Wintersong (Wintersong, #1)

by S Jae-Jones

The last night of the year. Now the days of winter begin and the Goblin King rides abroad, searching for his bride...All her life, Liesl has heard tales of the beautiful, dangerous Goblin King. They've enraptured her mind, her spirit, and inspired her musical compositions. Now eighteen and helping to run her family's inn, Liesl can't help but feel that her musical dreams and childhood fantasies are slipping away. But when her own sister is taken by the Goblin King, Liesl has no choice but to journey to the Underground to save her. Drawn to the strange, captivating world she finds and the mysterious man who rules it - she soon faces an impossible decision. And with time and the old laws working against her, Liesl must discover who she truly is before her fate is sealed. Dark, romantic, and powerful, Wintersong will sweep you away into a world you won't soon forget.

• ISBN10: 1250079217
• ISBN13: 9781250079213
• Publish Date: 7 February 2017
• Publish Status: Out of Stock
• Publish Country: US
• Imprint: St Martin's Press
• Format: Hardcover
• Pages: 448
• Language: English

Reviews

[Brittany]

Wintersong is a take on German folklore of the goblin king, it intertwines the beauty of music, longing and loss. The growth of the story feels like a labyrinth and it was honestly fascinating to read through.

The book truly is beautiful. It’s dark and poetic and moody to its core. There really isn’t any light to it, there’s a constant sense of sadness and gloom in the best way possible.

I don’t normally enjoy more poetic/prettily (pretty in the darkest way) written books but this was not overdone. It really does make you feel like you are reading along to a beautifully sad song.

At first I didn’t think I was going to like Elisabeths character, I’m not really a fan of the self deprecating, constantly down on yourself, type characters when it is a constant, but I quickly realized how wrong I was. The history and experiences written into her make you feel for everything she feels about herself and justify her thoughts and actions.

The Goblin King is fascinating. I wish I could say the book would be improved with more knowledge of him but I know that ultimately would not be the case. His mystery is one of the reasons I love him and makes all of the tiny reveals of his past that much better. I want to know more, but I also enjoy the way his character is written to starve me of knowledge about him.

[chymerra]

Where do I start with Wintersong? When I read the blurb, I thought that this book was going to be a rip off Labyrinth. Everything screamed it. But, as I got into the book, the more I understood that this was NOT a rip off Labyrinth. Instead, I got an excellent and mystical take on the Johan Wolfgang von Goethe’s poem “Erlkonig“.

Wintersong is set in close to turn of century Bavaria. The exact location where Liesl and her family lived was not discussed. Saying that I did think the author built a very rich and complex world around that village. I wish that more was discussed about the actual country itself.

The plot of Wintersong was interesting. Liesl has grown up with stories about The Goblin King. Her brother Josef and herself would escape from their duties and head to Goblin Hollow. There they would play music for The Goblin King. She grew up and started assuming more duties at the inn her family ran. Which meant that she didn’t have time for anything childish. One night, Liesl’s younger sister, Kathe, is taken away by the goblins. Liesl saves Kathe by agreeing to become The Goblin King’s bride. She soon realizes that there is more to The Goblin King than meets the eye. Decisions must be made if Liesl is to survive The Underground. Decisions that will affect everyone she has ever loved.

I was kind of iffish on Liesl when the book started. She came across as a jealous and a little bitter. But as the book wore on, I realized that it was not jealousy or bitterness. While she was happy for her siblings, she was aggravated that she would be the one stuck at the inn with her parents. Her character didn’t come fully to life until she went to The Underground. It was then that I got to see a different Liesl.

Out of the siblings, I liked Josef the best. He fought to get Liesl’s compositions recognized by their father. He wanted Liesl to be recognized as much as he was. Valued as much as he was. He hated to leave her but he had a chance to get out and he took it. Of course, there is a twist with him. A twist that I should have seen coming but didn’t. When The Goblin King revealed it, I was as surprised as Liesl was.

I didn’t like Kathe in the first half of the book. Talk about a self-centered, spoiled brat. She complained about marrying Hans. She complained that Liesl didn’t pay much attention to her. She snooped through Liesl’s things. When Liesl dared to reprimand her…..she didn’t listen to her at the market. It was her carelessness that started the events that made Liesl The Goblin King’s wife. I did get a sense of satisfaction when Kathe was crying because she was the only one who remembered Liesl. Just a little. Then I felt bad.

