There is NOTHING better than a fairytale retelling. Snow White deserved a better story and Kingfisher gave it to her. I loved the main character, I loved the setting, I loved the magic. This was so much fun to read.

I’m starting to think T. Kingfisher might not be capable of writing a book I don’t enjoy. Hemlock & Silver is yet another example of her gift for whimsical, darkly enchanting tales. This reimagining of Snow White is filled with cozy undertones, unsettling moments, and memorable characters.

What stood out most to me was Anja, our quirky, middle-aged protagonist. She isn’t your typical fairy-tale heroine, instead she’s a woman who has been fascinated with poisons since childhood. Watching her navigate both danger and the mystery surrounding Snow was a treat.

Kingfisher also has a knack for weaving in just enough eerie and unsettling elements to keep the story sharp, balancing that darkness with her trademark wit and warmth.

Honestly, T. Kingfisher has filled the space in my reader’s heart once held by another favorite author who wrote dark fantasy (who shall remain nameless, as he turned out to be a truly horrible person). Hemlock & Silver is proof again of why Kingfisher has become a new auto-read author for me.

I love a good fairy tale retelling and this hit the mark. Hemlock and Silver is like Snow White meets the Looking Glass deep in the uncanny valley. T.Kingfisher has once again managed to intrigue and unsettle me all at once and I can't wait to see what she comes out with next.

Wow! This was my first book to read by this author but definitely not my last! This book will leave you wanting for more and the characters and storyline stick with you long after you finish it. Do yourself a favor and pick up this page-turner!

T. Kingfisher has created one of my new favorite books of year with "Hemlock & Silver"! I have never read this author before, but I am glad I got the opportunity from here. The atmosphere feels both cozy and unsettling like sitting by the fire while something moves just out of sight in the woods. The writing is vivid without ever being overwhelming, and the pacing balances those darker, horror-tinged moments with enough humor and warmth to keep you hooked. It’s the kind of story that leaves you shivering at the folklore creatures but also smiling at the little moments of humanity tucked between the scares.

The plot pulls you in quickly with cursed magic, strange monsters, and some very bad bargains that put the characters in one impossible situation after another. It has that fairytale gone wrong feeling, where you’re never quite sure if things are going to turn out all right but you can’t stop turning the pages to find out. There’s plenty of tension, but also some surprisingly heartfelt moments that keep it from being all doom and gloom.

The characters are, hands down, the highlight. Kingfisher always writes people who feel real messy, funny, sometimes clumsy, but brave when it counts. The relationships, especially the bonds of trust and found family, make the spooky parts hit even harder because you care about these people. A couple of parts dragged just a little, but honestly, I didn’t mind too much because I was enjoying the world and characters. Overall, it’s a dark, charming, and very T. Kingfisher kind of story!

Tropes you’ll find here:
‣Dark fairytale vibes
‣Cursed magic
‣Found family feels
‣Folklore monsters
‣Dangerous bargains with the supernatural
‣Humor mixed into horror
‣Reluctant heroes
‣Small, very human moments in a scary world

This book was enjoyable enough, but I always find myself losing interest in this author’s books about halfway through. The plot goes on a very familiar path and the quirky characters start to feel a bit grating. But for any one who has enjoyed the authors previous stories, they will probably enjoy this one too.

T. Kingfisher's trademark ability to balance human and the horrific is on display here. The twists and turns on the Snow White fairytale are a lot of fun, and there's a cat now, but as a fan I always appreciate Kingfisher's changes in her fairytale retellings. I do think the pacing harms this one a bit, there's a lot of time meandering and exploring a certain magical realm, which is interesting but did somewhat stall out the overarching mystery a bit for me. Overall it's a super readable and fun read, but might not be my favorite of the author's recent works.

The King personally seeks out Anja for professional help: his daughter (12) throws up her food regularly and the highly respected doctors can’t make it stop. Anja agrees to go to Princess Snow’s castle, observe her, and bring her expertise in creating scientific antidotes for poison. Helped by one of her guards, Javier, and a cat with higher cognitive functions, Anja discovers the world through the castle’s mirrors. Like a doorway, the Mirror Queen manipulates Snow to eat the apples so that she can bring the Mirror Queen into our world and take the real queen’s place. Anja convinces Snow to see how the Mirror Queen is lying to her, and Snow ends MQ’s existence.

