The Grishaverse will be coming to Netflix soon with Shadow and Bone, an original series! Inspired by myth, fairy tale, and folklore, #1 New York Times-bestselling author Leigh Bardugo has crafted a deliciously atmospheric collection of short stories filled with betrayals, revenge, sacrifice, and love. Enter the Grishaverse… Love speaks in flowers. Truth requires thorns. Travel to a world of … flowers. Truth requires thorns.
Travel to a world of dark bargains struck by moonlight, of haunted towns and hungry woods, of talking beasts and gingerbread golems, where a young mermaid’’s voice can summon deadly storms and where a river might do a lovestruck boy’’s bidding but only for a terrible price.
Perfect for new readers and dedicated fans, the tales in The Language of Thorns will transport you to lands both familiar and strange–to a fully realized world of dangerous magic that millions have visited through the novels of the Grishaverse.
This collection of six stories includes three brand-new tales, each of them lavishly illustrated and culminating in stunning full-spread illustrations as rich in detail as the stories themselves.
An Imprint Book
This title has Common Core connections.
A New York Times Bestseller
“Lushly designed and wonderfully rendered … Bardugo doesn’‘t twist familiar tales so much as rip them open.” —Booklist, starred review
“Strong writing, compelling stories, and gorgeous illustrations make this collection a must-have.” —School Library Journal, starred review
“Beautiful imagery conceived from precise, beautiful prose; beautiful cover image and interior illustrations that creep across each page toward a beautiful consummation; beautiful lands inhabited by beautiful hearts.” —VOYA, starred review
“Elegantly crafted…stylishly intricate illustrations…all fans of the darker side of folktales and folktale-like stories will find the stories satisfyingly full of pain, danger, and vengeance.” —The Bulletin of the Center for Children’’s Books, starred review
“Gorgeously otherworldly…Any lover of retellings or original fairy tales will enjoy.” —Kirkus Reviews
“Gorgeous, cruel and almost wistful windows onto the dreamscapes and hard lessons of [Bardugo’’s] alternate universe … fairy tales with all the darkness intact.” —NPR Book Review
“Those who seem innocent are shown to be guilty, one-dimensional characters become more complicated, and mothers who once were absent are given presence and power.” —Mashable
“This new collection will intrigue, awe, frighten, and inspire both stalwart fans and new readers looking for a heady spoonful of fantasy.” –Hypable
“This nightmare-inducing collection is short but powerful, each tale as brilliant and absorbing as the one before… brilliant storytelling” —Romantic Times
“Marvelous tales, as full of twists and delights and strangeness as anything found in the Grimm Brothers. Leigh Bardugo is a master.” –Kelly Link, author of Get in Trouble
Read all the books in the Grishaverse!
The Shadow and Bone Trilogy
(previously published as The Grisha Trilogy)
Shadow and Bone
Siege and Storm
Ruin and Rising
The Six of Crows Duology
Six of Crows
Crooked Kingdom
The King of Scars Duology
King of Scars
The Language of Thorns: Midnight Tales and Dangerous Magic
The Severed Moon: A Year-Long Journal of Magic
Praise for the Grishaverse
“A master of fantasy.” —The Huffington Post
“Utterly, extremely bewitching.” —The Guardian
“The best magic universe since Harry Potter.” —Bustle
“This is what fantasy is for.” —The New York Times Book Review
“[A] world that feels real enough to have its own passport stamp.” –NPR
“The darker it gets for the good guys, the better.” —Entertainment Weekly
“Sultry, sweeping and picturesque. . . . Impossible to put down.” —USA Today
“There’’s a level of emotional and historical sophistication within Bardugo’’s original epic fantasy that sets it apart.” —Vanity Fair
“Unlike anything I’‘ve ever read.” –Veronica Roth, bestselling author of Divergent
“Bardugo crafts a first-rate adventure, a poignant romance, and an intriguing mystery!” –Rick Riordan, bestselling author of the Percy Jackson series
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Wow – I haven’t loved a book like this in a long time. While I’ve always enjoyed reading Leigh Bardugo’s fiction in the past, it seems her greatest skill as a writer lies in short-form storytelling like this. This collection of fairytales, set in the Grishaverse of her previous novels but easily accessible to anyone unfamiliar with her work, takes familiar fables and twists them in enchanting and exquisite ways. Bardugo plays with Russian folklore, gives Hans Christian Anderson’s Ursula (of Little Mermaid notoriety) a deeply unsettling backstory, and retells the story of the Nutcracker ballet in a way that absolutely broke my heart and left me reeling. Reading these stories was like walking through the thorn forest itself – I found myself savoring the darkness and being entranced by the patches of light, always looking for the monsters hidden behind the pretty exterior. The hardcover edition is stunningly illustrated, and I’d recommend picking up a physical copy for the artistry alone!