Where do I start with The Goblin King? He started off the book as this villainous entity. But, as the book went on and more was revealed about him, the more human he became. But, even when he reveals everything to Liesl, he remained an enigma. That isn’t a bad thing. It makes me even more curious to read book 2.

Music was a huge factor in this story. Liesl was a secret composer and could play the violin. Josef was a violin prodigy. Their father used to play for the King in Salzburg. The Goblin King played. If there had to be a soundtrack to this book, I would say it would be almost all violin music and maybe some Bavarian folk songs.

I also liked the nod to Greek mythology once Liesl was in The Underground. I was comparing that part of the book to the myth of Hades and Persephone. Persephone is kidnapped by Hades, brought underground. Her mother Demeter was inconsolable and stopped everything from growing. Persephone convinced Hades to let her go above ground for a few months so that things would grow and thrive. Then she would go back underground and her mother would stop things from growing. The other nod to Greek mythology involved the Sirens and the River Styx. When Liesl goes to make her escape from The Underground, she has to cross a river that reminded me of the River Styx. In this river lived The Lorelei. The Lorelei were like the Sirens. They lured people to their death with their music. Like the Sirens.

I do wish that more background information was given on the goblins. I enjoyed reading about them but felt that their back story was lacking a bit. I hope that more is explained about them in the next book.

The romance aspect of the book did creep me out at first. I mean, The Goblin King has to kidnap women to get them to marry him. There is an alternative reason that is shared later in the book which took the creep factor out. But until then, I was like “Eh.”

The end of Wintersong made me cry. I don’t know if they were happy tears or sad tears.They were a mixture of both. All of the storylines were ended in a way that satisfied me. There was enough given so that the 2nd book could be written. I am hoping to read book 2. I need to find out what will happen to The Goblin King and Liesl.

Pros of Wintersong:

A) A strong female main character

B) Excellent references to Greek mythology

C) Strong musical theme throughout the book

Cons of Wintersong:

A) Kidnapping of brides

B) Not enough background on the goblins

C) Kathe (in the beginning and middle of the book)

I would give Wintersong a rating of Older Teen. There are sexual situations but the author (who wrote this for her 16 year old) was very vague. There is an orgy scene that is vague but you know what is going on. There is no foul language. There is some mild violence. Considering this, I would recommend that no one under the age of 16 read this book.

The only trigger warning I would give Wintersong is kidnapping. Other than that, it is trigger free.

Wintersong is a book that I would definitely recommend to family and friends. I would include a warning about the mild sexual situations and mild violence. I would also reread Wintersong.

I would like to thank the publishers and NetGalley for allowing me to read and review Wintersong.

All opinions stated in this review of Wintersong are mine.

**I chose to leave this review after reading an advance reader copy**

[Empress of Sass]

I received an ebook copy of this book in exchange for an honest review from Netgalley.
2.5/5 stars

I’m in the pits of despair. I wanted to love this book. I was prepared to have it become my next obsession, to inspire and delight me, and bring me back to one my childhood loves.

As soon as I learned of it’s existence, I knew I had to read it. I couldn’t get it out of my mind. It was never the right time to buy a copy, so I kept it at the top of my list, gazing longingly at the gushing reviews online and wishing for the day when I could be one of those smitten reviewers. That day was never meant to be.

Imagine how thrilled I was when I saw it was available for request on Netgalley. I polished up my profile, hit the request button and squealed with delight when the book downloaded to my kindle app. I was in the middle of another book for review, so I had to wait an excruciating extra three days before starting Wintersong- curse responsibility to hell!

As a child, every friday night my parent’s would stop at the local video store, and for years I would pick out the same movie- Labyrinth, starring David Bowie’s pants bulge. I knew almost every line of that movie by heart, and I was guilty of frequently wishing for the Goblins to take away my baby brother.

I listened to the soundtrack- still do in fact. When I’m sick, its one of my go to comfort watches. I was incensed when my grade 9 English teacher chose to use Legend for our unit on the Romantic Vision, when the other teacher used Labyrinth. All this backstory is to let you see dear reader how much I thought I would love this book.

