🫀 Snow White Reimagining
🪞 Unlikely + Misfit Hero
🫀 Wit
🪞 A Pinch of Romance
🫀 Gothic Fairytale

Audiobook Read.

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I absolutely adored this whimsical and dark Snow White fairytale reimagining.

T. Kingfisher puts so much charm and wit into everything she writes and I adore it. Everything about this book is a good time. I am constantly enamoured by her weird misfit lead characters, and this book is no exception.

Healer Anja is approached by the king to help save his daughter Snow, who has grown weak and who he believes is being poisoned. Anja is just this really awkward, introverted, and lovable character who is extremely smart (we stan a woman in STEM). She is kind of an unofficial healer who just has this amazing hyperfixation when it comes to poisons and antidotes. Her internal monologue had me laughing throughout, and she is just such a weirdly relatable character.

I love an unexpected hero, I love a sweet little romance that arises from an odd situation, and I love the wit, the charm, and honest delivery. Mix in some mirror magic, mysterious illnesses, and a bit of a sense and foreboding, *chef's kiss*.

Witty, gothic, and fairytale-esque, this is a wonderful book with gorgeous prose and it definitely comes highly recommended from me.

𝓣𝓱𝓪𝓷𝓴 𝔂𝓸𝓾 𝓽𝓸 𝓝𝓮𝓽𝓰𝓪𝓵𝓵𝓮𝔂 𝓪𝓷𝓭 𝓜𝓪𝓬𝓶𝓲𝓵𝓵𝓪𝓷 𝓐𝓾𝓭𝓲𝓸 𝓯𝓸𝓻 𝓽𝓱𝓮 𝓐𝓛𝓒 𝓸𝓯 𝓽𝓱𝓲𝓼 𝓫𝓸𝓸𝓴. 𝓐𝓵𝓵 𝓽𝓱𝓸𝓾𝓰𝓱𝓽𝓼 𝓪𝓷𝓭 𝓯𝓮𝓮𝓭𝓫𝓪𝓬𝓴 𝓬𝓸𝓷𝓽𝓪𝓲𝓷𝓮𝓭 𝔀𝓲𝓽𝓱𝓲𝓷 𝓽𝓱𝓲𝓼 𝓻𝓮𝓿𝓲𝓮𝔀 𝓪𝓻𝓮 𝓶𝔂 𝓸𝔀𝓷.

I was excited for this gothic Snow White reimagining! I really enjoy T Kingfisher’s writing, but this was a little too quirky for me. I seem to be the outlier here though, so please don’t take my word for it.

AND…he braids her hair, which was honestly just so heartwarming.

Thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to read an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️½
Hemlock & Silver by T. Kingfisher
Narrated by Jennifer Pickens

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the opportunity to listen to an advance copy of this audiobook!

This dark fairytale retelling pulled me in with its eerie atmosphere and clever twists. The story follows Anja, a healer who drinks poison to save lives, and her journey to uncover the truth behind a royal illness. Halfway through, the plot takes a turn I didn’t see coming—and from there, it kept me guessing until the very end.

Jennifer Pickens’ narration was a standout. Her voice brought depth and emotion to the characters, and I found myself fully immersed in the world Kingfisher created. I especially appreciated the blend of science, folklore, and a touch of gothic horror.

I’m giving this 4.5 stars—only docking slightly because the beginning took a bit to gain momentum. But once it did, I was hooked. Whether you read or listen, I highly recommend this one for fans of smart, spooky fantasy with heart.

NOW THIS is what I call a fairytale retelling!!

Nothing but applause for Hemlock & Silver from my end. It was such a wonderful and captivating time and I don't think I have ever found a character more relatable than Anja. And if you know me and what drives my passions for reading, it's always going to be the characters that make or break a book for me. The story was so fun and unique from start to finish, and having an older main character was so great. I am so pleased for the representation of a woman in her 30's that followed her passion in life and chose to not have children. So thankful the story did not morph into a, "you'll change your mind and have kids and be a mother later on" narrative (*Nothing wrong with women wanting to be mothers but also,,, some women do not want that and that is also okay and they should also be allowed to make their own decisions*). I thought the take on this classic and so well loved fairytale was so clever and very different from anything else I have ever read. Very solid in both plot and characters and I will absolutely be recommending this to everyone. I can't wait to purchase a physical copy of this for my own shelves.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of this book to review.

