Princess of Thorns

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Author(s)

Stacey Jay

Publisher

Delacorte Press

Genre(s)

Age Range

12+

Release Date

December 09, 2014

ISBN

978-0385743228

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Game of Thrones meets the Grimm's fairy tales in this twisted, fast-paced romantic fantasy-adventure about Sleeping Beauty's daughter, a warrior princess who must fight to reclaim her throne. Though she looks like a mere mortal, Princess Aurora is a fairy blessed with enhanced strength, bravery, and mercy yet cursed to destroy the free will of any male who kisses her. Disguised as a boy, she enlists the help of the handsome but also cursed Prince Niklaas to fight legions of evil and free her brother from the ogre queen who stole Aurora's throne ten years ago. Will Aurora triumph over evil and reach her brother before it's too late? Can Aurora and Niklaas break the curses that will otherwise forever keep them from finding their one true love?

Editor reviews

4 reviews

Overall rating

4.3

Plot

4.0(2)

Characters

4.5(2)

Writing Style

4.5(2)

Illustrations/Photos (if applicable)

N/A(0)

An engrossing fantasy adventure

February 17, 2015

Overall rating

5.0

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Princess of Thorns was not what I was expecting.

It was better.

This is a hardcore fantasy adventure, with fairy tale elements threading their way throughout the story. Aurora is a princess hiding from the evil ogre queen – and to do so she pretends to be a boy. Specifically, she pretends to be her little brother, which leads to “Ror” searching for “his” sister along with a runaway prince from the neighboring kingdom.

This runaway prince, Niklaas, just happens to have his own agenda – break the curse that will turn him into a swan when he turns 18. The unlikely pair bicker and battle their way across the country, trying to win allies for their fight against the ogre queen’s forces.

The chemistry between Ror and Niklaas is delightful. They disagree almost constantly, but still respect and care about each other. Niklaas takes a big brotherly-approach to caring for Ror, who he thinks is a young prince. Ror finds herself equally infuriated by and attracted to the reckless and womanizing prince Niklaas. Their relationship goes through so many trials and changes throughout the book, and I can’t talk about anything else without spoiling it for you!

The world-building is phenomenal. Stacey Jay really knows how to make a fantasy world seem as real as anything. The periodic chapters from the ogre queen’s perspective create sympathy for the enemy, while showing the reader aspects of an ogre’s life, effectively making it even more real. The fairy tale magic and mystery is wholly believable, and the curses and promises made even more so.

Verdict: Stacey Jay’s Princess of Thorns is an engrossing fantasy adventure, tied together with fairy tale magic, curses and romance. I highly recommend it!

Eden Grey Top 50 Reviewer 171 reviews

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Imaginative and Entertaining

December 09, 2014

Overall rating

3.7

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Story: 4.5 Stars

I'm often skeptical of re-tellings, but this one was done in such an imaginative way that I was immediately invested in the characters and the outcome of the story. Stacey Jay gives us just enough of the traditional Sleeping Beauty tale (Disney's version at least) to feel familiar yet this Aurora is her own unique character.

Niklaas was an enjoyable addition and it was refreshing to watch the way their ending unfolded. They have to work at it, admit their mistakes and imperfections, but the ending left me completely satisfied.

"What am I, a petunia?" ~ Aurora

Fans of high fantasy YA, and fairy tales will enjoy this.

Audio: 3 Stars

The sound quality was great and the narrator did a decent job overall, but it sounded as if she had trouble deciding who should have which accent and sticking with it. Aurora often spoke with an Irish accent but fell out of it easily, and Niklaas is supposed to be a 17 year old prince, but sounded more like a 90 year old man from old world England. If the story hadn't been as good as it was, I would have quit this audiobook.