The River Has Roots

Hardcover, 144 pages

English language

Published April 3, 2025

ISBN:
978-1-250-34108-2
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(2 reviews)

“Oh what is stronger than a death? Two sisters singing with one breath.”

In the small town of Thistleford, on the edge of Faerie, dwells the mysterious Hawthorn family.

There, they tend and harvest the enchanted willows and honour an ancient compact to sing to them in thanks for their magic. None more devotedly than the family’s latest daughters, Esther and Ysabel, who cherish each other as much as they cherish the ancient trees.

But when Esther rejects a forceful suitor in favor of a lover from the land of Faerie, not only the sisters’ bond but also their lives will be at risk…

1 edition

A sweet fairy tale

I was extremely excited to read El-Mohtar’s solo debut. After reading “This Is How You Lose the Time War”, and loving both concept and prose, I was a little disappointed to see that neither had really carried over from that collaborative novel to this novella.

It’s absolutely fine writing, and the story is a lovely fairy tale which I’m sure most people will thoroughly enjoy reading. It’s simply not for me, I don’t particularly enjoy fairytales in general, and found this one a little simple for my tastes.

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