The writing can feel slightly YA, perhaps overly witty. The story may be strengthened with an additional pov in addition to Anja’s. Overall, Hemlock & Silver interested me sufficiently, although I may not have finished the book if I had not requested a copy.

My thanks to Tor Books and NetGalley for an ARC. I shared this review on GoodReads (https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/7815746019) on August 17, 2025.

Wowza! This book had me hooked from the first sentence (literally. I read the first sentence and went, "Well Damn! I need to know more about what the heck she just said ASAP!") The entire story was riveting. I haven't read a book (with my eyes, not my ears) this quickly since before I joined the workforce! I'm taking, staying up late reading under the covers late into the night! What an excellent book.
Like all of T. Kingfisher's main characters, Anja is at heart, a normal human adult with regular human flaws and foibles. She is funny and not good with children and cares too much about poisons and questions herself, and is maybe a tiny bit of a romantic. Anja is entirely and delightfully human and I love her.
T. Kingfisher wove this story beautifully, everything happening in its time, with clues and red herrings sprinkled about, coming into the story organically. I love the way Kingfisher weaves in fairy tale elements into her books too, and Hemlock & Silver does it best of all, perhaps. There is wonder in the book, and determination, and passion, and just the tiniest hint of body horror, as a treat! I can't wait to re-read this book!

Overall, We liked this book. T. Kingfisher was able to write a very unique retelling of Snow White. T. Kingfisher was able to weave in a little bit of the unsettling horror she is so so good at.

We thought her characters were all unique and invidual and they didn't feel repetitive. Having Anja be an older character worked well within the story and was a nice touch. Her romance with Javier was a little hit or miss. it wasn't 100% necessary, but didn't hurt the story because it was there.

After the Mirror World was discovered the story really took off and I was glued to the book till the end. While the sciencing wasn't the favorite of everybody on our team. it was well done and consistent with Anja's character

Our thoughts will be released in podcast form
Spoiler-free chat: https://open.spotify.com/episode/6TsexJEbraU2O0WxDrVZmF?si=tZeqQGvvSUq-9OOMVGbiQA
Full-spoilers chat: https://open.spotify.com/episode/5zBcFPpCOqwdUsq1B8ulTI?si=KmMhhO5ASiqWm084btswqw

T. Kingfisher is easily one of my favorite authors, and I love her darkly reimagined fairy tales. In this take on Snow White, a healer and poison scholar named Anja is hired by the king to investigate a mysterious illness plaguing his daughter Snow. What follows involves some poison, apples, an evil queen, mirrors, a dash of romance, a feisty young rooster, and of course, a talking cat. Kingfisher weaves her signature horror and humor into this fantasy story, and I always enjoy her more mature characters (Anja is in her upper 30s). Greyling the talking cat is naturally the best character, but the rooster and Anja's guards Javier and Aaron are also a good time. Anja's home and the full desert landscape of the kingdom made for refreshing changes to common fairy tale settings. Overall a great read!

Anja has studied poison ever since her cousin died in front of her... and one of the best test subjects is herself. Finding antidotes is hard work, and she is interrupted by the King, trying to save his daughter Snow. She is wasting away, he's looking for any sliver of hope. Protected by a taciturn guard, mocked by a narcissistic cat, and determined to trust the scientific method, Anja is searching for the cause of Snow's decline. But what if it was magic all along?

Why I started this book: Love Kingfisher's story telling and I was thrilled to be offered an ARC for her latest dark retelling of Snow White.

Why I finished it: Slow start, and then I finished it in a rush, staying up past my bedtime to figure out if everyone made it out safely. Kingfisher's protagonists are not stereotypical heros, but their determination, personalities and life experiences allow them to solve problems and save the day anyway. A delightful, twisted good time.

T. Kingfisher does it again! I adored this retelling of Snow White, Anja is a woman who describes herself as a woman with a large frame and a sharp mind. Anja has studied poisons in order to learn how to create antidotes. Her help is enlisted by the king to help understand what might be a potential poisoning happening to his daughter Snow. I loved being in the head of Anja, not only is she bright, she is also hilarious and her internal dialogue was cracking me up all throughout while trying to solve this mystery. There is a cute as hell romance between Anja and a bodyguard that I could not help but be enthralled in. I had such a great time with this book that I finished it in two days. Can't recommend this more.

