Bitterthorn: A sapphic Gothic romance inspired by classic fairytales

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So, when the witch arrives to take her claim, Mina just says fuck it and volunteers, she doesn't have anything to lose and her dad doesn't even try to stop her. Sure, it has those fairy tale trappings there - it advertised as such, but it takes them and makes them its own.

It’s perfect for the Autumn season - a gothic witchy read with lots of descriptive scene building to really develop the atmosphere. Bitterthorn by Kat Dunn follows Mina, grieving and lonely, who offers herself up to the town curse, and to the Witch to be her next companion.

I loved the depressed golden retriever x black cat pairing, I loved how this mixed a lot of different fairy tales. BITTERTHORN tugged on the threads of my heartstrings until I had nothing left to give it but my soul. 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. I also thought the end was a bit corny and didn't really understand the 3rd act conflict since I thought it was pretty obvious what was happening to the companions? Like Mina seemed genuinely upset when the Witch got mad at her, even if it was a front, but then a couple pages later we are in love and stuff again?

Stranded with her darkly alluring captor, the mystery of what happened to the previous companions draws Mina into the heart of a terrifying secret that could save her life, or end it.I loved how vividly descriptive and rich in fairytale lore this was and with such a tender, sapphic romance at its heart, it wasn’t difficult for me to get completely lost within its pages. There were also a lot of books mentioned that the characters read and I always like to see that, especially since in this case it even more developed the atmosphere (even though you would guess that they'll read more German-language based literature).

Maybe I would need to reread to really solidify my thoughts, but I think atm there were a lot of solid and great elements, but ultimately the romance didn't enthral me. Kat you have outdone yourself on this one and I have to say this is your best writing and story yet, I don’t know whether at this point I want to cry or track you down in London and hug you. A true romance but not the typical type of romance you would expect but one of both in my opinion a platonic love as well as a romantic love. I couldn't help but laugh at the Formula 1 driver names making an appearance and must admit that I am intrigued as to whether this was left in as a joke, a dare or just from a genuine passion for the sport. Bitterthorn tugged on the threads of my heartstrings until I had nothing left to give it but my soul.I was never a person that would pay much attention to the person and tense the story was told in, I usually won't even notice it, but here I noticed the first person immediately and it grated on me just a little bit. On the other hand, Mina starts off as the classic orphan who is ignored or mistreated by her stepmother.