A big thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

A decent read, and a nice refresh on the fantasy genre.

FLower and Thorn by Rati Mehrota is a YA fantasy novel about Irinya, who has wanted to be a flower hunter ever since her mother disappeared into the mysterious mist of the Rann salt flats one night. Now seventeen, Irinya uses her knowledge of magical flowers to help her caravan survive in the harsh desert. When her handsome hunting partner and childhood friend finds a priceless silver spider lily—said to be able to tear down kingdoms and defeat entire armies—Irinya knows this is their chance for a better life. Until Irinya is tricked by an attractive impostor. Irinya's fight to recover the priceless flower and fix what she's done takes her on a dangerous journey, one she's not sure she'll survive. She has no choice but to endure it if she hopes to return home and mend the broken heart of the boy she's left behind.

I don't know why but this book made me think of We Hunt the Flame crossed with Girl Serpent Thorn, don't ask me why it's just how my brain works. But overall, this was solid read. Not my favorite, but an adequate one for the genre it belongs to.

Irinya is a flower hunter, like her mother before her. She uses her knowledge to hunt down magical flowers on the Raan salt flats to sell and make money for her people. One day her flower hunting partner and childhood friend shows her to a silver spider lily, a flower said to be able to tear down kingdoms and armies, and makes her promise not to harvest it. But Irinya is swayed by a handsome impostor promising riches, enough to free her people from their debt, so she breaks the promise. Irinya quickly realizes her mistake and sets off on an impossible journey to recover the spider lily and take it to the sultan and his heir, the sultana. For war has come to their lands and only the magic of the lily can save them if she wishes to return home.

Having previously read Night of the Raven by RM I was excited and intrigued to be able to get my hands on this book. And again the world woven is beautifully immersive and I was sucked in. The idea of the magic plants was intriguing but I was kinda disappointed we never really found out what the spider lily actually did. But I guess those secrets die with the flower hunters. Irinya was a great character to follow. She was stubborn and courageous, and whilst a bit naive I am glad she made things right in the end. I look forward to reading more books from Rati.

Rating 3.5 stars
*I received a review copy from NetGalley for my voluntary and honest review

Flower and Thorn is a unique historical fantasy with an immersive setting, great protagonists, and a fascinating magic system. Set in 16th-century India, it’s a fascinating world where flowers are rare and have magical properties. Healing, manipulations, and more, all flowers are rare and coveted, and flower hunter Irinya and her friend find one of the rarest and most precious flowers of all. However, when a stranger visits, and the flower goes missing, jeopardizing the future of her people, a guilty Irinya decides to go after the person who took it.

I thought the setting was so immersive and vivid, and I liked how the author transported me into a fictionalized 16th-century India. With political unrest, threats to her people, and more, the setting is as deadly as it is beautiful. From dry, desolate, and sandy terrain to lush and extravagant palaces and bustling cities, the settings contrasted each other well and highlighted the social and economic differences among the classes.

Irinya was another strength of the story. She’s such an interesting and relatable protagonist, and she grows so much throughout her journey. Irinya is very naïve, and she makes a lot of mistakes, which I totally understood. An orphan following in her flower-hunter mother’s footsteps, Irinya takes on a lot of responsibility and puts a lot of pressure on herself. She also doesn’t always think before acting or speaking, which causes her a lot of problems. I always enjoy books like this, where the main character goes on a physical journey as well as an emotional one, and she does just that.

There is a bit of a love story, though it is not the focus of the book. As much as I generally like a swoon-worthy romance, I like that it took a backseat in this story. This is more about Irinya’s journey and growth, not her romantic life. Also, it did seem like there was a love triangle, but it was pretty subtle and obvious who Irinya cared for. I feel like these relationships further highlighted Irinya’s growth and change over the course of the story, as she acknowledges her mistakes and becomes very aware of her true feelings.

This is an interesting and immersive standalone novel. There’s intrigue, adventure, court politics, magic, a sweet friends-to-lovers romance, and several unexpected allies. There are some characters that I wished were fleshed out a bit more, as well as some parts of the plot, but overall it was an enjoyable read. Special thanks to Wednesday Books for providing me with a copy of the book. All thoughts are my own.