“What’s the use of running, if we are on the wrong road.”
― S. Jae-Jones, Wintersong

The fast and dirty spoiler free reason I did not love the book like I thought it would is that it did not contain any of the things that made me fall in love with Labyrinth. Below this point, I’ll get into more details about why that is, so if you want to keep yourself completely spoiler free, I’d recommend stopping at this paragraph. In the words of the Goblin King himself,”Turn back before it’s too late Sarah”. Just know that the writing was fine, there’s some quotable moments to make a pretty desktop book art out of, but I found myself struggling to keep reading because of a dull, plodding plot, an unlikable protagonist and some really questionable aspects to the romance story line.
The Spoilers Section: (because I love a good spoiler- seriously, I actively seek them out)


The characters felt flat, and while Sarah in Labyrinth and Liesl in Wintersong share the predisposition to believing they are put upon, misunderstood special snowflakes who the world never gives its proper due to, that was not something I enjoyed in the movie. Liesl pretty much enslaves herself to her family, taking on responsibility for all of them, mostly unasked of her, and then holds grudges about not being appreciated. Her internal narrative is a very judgmental and condescending one, and while her family is definitely not without faults and foibles, they also don’t deserve as much criticism as Liesl heaps on them.

“Once there was a little girl who played her music for a little boy in the wood. She was small and dark, he was tall and fair, and the two of them made a fancy pair as they danced together, dancing to the music the little girl heard in her head.”
― S. Jae-Jones, Wintersong

Take Kathe for instance. She’s written as the bubbly, boy crazy sister who flits across the surface of life, all shallow beauty and ease. Liesl clearly resents not being as beautiful as Kathe, and keeps her at arms length- choosing to see her as vapid, but never allowing Kathe to show her the depths that we eventually learn are there. Kathe may be focused on her upcoming marriage, but Liesl doesn’t see how Kathe is dreading it- she only agreed to the marriage to help her family. With Liesl though, she’s the single victim in the family- no one else can be a martyr.

“A sparrow is beautiful in its own way,” Käthe said severely. “Don’t force yourself to be a peacock, Liesl. Embrace your sparrow self.”
― S. Jae-Jones, Wintersong

With her brother Josef- or Sepperl as she calls him (with zero explanation as to why), Liesl treats him the opposite way- while Kathe is a eye roll inducing burder, Josef can do no wrong, he’s the brightest star in the sky. I find it a little strange that while Liesl loves music and composing, she is not allowed to actively pursue it because the family is investing in Josef’s talent- I’d think she, given the rest of her relationships/opinions would be likely to resent him, yet she doesn’t at all. We find out near the end that Josef is actually a changeling, her real brother having died in early childhood. This is a B plot and is not really explored much other than he weakens when he travels too far from the Underground, and he needs someone to love him in order for him to stay on the surface.

Her parents and Grandmother were after thoughts at best- Mom is beautiful and wants to keep up their social status and appearances. Dad is a former musician turned drunken inn keeper who struggles to keep a roof over his family’s head and is living vicariously through his son’s music. Grandma is a crazy old lady who believes the legends and fairy tales of the past and is always popping up to cryptically warn or criticize Liesl, then fading back into the bushes. Well not literal bushes but I’m sure you get it. Spoiler- Granny’s stories were true! There is a Goblin King! More on him later.

The Goblins were stock characters, with only 2 of them being named goblins and the rest being tragically underutilized set dressing. Twig and Thistle are our two named goblins, assigned to act as weird little ladies maids for Liesl when she is staying Underground. One is more helpful, one is more harmful, both kind of blend into each other, and I have difficulty remembering which was which or giving a description of them other than earthen gobliny? It seems some goblins are small and imp like, others can appear more human but exact species and taxonomy descriptions you will not find in this book.

The changelings suffered a similar fate, they could have been interesting characters to explore but instead sat on the sides lines for most of the book. The one changeling who is relevant to the plot stays nameless, and his inevitable betrayal of Liesl is not in the slightest bit shocking. After he betrays her, that story line just kind of stays there, not going any farther.

