It’s such a feat finding a good, well rounded, stand alone fantasy story, but I’m happy to say Melissa Bashardoust delivered just that. She also managed to weave in a LGBT romance! This is the story of Soraya, a girl cursed with a poisonous touch. She leads a lonely existence away from her family, basically kept a secret. All she longs for is a normal life and to be accepted. This is a story of growth and change and I really enjoyed seeing her mature and learn from her mistakes. It’s a great take on a fairytale retelling, instead of the princess waiting to be saved she’s doing anything to save herself. So much happens in this one book, so many twists and turns, it made the story feel like it flew by.
I’m going to continue to keep an eye out for whatever she puts out, she hasn’t let me down yet.

Rated a 3.5 but rounded up to 4!

I really like the idea of this story and I was so excited to read it. However the first part of the book was a little slow to me and I felt like there was a lot that could have been taken out.

Otherwise, I liked the retelling of Sleeping Beauty. The characters themselves were very complex and had a lot of story build to them which was helpful. I liked all the intricate details of the book that wove together to tell the bigger picture - such as the beginning where it talked about “she was and she was not”. Soraya made mistakes but overall I think she is a likeable character. Even the villain in the story had likeable parts, such as showing kindness.

Thank you so much for allowing me to read this ARC. Overall it was a good read and I’m happy to have been able to give input on it!

I was delighted to include this in the 2020 Modern Mrs Darcy Summer Reading Guide:

From the author of Girls Made of Snow and Glass, a brilliantly imagined fairy tale featuring dangerous demons, poisonous girls, and a kingdom in peril, inspired by the Persian epic the Shahnameh. The cursed princess Soraya has been living inside her family’s palace walls—touching no one—for eighteen years. As her twin brother’s wedding day approaches, the palace guards capture a demon who may be able to tell her how to break the curse and gain her freedom. But the answers she seeks plunge her into personal crisis and political intrigue, and Soraya is soon forced to question everything she thought she knew about herself—while facing choices that may endanger not just her own fate, but that of the entire kingdom. An enthralling fantasy with broad appeal, with lyrical prose and incredible worldbuilding.

A sign of a compelling book is the inability to look away from the page. When reading Melissa Bashardoust’s “Girl, Serpent, Thorn,” my nose stayed glued to the e-book screen. Despite the questionable pacing and unfulfilled storylines, I chugged her book down like a gloriously cold bottle of water on a scorching summer day.

I was immersed in Melissa Bashardoust’s fictionalized Persian empire. Her mythic world documents sprawling palaces, dangerous ladies and looming demonic forces. In that vast world, a young princess, Soraya, is isolated from the rest of the population. Her poisonous touch makes her a threat to the kingdom. While her twin brother rules the realm, she is touch-starved and relegated to her bedroom, and can only travel through the palace’s secret passageways. To change her fate, she is tempted by the mythic demons whose power she has been gifted. That temptation leads her and her kingdom to their destruction and ultimate resolution.

Soraya stands for every reader unaware of their potential and power. She is a poster child for internalized self-loathing but lacks the vocabulary to identify her insecurities. She’s lonely and afraid of her own abilities. She wants friends but fears for their safety. She fundamentally wants some permanence in a world determined to obscure and deny her existence. Very few novels represent internalized self-loathing and confusion as clearly as Bashardoust’s.

Bashardoust’s ancient Persian setting functions more as a vague aesthetic stage for magical plot devices than as an immersive world. Bashardoust’s primary focus is her character-driven drama. There is very little within the novel grounded in history. Furthermore, the broader war between Soraya’s civilization and the demonic forces that plague them goes unexplored and unquestioned. The greater in-world conflict is a watery backdrop for Soraya’s struggle to identify her wants within a cacophony of conflicting opinions and expectations.