DNF

This is the second book I have read by this author. I actually didn't realize this was the same author until after I had requested. Both times I have liked the world-building that this author creates but I can never connect with the characters which makes it really hard to get into the story. Although this had a great premise I just didn't see the pay off as the plot twists were a bit predictable. I did really like what I read about the magic. Overall, I just have so many books to read at the moment that I don't want to continue reading something that doesn't grasp me.

Thank you to the publisher and netgalley for a complimentary earc to review! All opinions are my own.

An interesting fantasy with a unique magic system based in flowers. I really enjoyed their book and the author’s use of Indian mythology/folklore. The slow burn, childhood friends to lovers romance could have been more intense, but the adventures the main character has kept me interested despite the somewhat slow progress of the story. Would recommend to all fantasy readers and those who like a tiny bit of romance with their fantasy.

Rating: 4/5
I received an eARC for my honest opinion.

What if you found a flower that could change anything for you and your community, would you take the flower? Now what if I was to tell you that when you use the flower for not the good of the world or just good in general that it can, and will some why kill you? Would you still take a chance using it?

I found this book to be fun, easy to read and at a great pace. I found the plot to be interesting, the characters were likable and easy to connect with, and that magic system was something new and I loved it. I loved the lessons in this book that you will be taught, and I think anyone at any age can come to love and see the greatness that this author has made to help all ages understand the mistakes you might have made or might make, you can still change them and learn from them. I think it helped me to connect with the characters more in this book when you look at it from an “oh no, I just messed up, but I am going to work on getting us out of this” and you see them trying to make a mistake, right.

As for the characters, I enjoyed getting to know Irinya more and more throughout the book and seeing how she grows to love and accept the life that she was given, but you still want more for her family and the community of flower hunters she lives with. You will see that this young woman will do anything to protect her country, but to do so she had a lot of growth to work, and you watch her continue to grow throughout the book until the end. I can understand being young and naïve, so for her to think she is doing the right thing but turns out that she isn’t and watching her try to fix her wrongs was a great adventure. I found that I really enjoyed this friend to lover’s trope, I normally do not like this trope that much, but it was not a slow burn, but it was slowly in the making and something that came from a place of understanding and forgiveness.

I loved the magic system in this book though and the world that the author brought to life was something. The magic was lush, beautiful and something new. The world of India goes back in history and seeing how the flower hunters lived in the desert and how they understood the rules of the Rann and respected them.

I would recommend this book to anyone who likes YA, Fantasy, romance, and a great magical system.

I want to thank NetGalley and St. Martin Press for the opportunity to review this book.

Thank you to NetGalley and Wednesday books for this eARC.

Sadly I had to DNF this book but due to the fact I made it about half way through I will be still leaving review for those who may be interested.

The writing style is pretty good but not a match for me. It is very detailed in the world building and my own personal mind can't process these due to system overload and leads to me speed reading instead of enjoying.

It had a good plot idea of flowers being sources of magic and hard to come by (and some other things) so the main character does just about anything to change the course of one mistake she made with a specific known powerful flower.

I would recommend this for people who enjoy detailed worlds with a unique magic system and a female lead willing to risk it all to change the fate of those she loves

I thought this was a fun standalone young adult fantasy novel. I enjoyed the general premise of flowers being magical and revising history as if India avoided colonization by Portugal (Set in 1600s). The desert was a fascinating setting, and I loved the magic system of the flowers. I'd love to see this come to life onscreen in some way!

Irinya was young, naive, and a bit wide-eyed. However, I don't think that makes her a horrible FMC. I think it makes her a human one ;) There is a bit of romance in this, but I enjoyed the found family the most. Irinya is a nomad, and is a flower hunter. I never imagined flower hunting as dangerous, and I enjoyed how Mehrotra framed this. When Irinya and her best friend Fardan find an extremely rare flower (silver spider lily), they have the chance to really help their group to get out of debt. However, it comes at a price and thus starts her quest! This definitely had me hooked in the beginning!

Though I did feel some of the plot and especially the middle (from about 30-60%) was a bit disjointed and unfocused, this was a quick, fascinating read. This wasn't my favorite standalone fantasy, but it was fun enough so I'd definitely read from from Mehrotra again in the future!

cw: gore, violence, war

Actual rating: 3.5 stars

I found this an enjoyable, easy read. I wish there was a map, and to be honest, it took me a little bit to realize this was historical fantasy as there is no stated year of these events (unless you do some Googling?). I found myself really liking Irinya and Fardan. They seem (and are!) so young it makes all of their mistakes even that much more believable. But their hearts truly lie with their family. This book very much contains the childhood-friends-to-lovers trope and I thought I wouldn't like it was it was something I detected right away, but in the end, I found their very small, so slowly budding romance to be very adorable. I was a little sad at the ending, regarding the other three flower hunters in Irinya's kul. Their "plan" was very shoddy and poorly put together and I knew it wouldn't go well in the long run.