“You are a man with music in his soul. You are capricious, contrary, contradictory. You delight in childish games, and delight even more in winning. For a man of such intense piety, you are surprisingly petty. You are a gentleman, a virtuoso, a scholar, and a martyr, and of those masks, I like the martyr least of all. You are austere, you are pompous, you are pretentious, you are foolish.”
― S. Jae-Jones, Wintersong

Now for the one I’m sure you’ve all been waiting for- I know I was hyped to meet him. The Goblin King, Der Erlkonig, the…austere youth? This author is super fond of archaic words. If I had to read “troth” one more time I may have pitched my phone across the room. Which would have been fine, as I’m due for a free upgrade anyway. I didn’t want to accidentally bean one of the dogs though, so I bit down on my fury and forged along. Right, the Goblin King. David Bowie he is not. This version was allegedly the Lord of Mischief, feral like a wolf but charming like prince and…no…I just never saw it. He has a “MYSTERIOUS BACKSTORY” but it’s over used and played to give him an air of mystery, but it feels forced and fake. I wanted him to be darkness and light, magic and mystery, swoon worthy and dangerous, but no. He was just kind of there. Waving his fingers and saying “look, magic”. Okay, that didn’t happen but that’s what it felt like. I was like Dorothy, pulling the curtain back on the wizard, revealing his mundanity and wishing I had never grasped the fabric.

Moving on from the characters. The setting felt flat and dull, when it should have been magical and enchanting. The labyrinth itself was just tunnels underground. The few times Liesl had to “escape” it were some of the dullest parts of the book, when they should have been the most exciting. Where was the Bog of Eternal Stench? The Riddle Doors? The lovable characters you meet along the way? Most of the traversing the labyrinth scenes amounted to the Goblin King stalking and taunting her, and Liesl having to avoid been gnawed on by hungry goblins. The one trap that actually worked on her- the Goblin King using magical music to mess with her mind was thwarted by the fact that apparently if you are tone death like Kathe, the music doesn’t work on you. The changelings tried an illusion on Liesl too but that one was a bust because “they couldn’t mimic Josef’s talent with the violin accurately.”

“Have I not?” I gestured to the night sky. “I have beaten you and your godforsaken labyrinth.” “Ah, but are we not, in some ways, all trapped in a labyrinth of our own making?” the Goblin King asked lightly.”
― S. Jae-Jones, Wintersong

I found most of the locations underground to be pretty uninspired and poorly described. With how much effort the author put in to describing music in this book, I thought the setting would receive the same rich and lush descriptions. I was left wanting. The mental impressions of the settings left on me at the end was that the world above was glistening snow and blackberries and rich red wines, while the underground was brown and stone and tangle mossy roots that smelt of damp and rot.

Story wise, there’s just not much here. The majority of the book is the unhealthy love between Liesl and the Goblin King, but I’m not sure why they actually LOVE each other. Liesl is just desperate for someone to choose her, to find her beautiful, to validate her worth and existence. The Goblin King…loves her music and her…spirit? The constant references to Liesl not being beautiful really got old fast. She is so hung up on it, on the cross she has to bear for being born “plain”. Note- she is not ugly, she has no disfigurements, she is just average.

“What I wouldn’t give to be the object of someone’s desire, just for one moment. What I wouldn’t give to taste that fruit, that heady sweetness, of being wanted. I wanted. I wanted what Käthe took for granted. I wanted wantonness.”
― S. Jae-Jones, Wintersong

The sex scenes were uncomfortable. I don’t mind sex scenes in novels- as long as they serve a narrative or character purpose. These ones were excruciatingly badly written, and the connection between the two loves felt so forced. I also hate that Liesl constantly slut shamed her sister for flirting, but she is so ready to jump the Goblin King’s bones and is super sexually aggressive for someone so critical of her sister acting in anyway aware of human sexuality. Own your sexuality Liesl, but don’t deny your sister hers. It makes you a hypocrite. The whole “passion of sex causes the Goblin Queen to burn her life out faster” is some serious bullshit too.

“You are the one who wanted a happy ending, my dear. So you tell me, how does the story end?”
Tears slipped from my face, and he wiped them away with his thumbs.
“The foolish young man lets the beautiful maiden go.”
“Yes.” His voice was clotted thick with unshed emotion. “He lets her go.”

