Bitterthorn: A sapphic Gothic romance inspired by classic fairytales

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I didn't root for the romance, the plot seemed to rely completely on miscommunications/lack of communication, and I felt more and more as if this would have worked better as a short story. Join our community to get personalised book suggestions, extracts straight to your inbox, 10% off RRPs, and to change children’s lives. I say this because it is both very rare for me to read almost an entire book in a single day and to cry whilst reading, but this is what happened with Bitterthorn.

It has a very fairytale-like feel to the story and I couldn’t help devouring Bitterthorn in a single sitting. Overall, I really liked it as a respite after finishing Empire Ascendant which completely crushed my heart and soul. It’s perfect for the Autumn season - a gothic witchy read with lots of descriptive scene building to really develop the atmosphere.

The first woman to go with the Witch, on arriving at the castle, Mina feels “trapped in a prison of my own foolish making”. You can change your choices at any time by visiting Cookie preferences, as described in the Cookie notice. When Mina is herself taken as the new companion, she finds herself living in a remote castle, strangely drawn to the Witch. I hear someone use a term "popcorn book" lately which I kind of like and think might fit this book as well. The first time not getting more than a couple of chapters in before I'd had enough, I think maybe because whilst it is beautiful to read it is also a little confusing and nothing really happens until towards the end, plus, the main character Mina really grated on me.

The story is beautifully told but I struggle to connect with it and it took me five attempts to read it. The story is well paced and there is plenty of mystery and intrigue to keep the reader wanting more. A haunting, atmospheric tale of two lost souls finding each other, and a love that will remake the world. When the news comes that the Witch living above the city will come to claim another soul as her companion after fifty years, everyone is terrified. It seems to have a lot of aspects from traditional fairy tales thrown in there, but for the most part we had fun trying to work out what was happening and what the witch’s secret was.Bitterthorn is beautiful and haunting – the type of story that seeps into your bones and stays with you long after reading. I know so many sapphic readers who have been aching for a book like this one, and thank goodness it exists. I also wouldn't say that the secret overall was underwhelming, it was pretty good, but I feel like the author could have get more from it. Her mother died when she was twelve, her stepmother wishes she just weren't here and her dad doesn't have time for her.

In time, though, she moves from fear and “the pain of self-inflicted isolation” to wanting to understand the Witch and the secrets of the curse.I finished Bitterthorn one winter night while the rain battered the windows, and by gods, what a book. yes the vibes were there but I also felt like we skipped a lot of time which made this feel less slow burn that it actually was. Bitterthorn is beautiful and haunting - the type of story that seeps into your bones and stays with you long after reading. Blumwald is a town overshadowed by an ancient curse: in a sinister castle in the depths of the wild wood lives a monstrous Witch.