I enjoyed the premise of this book, with the magical flowers and flower hunters. I enjoyed following Irinya into the luxuriousness of the palace and the political intrigue and court politics of the governors, wazir, and even the sultana.

3.5/5 rounded up

Any author that can write a fulfilling standalone automatically gets brownie points in my book. It was so easy to get swept up in Mehrotra's lush world, and I love the way flowers are incorporated to bestow powers unto the characrers, primarily Irinya. These flowers not only bestow a boon upon those that drink the tinctures they are made from, but they also come at a cost. This uniqueness is something that I really enjoyed! I would love to come back to this world that Mehrotra has created.

Irinya had a lot of growth from the beginning of the book towards the end, and it was much needed. She went from a girl clueless of the world around her, to being brave and determined to make things right. I did not agree with a lot of the decisions she made, but once she realized she messed up, she stopped at nothing to make them right. One of the cons (but also a pro in a way) with her as a character was her quickness to speak up. In some situations she speaks up, especially in that where she is trying to hide her identity, it got her into much more trouble than she initially bargained for. However, this was needed in order for her to learn how things are in the world she lives in. I can't fault her too much for this, but there is a right and a wrong time to speak up. The instalove attraction with another character at first, and believing every word he said, seemed a bit of a stretch too. Fardan has much more patience with Irinya reciprocating his feelings than I ever could.

I do hope that Rati Mehrotra decides to come back to this world. It was lush, magical, and dripping with beauty. I will definitely be keeping this author on my radar.

Thank you to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for an advanced reader's copy in exchange for my honest review.

Overall: Special thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press/Wednesday Books for providing me with an e-arc in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Rep: found family, friends to lovers

Thoughts
Neutral thoughts:
I thought that this one was okay. I've read Night of the Raven, Dawn of the Dove and I prefer that one over this story. But the lore in this one about all of the flowers? I LOVED, it was so good! But the overall plot I was not invested in and I unfortunately found myself checking out of the story multiple times and having to skim/reread sections 😭

But I would still recommend to give this one a try! The writing is super easy to read and it really is fast paced.

Travel to India in this fantasy novel by Mehrotra. Join Iriyna, a flower-hunter, as she attempts to save her kul, family, and nation. Iriyna has grown up in the salt flats of the Rann and knows the magical powers of flowers, but a great debt leads to an even more challenging life. That is until a nobleman comes to visit with an idea to form a cooperative, allowing flower hunters across the Rann to name the price for flowers. Iriyna gives the man a precious silver lily which promises power and the ability of the user to save the nation. This seems like a great plan until the man does not return. Iriyna embarks on a journey to discover what happened to the man and the silver lily.
Mehrotra brings everything a reader could want strong female leads, magic, love, suspense, fighting, deception/betrayal, and friendship. The magic and beauty of the flowers and landscape transport you into the land of the novel.

DNF. I really liked the premise but the writing did not work for me at all. It wouldn't be fair to the book if I finished reading and gave it a low rating.

Flower & Thorn is a clean, exciting, high stakes YA fantasy book. It’s more like magical realism meets revisionist history, rather than a full fantasy, as the magic elements are low. Content wise, it is fully appropriate for the age group it’s advertised for!

As always with YA books, I look at content and themes first. Content wise, other than one kiss and a little violence, we are a-okay. Zero language to contend with. For themes you’ve got staying humble, keeping your promises, and controlling what you can in the present instead of being wrapped up in the future.

The book is set in 16th century India and complete with real historical figures. Mehrotra added magical flowers, Indian legends, and one heroine willing to go to any length to recover what was stolen from her village. I love the hints of magic, strong women, and community. I also love all the Indian food and culture than RM brings into her books, it’s just not something I read a lot of so it’s interesting!