Though “Girl, Serpent, Thorn” is not compelling in setting, its strengths lie in its willingness to focus on individual autonomy. In many respects, Bashardoust’s protagonist is atypical. Soraya’s backstory and actions code her as an antihero but while she questions morality, her greatest sin is out of her power. She’s too powerful and influential to make childish mistakes. Soraya does not mean harm but all her actions have consequences. While confused and hurting, Soraya cripples her kingdom’s defenses, allowing a hoard of demons to overtake the land. Soraya’s mistakes and selfish desire sets her apart from others in the YA literary canon. Bashardoust allows Soraya to impart devastating destruction on those around her, then forces her to clean up her mess. But despite her selfishness, you can’t help but empathize with her character. Soraya has not only been deprived of human company but also the ability to make mistakes. That tragedy drives Soraya’s desire for restitution and foretells her kingdom’s doom.

Soraya’s atypical character construction is one example of how Bashardoust’s novel plays Russian roulette with expectations. Veteran YA readers are trained to pick up on genre tropes and plotlines. Soraya has two love interests. Early hints flag each character as a contender for her heart. But unlike other YA novels, ultimately neither love interest is fighting for Soraya’s heart. They are vying to influence her worldview and self-perception. Through minute framing differences, Bashardoust flaunts romantic expectations while never straying beyond the bounds of YA convention. Her novel features the YA hallmarks, such as: The powerful magic woman who doesn’t know she’s special, dark and mysterious boys and looming existential threats. However, the novel does not attempt to subvert the genre conventions. Instead, Bashardoust rearranges the tropes by compressing the novel’s timeline. Common YA tropes act as temporary red herrings for seasoned readers. They mentally chart out the novel’s events, assuming a three-book format. Thus, reading “Girl, Serpent, Thorn” as a YA veteran is a vexing experience.

“Girl, Serpent, Thorn” could have benefited from a higher page count. Soraya’s romances and internal conflict were underserved by the length of the book. The novel’s pacing and structure hinders emotional realizations: Her attraction to her love interests and motivations to make decisions were at worst unconvincing, at best rushed. The story needed more room to breathe and convince the audience of Soraya’s anguish and rationalizations. By the end of the novel, several plotlines and characters are left unresolved.

“Girl, Serpent, Thorn” recognizes that where lies and violence are easy, internal truths are harder to confront, sift through and refine. Though her sense of structure lags, Bashardoust’s “Girl, Serpent, Thorn” begs to be aggressively and enthusiastically read.

The royal family progresses from city to city as the seasons change so Soraya knows that in the spring she will be briefly reunited with her mother and her twin brother Sorush, who is the shah. Cursed with since birth to cause death to anything living that touches her, Soraya is hidden away in the palace, increasingly lonely and vulnerable, so when soldier Azad seeks her out, she is intrigued by his bravery and steely determination. Azad helps Soraya meet a captive div who Soraya believes will help end her curse, but events spiral out of control and Soraya’s choices pull her deeper and deeper into Azad’s wicked plan to overthrow Soraya’s family.

Strong world building introduces the reader to Persian mythology, while Soraya is an intriguing character who wrestles with meekness versus power and her attraction to Azad versus the feelings sparked in her by the captive div and her sister-demons.

Girl, Serpent, Thorn follows Soraya, the shah’s reclusive sister, whose touch is deadly because of a div, or demon, curse. Hidden away, the only refuge the roses she meticulously curates, Soraya resembles one of the heroines in the fairy tales she is so fond of. Unfortunately, she sees herself as the monster in her stories.

When she meets Azar, everything changes. He makes her feel alive. Instead of the disappointment and resentment that plague her, especially when she thinks about her ever-distant family, Azar offers her hope. And when she learns of an imprisoned div that might know about breaking her curse, Soraya, with Azar’s encouragement, starts down a path that she soon regrets. Regretful of her impulsivity, Soraya works to fix what she broke no matter the cost.