I can’t even begin to unpack how dumb I found the ending. The whole point was that she was supposed to sacrifice herself to give the world light and warmth, yet they are able to just say “Just kidding, take-backsies on our vows” and have her walk out of there, pretty much consequence free? I don’t get it but, full disclosure by that point I saw the light at the end of the book and I was barreling toward it, eager to be free of the Labyrinth of Boringtude. Book 2 is probably about how she finds a way to free the Goblin King, because she loves him. Despite knowing nothing about him, and never really having a good time with him. One of them was always upset.

The writing was okay. There’s quotable lines sure, but I found it to be overwrought and finicky. For a tale about characters who are supposedly wild and untameable, the writing went in the opposite direction style wise and was discordant.

This is definitely my least favourite read in the last year, and probably the most disappointing read for me in awhile. Have you read it? Were you like most people and loved it? If you loved it, I’d love to hear why in the comments. If you were disappointed and left feeling personally victimized by this book, let me know. We can go to group therapy together

[Amber (The Literary Phoenix)]

I bought this book on Audible on a whim, and !!! boy am I glad I did?  S. Jae-Jones has that lyrical way of writing that makes my heart flutter and this is a long but also hauntingly gorgeous story and I loved it.

1.  I've seen some mixed reviews of Liesl, but I really liked her.  Liesl was a fluid character.  She isn't quite sure what she wanted or who she was, a side-effect of constantly living in the shadows.  I liked Liesl's imperfections and passionate fits.  At times, she was a commanding woman and at others a spoiled brat and all versions of herself felt true.

2.  It's always enjoyable when authors incorporate entities as though they are breathing characters.  My personal favorite is theatre, but in Wintersong, the music is a character.  Liesl, the Goblin King, and other minor and supporting characters all twist and turn around compositions and chords until the book itself is a dance.

3.  As I said in the intro bit, this book is stunningly written.  S. Jae-Jones writes with grace and precision, and it is beautiful.  Few YA authors write this way, and many who attempt it go overboard.  This novel balances storytelling and stunning prose wonderfully.

4.  I found the world building breathtaking.  It is one thing to create the whimsy of the market or the tension of the inn, but the Underground took on a life of its own and wrapped me in its clutches.  The rules of magic came with consequences and the goblins themselves played dutifully by the laws of the world.

5.  I think that if you're going to set a story in a non-English setting, the language used becomes very important.  S. Jae-Jones incorporates German into her writing with flawless ease, using it as a world building element, a character definer (Der Erlkönig), and like frosting on the top of this already glorious cake.

6.  In a world filled with countless retellings, the story of the Goblin King is refreshingly original.  Yes, we've all see Labyrinth and this is not quite that story (at no point was I disappointed by the lack of David Bowie). It was a different story, but it stands as one of the best retellings I've ever come across.

7.  The characters here do no cease to surprise.  Käthe came in to the story flat and shallow, but turned out to be a ray of sunshine while Liesl's little brother was also more than he appeared.  We see their stories through a looking glass, and yet, their characters are loud and impressive.  And these two are minor characters.

8.  Wintersong has incredibly slow pacing, which may be a turnoff for some.  I actually enjoyed the leisurely gait... it let me soak in the world more.

9.  This story is an excellent example of how love at first sight, or young love, can still be complicated and awkward.  Lisel and Der Erlkönig's stories have been entwined since her childhood and in the first chapter you see his love for her... and yet nothing is simple.  Their love is complicated and that is how love ought to be.

10.  For those of you who enjoy audiobooks, Eva Kaminsky's reading of Wintersong was incredible.  Her voice was filled with yearning and questioning that was perfect for Liesl and I recommend this audiobook highly.

To be perfectly honest, up until the moment I impulsively bought it, Wintersong was a soft "I'll get to it eventually, maybe" for me.  This book is much too good for that.  I thoroughly enjoyed every word of this story and found myself completely captivated.  By all means - set forth and devour this beautiful novel. It's well worth it.

I don't even know where to start. I'm just conflicted. I'm just going to split this into likes and dislikes and make it dot point.

Likes
- I liked the whole dark fairytale mood
- I liked the music - the composing and the playing and the focus.

