Bitterthorn

by Kat Dunn

Blumwald is a town overshadowed by an ancient in a sinister castle in the depths of the wild wood lives a monstrous Witch. Once a generation, she comes to claim a companion to return with her - never to be seen again. Now that time is drawing near once more...

Mina, daughter of the duke, is grieving and lonely. She has lost all hope of any future for herself in Blumwald. So when the Witch demands her next companion, Mina offers herself up - though she has no idea what fate awaits her. Stranded with her darkly alluring captor, the mystery of what happened to the previous companions draws Mina into the heart of a terrifying secret that could save her life, or end it.

Genres: Fantasy, Lesbian, Romance, Gothic, Queer, LGBT, Young Adult

Audible Audio

First published May 4, 2023

About the author

Kat Dunn is the author of HUNGERSTONE (2025), BITTERTHORN, and the Battalion of the Dead trilogy:
DANGEROUS REMEDY, MONSTROUS DESIGN and GLORIOUS POISON.

She grew up in London and has lived in Japan, Australia and France.

She has a BA in Japanese from SOAS and an MA in English from Warwick. She’s written about mental health for Mind and The Guardian, and worked as a translator for Japanese television.

Reviews

[Robin · Rating 5 out of 5]

gothic novels + sapphics just go together ya know?

anyway this was so good full review to come soon

[Ellie · Rating 5 out of 5]

From the first line this was glorious and beautifully tender. A lyrical Gothic tale with strong fairytale elements about loneliness and love, and how the two intertwine.

"Loneliness can be something other people do to us, and something we do to ourselves."

[Brend · Rating 5 out of 5]

''...in a sinister castle in the depths of the wild wood lives a monstrous Witch''
That's the future I'm working towards.
I hope all the yearning lesbians get to pick up this one soon!

[Shelley Parker-Chan]

A haunting, atmospheric tale of two lost souls finding each other, and a love that will remake the world. Exquisite

[Quill&Queer · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's June, and I've found my favourite book of 2024. This is such a beautiful, hopeful story filled with so much sapphic angst, about two women who end up living alone together in the same castle. The romance is beautifully written, watching them navigate their own hurt and loneliness to finally find each other was so emotionally raw.

This sets such a high bar for romance for me, and the way Mina decides to simply turn up and annoy the Witch with her presence every just to get her attention is quite frankly, so me. They both start bonding over their interest in each other's experiences, sharing quiet breakfasts together, and parallel play even makes an appearance, something I really connected to.

Of course, there is the underlying mystery of why Mina is in the castle, and where her predecessors went, and there's a constant awareness that she may be going to her death in this castle. This story blends many fairytale stories together, and I truly had no idea what was going to be revealed when Mina started investigating. This ending of this story is so, so good.

[jules ☾ *.:｡.✿ · Rating 3 out of 5]

“𝔏𝔬𝔫𝔢𝔩𝔦𝔫𝔢𝔰𝔰 𝔠𝔞𝔫 𝔟𝔢 𝔰𝔬𝔪𝔢𝔱𝔥𝔦𝔫𝔤 𝔬𝔱𝔥𝔢𝔯 𝔭𝔢𝔬𝔭𝔩𝔢 𝔡𝔬 𝔱𝔬 𝔲𝔰, & 𝔰𝔬𝔪𝔢𝔱𝔥𝔦𝔫𝔤 𝔴𝔢 𝔡𝔬 𝔱𝔬 𝔬𝔲𝔯𝔰𝔢𝔩𝔳𝔢𝔰.”

𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠: ╰☆☆☆

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐎𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐕𝐢𝐛𝐞𝐬:
🥀 slow burn
🏰 gothic fantasy
❤️‍🔥 sapphic romance
🗺️ historical fiction
✨ fairytale elements
🔎 a bit of a mystery
🏳️‍🌈 LGBTQIA+
𝐓𝐖:murder, death, blood, self-harm, forced proximity, loss of a family member, abandonment, parental neglect, mild sexually explicit content

𝐌𝐲 𝐒𝐲𝐧𝐨𝐩𝐬𝐢𝐬:
In the depths of the mountainous forest lies a sinister castle within the town of Blumwald. Therein resides a witch rumored to be so wicked, looming above the townsfolk waiting to capture her next victim or as they call it her next, “companion”. Every few years the witch claims a new companion as her own, forcing them to her castle never to be seen of again. When the witch comes beckoning once more, Mina, a rather unseen, lonely daughter of a prominent duke offers herself up without hesistation. Her life is full of great misery and loneliness it ultimately compels her to step into the dark unknown & into the witch’s clutches. Curious of the mysteries of past companions & the very witch herself, Mina embarks on her journey to the cursed castle to find answers and perhaps, to her surprise, even love.

𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐈 𝐋𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐝:

ℬ𝑒𝒶𝓊𝓉𝒾𝒻𝓊𝓁, 𝒜𝓉𝓂𝑜𝓈𝓅𝒽𝑒𝓇𝒾𝒸 𝒫𝓇𝑜𝓈𝑒.｡.:*♡
Oh my goodness! I was absolutely swept away with how captivating Kat Dunn’s writing was! The world she set was so vivid, lush, & lyrical I was buzzing with every word! I was immediately transported into her dark fairytale-like atmosphere. Truly painstakingly beautiful. I know some may grow bored of descriptive writing, but in this case it was what kept me reading on.

𝓕𝓪𝓲𝓻𝔂𝓽𝓪𝓵𝓮 𝓔𝓵𝓮𝓶𝓮𝓷𝓽𝓼.｡.:*♡
Kat Dunn entwined multiple fairytale stories from my childhood (which I still adore now) which was deeply appreciated & I simply adored. There was Beauty & The Beast, Sleeping Beauty & even a little dash of Cinderella. I happily noticed all the winks to my favorite stories & it was incorporated beautifully (& not in a cliché way).

𝓣𝓱𝓮 𝓞𝓿𝓮𝓻𝓪𝓵𝓵 𝓣𝓱𝓮𝓶𝓮 𝓸𝓯 𝓛𝓸𝓷𝓮𝓵𝓲𝓷𝓮𝓼𝓼.｡.:*♡
Throughout Bitterthorn it was abundantly clear that loneliness was the focal point of this story, however, the manner in which she wrote about it was devastatingly stunning. Dunn made me feel heartache, pain, & love all at once (& it’s not easy for anyone to make me feel all the emotions). Both Mina & the Witch were two lonely, lost souls & yearning to be loved so, their emotional journeys was so tender & raw you felt it. Well done to the author for touching upon a very relatable, painful theme in which so many of us struggle with.


𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐈 𝐃𝐢𝐬𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞𝐝:

𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙥𝙖𝙘𝙚 𝙬𝙖𝙨 𝙧𝙖𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙨𝙡𝙤𝙬
In the beginning, I was enraptured, but it quickly lost it’s buzz when nothing of particular note happened until 70% in. A majority of the book was Mina pacing the castle wondering what the witch was up to. That at times was hard to keep reading. It felt repetitive for some time. There were mysteries to be solved, but nothing was being done to solve them (lol)


𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙧𝙤𝙢𝙖𝙣𝙘𝙚 𝙬𝙖𝙨 𝙘𝙡𝙪𝙢𝙨𝙮 & 𝙛𝙤𝙧𝙘𝙚𝙙
It kind of just happened? Yeah, it was a slow burn, so I guess that’s not for me because I kept getting agitated waiting & waiting for something to happen, but again—not much. Nothing really *happened* for them to fall in love. It just did? I am glad they found each other after all they endured, but it could of been done better.

𝙈𝙤𝙧𝙚 𝙘𝙪𝙧𝙨𝙚, 𝙢𝙤𝙧𝙚 𝙢𝙖𝙜𝙞𝙘!
There was SO many missed opportunities!. Here is the writer incorporating a seemingly evil witch haunting a town with missing past companions and I felt like the reason was just so flat! (I won’t share) I wish she produced more magic & the curse wreaked more havoc. The castle could of been more magical, too. The one room that didn’t change time was ok I guess but didn’t make a lot of sense? Felt random. Anyway, Bitterthorn had so much potential to be so much more magical. It was all such a gloomy mystery that I was literally salivating for MORE.

Overall, this was a cute lil’ read. Gorgeous writing with a pretty cool plot. I wanted more obv, but I’m happy I read it! Btw—I should of read the synopsis before purchasing lol (I had no idea it was sapphic lol) I’m a sucker for a pretty cover!!


✿.｡.:* ☆:**:. .:**:.☆*.:｡.✿ ✿.｡.:* ☆:**: .:**:.☆*.:｡.✿

3.5 stars!! rtc! (this was so cute) ✨🖤🥀

✿.｡.:* ☆:**:. .:**:.☆*.:｡.✿ ✿.｡.:* ☆:**: .:**:.☆*.:｡.✿

𝚄𝚙𝚍𝚊𝚝𝚎 𝟺.𝟺.𝟸𝟺: A gothic fairtytale about love? I’m READY.

[Saara El-Arifi · Rating 5 out of 5]

BITTERTHORN tugged on the threads of my heartstrings until I had nothing left to give it but my soul. Hauntingly beautiful, this gothic fairytale lingers in the darkest corners of my mind forevermore. A triumph.