As cultures clash with the invading Portuguese and between rural and urban in changing times, it was fun to see the main character get deeper and deeper in with the crazy (but handsome) Wizer and the court intrigue. She was in over her head but did a great job keeping cool and using her brain in lethal, high pressure situations. I always like Mehrotra’s characters too. Here we have a strong young women who make mistakes but come back stronger, and one hopeless flirt who is a lot more patient than I would be 🤣

I totally recommend Flower and Thorn for people who like fast paced YA fantasy with high stakes set in a different country.

Thanks for checking out my early book review of Flower and Thorn by Rati Mehrotra! I received a digital advanced copy via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review and as always, all opinions are my own ♥️

"Flower and Thorn" by Rati Mehrotra is a fantasy novel with a promising premise that ultimately falls somewhat short of its potential. While the story has moments of intrigue and adventure, it struggles to fully captivate the reader.

The world-building in the book is interesting, with a desert setting and a focus on magical flowers. The concept of flower hunting and the mysterious mist of the Rann salt flats are captivating elements that initially drew me into the story. Irinya, the protagonist, is a likable character with a strong desire to find her missing mother and improve her life through flower hunting. Her determination is admirable, and her relationship with her childhood friend adds depth to the narrative.

However, the plot suffers from a lack of consistent pacing. The story starts off well with the discovery of the priceless silver spider lily, but it loses momentum as Irinya is tricked by an imposter. The journey to recover the flower feels somewhat disjointed, and there are moments where the plot meanders, making it challenging to stay fully engaged.

Additionally, some of the character motivations and actions are not always clear or well-developed. Irinya's decision-making, in particular, at times feels inconsistent with her established character traits.

Despite these shortcomings, there are aspects of "Flower and Thorn" that shine. The world-building, while not fully realized, has potential, and the magical elements are intriguing. Irinya's quest to mend the broken heart of her childhood friend adds an emotional layer to the story, and the themes of loyalty and determination are commendable.

In conclusion, "Flower and Thorn" by Rati Mehrotra is a fantasy novel with an interesting premise that may appeal to readers who enjoy stories with magical elements and desert settings. While it has its moments of charm, the inconsistent pacing and character development prevent it from reaching its full potential. It's a decent read for those looking for a light fantasy adventure, but it falls short of earning a higher rating.

*Thank you NetGalley for the arc in exchange for an honesty review!*
Posted to: NetGalley, Goodreads, and The StoryGraph
Posted on: 15 September 2023

3.4 (rounded down to 3) out of 5 stars.

This wasn’t a favorite read of mine. I don’t know if it just caught me in a slump or what, but I found myself not really enjoying this as much as I thought I would- and I kinda hate that! ‘Flower and Thorn’ has such an interesting idea. I love the magical flowers theme where each flower has a different property to them (healing, manipulating, etc) but I kind of wish the more vague ones were explained more? Or maybe I just missed it, but like the silver spider lily has the ability to win wars but how? We know jasmine heals and we see our main character make a tincture with it. Hibiscus controls yet the petal of the bluestar counters it- so how does the spider lily work? Or is it just something that *is* and we as readers have to just go with it?
I’m definitely asking for more here than what I normally would, but when it plays a huge part of the story, I’d like a bit more understanding behind it. Like the lotus too- beyond it being rare and ‘must never be found’, we don’t really understand much about it either (though for this one, that’s kind of the point I guess?)

The characters were… they were okay. I found Irinya to contradict herself a lot. She’d say or believe one thing, but easily do the opposite. The kickoff to everything was also just- unbelievable? I won’t ruin too much, but it does happen within the first few chapters. I just found Irinya’s decisions to be very annoying sometimes. She does grow to be a bit better, kind of learning after betrayals and all, but there’s still moments enough that made me put the book down. The other characters also fell a little flat to me. I guess I wanted to see more interactions that helped sway and make each other? Some of the characters felt like they were there just for the sake of pushing the story along, which happens! It doesn’t make them *bad* characters, just left me wanting more from them somehow.

It’s never really explained why Irinya can talk to flowers/hear them. I would’ve loved that aspect to play more into the story actually as *that* was also interesting. The dialogue tags got a bit repetitive. I specifically wrote ‘this girl wants to shout a lot- let👏🏼her👏🏼shout👏🏼’ in my review notes if that says anything. There was more tell not show when it came to the speaking side of the story. That’s where characters lacked I think, or where it just became a little repetitive to me.