Thank you to NetGalley, Macmillan Audio and T. Kingfisher for this arc in exchange for an honest review!

I absolutely loved this! T. Kingfisher has officially slotted themselves as my favorite author. The world was rich, unique and slightly creepy. The narrator did a wonderful job and I hope she writes more in this world.

I loved this, but it did take me awhile to get in to it. It’s a wonderful retelling of Snow White. Thankfully, the perfect narration by Jennifer Pickens kept me going until the story took off. I especially loved her narration of the cat!

Thank you to Macmillan Audio, Tor Publishing Group, and NetGalley for the audio ARC.

T. Kingfisher does it again in this fantastic reimagining of the classic tale of Snow White. This time focused on family dynamics, mirror magic, and the power of poison. The plot was clever and well paced. I always love Kingfisher’s main character, they are charming yet relatable and Anja was the perfect balance of intelligent with a quirky personality. The dash of romance was a great addition to the story, which usually I’m not the biggest fan of, but it really worked for me here. And of course who doesn’t love a talking cat who is pivotal to the plot. Overall a fantastic reimagining with enough elements from the original story to enhance the atmosphere but not enough to give away the plot.

I listened to the audiobook and had a fantastic time. The narrator is amazing.

Although this is advertised as a Snow White retelling, I think it's more of a homage. The apple, uses of poison, and a princess named Snow are there but the plot is too different. I would say this is more of an original with aspects borrowed from the fairy tale. At first I was disappointed because I picked it up for its retelling, but enjoyed it a lot more because it was rather unique.

Some parts of the story where it kind of gets scientific(?), I felt a little lost. But it didn't hinder me from getting the gist of what was happening and I understood the concept of why things happened that way. It kept things feeling more magical which I liked.

The only thing is... we didn't end up figuring out the cure for hemlock, did we? I kept waiting for it. The big reveal. But Anja didn't even mention it anymore half way through. I thought the first thing she would exclaim about was an antidote to hemlocks once she was "there". I mean it's the bane of her profession! That was a huge disappointment to me. I even got the book to re-read the last 5 chapters to see if I missed it. I don't think I did. But please someone correct me if I'm wrong(:

I think Snow White was my favorite princess to dress up as a child. Fairy tale retellings are stories that fall into the hit or miss category due to the foundation its built on having many other versions throughout media.

This hit, 4.5, I found this version to be intriguing and a wondrous. The classic Snow White a girl exiled by her evil step-mother, eats a poisoned apple, and is awoken by a prince's kiss, has been done many times over. T. Kingfisher's world of a talking cat, mirror dimension, poisons of all kinds, and the main character Anja: a poison master, has managed to take a tried and true story and alter it into a new one. As a reader one can see what aspects of the original tale were included, but even those were used in imaginative ways.

I adored Grayling, a talking cat that only tells what he desires. Half truths and long sighs, a truly curious creature.

The mirror dimensions is fascinating, I fear I would not have been as brave as Anja. The world-building and magic of it all is well done and easy to understand. Everything is well-rounded and thought out allowing for an immersive tale. I feel like retelling doesn't do it justice since this is a story that could stand on its own legs. I will definitely be reading more of Kingfisher's tales.

Hemlock & Silver is a Snow White retelling that feels wholly unique told through Kingfisher’s distinctive writing voice. I’m also a huge fan of Kingfisher’s ability to blend the truly weird with laugh out loud moments, and that ability is on full display in Hemlock & Silver. The world building in this story is fascinating since it draws inspiration from Snow White but also adds unique elements making it feel new without having to go into too much detail. The characters are quite simply amazing. I really enjoyed Anja’s character as a whole, but especially how she viewed the world through a scientific lens. I was also a big fan of the awkward yet adorable relationship that develops between Anja and her guard. Also how can I not love this book when it features a talking feisty feline with all the arrogance you would expect from a cat. The plot itself was interesting, dark, and imaginative. Every time I thought I had the story figured out, we would learn something new that changed the narrative. The audiobook is narrated by Jennifer Pickens who absolutely nailed Anja’s character from her unique outlook to her awkwardness to her sense of humor. It was truly the perfect delivery for this book. Pickens also kept the story interesting and engaging making it an audiobook that you did not want to pause.