It’s fitting that the original title for this story was She Was and She Was Not, since much of Girl, Serpent, Thorn focuses on dualities, especially concerning the characters. There are times in the story where you question who is good and who is bad. I liked the characters that I wanted to hate, and I disliked others who were considered honorable and good. And then, in an instant, my views on everyone changed. I love the depth and complexity of the characters. All are flawed, all have made mistakes, and all show instances of kindness. The story blurs the lines between right and wrong as well as truth and lies and suggests a moral grayness that is fascinating to explore.

Everyone in the story has an agenda, and not all of their motives are sincere. Lies, betrayal, and secrets permeate the story and create a complex web of characters and events. The surprise twists and unraveling of secrets added to the suspense and the complexity of the characters.

Soraya, for example, epitomizes the “she was and she was not” duality. She is a hero and a monster, selfish, and selfless. She is flawed and human, and she needs to learn to love herself, flaws and all. This proves difficult, as she’s felt rejected and abandoned for most of her life and still lives in isolation and fear.

Soraya also has difficulty realizing people’s true motives. Unsure about everything, including herself, her feelings, and her place in the world, Soraya must look within before she can solve the problems she created. This is a coming-of-age story that skillfully explores the impact of abandonment as well as the power and gratification of self-acceptance.

The love story is also fantastic. Soraya has never had a romantic relationship, but she craves connection. The slow-building bond that she develops with her love interest is sweet and true. It’s an interesting juxtaposition – the relationship that starts with unfounded trust ends disastrously, and the one that begins with complete distrust continues beautifully.

The world-building is as dynamically developed as the characters. A magical kingdom filled with divs, powers, curses, and more, it is vivid and fascinating without being overbearing in its descriptions. Stylistically, the writing is strong and feels almost poetic, alluring and flowing in a way that immerses the reader into the story. With a blend of fairy tale, Persian folklore, and complete originality, Girl, Serpent, Thorn is absolutely enchanting. Thanks so much to Netgalley and Flatiron Books for a copy of the book in exchange for my honest review.

This novel covers a lot of ground in 336 pages. We follow Soraya, a princess cursed with a poison touch, kept apart from the rest of the world for the danger she poses to them is deadly. As her twin has become the shah and is set to marry their childhood best friend, Soraya sees the life that she will never have, and she mourns it. Shroud in loneliness, a stranger to her makes her acquaintance, and for better or for worse changes her life.

The good:
-The book is inspired by / uses a lot of Persian mythology, which I have never read or experienced before. It was very immersive and I find myself wanting more.
-Azad is bae. Sure, he bad bae - but he is bae.
-Slow descent into villainy that will get your toes curling.
-a bi MC that is done RIGHT

The bad:
-This was a LOT in 336 pages. A LOT. Easily could have been pulled out and done better over multiple books- this is not to say I didn't enjoy the format. What I am really trying to say is that I want MORE.
-The narration of the book can be repetitive.
-Soraya is not my favorite character in this book. Which maybe is just testament to how well the side characters were fleshed out.
-I kinda wanted to push Sorush out a window.

The ugly:
-The title?
-The cover?
^I feel like this was sent to the ~Stereotypical Fantasy Cover Factory~ and was fit with a ~Stereotypical Fantasy Title~, I read that it had previously been titled 'There was and There was Not' which fits WAY better with the story and highlights that it is a storytelling kinda novel.

Final thoughts: I really enjoyed this. I look forward for more from this author in the future. I am actively looking for more Persian inspired fantasy because this was bomb.

*Thank you Flatiron Books + NetGalley for the digital ACR in exchange for review!*

Girl, Serpent, Thorn Rating: 3.5/5 (Rounded up to 4)
Twisted fairy-tales are my favorite and Bashardoust did a great job bringing the tales of Persian mythology to life!

Girl, Serpent, Thorn follows Soroya, a princess who has been cursed to be poisonous to the touch, as she struggles to find her place in the world. Soroya gets a great redemption arc and I enjoyed watching her understand and embrace both her powers and her position within her family and the supernatural world. And the best part about Soroya is that she is a queer main character! Soroya embraces her attraction to both men and women and the reader gets to see her fall in love with a very dynamic female character. Reflecting back on recent fantasy/sci-fi that I have read, I sadly wasn't able to name a single queer main character so it was great to see such strong LGBTQ representation.

