One of the better fairytale retellings I’ve read in awhile, Malice was above all, a lot of fun. Placing a very lovable female couple at the center of the Sleeping Beauty story, which is of course a welcome update, the book considers the revolutionary possibilities opened up by the courage and vulnerability of “true love,” as well as the weight of history and its impact on individual agency. Taken on its own, it’s a beautiful and romantic tragedy, though I’ve heard there will be a sequel, so that makes things even more interesting...😍 Great world-building and good chemistry between the two protagonists; the secondary characters felt a little two-dimensional to me at times.

”If they want a monster, they shall have one.”

A cursed shapeshifter, doomed to haunt an abandoned tower forever. A calculating king, strategically planning his next political move to strengthen his empire. A litany of untold secrets, each with the power to alter the course of a kingdom’s history. And a rejected, green-blooded girl, who hasn’t even scratched the surface of what her power can do.

”There’s power in you. More than you know...”

Malice is enchanting, immersive, and entirely unputdownable! This revisionist tale of the witch who cursed Sleeping Beauty puts a new spin on the backstory and formative experiences that made this allegedly-wicked creature who she is, and I am here for all of it.

”I’m better than this. More than the villain they’ve created.”

Heather Walter has created the most atmospheric world, filled with fae kingdoms, blood magic, ancient curses, and longstanding rivalries. Walter offers rich descriptions and insights into the enchanted settings, the kingdoms’ histories, and the elements of magic used. She has considered every angle and answered every question in vivid detail. A more thorough fairytale retelling, you’d be hard pressed to find.

”Both he and Aurora, on opposite sides of an ancient war, depending on me to survive. I want to save them both, but I can’t help but feel that by allying with one, I’m damning the other.”

There is an element of romance in Malice, but it is far from being the dominant feature of the story. Rather, the unexpected romantic relationship, that blooms out of an unlikely friendship, takes a backseat to the central character’s development. We see far more of Alyce learning who & what she really is, recovering from emotional wounds left by a life of abuse & cruelty, and ultimately leaning in to her abilities in jaw-dropping ways.

”I know what it’s like to want out of your life so badly you’ll do something desperate.”

As Alyce begins to explore the untapped strength of her power, she wonders often whether she is dark or light, and she begins to question if anyone truly fits neatly into either box. Her LGBTQ romance lends beautiful evidence to the notion that she is, indeed, worthy of love, but even if this sweet twist hadn’t been a part of her story, Alyce’s worth is clear to readers from the start.

”It is both a relief and a terror to be around someone who doesn’t consider me an abomination.”

Fans of vivid fantasy, or of revisionist stories in general (think of Wicked or Heartless!) will devour Malice in one sitting, as I did. Easily one of the best books I’ve read all year. 5 well-deserved stars!

”I’ll never be a heroine like Leythana. In Briar, I’ll only ever be a villain.”

——

A huge thank-you to Heather Walter, Random House, Ballantine, and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

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here's the thing, i really wanted to like this book. people on instagram were really hyping up this book, so i was so excited to get an arc and to start reading. but, this was just not the book for me, at all.
the writing- it just didn't make sense, like they would talk about everything that was happening that was like first person, but it wasn't actually first person, and it was just so weird. and it also was just super info dumpy and it was just very repetitive and confusing.
another thing was that this book was super boring. like, everything in this book was just so freaking slow, and it really took away from my enjoyment of this story, and with the pacing and the writing, i just didn't understand what was happening.
the world building was also so bad. like i said, the info dumping wasn't helping, and it was just not doing it for me, and i just was so confused, since i don't really remember a map and nothing was being explained that much, so it was just so weird and confusing.
but, thank you for an arc of this book, even if it was pretty bad, but it might just be a reading slump talking lol. but, i was really excited to see a queer retelling of sleeping beauty, but i don't think i want to risk a reading slump enough to actually read this.

Retelling of the Sleeping Beauty fairy tale. Started off okay, but sputtered for me by the end. Interesting worldbuilding, so-so writing. Does get points for making the key relationship queer. Book is the first in a duology; not sure if I will read the second.

Malice follows Alyce, this story’s reimagined Maleficent who is a young woman known as the Dark Grace. Alyce is living in a home with Graces who all despise her because she is different from them and they believe that she is only evil. We follow Alyce as she learns the true nature of her powers and how deep they can truly go throughout the book. As readers we also follow Princess Aurora who is on her very own difficult journey. Many years ago a Vila cast a curse on Princess Aurora’s bloodline where all they only have females and they are all cursed to die on their 21st birthday unless they are kissed by their true love. Now, Princess Aurora is the last of the bloodline and she has one year left to live and she is bound to break the curse on her own instead of with a true love's kiss by one of the many men her parents force her to kiss daily.