When I was putting myself on the waitlist for King of Scars, I saw that Leigh Bardugo also had this collection of short stories, The Language of Thorns. Not sure if these stories would allude to events in the previous Grishaverse novels or have backstory that might prove enlightening for King of Scars (and since there was no wait for it), I decided to go ahead and read through them. Having just finished Ruin and Rising and being a bit underwhelmed by the Grisha trilogy as a whole (especially compared to the Six of Crows duology), I wasn’t sure what to expect. I didn’t think it would be worth writing a review when I started, but the final two tales completely changed my mind. Though they are set in the Grishaverse as far as geography and the supernatural abilities of the Grisha are occasionally referenced, the reader doesn’t need any prior knowledge of the universe Bardugo has created in order to enjoy the stories in this collection.
Comprised of six stories, The Language of Thorns is enchanting. Some stories like “The Soldier Prince” and “When Water Sang Fire” manage to take familiar stories and fairy tales (the Nutcracker and Little Mermaid, respectively) and reimagine them but within the established legends and realities of the Grishaverse. While I found the approach most compelling in those two, it’s present in the others as well. “The Too-Clever Fox” smacks of Aesop’s fables while “The Witch of Duva” has a Hansel and Gretel feel. The first, “Ayama and the Thorn Wood” openly pokes fun at the conventions of traditional fairy tales, calling out the intended lessons and how unrealistic such things actually are.
For my full review, please visit my blog: https://wp.me/pUEx4-Yn
I enjoyed these stories a lot more than I thought I would. They all have that dark fairy tale feel to them and I enjoyed them a lot. My favorite was Ayama And The Thorn Wood but none of the stories disappointed.
This is one gorgeous book! The illustrations are stunning and perfect. The tales told within are hauntingly clever and fierce. Each story taught lessons, whether its characters understood them or not is up to the reader.
Leigh Bardugo is always entertaining and enthralling. There were so many quotable moments that gave me chills. I had the hugest smile while consuming this beautiful book.
Queen Bardugo has put her own uniquely creative twists on some very beloved stories and has made them sinister and unputdownable. Dive into this beauty wholeheartedly, you won’t be disappointed!
Book review of Language of Thorns by Leigh Bardugo …
Love, love, loved it!!!
The book was well written and the illustrations were brilliant!
I won this book in an Author Contest last year. I had never read anything by the author and I am glad I have now!
The way that Leigh Bardugo captivates her readers is nothing short of magical. Her stories are not mere words, but creatures that take on a life of their own. The stories in this compilation are dark and whimsical. Each one tells a truth, ever so twisted as the truth may be.
I simply adored these stories! I will be honest, the only reason that I purchased this compilation was because it was written by one of my favorite authors. Ordinarily, short stories are just not my jam. I hate reading any book less than 300 pages, let alone short stories. But these stories really captivated me. Leigh Bardugo weaves a little bit of magic into the words she puts on paper. Her short stories are no different from her novels in that respect.
The hardcover copy of this compilation has gorgeous illustrations on every page. They build up page by page to reveal the moral of each story by the story’s end. They are simply lovely. And I have to mention that the cover and dust jacket are breathtaking as well.
The added bonus to these stories is that they take place within the Grishaverse- the world that most of Bardugo’s books are set in. I adore the world that she created in her books, and I couldn’t have enjoyed the fairy tales from this world more! Even if you have not read any of her books, I do recommend these tales.
So we all think we know our fairy tales, or do we? I LOVED this book! I won’t give away any of the plots, but these six reimagined stories are pretty awesome. Each one was a total and complete surprise to me at the end – always wrapped around in a way you wouldn’t expect. After reading this book, the main takeaway for me was that things are seldom what they seem at face value. This author definitely had a unique view – always challenging the traditional and providing “the rest of the story”. Very creative, and definitely for adults – some of the themes would be too dark, or totally lost on kids. This was an easy day-read, and I plan to re-read these again many times.
Loved every single story in this, but The Witch of Duva was my favorite. They will all be reread many times. Love the homage to common tales, but with wonderful twists, and of course Leigh Bardugo’s writing is always beautiful. I listen to the audiobook on repeat before bed each night.
Calling upon traditions much older than she is, author Leigh Bardugo fashions and refashions tales from what she calls the Grishaverse. Each tale is wonderful and each resonates of stories we learned as children: “The Little Mermaid” “Hansel and Gretel”. “The Nutcracker” “Pinocchio “…
These stories, as tinged with horror as they are with hope, give us not only “fairy tales” but creation songs and “questions wiser than we know” to misquote “Rimskittle”(a book I grew up with).
Historical sharing makes them so. This small book will provoke childhood and reaches widely towards the future, and will keep you thinking long after the last page is reached. 4/5
It’s so hard to put my feelings for a book this amazing into words.
Let me just say – GET THE PHYSICAL HARDCOVER COPY. The illustrations are so vivid, and I don’t know how, but Leigh Bardugo continues to dominate with her creativity.
And I know it’s weird, but the hardcover smells really pleasant, actually…
I didn’t realize until I cracked this open that I’d already read about half of it – as the “Folktales From Ravka” (The Too-Clever Fox; The Witch of Duva; Little Knife). On one hand, I was bummed, because I WANT MORE NEW Leigh Bardugo! But on the other hand, it is nice to have these in print form and with the beautiful illustrations.
As usual, the stories are original and haunting and well-written and I could’ve read a hundred more. The way the illustrations slowly unfolded on the pages along with the stories was very cool. And – bonus! – MORE DARKLING.