The supporting characters in Girl, Serpent, Thorn are superb. Parvaneh and Azad were well developed and super interesting. Most of the characters, including Soroya, live in the "morally grey zone." As a reader, it was entertaining to see this delicate balance between good and evil explored.

The reason I didn't rate Girl, Serpent, Thorn book higher is because Soroya made some truly stupid decisions. I know she is a young adult and young adults make mistakes, but some of her mishaps left me rolling me eyes. Her actions often left me annoyed due to how unrealistic I found them to be.

Overall, I would recommend diving into this fantasy world. Because the story is based on Persian tales, its different than other fantasy I've read and is wholly unique. Thank you Flatiron Books for the gifted copy in exchange for an honest review.

Goodreads Review posted 6/8/2020
Instagram Review to be posted 6/9/2020 (link to be added at later date)

There was and there was not, a princess who was hidden away from the world. Girl, Serpent, Thorn tells the tale of Soraya: a girl cursed to poison and kill anyone she touches. When an enemy is captured, Soraya tries to discover how she can break her curse and why she was cursed to begin with. In her search for answers, Soraya is forced to decide how far she will go for freedom and must face the consequence of her choices. This book features Persian mythology, F/F romance, a descent-into-villany arc, and the storytelling was simply gorgeous.

I absolutely loved this book!! It is one of my new favorites; I was so eager to unravel the intricate plot that I literally couldn’t put this book down. However, I had to stop and marvel at the craft that went into shaping a sentence, the perfectly expressed sentiment, and the way a line of prose would resonate deeply. Girl, Serpent, Thorn is inspired by elements from Persian mythology and Sleeping Beauty, but remains original and inventive. It is refreshingly free of overused romantic cliches and homophobia. The story contains plenty of plot twists, heartfelt dialogue, and morally grey characters. The fierce and magical women who fill these pages are such fantastic characters!

Girl, Serpent, Thorn is for anyone who seeks imaginative retellings, smart heroines, excellent romance, and complex storytelling. This book hauntingly explores what it truly means to be a monster and how the choices we make determine whether we are cast as the villain or heroine in our stories. I felt utterly spell-bound as Soraya journeys to discover who she truly is and grows to understand the power she holds: thorns and all.

I highly recommend this book and encourage everyone to pick it up when it releases on July 7, 2020! Thank you so much to Melissa Bashardoust, Flatiron Books, and Netgalley for a free ARC in exchange for an honest review.

ARC provided by Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

It has been a while since I have read this book but I am still torn about it. While there were parts I really enjoyed there were moments I sat there thinking that everything was moving far too fast. It starts slow and then snowballs into where it feels like every other page something new is happening. I really would have loved to see this as being two books instead of one. That way everything would have felt complete instead of just a race to the end.

Other than the pace I did the main character. She got on my nerve every now and then, but I soon came to enjoy her voice. Both the plot and setting were interesting and I would really love to know more about this world.

Again, I would have really loved it if this were two books instead of one.

Positive here - its a world that is under represented in America fiction. Yes it's a fictional location, but it definitely has a middle eastern feel. And I like, too, that the morality is complex. The ideas of what is right and wrong are more of degree than of absolutes. Even the villain has moments of kindness, of goodness. And various characters cycle through classifications. One s we see as "bad' at the start show themselves to be only fearful or narrow-minded. Even the idea of being cursed is more complex than initially portrayed. What we end up with is a group of characters and events that cannot be viewed through a simple lens. They're multifaceted.
I did feel like the pacing was a bit slow and some of those major plot twists obvious. The foreshadowing was a bit heavy handed.'If you're patient, though, its a reasonable read.

