, I can find myself in one or two of the characters, but in this case, I didn't. However, it didn't take away from my reading journey. Instead of looking for myself throughout, I was focused entirely on the cast and what would happen next.

I found the plot to be somewhat predictable, overall, but it was another thing that didn't bother me. I knew it was a fairytale and inspired by Sleeping Beauty, so it wouldn't be without its stereotypical moments. What I did love was the representation! It's not every day that you find a LGBTQIA+ fairytale and this one was just gorgeous.

Since I listened to the audiobook, I have no clue how to spell any of the character names, yet again, but I just want to say that they were all brilliant. There was no lack of character development or world-building. It was the perfect mixture of both!

I really liked the world building here, with the infusing of so many elements of Persian storytelling and lore. The universe of the story was rich and evocative. At times I found the pace felt a bit stuck, like we were swirling around in the same conflicts without much progression. Still, you don’t need to be a deep fantasy lover to enjoy this read. If you’re a fan of feminist fairytales, then this is one to try.

Girl, Serpent, Thorn is like a YA, Persian Frozen, but gay. Once this book got rolling, I could not put it down. I was so intrigued to find out what would happen next. Some parts are predictable, but others truly surprised me. I love how the readers really got to feel how conflicted the main character felt about her decisions and the side characters really added to the story. Bashardoust has a romantic style of writing that fits well with the story and definitely gave it fairy tell vibes. If you like morally gray sapphic main characters and stories rich with mythology, then you'll love this.