The River Has Roots

by Amal El-Mohtar

Genres: Fantasy
Pages: 144
Rating:

Synopsis:

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…

I received a copy of this book for free in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

For whatever reason, Amal El-Mohtar’s work with Max Gladestone (This Is How You Lose The Time War) left me rather cold, so I wasn’t sure what to expect from The River Has Roots. Still, a solo work is quite different to a joint one, and I was curious, so I snagged this one to give it a shot — and really liked it. Mohtar’s style works well in this fairytale retelling (which I ID’d fairly quickly), and the narrative works well with the fairytale style. There’s a touch of the Valente/McGuire-style commentary on fairytales (heck, even C.S. Lewis), which never dips into condescension. Just… storytelling, explaining the world, as fairytale narrators can do in a way which adds to the worldbuilding and tone of the story.

Fairytale retellings can sometimes fall down by sticking too close to their origins, but Mohtar is careful to flesh out the two sisters, Esther and Ysabel, and their needs and wants. It stops short of explaining too much (despite the helpful narrator): Rin remains a little bit of a mystery, as does Agnes Crow — but there’s more than enough to tantalise.

I was a bit worried about the pacing given my progress through the book, but all made sense when I realised the review copy also came with a teaser for an upcoming book of short stories. The River Has Roots was the perfect length, I think, with the ending leaving enough questions to leave the reader some work to do with the imagination.

Rating: 4/5