I am so impressed by the blending of fairy tales, lore, and original ideas in this wildly imaginative YA retelling of Sleeping Beauty. I knew nothing about it going in except that I should read it, and the prologue reminded me of Rogue from X-Men. That alone sold me, but it’s a retelling with elements of folklore from many cultures and a queer main character only added to my enjoyment.

Soraya poisons all she touches, and for this, she has been hidden away her whole life. As her brother’s wedding approaches, she begins to wonder if she should venture out. There is a demon held captive in below the dungeon that may hold keys to her past and her future freedom, but she must trust her, and forsake all she knows and loves. It’s hard to discern who is telling the truth, and freedom will mean some hard decisions and seemingly impossible tasks, and when Soraya starts to trust the demon, it makes things even more complicated.

I enjoyed this book so much! It’s got all of my favorite elements and moves quickly. I didn’t get bogged down in the worldbuilding and I was 100% with Soraya through all of her life’s twists and turns. There’s enough romance to balance out relationships, but it doesn’t detract from the intrigue and action of the story. It’s obvious the folklore is well researched and reworked into something original, and I appreciate that attention to detail without going all Nathaniel Hawthorne on us.

It’s out in July, so if you’re planning a social distancing vacation and need to take along a book, or if you’re planning a staycation on your couch, this one will keep you interested as you take a break from our own weird world for a bit.

I received an advanced copy of Girl, Serpent, Thorn from Netgalley, so I could share my review with you!

There was and there was not a girl cursed to be poisonous to the touch, destined to never know companionship free from fear. In Soraya’s homeland, all stories begin with the phrase, “There was and there was not.” Unfortunately, there most definitely is a girl with poisonous touch, given that Soraya is her. She spends her days sequestered in her rooms, only leaving to wander the secret passages of the palace, where she can be sure that no one will be harmed by her touch. Soraya worries that she will spend her whole life isolated from the world, but things begin to change when a mysterious soldier brings a captured Div into the palace. Soraya begins to hope that perhaps the Div may know how to reverse her poisoned blood. She won’t be able to do it alone, but with the aid of those near her, Soraya just might be able to find the truth of her story.

Girl, Serpent, Thorn is anticipated to be released on July 7th from Flatiron Books!

Girl, Serpent, Thorn is easily my favorite fantasy novel of the summer so far! Melissa Bashardoust’s writing style was so enticing and illustrative, that I felt fully immersed in the story. I was constantly surprised by the many twists of the tale, which felt every bit as memorable as the fairy tales of old! Each of the characters was very well-developed, and I couldn’t wait to find out how their stories would end. I especially appreciated Bashardoust’s inclusion of a bisexual main character!

My Recommendation-
If you have been looking for an immersive fantasy world full of magic and secrets, Girl, Serpent, Thorn should definitely be on your list! If you loved Girls of Paper and Fire, We Hunt the Flame, or The Grishaverse, this book would be a perfect pick for your next read!

This book was a decent read. I found the Persian influence really interesting, and the world building was nice. The first 40% I thought the book was moving too quickly for anything to really happen, but it slowed down and told a good story. It was my first foray into FF romance and i really enjoyed it. I liked most of the characters. I feel like Soraya handled her poison in a very odd way throughout the entire book. Granted I have never been poisonous to the touch, but I still feel like her thoughts and actions were a tad strange. I still say it was a good read.

I like the idea of this book better than I liked the book itself. I loved her previous novel and find the premise of this book completely captivating. The setting is lush and the characters are generally well drawn, but I felt like I ended up reading two somewhat disjointed halves of a whole instead of a seamless story. The book is relatively short, so perhaps some additional time to build up to the changes and more gradually reveal some background would have helped? I still deeply enjoyed what I read, but it didn't flow well to me.