Throughout the book Aurora and Alyce form an unlikely bond and Alyce is determined to help Aurora break her curse because for her, it would be too hard to live without Aurora.

Malice was truthfully a delight to read! It is by far one of my new favorite retellings. I love how complex the characters are in their own natures but how we can still see their original fairy tale roots within them.

The relationship between Alyce and Aurora was so pure and beautiful. I loved seeing their friendship bloom into so much more. Their relationship is raw and real because neither of them have had a true friendship with anyone before and seeing them be each other’s safe place was beautiful.

Overall I 1000% recommend this book! I’m not sure how anyone could pass up a queer Sleeping Beauty to begin with but don’t sleep (yes yes I’m sorry) on this book!

Thank you for this. I ended up DNFing this book, but did make it a decent way in and ended up skimming the end.
I just wasn't relating to it, and I REALLY did not like how the ending came to be. I don't think this is a bad book, I just think it is a not for me book.

Golden blood is drained from Graces, women with fae blessed blood, to create beauty and cunning enchantments for those rich enough to pay. Alyce's blood bleeds emerald though, her bottled magic creating warts and curses, and the kingdom hates her for it even as they pay for each enchantment. Initially I was disappointed that Alyce was not the villain promised to steal a Princess's heart. Alyce carries her burdens and abuse like a bitter Cinderella, quietly simmering inside while berating herself. She is no villain but a poor and tortured creature, until she meets Princess Aurora and finally this story took off. Aurora is charming, bold, and inspiring the way a future queen rarely is in fairytales. The banter between her and Alyce is entrancing, and I tore through the book waiting for each moment these two women were together again. The strongest part of this book is Alyce's relationship with the other characters which always teeters between potential allies or deadly enemy. The Queendom is better fleshed than some characters, with history, political outreach, slavery guised with a capitalistic mask, and an insidious weakening of royal power within that soon sets Alyce to become the villain I craved to read about in this book.

Appreciate the opportunity to read this one, however I must say it just wasn’t my cup of tea. I felt it was slow, hard for me to get into. I kept trying to dive in, but for me, it just didn’t work out. Thanks!

Malice is loosely based on the Sleeping Beauty fairy tale. This is the best fantasy book I’ve read in some time. Heather Walters does a fantastic job at retelling this story in a unique and unexpected way. I would highly recommend this to anyone who enjoys the fantasy genre!

An intriguing retelling of the tale of Sleeping Beauty. Heather Walter creates a whole world for her story. There is light magic and dark, beauty and ugliness, greed and generosity. The magic is fascinating in its abilities and creation. And there is a love story mixed together with hate and fear. Do you think you know how this story goes? Open this book and let its magic carry you far, far away.

If you love Disney, villains, origin stories or any of the twisted tale books, MALICE IS FOR YOU! Heather Walter puts a new spin on the timeless story of Sleeping beauty. Malice is so different than any of the many retellings of princess Auroras' timeless story, especially because the tale is told from our villains perspective. And what if that villain falls for said princess? I could not put this book down. Highly recommend and cannot wait for the conclusion to this spellbinding duology!

Malice by Heather Walter is a good YA fantasy LGBT+ retelling of Sleeping Beauty. That said I don't think I've ever read another Sleeping Beauty retelling so I don't have a point of reference for others, but nevertheless this is great debut novel. I particularly enjoyed that the story focuses on the character of Alyce who is the Maleficent of this retelling. I also appreciated that the story clearly shows the gray area between good and evil. I have a feeling you'll enjoy this retelling if you appreciate the darkness of the Brothers Grimm and Regina from Once Upon a Time. I'm looking forward to seeing what this Heather Walter will do in the future.

I was really looking forward to reading Malice, but it ended up falling short of my expectations. Quite frankly, it was boring. I ended up skimming most of it. There was so much info dumping it just couldn’t hold my interest. I also wanted so much more from the romance between Alyce and Aurora. Unfortunately this book ended up being a disappointment.

3.75 stars. A compelling retelling of Sleeping Beauty, in which the curse is broken by an evil sorceress. A little too info-dumpy but the last 60 percent picked up. A very worthwhile f/f fantasy!

