The River Has Roots

book notes

title: The River Has Roots
author: Amal El-Mohtar
published: 3.4.2025
publisher: Tordotcom
Source: Kindle Unlimited
genre(s): folklore
pages: 100
format: eBook
buy/shelve it: Amazon | B&N | Kobo | BookBub | BookHype | StoryGraph | Goodreads
rating:

the blurb

Follow the river Liss to the small town of Thistleford, on the edge of Faerie, and meet two sisters who cannot be separated, even in death.
“Oh what is stronger than a death? Two sisters singing with one breath.”
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…

a few notes

POV: 1st person
setting: Arcadia, Thistleford
keywords/phrases: magic, fae, murder, sisters
spice: 0/0
language: 0/0

mood reading: in the mood for beautiful folklore reimaginings.

awards:

• Goodreads Choice Award Nominee for Fantasy (2024)
• She Reads Best of Award Nominee for Fantasy & Magical Realism (2024)

my review

When I chose to read this, I wasn’t entirely sure I was going to enjoy it. The description gives the vibe of a story with lots of flowery prose, which is something I don’t usually care for. But this novella was hauntingly beautiful, ethereal, almost poetic in its writing. It’s one part love story, one part fairy tale, and one part the story of the bond between sisters. That last is truly the heart of the story, sisters who love each other to sacrifice most anything for the sake of the other.

I will say that I truly understood the magic system used, called “grammar.” It’s mentioned often, this magic system compared to words, but it’s never really explained. It was such a big part of the story that it often felt as if I were missing something with my lack of understood. My only other complaint is that the ending felt a little abrupt, going from the climax to the conclusion within just a few pages.

But overall, a beautiful read.

Rating Report
the story
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Overall:

Reading this book contributed to these challenges:

• 2025 PopSugar Reading Challenge