A fun adventure with lots of clever allusions to fairytales. The plot was very twisty, and I think young people will like that. I would have liked it if the characters had been developed a bit more, but I think more attention was paid to plot. The most compelling part of the story is the idea that no one is all good or all evil. Even our "heroine" makes some questionable decisions, but she ends up growing into herself. Those looking for a love story will be surprised by what happens here. I won't give spoilers, but I am glad that it ended up the way that it did. The right characters ended up together even if it was initially a surprise. I appreciated the break in trope. The world is well-developed if a little bit complicated with all of the factions and different names for people and places. Overall, I liked it, and would be interested in reading a sequel.

This definitely wasn't my type of book and because I am a mood reader, I am going to try to be as objective as I can. I can honestly say that it was a lovely story and was written extremely well. I truly believe this book is going to be a big hit and I can't wait to re-read it when I am in this kind of mood. I found Soraya to be such a wonderful protagonist and the story flowed so well. The only truly confusing this is the names but I think that's also what made it so nice.

"Girl, Serpent, Thorn" by Melissa Bashardoust is a multifaceted fantasy novel with depth and historical context that will captivate readers. Soraya is an outcast even though she is royalty. Ever since she was born, Soraya has been cursed. She is poisonous to the touch and as such is locked away from any living thing. The only solace she finds is in her garden. When her twin brother is about to be married, Soraya meets a handsome and mysterious young man who makes her feel appreciated and wanted. In a world filled with heartbreak and deception where loyalty is constantly tested, will Soraya side with her family or will she step out from the shadows and into the light?

This book hits a lot of high notes that lovers of the fantasy genre will appreciate. The story is filled with creatures inspired by mythology and fairy tales. The author, Melissa Bashardoust is phenomenal with descriptive language and world building. She expertly transports the reader into Soraya's world and fills the air with magic. It is important to note that much of the terminology and names found within the book are of Persian influence. In the first portion of the novel, I did find myself getting confused on terminology and using a dictionary to sort out what terms meant what. Also, it was a little frustrating in the first half of the novel that the story seemed to have a machismo slant. As if, Soraya caused all of these problems because she was a woman that stepped out of her place. Those two things combined had me struggling in the first part of the book. However, once I got past those two obstacles I went on to really enjoy the book. I loved that it was traditional but also highlighted some modern attitudes in relation to the characters and how they interacted together.

Overall, I loved this book and would highly recommend to all fantasy readers!

It's always tough (for me anyway) to be the one giving critical reviews when it seems like everyone else generally liked the book. Is it me? Am I missing something? There were so many problems with this book, it is difficult to know where to begin. First of all, the characters were one-dimensional, while also, at times, characterized in ways that were completely unbelievable. The lead character never made any sense to me. While on the one hand she seems fairly well adjusted for someone who has never been touched, in addition to being horribly neglected by her entire family, at the same time she has no discernible personality. She decides not to do something, when 2 paragraphs later, she suddenly does it with little or no explanation; she spends her life wishing for one thing, when achieved, she suddenly wants the opposite. Her romantic interests, while somewhat less volatile are so contrived that you actually feel cringey reading the bad dialogue. Rather than give the impression that this is a young women who doesn't know what she wants, and who is understandably very needy, instead the reader is provided with a lead character who is superficially sympathetic, and totally nonsensical. For the most part, the rest of the characters felt more like plot devices to get from point A to B. They fade in when useful, never to be heard from again for almost the entire book. To top this all off, it was hard to sympathize with anyone at all in this story, the characters ranged from fairly unpleasant, to awful.

The plot itself just zips along, regardless of what obstacles need to be overcome. Sound good? Except for when said obstacles are all taken care of in about 3 lines and with out any effort or thought. Needless to say this was pretty disappointing read.

I was very intrigued by the premise of this book - a cursed princess whose poisonous touch isolates her from the outside world - however, I unfortunately quickly lost interest in the story itself. I had difficulty getting into the story and prose dragged. Overall, I found the book difficult to finish. Things I did enjoy included the idea of a "dark" fairy tale inspired by Persian mythology (which I was unfamiliar with) and a strong, female heroine who didn't need to be "rescued" as in many traditional legends.