Book Review: Bryony and Roses by T. Kingfisher (who is also Ursula Vernon)

[hrj]

There’s something of a “comfort food” dynamic to fairy tale re-tellings. Whether they provide a straightforward take on the original, fleshed out into the depth of the modern novel format, or they add an original interpretive twist in terms of characters or settings, or they actively subvert the underlying themes and messages of the original, there will be that central framework that organizes the reader’s understanding and expectations.

Bryony and Roses is a relatively straightforward version of Beauty and the Beast, notable for the non-nonsense likeability of the protagonist and the agency she is allowed, as well as for avoiding the all-too-common B&B theme of a woman humanizing (literally) a man through her unconditional love. This version is more of a quest/mystery/adventure tale, with the heroine prevailing against magical forces for the sake of justice (with a bit of love on the side).

The story discards the theme of the father who promises to hand his daughter over to the Beast to save his own life and instead has Bryony make her own choices and fulfill her own promises. The Beast may be existentially terrifying but he is never anything less than kind, generous, and respectful to Bryony. It is his true self that inspires her heroism, not any misty promise of transformative reward. The menace is provided by the sinister(?) manor house in which the Beast is clearly more of a prisoner than Bryony herself is.

The mysteries behind the Beast’s situation and plight are masterfully hinted at and unveiled as Bryony works to establish her own place (and plant her own garden--an act I deeply appreciate as a gardener) within the enchanted manor. I confess that the protagonist’s no-nonsense personality and her central identity as a gardener led me to visualize the author herself in the role (or at least to visualize her blog avatar), which added to the enjoyment.

Overall a delightful, lush, and satisfyingly feminist take on the Beauty and the Beast story.

Comments

[pixel39.livejournal.com]

Her newest, The Raven and the Reindeer (retelling of the Snow Queen) is just as delightful.

[hrj.livejournal.com]

Yes, it's sitting on my iPad. But at the moment I'm trying to work through a few remaining 2015 works for nomination season. I'm really pathetic in that regard -- I'll be lucky to have read and liked enough works to fill up my nomination ballots at all, much less to feel that I'm picking the "best" of the year. But my excuse is that selecting what to read in the first place is part of my filtering process.

[irina (from livejournal.com)]

Oh wow, I want to read that. *puts on virtual pile*

[http://users.livejournal.com/la_marquise_de_/]

I never know if I like fairy-tale retellings or not. There are some I do, and yet... I like fairy tales, and I like analyses of them, but novels can fail to work for me, usually because they're too sentimental or have overloaded the original story. This one sounds good, however: I'll keep an eye out for it.

[hrj.livejournal.com]

And fairy tales are, above all else, about Deep Meaning. The same superficial trappings can cover vastly different Deep Meanings, making the story either appealing or horrific.

[loup_noir]

Are these self-published? I can't find any hits on T. Kingfisher in our library's system. Sounds like something I'd like to read.

[hrj.livejournal.com]

Not only are they self-published, but (relatedly) are only available in electronic format.

Things are explained here: http://tkingfisher.com/

[joycebre.livejournal.com]

I just read The Seventh Bride. Which was weird and crazy and riveting. Thanks for posting this!

[hrj.livejournal.com]

I'll probably work my way through the rest of her fairy-tale series. They seem to work for me.

[ichseke.livejournal.com]

I bought it based on your recommendation, which made it sound like my kind of book. I'm part-way in, and it is indeed. Thanks for posting this!

[hrj.livejournal.com]

Thanks for letting me know -- I love it when my reviews help people find books!