The Thorn and the Blossom by Theodora Goss

The Thorn and the Blossom by Theodora Goss
Release Date: January 17, 2012
Publisher: Quirk Books
Source: Publisher
Rating: Bland

One enchanting romance. Two lovers keeping secrets. And a uniquely crafted book that binds their stories forever.

When Evelyn Morgan walked into the village bookstore, she didn’t know she would meet the love of her life. When Brendan Thorne handed her a medieval romance, he didn’t know it would change the course of his future. It was almost as if they were the cursed lovers in the old book itself . . .

The Thorn and the Blossom is a remarkable literary artifact: You can open the book in either direction to decide whether you’ll first read Brendan’s, or Evelyn’s account of the mysterious love affair. Choose a side, read it like a regular novel—and when you get to the end, you’ll find yourself at a whole new beginning. - Goodreads

Firstly, I must say that this book is wonderfully put together. It’s so creative and unique, and it’s one of the things that initially drew me to the book.

The Thorn and the Blossom had a great premise with lots of potential, but I felt very disappointed by the execution of it.

I started with Brendan’s side of the story, and while you can start with either story, I definitely think Brendan’s is the best place to begin. Evelyn’s story answers a lot of questions that were brought up in Brendan’s instead of bringing up questions of its own.

My main issue with this book is the plot. Two lifetimes – almost – are condensed into very few pages. The story jumped from when the pair of them were teenagers to a few years later within a matter of paragraphs. I don’t think the creative presentation would have worked if this book was longer, but it felt as though the story suffered due to the presentation. It felt extremely rushed, and it made the experience less enjoyable.

The writing was good, although like I said there were times when the story jumped. There were also a couple of inconsistencies that I noticed, one of which was Brendan’s father complaining about having to work harder to pay for Brendan’s university tuition. Brendan would have received loans to pay for this, so it was an inaccuracy that annoyed me a little because it felt like poor research.

The dialogue was also a little strange at times but it wasn’t that big of a deal.

Overall, the love story is sweet and the fantasy aspect was woven in quite nicely but it wasn’t enough to keep me entertained.