Item: Thistlefoot
Rating: 4.00
Author: quirkycat

by GennaRose Nethercott

In the tradition of modern fairy tales like Neil Gaiman's American Gods and Naomi Novik's Spinning Silver comes an immersive fantasy saga, a debut novel about estranged siblings who are reunited after receiving a mysterious inheritance.

“A wonderfully imaginative, wholly enchanting novel of witness, survival, memory, and family that reads like a fairy tale godfathered by Neil Gaiman and Tim Burton in a wild America alive with wonders and devils alike. Thistlefoot shimmers with magic and mayhem and a thrilling emotional momentum.” —Libba Bray, bestselling author of The Diviners

The Yaga siblings—Bellatine, a young woodworker, and Isaac, a wayfaring street performer and con artist—have been estranged since childhood, separated both by resentment and by wide miles of American highway. But when they learn that they are to receive an inheritance, the siblings agree to meet—only to discover that their bequest isn’t land or money, but something far stranger: a sentient house on chicken legs.

Thistlefoot, as the house is called, has arrived from the Yagas’ ancestral home outside Kyiv—but not alone. A sinister figure known only as the Longshadow Man has tracked it to American shores, bearing with him violent secrets from the past: fiery memories that have hidden in Isaac and Bellatine’s blood for generations. As the Yaga siblings embark with Thistlefoot on a final cross-country tour of their family’s traveling theater show, the Longshadow Man follows in relentless pursuit, seeding destruction in his wake. Ultimately, time, magic, and legacy must collide—erupting in a powerful conflagration to determine who gets to remember the past and craft a new future.

An enchanted adventure illuminated by Jewish myth and adorned with lyrical prose as tantalizing and sweet as briar berries, Thistlefoot is a sweeping epic rich in Eastern European folklore: a powerful and poignant exploration of healing from multi-generational trauma told by a bold new talent.

Book Summary:

What if Baba Yaga was real, and her story (lineage) lived on? What sort of adventures would her descendants find themselves in? Enter Ballatine and Isaac. Ballatine is a young woodworker with a secret. Isaac is a con artist charitably known as a street performer. He also has a secret, but it lies in his past.

Both siblings have something to run from. Yet they come together when a great inheritance is offered to them – Thistlefoot. Thistlefoot is a small home on chicken legs. It's not your typical mobile home, and it comes with certain...complications.

"Sometimes the story you need is not the story you might want. I respect this. But I warn you, there are no jokes in this story. Yes?"

My Review:

Wow! Thistlefoot was such an intense read. I went into it expecting something fun and fascinating, and what I got was so much more. This is a book that isn't afraid to get a bit dark. But it has a light and fascinating moments to help balance the story.

Thistlefoot is very steeped in folklore. Every chapter resonates with history, as the writer (GennaRose Netercott) tries to lead readers through a series of events, some of which are set long before our main characters were born.

Much like the entirety of this novel, the ending of Thistlefoot caught me by surprise. It's one of those endings that will take time to process – and I think that makes me love this book all the more! If you're looking for a heart-breaking yet heart-warming read, please consider picking it up.

Highlights:
Mythology
Baba Yaga
Puppetry
Multiple perspectives
LGBT

Trigger Warnings:
Infant death
Antisemitism
Animal death

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Thistlefoot

by GennaRose Nethercott

Reviewed by Quirky Cat on Jan 1, 2023

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