Skip to main content

Tower of Thorns (Book #2 of The Blackthorn and Grim Series) by Juliet Marillier: A Book Review

Tower of Thorns (Book #2 of The Blackthorn and Grim Series)
Author: Juliet Marillier
Genre: Historical Fiction, Fantasy
Publisher: Roc
Release Date: November 3, 2015
Pages: 439
Source: Publisher/Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
Synopsis: Award-winning author Juliet Marillier’s “lavishly detailed” Blackthorn & Grim series continues as a mysterious creature holds an enchanted and imperiled ancient Ireland in thrall.

     Disillusioned healer Blackthorn and her companion, Grim, have settled in Dalriada to wait out the seven years of Blackthorn’s bond to her fey mentor, hoping to avoid any dire challenges. But trouble has a way of seeking out Blackthorn and Grim.

     Lady Geiléis, a noblewoman from the northern border, has asked for the prince of Dalriada’s help in expelling a howling creature from an old tower on her land—one surrounded by an impenetrable hedge of thorns. Casting a blight over the entire district, and impossible to drive out by ordinary means, it threatens both the safety and the sanity of all who live nearby. With no ready solutions to offer, the prince consults Blackthorn and Grim.

     As Blackthorn and Grim begin to put the pieces of this puzzle together, it’s apparent that a powerful adversary is working behind the scenes. Their quest is about to become a life and death struggle—a conflict in which even the closest of friends can find themselves on opposite sides.

     My Review: In the second book in the series, Blackthorn and Grim are trying to bring peace into their lives by healing in Dalriada. Flidais is expecting a child, and she requests that Blackthorn assist her during her pregnancy. However, it seems that happiness and peace is not destined to last, for at the main court of Dalriada, a woman begs for help to expel a howling monster from the old tower on her property. Blackthorn agrees to help. When Blackthorn and Grim get there, they hear the monster’s cries of pain and anguish that haunts the land. They realize that there is more to it than what the woman says. Together, they seek to find the truth of the situation and to end the monster’s anguish.

     Blackthorn has grown stronger than in the first novel. She is still trying to find peace and to be the woman that she used to be. However, we learn a little bit of the woman who she was before she had a thirst for revenge. She runs into her childhood friend, and it brings her memories of sorrow. He gives a chance for revenge, and Blackthorn is often conflicted about whether she should stay and fulfill her end of the fey nobleman’s bargain to not go seeking for revenge or join her childhood friend in a thirst for justice.

     Grim, too, has more character development. Dreamer’s Pool focused more on Blackthorn’s origins. In Tower of Thorns, we get to know more about Grim before he was imprisoned. Grim also has personal struggles that he is trying to solve. However he sets aside his inner conflicts to help Blackthorn and to protect her.

     Overall, this story is about friendship, love, sacrifice, and redemption. While the book is slow-paced, I was interested in the characters. My favorite character was Geiléis. I was enthralled by her story and the origins about the monster in the tower. I also loved the atmospheric setting in Tower of Thorns. It was eerie, sad, and filled with mystery and magic. Those who have not yet been introduced to Juliet Marillier will be enchanted with this novel. However, long-term fans will notice that Tower of Thorns is still very similar to Marillier’s earlier works, and this story still has yet to take flight. I am still waiting for her originality, creativity, and magic. Readers of Tower of Thorns will find themselves swept away in a magical land filled with fantastical creatures, secrets, and a love story that spans centuries, leaving them breathless and eagerly anticipating the next installment in the Blackthorn and Grim series.

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Comments

  1. I really want to read Fantasy related books.So I really like your blog and thanks for the post.Normally I do not learn article on blogs, but I would like to say that this write-up very pressured me to take a look at and do it!I got so much details about the books.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Interview with Melanie Karsak

Today, I have the pleasure of having an interview with Melanie Karsak! I have read and enjoyed her many series of books on some of history's more obscure or misunderstood women. Often, little is known about their true histories, either from not being recorded because of their gender and the unimportance given to women or else intentional character assassination. Mrs. Karsak seeks to bring light where much is shrouded in darkness. As a result, we are enriched by their lives and these fascinating women can speak to us through the centuries. In this interview, Mrs. Karsak talks about what drew her to these women and her writing pro cess! Thank you Mrs. Karsak! You have written books on Lady MacBeth, Hervor, Queen Boudica, Queen Cartimandua, and now Freydis. What drew you to write about these women? I like the unsung and maligned heroines. Hervor is a significant character in the Norse Hervarar Saga . In fact, there are two Hervors in that tale—grandmother and granddaughter. But

The Magnificent Lives of Marjorie Post by Allison Pataki: A Book Review

The Magnificent Lives of Marjorie Post Author: Allison Pataki Genre: Historical Fiction Publisher: Ballantine Release Date: February 15, 2022 Pages: 381 Source: Netgalley/Publisher in exchange for an honest review. Synopsis: Mrs. Post, the President and First Lady are here to see you. . . . So begins another average evening for Marjorie Merriweather Post. Presidents have come and gone, but she has hosted them all. Growing up in the modest farmlands of Battle Creek, Michigan, Marjorie was inspired by a few simple rules: always think for yourself, never take success for granted, and work hard—even when deemed American royalty, even while covered in imperial diamonds. Marjorie had an insatiable drive to live and love and to give more than she got. From crawling through Moscow warehouses to rescue the Tsar’s treasures to outrunning the Nazis in London, from serving the homeless of the Great Depression to entertaining Roosevelts, Kennedys, and Hollywood’s biggest stars, Marjorie Merriweath

The Rose Code by Kate Quinn: A Book Review

The Rose Code Author: Kate Quinn Genre: Historical Fiction Publisher: Harper Collins Release Date: 2021 Pages: 635 Source: Netgalley/Publisher in exchange for an honest review. Synopsis: 1940, Bletchley Park, Buckinghamshire.        Three very different women are recruited to the mysterious Bletchley Park, where the best minds in Britain train to break German military codes.       Vivacious debutante Osla has the dashing Prince Philip of Greece sending her roses – but she burns to prove herself as more than a society girl, working to translate decoded enemy secrets. Self-made Mab masters the legendary codebreaking machines as she conceals old wounds and the poverty of her East-End London upbringing. And shy local girl Beth is the outsider who trains as one of the Park’s few female cryptanalysts.       1947, London.        Seven years after they first meet, on the eve of the royal wedding between Princess Elizabeth and Prince Philip, disaster threatens. Osla, Mab and Beth are estranged,