Nettle & Bone

Genre

Fantasy & Magical Realism

Publisher

Tor Books (Macmillan)

Publication year

2022

ISBN

9781250244048

Marra, the overlooked third princess of a small kingdom, sets out to kill the cruel prince who is destroying her sister, first completing three impossible tasks to earn a witch's help. She gathers an unlikely band for the quest. T. Kingfisher's dark fairy tale won the 2023 Hugo Award for Best Novel.

To rescue her abused sister, a shy convent-raised princess must first do the impossible: build a dog from bones and wire, sew a cloak of nettles and owl-cloth, and catch moonlight in a jar. So opens T. Kingfisher's Hugo-winning fairy tale, which sends its unlikely heroine Marra on a quest to kill a charming, murderous prince, accompanied by a dust-witch, a disgraced knight, a fairy godmother and a bone dog with more personality than most living characters. Kingfisher writes in the grand tradition of the dark folk tale, but with a wry, humane modern sensibility: her monsters are real, her violence has weight, yet warmth and dry wit run through everything. At a lean, propulsive length, the novel never sags, and its band of tired, brave misfits is a joy to travel with. For readers who want fantasy that is spooky, funny and emotionally true - fairy tale for grown-ups - it is a small, sharp gem, and a deserving Hugo winner.