Hemlock & Silver: A Book Review

Hemlock & Silver is a fantasy novel by T. Kingfisher. It is a fairytale retelling that is a good combination of Coraline and Snow White and Rose Red, the fairytale. The novel features poison-enthusiast Anja, a 35 year old woman who helps treat poisons by making antidotes she first tests on herself. One day as she’s coming up with new concoctions, the King comes into her workroom. Alone. At first she doesn’t recognize him, but then he gives her a mission. And she wants to refuse, but it’s the king. He tells her that he believes his daughter is being poisoned and that he needs her help. In all fairness, poison is how he got the crown, so it’s likely. But Anja doesn’t want to do it. She weighs the pros and cons and decides to go on a trip out into the desert to where the King has dropped off his daughter in hopes to protect her.

Can Anja save Snow? Will she be killed if there is an assassin? All good questions.

I received a free ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Stars: 4.75/5

Honestly, I have read a fair share of T. Kingfisher’s works and this one is in my top 3, if not my number 1. From the characters to the descriptions. I enjoyed this book from start to finish. Let’s start of with the characters, “Healer” Anja enjoys learning about poisons and solving problems…she cares a bit less for the people attached to those problems and honestly, she is so relatable and funny. I also like that Kingfisher included that she isn’t a dainty female lead, it is a refreshing thing to see in fantasy. Anja also has this whole, “ugh do I have to?” mentality when the king first approaches her to save Snow and she is a relatable character. But she’s not the only one. Javier and Aaron are both funny and interesting characters as well.

Speaking of funny, although this is a retelling of the familiar Grimm’s Snow White and Rose Red, Kingfisher interlaces comedic moments throughout the plot. It reminded me a bit of Monty Python. There is one scene in particular where the protagonist and her bodyguard are being chased and Javier, the bodyguard, cuts off one of the attackers legs. He just falls down. There’s no big to do and somehow that makes it funnier. At least to me! And while there are a few misunderstandings, the author uses them as comedic relief and not major plot points, so it doesn’t get annoying.

Lastly, the descriptions portray vivid places and the reader can practically see it in their mind. The mirror world reminded me a bit of the original Twilight Zone series, with its shades of gray and marks of uncanniness and discomfort. We get new monsters, a talking cat, and some exciting adventures in this book.

Would I recommend it to a friend? Definitely. Especially if they like fairy tale retellings or other world fantasy. If you like this post, please share it with a friend and maybe snag me a cup of tea over on Ko-Fi.