T. Kingfisher knows how to write a fairy tale reimagining like no other. Hemlock & Silver is Kingfisher's take on Snow White, but from the perspective of a poison expert brought in to try to save the young princess who her father suspects is being poisoned after the death of her mother and sister. It's dark and suspenseful and evocative and a touch romantic, and I utterly loved our poison obsessed narrator.

I am a HUGE T. Kingfisher fan, so to say I had high hopes for this book would be an understatement. It did not disappoint and Hemlock & Silver is officially my favorite T. Kingfisher book.

Retellings are hit or miss for me, so my only (very slight) trepidation going into this was that it is a Snow White retelling. This was dark, twisted, imaginative and perfectly executed. There is masterful inclusion of key aspects of the source material, but they are reimagined in a unique was that added a dark undertone. The character work was top notch and I was fully invested in the characters. I love a female villain, and this had a villain I could despise with my entire soul.

This was a breath of fresh (and dark) air in fantasy and fantasy retellings. I could write a ten page thesis on my love for this book, but I will leave it with simply saying if you don’t already love T. Kingfisher you are about to.

The queen of fantasy returns with another fairytale retelling!

2025 truly is the year of Kingfisher, and us fans are truly blessed. Hemlock and Silver is a new story, rather than a reissue, and I really loved it. It's classic Kingfisher with lots of banter, a mature and plus sized female main character, a talking cat, and some incredibly eerie dark fantasy. This book started a bit slow for me, but it found its footing and was an absolute delight. What makes it even better? It's a standalone story and could be a great place to start of you're looking to get into her books.

Highly recommended for your autumn TBR

the king summons healer anja (she’s more of a poison expert, really) away from her quiet life to treat his daughter, snow. he’s desperate, and anja can’t exactly say no to a king, so off she goes. no one has been able to solve the mystery of snow’s illness yet, and anja’s luck isn’t any better until she accidentally discovers a secret world within a mirror.

after reading (and adoring) thornhedge, i knew i had to read t. kingfisher’s take on snow white, and hemlock & silver did not disappoint. quirky and creepy in turns, it’s a darkly charming spin on the familiar fairytale. and then there’s anja (and her unexpected allies, a talking cat and her newly assigned bodyguard), who is another unconventional and yet entirely lovable heroine from kingfisher. i loved her. i loved her obsession with poisons and her lack of people skills and the fact that she doesn’t fit the traditional fantasy FMC mold at all. she’s a delight.

hemlock & silver didn’t quite measure up to thornhedge (my favorite kingfisher book so far)—it was a little slow at the beginning and i wish the romance was more developed—but i would still recommend it to any fans of her writing, or fairytale retellings in general! it feels very true to the creepiness of classic fairytales while still telling a fresh story.

It almost feels wrong to call this a retelling of Snow White because it truly felt like it's own story. Hemlock and Silver was a great read that had me intrigued throughout the entire journey. This book has fantasy, mystery, romance, some horror, and even a slightly mind breaking sci-fi premise. Anja was a very unique character that I absolutely loved. She was funny, sarcastic, direct, and not perfect (good thing)! I find her so interesting that part of me was wanting to hear more about her childhood with Scand! I just love her hunger for knowledge, and the way that she just HAS to know how anything works! Overall a great read that I was initially hesitant to read, but quickly proven wrong!

This is a fantastic take on the Snow White story. The setting and characters are well-developed without being overburdened by description, and the story is unique while still familiar. What I particularly love about T. Kingfisher's works is that her heroines are in their 30s; there's no teenage/new adult saviors to be found. My only minor quibble with the book is that sometimes the language feels a bit anachronistic for the setting and it pulled me out of the story. This is a must-read for anyone who enjoys fairy tale retellings.

I love T. Kingfisher's imaginative twists on classic fairy tale stories, and this is no exception. It's a darker version of Snow White, but also has Kingfisher's signature moments of humor and humanity. An absorbing and satisfying read!