First of all, bless Heather Walter. She took Sleeping beauty and turned it on its head in the BEST possible way. Not in the fluffy fairytale way but in the grimdark way where we get slow burn, sapphic romance, high fantasy, bloodshed and disaster. I cannot stress this enough: this book will wring your emotions allll the way out.

Alyce is an orphan, abandoned and unloved. She descends from a long line of powerful beings called the Vila who once rivaled the high Fae in magic but were tragically wiped from the earth when humans and Fae alike joined forces to destroy them. Alyce is hated, reviled, shunned and abused all of her life but she is kept alive because her powerful blood is coveted by those who wish to harm their rivals. Teased by her beautiful and spoiled housemates, called “Malyce” and constantly harassed you can’t help but want to wrap yourself around the animal loving Alyce as she endured the worst kind of life.

Then she meets Aurora.

When Alyce agrees to try to help lift the curse on Aurora that will kill her within a year, Alyce finds her first taste of friendship and the feeling that maybe there is a place for her in the world made to despise her.

Yeah, well no one lets her enjoy any of that. Alyce’s character development in this book is insane and enjoyable to read. The world building is very detailed and the magic system is well explained. There are many shocking developments throughout that keep you reeling. Let’s just say, the ending is a cliffhanger but sooo satisfying at the same time. This is a MUST READ for anyone who loves fantasy and gritty, dark underdog stories.

DNF @ 41%

This is definitely a book I’ll be coming back to but for now I’m setting it aside purely because when I try to read it, it feels like a drag. This premise is everything and the world is fascinating and I’m definitely going to be recommending it for fairytale lovers! Right now it just feels too heavy and dense to enjoy completely.

I want to thank Del Rey and Net Galley for providing me with an ARC of this book to read and give an honest review. There may be a few spoilers ahead, so reader beware!
I was very excited to have a chance to read this book. I love all kinds of fairytale retellings. And in all honesty, I am not as familiar with Sleeping Beauty as I am with other tales. So this was a nice little jump into that story line for me.
I truly enjoyed Alyce. She was definitely a dark character who carried a lot of baggage and had very low self esteem. I can totally understand how turning dark would be where she might go. Needless to say, the devolvement of her character was anticipated and not unexpected. I was hoping she might hit a low point and then turn it around. Sadly, that was not the case. This was a bit of a disappointment for me. But I can see how this book might have a sequel so I'm hopeful for something there if it comes. And I'm not sure she's truly the villain of this story if you think about the society in which she lives where jewels and baubles and looks are all that truly matters.
As for the storyline, It was totally intriguing. The writer truly developed all her characters and you saw how each one played a roll in Alyce's overall personality: the monster, the outcast, the thing. And her writing drew me in from the first few pages. Though there were some slower dips in the story and places where the author seemed to spend more time than necessary, overall it flowed well. There was some repetitiveness I would have liked not to see, though.
I did enjoy the romance but I needed more development there. Aurora was too quick to fall in love with Alyce. I would have liked to see more of a connection between the two.
The author toes the line in this book between what is good and evil. And what is good and evil will play out much differently than anyone would usually guess.
If you're looking for a fairytale retelling with a twisted ending that leaves you wondering just what happened and what could possibly happen in the future, this is the one to read.

This starts with the basic Sleeping Beauty formula--a curse that can only be broken by true love's kiss, a beautiful girl, and powerful magic--and turns it on its head, adding dark, queer, complex elements to give depth to the story.

Of course, it's not a totally faithful retelling, which is for the better; instead we get a more fleshed-out origin story for Alyce (aka, Disney's Maleficent) that paints her as a well-intentioned, misunderstood Dark Grace who uses her magic to create potions that cause unfortunate effects (think hair falling out, skills being sapped, etc.) to its victims. When she meets Aurora is when the story starts to take off at a fast clip.

There are some plotholes that I take issue with (I won't share them here, as it would give away too much of the plot), but otherwise I was completely engaged throughout the story. I hope there's a sequel!

This was a fun debut!

As someone who just loves morally grey women Malice fits that bill so well. Knowing the tale of Sleeping Beauty you know that you're going to be setup for some pain when our main character is the villain.

Some things I really enjoyed about this book:
- the magic system and graces
- the slow unfurling of alyce wanting to subvert the expectations others have about her while also being to grasp the parts of her she was told were ugly/bad

Thank you to Del Rey for a copy for review.

I really enjoyed this book! I loved the queer twist on the classic story, I also always enjoy when authors reimagine antagonists as misunderstood protagonists.