Dislikes
- I didn't really like Liesl. She's really a very nothing kind of character, just molding herself to whatever everyone wishes of her. She has no self-confidence. Yes she develops it to a certain degree but 400 pages of how plain and boring and ugly does not make me sympathise it just annoys the crap out of me. She was also so easily seduced by her perfect world that she just gives up on her sister - and yes I know that was the point but it just irritates me - she comes across so high and mighty for sacrificing but she doesn't actually sacrifice it right - she actually just considers forgetting about her sister and enjoying it. I have a younger sister. I would never do this. Furthermore this ties in with the whole relationship with the Goblin King. She's either scared of him or not - friends or not, hates him or not - pick one freaking option and stick with it. They spent so much time together and then she just writes him off - not because she forgets him (although I guess to some degree she does) but because she has other things to do - which, timeline kind of screws up here - because she's apparently childhood friends with Hans - did she ditch the Goblin King for her crush or what? Either way I was getting increasingly annoyed by their relationship because she just dithers. She's a ditherer.

- I actually started out liking the Goblin King but by the end of it I was ready to write him off as well. He's not much better than Liesl running hot and freaking cold.

- It was just so dense. And long. I struggled with the last half.

And worst of all - all that for THAT FREAKING ENDING! Are you freaking kidding me right now?!

I have heard there will be a sequel. But I think I might be better just cutting my losses.

[lizarodz]

3.5 -4 stars? Review soon

[Cocktails and Books]

Well...this didn't go the way I thought it was going to.

The author gives us a sweeping tale of a girl who's desperate to find someone who wants her and her music. She finds that in the Goblin King. But their story didn't end up the way I wanted and it left me feeling less than satisfied in the end.

[Kait ✨]

Maybe like 3.5 stars — the premise was really interesting, but I fluctuated between loving and being irritated by the writing voice. It’s a very slow, quiet book (although I found the plot compelling enough)... so right up my alley, but not necessarily for others.

[Jo]

1.5 Stars.

Originally posted on Once Upon a Bookcase.

When I heard that Wintersong by S. Jae-Jones was a retelling of The Labyrinth, I was sold. It's also a kind of reimagining of the Hades and Persephone myth, and is partly inspired by The Goblin Market by Christina Rossetti, all things that had me wanting to read it! However, there was very little about this book that I enjoyed.

That's not to say that it's a bad book, necessarily, just that it's not my kind of book. I had a certain idea in my head of what goblins are like, but these goblins are more like cruel, evil fae (and I believe they are, actually, fae - but I can't find anything credible online to back this up). There's a certain feel to faery stories, one that's easily recognisable even if fae aren't mentioned, like with Wintersong, but I fell out of love with fae a number of years ago. They're just not the kinds of stories I enjoy anymore.

But I also had a few problems with this particular story, again, most of which are preference based. There are several parts to the story, but in my mind, there are just two; Liesl tries to save her sister Käthe from the Underground in the first, and the second part covers what happens after. The first part I found to be very predictable. In the second part - the longer part of the novel - nothing much happens. There is the composing of music, there are conversations and arguments, there's sex, but not much else. I spent most of it waiting for something to happen, and it never really does, not until the end.

There is a lot about music - playing instruments, composing, and so forth. Music is a huge part of Liesl's life, of her family's life, and so it's right that it should come up frequently. But there was a lot of musical terminology, and if you don't know music, it's not going to mean anything to you. Of course you could look it up, but I don't think it's really necessary to know them all to catch the drift of what's happening - the composing, the passion, the soul soaring soaring at the beauty and freedom that comes with making music. You don't need to know what everything means to understand Liesl's love for music and the happiness it brings her. I don't share her passion, and although that's not necessary generally to enjoy a story, it mattered that I didn't here. I just had no interest, and would feel myself getting sighing in annoyance whenever music was the focus. Which isn't really fair. This book just wasn't meant for me, I am not the correct audience for this book.

There were also things I found so very annoying. The phrases "tall, elegant stranger" and "the austere young man" were repeated more times than I can count. Liesl kept talking about how plain she was, and had what seemed an obsession with appearance, forever putting herself down. It went beyond having low self-esteem, she was fixated. Although in this case it wasn't the same words that were repeated, it was the same idea that was. Smarter people than me may see think and see the theme of music, and make a link between the repetition of words or certain thoughts and the repetition of musical phrases in songs - I don't know if they would, I'm not really one for analysis, and I don't know enough about music to know if there even is a link - but if they would, that doesn't change the fact that I found it highly annoying.