All in all, it sounds like I’m trashing this story but it’s pretty okay! I really just think it caught me in a bad slump between reads and that’s where my over-criticalness of it stemmed. I don’t really see myself re-reading this, but I’m grateful nonetheless for the opportunity to read and review it. I think it’s a fine read, and I just wish I could’ve loved it more.

I very much enjoyed how unique and creative Flower and Thorn is! The writing, plot, and characters are all beautifully written. I did not want to put this one down, and finished it within one day!

Thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin's Press, and Wednesday Books for this advanced copy! You can pick up Flower and Thorn on October 17, 2023.

What a beautiful, immersive world. Rati Mehrotra crafted a stunning story in a setting that felt so real (likely because it features actual locations in world history, with a magical twist). From the Rann to the cities of the sultanate, every moment felt visceral and transportive. The world in this book sucked me in from the beginning, but Irinya's trials kept me riveted throughout.

I loved her growth throughout the story. Irinya was relatable from beginning to end, as we watched her naively trust a stranger, leave her family to fix her mistakes, and return with new perspectives but with the same heart and spirit. Her mistakes and triumphs propelled the story spectacularly, and her relationships with other characters incited so many emotions within me.

Especially when it comes to the wazir. I loved Fardan from the beginning, but throughout the book, I went back and forth on my feelings for the wazir. Could we trust him? Was his kindness real or contrived? How could he care about Irinya's fate but not the sultana? I'm glad Irinya came to a decision about him by the end of the story, but her struggle to place him into a hero/villain box added so much depth to her and the wazir's characters. In real life, people are rarely purely one or the other, and the same goes (mostly) for the wazir.

And, of course, this magic system was unbelievably cool. The flowers and their different purposes were so fascinating, as was the power dynamic for flower hunters in this world. I'm glad this story wrapped up so neatly as a standalone novel, but I could read so many more books about how the flower hunters and kuls fare after the ending.

All in all, an incredible, diverse, immersive YA historical fantasy. Don't hesitate to pick up Flower and Thorn this October!

Thank you NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

True rating: 4.5 stars

Flower and Thorn follows Irinya, a young flower hunter who must leave her nomadic family in search of a magical flower a stranger took after tricking her. The story spans the dangers of the desert, jungle, and city Irinya must traverse to reclaim the flower that could not only change her peoples' lives, but the lives of all of India.

I highly recommend if any of these key points and tropes sound interesting to you!
🌹Standalone fantasy
🪷 Alternate history -> India during Portugal's invasion but where flowers are rare, magical things that can change a person's life
🌹High stakes
🪷 Power hungry & morally grey villains
🌹 Beautiful imagery of the various places our MC goes
🪷 Friends to lovers subplot

Rati Mehrotra has created another lush standalone fantasy. If you're looking for standalones, I 100% recommend both Flower and Thorn and her previous work, Night of the Raven, Dawn of the Dove. Though I have to say, I liked Flower and Thorn a little bit more!

I loved the settings described in this story, and how our characters travels went. The stakes felt high, the characters' ambitions and goals felt important, and the twists (especially the political ones) were amazingly written.

I love how the story ended, though I did have some lingering questions that the author seemed to hint there would be answers to that we never truly got. Our MC has a different connection to flowers (and animals) than other flower hunters, and early in the book it seemed that our character was going to discover more about this but it just never happened. Our main character, while I rooted for her, aggravated me a bit sometimes because she would say things she knew she shouldn't- and likely wouldn't have gotten away with in those situations. It was frustrating sometimes, and other times I liked her outspokenness. It was a mixed bag. I loved the romance sub-plot and how it played out, I thought it was incredibly sweet and had me kicking my feet towards the end.

The representation of women in power was also a plus for this story. The way the politics of the story wrapped up couldn't have gone better. I will definitely be keeping my eye out for more by this author.

A flower hunter discovers a rare species in the dessert like land she inhabits with her people but when a wealthy merchant from an outisde city visits them and the flower dissapears- Irinya finds herself on a much more dangerous mission involving politics, shifting alliances and the desires of her own heart.

A well written YA standalone, Flower and Thorn easily mixes south Asian culture, magic and romance in this story about a young woman learning to survive on her own. Irinya is resourceful and determined, an easy character to root for and her journey through Ahmedabad serves as a perfect backdrop for the political tensions and colonial history that forms he root of the story.