I think this is my favorite book by T. Kingfisher thus far. Absolutely brilliant! It's a retelling / reimagining of Snow White, and it was executed fantastically. I really enjoyed the main character and the fact that even though people could classify her as a "witch" for researching and studying poisons, she didn't let it stop her. Her studies were involving cures for poisons, not poisons alone. In addition, she is always wanting logical answers and does not believe in magic, everything must have an explanation.

As she is tasked with trying to discover the source of the King's daughter's illness, she teeters at the edge of being more than a normal person and not quite apart of the upper class causing a bit of a stir. I enjoyed having the character be plus size, and while it's not a focal point, it is mentioned. Anja is a little self-conscious at times, but it's done in a realistic way. It's not often to have a main character be plus size so that was a fantastic and welcome surprise!

Whether you like retelling / reimagining's of fairy tales or not, you should check this one out. Note that it does start out creating the world and the "action" doesn't start until a little further than halfway through the story. Personally, I enjoyed it that way as it allowed us to understand the characters more and get to know Anja.

Actual rating: 4.75/5

I would like to thank the publisher for sending me an audio-arc in exchange for an honest review through NetGalley.

Anja is a healer, specifically one who specializes in poisons, but more specifically how they work and how to cure them. When the king walks into her shop needing her help with his daughter. So she heads to his palace in the desert in order to help the best that she can. When she arrives at the palace she finds that the whole place is full of mirrors, and, what's more, there seems to be an entire world within them. As she begins to explore the world in the mirrors, she begins to see that maybe there's a connection between the mirror world and what's happening with Snow, and the more she dives into it, the more she realizes the mirror world isn't as harmless as she once thought.


Clap. Clap. Clap.


(That's a slow class in case you couldn't figure it out.) This book was phenomenal. Honestly, this is what a Snow White retelling needs –- something unique, something different, not the same regurgitated nonsense that we keep getting. There was no spice, there was no sexy Snow White or badass Snow White – she's a twelve year old girl, and it's not told from her perspective. We get everything from the healer's perspective who was seeing this girl slowly become sicker and sicker with no explanation and instead of writing her off or acting like she's badass and perfect and everything, she has no idea what she's doing. But she discovers this mirror world by accident and the moment that she starts putting the connections together, instead of trying to take on the evil herself, she does her best to protect instead of fight. This. Is. A. Healer. She's not going to go fight, she's not going to put herself on the front lines, and I actually love that it felt true to her character versus trying to make her go through this internal transformation. I like the way we get all the elements of Snow White without it being so in your face like yes, the young girl is named Snow, but that's it. There's no evil stepmom here, there's no poison apple given to her, or Prince Charming waking her up, instead we get this mirror world that is so freaking cool and I was just sucked right into this from the very beginning and double so once we learn about the mirrors and her being able to go into them. I love the romance that is here, like I said it's not spicy but there's a lot of moments between Anja and her guard that are so sweet, and they finally act on it. It didn't feel like it was forced or rushed, it felt so natural. I'm really happy with the way the plot for this retelling went because it didn't really feel like it was forced down your throat. Overall I enjoyed this, I absolutely love T Kingfisher's style of writing and it's just another banger of a book. I definitely recommend this and would also recommend the audiobook as the narrator does a fantastic job bringing this to life. And with the way this is written, I would actually pick up another retelling by Kingfisher in a heartbeat. Five stars all around.

The audiobook for Hemlock & Silver by T. Kingfisher was such an entertaining and fun read. I love everything written by T. Kingfisher and find that the audiobook for her books are always such a treat and this was no different. The narration was perfect and kept my attention. I wanted to keep listening to the book and didn't want to pause it at any point. The story was fantastic and the writing was great, as always. The characters that T. Kingfisher creates are always so lovely and you can't help but root for them. Overall, a fantastic listening experience.

I would like to thank Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with an audio ARC.

I loved this one and I'm still thinking about it days after I finished it. The characters were so well developed and written. I loved the main character. I also loved how Snow was written and made into a very believable child.

The atmosphere was so well written. The setting was very fleshed out. It really came to life. I also loved the mirrors and mirror world beyond them. They were just so interesting and fascinating.

The cover is beautiful, which is wjay initially drew me to the book. The narrator also did a phenomenal job. I know I would love to read more books by the author and listen to more audio books narrated by the narrator. This was a super good book all around.

Hemlock & Silver follows Anja, a poison expert, who tasked to find what is ailing the king's daughter, Snow. One day, Anja stumbles upon another world inside of mirrors and figures out that the cure lies within.

