Published: Aug. 24, 2012
Words: 104,445 (approximate)
Language: American English
ISBN: 9781476322315

Short description

For Princess Alyrra, choice is a luxury she’s never had. Forced to accept a match with a powerful foreign prince, Alyrra leaves home for her new land. But powerful men have powerful enemies—and now, so does Alyrra. When a magical attack and a betrayal leave her stranded behind another woman's face, Alyrra must choose whether to start a new life for herself or fight for a prince she's never met.

Extended description

For Princess Alyrra, choice is a luxury she’s never had. Until she’s betrayed.

Princess Alyrra has never enjoyed the security or power of her rank. Between her family’s cruelty and the court’s contempt, she has spent her life in the shadows. Forced to marry a powerful foreign prince, Alyrra embarks on a journey to meet her betrothed with little hope for a better future.

But powerful men have powerful enemies—and now, so does Alyrra. Betrayed during a magical attack, her identity is switched with another woman’s, giving Alyrra the first choice she’s ever had: to start a new life for herself or fight for a prince she’s never met. But Alyrra soon finds that Prince Kestrin is not at all what she expected. While walking away will cost Kestrin his life, returning to the court may cost Alyrra her own. As Alyrra is coming to realize, sometimes the hardest choice means learning to trust herself.

Tags

coming of age, fantasy, magic, young adult, fairy tale, ya, retelling, goose girl, faerie tales

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Reviews

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Review by: Cindy Lyle on Feb. 27, 2013 :
This novel was part of a group read in my Goodreads group. I was provided with a free copy for this review.

I would like to start off by saying that this was a wonderfully written fairy tale! Although I’m not familiar with the original that Thorn is based on (The Goose Girl), I found it had all the elements required for a great tale. I was especially happy with ending because it was not your typical “Happy Ending”.. Things do turn out well in the end but it was far from the perfect princess marries the prince ending and I really liked that. I have nothing against fairy tales, but things rarely turn out the way you want them to.

Thorn follows the story of a young princess named Alyrra who has grown up in an unhappy home. Abused by her brother and ignored by her mother, Alyrra’s only solace is her horseback riding and her friend, the Wind. She soon finds herself betrothed to a prince from a far off country that she has never met and has heard even worse things about. She has no choice but to accept and she leaves home on a long journey towards her new husband. During the trip she is attacked and magically switches bodies with her hand maiden. Unable to tell anyone what has happened, she arrives in her husband’s kingdom not as a princess but as a common servant. It is in this new life that she must decide to live as a common peasant, something she desperately desires, or to face her fears and fight for what is rightfully hers.

There were times when I really didn’t know what to think of Alyrra. I understood the pain and the fear that comes from being abused, but sometimes I wished I could have just shaken her and told her to suck it up. I also really enjoyed the prince’s character. He strong and compassionate, but he had flaws too.

I would recommend this book to anyone who loves fairy tales. It was well written and it flowed very quickly and effortlessly. Thank you for letting me read such a great novel and I hope we see more from Intisar soon.
(reviewed within a month of purchase)

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