“Always, something would separate them. Always, they would
long for each other, call to each other across the years.”
– The Thorn and the Blossom by Theodora Goss.
Leave it to Quirk Books to – once again – blow me away with an insanely innovative release. Back in 2009, they single-handedly kick-started the mash-up craze with Pride and Prejudice and Zombies. Last year, they released Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs, a beautifully produced dark fantasy rooted in history featuring dozens of vintage photographs that I described as “timeless” and “simply unforgettable.” And who can forget their cult classic Worst Case Scenario survival handbooks or the The Quotable Douchebag, a treasury of spectacularly stupid quotations, or Encyclopedia Shatnerica? Quirk Books is one of the most pioneering publishers around – so I suppose that I shouldn’t be surprised with their latest release, The Thorn and the Blossom by Theodora Goss.
This novel is noteworthy for two reasons: the unique manner in which the story is written and the ingenious way in which it is constructed (see book trailer below). The book doesn’t have a spine – it’s produced with an accordion-fold binding and can be opened and read from either direction. From one direction, the story is told from the perspective of Brendan Thorne, a doctoral student in English Literature at Oxford who works at his father’s bookstore in Cornwall during the summer. From the other direction, the story is told through the eyes of Evelyn Morgan, an American studying abroad who takes a vacation to a remote Cornwall village and fatefully meets Brendan.
The Thorn and the Blossom is a heartrending love story that is intimately intertwined with a medieval legend set in the village of Clews, Brendan’s hometown. After a family of giants comes to Cornwall and begins wrecking havoc of the countryside and its unfortunate residents, Elowen, the Queen of Cornwall, rides to the court of King Arthur to ask for help. Gawan, who falls in love with Elowen at first sight, volunteers and returns to Cornwall to do battle against the giants. Elowen, who has fallen madly in love with Gawan, makes him a magical suit of armor made of green metal and shaped like leaves to shield him from one of the female giant’s sorcery but despite his protection, he cannot defeat the giants. In desperation, Elowen casts a spell turning the giants to stone but in doing so, she is cursed by the female giant – who also loves Gawan – to not be able to be with her beloved for a thousand years…
After meeting Brendan in his father’s bookstore, the two begin spending a lot of time together and, just like Gawan and Elowen, begin falling in love with each other. But just before she is scheduled to leave, they go for a walk in the forest and Brendan kisses her – with unforeseen consequences. Evelyn screams, takes off running, and leaves Clews immediately. Brendan has no idea what has just happened. Years pass – and the two eventually meet again in America – again, with unforeseen consequences…
The bottom line is this: the initial appeal of The Thorn and the Blossom is its unique construction but what makes this such a memorable reading experience is Goss’ poignant and deeply lyrical writing style. The fusion of contemporary romance and English folklore with the Green Man motif throughout gives this novel a dreamy feel and makes for an undeniably enchanting read – romance fans who enjoy their literary escapism flavored with myth and folklore will absolutely cherish this innovative and heartrending novel.
Paul Goat Allen has been a full-time book reviewer specializing in genre fiction for the last two decades and has written thousands of reviews for companies like Publishers Weekly, The Chicago Tribune, Kirkus Reviews, and BarnesandNoble.com. He is a member of the National Book Critics Circle.
Keep up with all of my blogs – as well as all of Barnes & Noble’s exclusive reviews, authors interviews, videos, promotions, and more – by following @BNBuzz on Twitter!
Melissa_W
on
This has started popping up in the blogosphere and it looks really interesting. A recc from Paul makes it a must-check-out! 