I tend to like T. Kingfisher books and this wasn't an exception. I liked the cast of characters; the cat being my favorite after Anja. There needs to be more books with older female characters or maybe I'm just not good at find them! I found Anja to be relatable and likeable. I thought some of the things she said or did because she didn't know how to respond or from awkwardness were pretty funny.

I wasn't expecting a romantic subplot but it didn't bother me and I tend to not like romance in books. The mechanics of the mirror world was interesting and unique.

I thought the narrator did a good job and I recommend Hemlock & Silver to those who enjoy fantasy and also want an older female protagonist.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing a copy to review!

Hemlock and Silver was another excellent read from T. Kingfisher. I had the chance to listen to the audiobook through NetGalley and was not disappointed.

Much like Kingfisher's other work, Hemlock and Silver featured a middle-aged heroine working their way through supernatural dangers with humor, a large helping of self doubt, and memorable side characters (I loved Grayling!). This read did remind me quite a bit of her other works, specifically A Sorcerous Comes to Call and Nettle and Bone. Much like these two, Hemlock and Silver got off to a fairly slow start, taking time to introduce the cast of characters and build the world up enough for the events taking place within it to have context. The only thing that kept this from being a 5 star read for me was the predictability of the plot. I didn't see this as an issue for enjoyment of the story overall though and think it's likely a product of the volume of Kingfisher I've read in the past couple of years.

If you're a fan of T. Kingfisher this is definitely worth the read. If not, still go for it if you're looking for a fairytale retelling with a dose of supernatural horror and a lot of dry humor.

Thank you to NetGalley and MacMillan Audio for the opportunity to read and review Hemlock and Silver.

Just another T. Kingfisher novel that I absolutely loved! I pre-ordered the book earlier this year because the cover is gorgeous & the sprayed edges are my favorite color. Then @macmillan.audio was kind enough to send me an advance copy of the audiobook 💚

The audiobook was well narrated by Jennifer Pickens. The story is inspired by the fairytale, Snow White; however, it is also its own unique adult, dark fairytale. I loved the main character, Anja who frequently drinks poisons in order to help find cures for those she helps. There is also a supporting character who is an actual cat who is incredibly sassy and makes me wonder if Eclair could talk, if her dialogue would be similar 😹

I highly recommend listening to the audiobook and collecting this edition of the book!

Thank you to the publisher for my ALC. I had no issues with the sound quality or file and I liked the narrator.

Healer Anja just doesn’t fit in. She’s tall, doesn’t follow the social expectations for women, she loves science, she loves her snake, and she drinks poison. Anja drinks poison to study antidotes and cures and has made a name for herself as a poison expert. But when the king summons her to see what is slowly killing his daughter Snow, Anja finds mystery, poison, and a magic mirror that is hiding in plain sight and hiding a lot more than your reflection.

Read for:
🤍a Snow White retelling
🤍sassy cats
🤍women in science
🤍a clever take on the magic mirror
🤍a smidge of horror

Kingfisher writes an entertaining, interesting, and fun story. You’ll root for Anja at every turn and never look at a mirror the same way

4.25 stars ✨

I think this was my favorite T. Kingfisher fairytale retelling so far! It truly felt like spiraling down into a dark fairytale! I loved the poison and antidote elements brought into this tale. The mirror magic and poison apples were a delightful nod to the original tale. And a sassy kitty sidekick is always a bonus!

Anja is probably my favorite FMC in a long time! She’s funny and authentic, as well as being a smart woman in STEM! She is definitely quite Autistic-coded, which makes me relate to her and love her that much more. We see her hyper-fixate on finding antidotes quite young, which is far from a societal norm, but is oh so cool. We also see how she can have difficulties in social situations due to this suspected Autism, but it isn’t shown in a negative light. In fact, she is appreciated for her honesty. Basically, the story shows that being different is not a bad thing.

I really recommend this one for any fairytale lovers, especially those who also are looking for an Autism-coded main character!

I listened to the audiobook for this one, and it was good! The original speed for the narration felt a bit slow so I listened a bit faster than normal, but didn’t have any issues with that. The narrator also fit Anja well in my opinion!

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the ALC!

An interesting, if complicated, Snow White retelling. I enjoyed the tongue-in-cheek humor but never really latched onto the story.