Hemlock & Silver — Book Review with Content Warnings

Author: T. Kingfisher

Genre: Mythic fantasy, Fantasy horror

Series: Standalone

Age Rating: Mature teens & adults; suitable for older teens, but the themes and pacing are more adult in tone and complexity.

Synopsis

Healer Anja is an expert on poisons. Some might say she has an unhealthy obsession with them. A desperate summons from the king disturbs her perfectly ordered herb-and-research life, tasking her with saving the princess Snow’s life. There is, of course, a talking cat and a taciturn guard who falls in love with the middle-aged Anja along the way.

Content Warnings

General Rating: Teen+ (PG-13 / TV-14 /14A)

• Spice Rating: Mild—kissing, closed-door intimacy

• Violence Rating: Moderate—swordfights, mythical monsters

• Profanity Rating: Mild—a single use of f*ck

• Other Trigger Warnings: terminal illness, death of a parent, death of a child, drug use, kidnapping, coercion/manipulation, murder and attempted murder, chronic illness

Overall Rating: 5/5

Delightful. A fun fantasy-horror with just a smidge of darkness.

What I Liked

• Anja: She is in good company with Kingfisher’s other female protagonists—she is funny, overly talkative, and knowledgeable about incredibly random things. I enjoy Kingfisher’s middle-aged female protagonists. She also presents great body positivity.

• Well-executed plot: Hemlock & Silver is an intriguing fantasy-mystery/fantasy-horror. A few points were glaringly obvious, including the red herring, but most of the plot was unpredictable and only loosely connected to the fairytale of Snow White.

• The romance: It was well-developed and sweet, while remaining in the periphery of the story. If you enjoy Kingfisher’s style and like dark fantasy retellings, this one is inventive and fresh!

What I Didn’t Like

• Anja: I know, I said I liked her. I also found her too similar to Halla in Swordheart and Marra in Nettle & Bone. All three are middle-aged, plus-sized, overly chatty women. It’s a trope that Kingfisher writes well, but grows mildly tedious after three iterations of the same character.

Themes and Reflections

• Knowledge, science, and magic: Anja is a woman of science; she discovered her passion for poison quite by mistake, and has happily been experimenting on herself since. However, the mirrors and magic of the palace quickly overturn her rational, scientific mind, forcing her to rely on more than just her physical senses.

• Self-acceptance: Anja is a socially awkward outsider. For the most part, she’s happy with this, but when it comes to romance, she is hopelessly insecure about her self-worth. She doesn’t view her body or intellect as anything worth desiring. Thankfully, Javier shows her differently as their romance develops.

“That was why I wasn’t really a healer. A good healer wants to help the person. Whereas what I wanted was to solve the problem.”

— T. Kingfisher, Hemlock & Silver

Writing Style

• Fluid, humorous, witty prose

• Relentless, fast pace

• Enchanting, alternatively light and dark atmosphere

• Endearing, archetypal first-person POV

• Snappy, witty dialogue

• Atmospheric, detailed worldbuilding

• Enjoyable and amusing narrative
  

Tropes

• Forbidden magic

• Whodunnit

• Mastermind villain

• Amateur sleuth

• Unlikely hero
  

More Like This

• Cinder by Marissa Meyer

• Nettle & Bone by T. Kingfisher

• Swordheart by T. Kingfisher

Publisher Info

• Publisher: Tor Books

• Release Date: August 19, 2025

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