The sex in the book also made me feel uncomfortable. I have no problem with sex in books, no problem with sex in YA. And nor do I have a problem with writing about rough sex. But I do have a problem with how this book dealt with consent. The Goblin King would always ask, aloud, one way or another if Liesl was happy to continue. Liesl didn't. No matter how many times the Goblin King said "Stop" or "Don't", she still kept trying to get him to have sex with her. It doesn't matter what his reasons for not wanting to have sex were, he didn't want to, and consent goes both ways. He said stop, she should have stopped, but she didn't. He had to physically force her back a number of times, and that's just not ok. It doesn't matter that he was aroused and she knew he wanted her, he said stop. But time and again does she refuse to listen.

There was also the idea of sex breaking Liesl that I really didn't like. Liesl needed to give the Goblin King a part of her, her music, but music she couldn't reach, and the only way she could, she said, was if the Goblin King broke her. Through sex. Then she could find it. What. The. Hell?! What does that even mean? I can get that there's freedom through sex, that unlocking desire can lead to liberation. But this wasn't about breaking free or being liberated, it was about being broken. The Goblin King would break her if he had sex with her. He told her so. She knew it - but she needed to be broken to access something that had nothing to do with sex. I have a problem with the language of it all, firstly. Rough sex that's consensual is fine, and that's what they had, but broken? I can't equate that word with consensual sex (which is sex, really. Sex without consent is rape, sex with is just sex.) - reaching limits and breaking through them, yes, but not breaking a person. I don't think the language was right here, because there was no rape. Lisel technically sexually assaulted the Goblin King a few times, but he didn't sexually assault or rape her, and to break a person with sex? Rape is what that suggests to me. But there's also Liesl needing to be broken to reach a certain part of herself. Yes, she locked a part of herself up tight, and she's finding it difficult to access that part of herself now, but I do not see how or why sex would/did help. Sexual freedom can lead to unlocking desire, sure, but her music? Not even the music itself, but a part of her that composes with abandon, something that doesn't actually have any link to the sex she's having, other than passion, but even then it's different passion. It's never sex and music, music and sex, the two are kept separate in the book, so why one is needed to reach the other just didn't make any sense to me. And again, I just don't like the idea of a person needing to be broken, in any way. She needed to unlock that part of herself, she didn't need to break. Saying all this, though, the sex isn't really a huge part of the novel, and it's never graphically described - though it is made quite clear that it's rough sex.

The best part of this book? The Goblin King. He is such an enigma, There are so many layers to him - he's not just a bad guy. For most of the book, I liked him. I wanted to know more. We do find out more about him, but it's so little. I sympathised with him and his eternal struggle, imprisoned by his role, the loneliness I sensed in him. I think I would have enjoyed this book a hell of a lot more if it was told from his point of view. I think he's the more complex and intriguing out of him and Liesl. He's the one I cared about.

And, I guess, because of that, I shouldn't have been surprised by the ending. But I was. I wasn't expecting it at all, and I think that was because it was from Liesl's point of view, because after everything, it ends like that? I finished it thinking, what was the point? What was the point in any of it happening, if that's where it was going to end up? The point is Liesl; who she was, who she becomes, the self-discovery she makes. But I didn't ever really care about Liesl. I cared about the Goblin King. And yes, those who have read it could argue about what the point was in regards to him, and I would completely get that, but I would say that would have worked better, been a more beautiful, moving, emotional story if it was told from his perspective. That would have been something. But it's not told from his perspective, so it wasn't something, not for me - for me, it felt like a waste of time. Not for me. I can't explain how I mean it without spoiling the story, but I don't mean that I felt like I wasted my time.

Because I did love the Goblin King. He is what I'll remember about this book; his story, what we know of it, and what we don't, and how the story will continue, even though the book has ended. He's the only reason I kept reading.

But as I said, I'm not the right audience for this book. This is mostly all based on my personal taste, and doesn't mean you won't enjoy it yourself. Do read a few other reviews before making a decision on whether or not you'll read it.

[emruth13]

This is the Goblin King as I've always wanted him. This book is everything for me, giving me my Goblin King from Labyrinth plus beautiful writing.