[Kai Spellmeier · Rating 5 out of 5]

Consider my breath taken!!!

[Daniella · Rating 3 out of 5]

Unsure really how to sum up my thoughts on this

There was a lot I liked - the setting/atmosphere was cool, it was neat to have a bit of historical happenings in the background, and I liked that Mina was a protagonist with hobbies!

The romance, though...yes the vibes were there but I also felt like we skipped a lot of time which made this feel less slow burn that it actually was. The book was set over a year, but because we spent weeks in passing where their relationship developed, it felt much shorter so the fear to lovers thing felt quicker than I would have liked. I also felt like the relationship was kind of toxic at points and this wasn't really acknowledged and was instead put down to loneliness and prickliness and it just took Mina really pushing the point for them to move on? Like Mina seemed genuinely upset when the Witch got mad at her, even if it was a front, but then a couple pages later we are in love and stuff again? I also thought the end was a bit corny and didn't really understand the 3rd act conflict since I thought it was pretty obvious what was happening to the companions?

I can definitely see this as being for fans of The Wolf and the Woodsman, A Far Wilder Magic and For the Wolf - all which are books I enjoyed. Maybe I would need to reread to really solidify my thoughts, but I think atm there were a lot of solid and great elements, but ultimately the romance didn't enthral me. I would recommend it though and can see a lot of people really loving it. I'm just not sure I loved the 'I can fix her vibes', which I would have been fine with if this was a story of dark obsession and toxicity, but I got the impression that this was meant to be a healthy relationship and idk about that...

[kezzie ʚ♡ɞ · Rating 4 out of 5]

✩ 4.5 stars
~
all i knew about this book before i picked it up was that it is like uprooted but gay & i knew i had to pick this up.
~
this book effected me sm, it hurt & hit WAY too close to home but i loved every second of it.
~
can i just live in this book? PLS!!!! <3

[Grace (irisroman & evajacks' version) ✧ · Rating 3 out of 5]

･:*:･ﾟ⁀➷ 3/5 ★

A pretty decent read! 🫶🫶 i went in with zero expectations and while it wasn't my fav, i still had fun 💐

“Loneliness can be something other people do to us, and something we do to ourselves.”

Tropes:
🌹 Beauty and the Beast vibes
🌹 Gothic fantasy
🌹 Sapphic romance

This concept of this really intrigued me and that cover is also super cool, so I decided to give it a try. I honestly have heard nothing about it and I definitely think it deserves a lot more hype! 🥰🥰

I think the atmosphere and vibes were definitely my fav part of the book! I am a sucker for any kind of gothic fantasy and this really delivered on that- the setting of the old, slightly creepy castle was so fun and atmospheric 🤭🤭 Plus the author's writing style really lent itself to a more darker atmosphere, which I really enjoyed! ✨️

I thought the plot was pretty good and I liked the twists & turns later on in the story. I heard this pitched as a sapphic version of beauty and the Beast and that is honestly the best way I can describe this book. it felt like a darker version of the Disney movie and that was sm fun! 💌

“She hadn't been perfect. She hadn't even been easy. But she had been mine.”

However, I did have a few issues with this. For me, the only way I can really love a book is if I love the characters and romance, and I didn't feel super connected to either in this book 🫠🫠The characters felt pretty flat and the mc Mina was a little annoying at times, and the romance didn't feel super genuine. their relationship started off good, but then it felt like they fell in love too abruptly ☹️ Plus the pacing of this book was super slow and it felt like there were lots of parts where nothing was happening, which was a bit of a bummer 😭😭

“I don't understand love,' I said, submerging the cloth in the water. 'I don't know how it works or what it is for. I've read poetry and novels and listened to music and viewed art all about love but it was like another language. I thought it must be something that wasn't meant for me. Until I met you.”

Overall, it was a decent read! 🫶🫶 I would recommend it if you want:

✔️ Gothic vibes
✔️ Beauty and the Beast esque
✔️ Subplot of romance

I think if you liked Uprooted by Naomi Novak, you would really enjoy this 💐

《 2024 Challenge: Book 40 of 115 》

･:*:･ﾟ･:*:･ﾟ･:*:･ﾟ･:*:･ﾟ･:*:･ﾟ･:*:･ﾟ･:*:･ﾟ

This was pretty good! 💌 loved the gothic vibes, but the characters and romance fell a little flat for me 🫤

Rtc 💐

[Gabbie Pop · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5/5
To me, this is nothing short of a masterpiece and Dunn's best novel yet. The world feels so lush, the characters so real and the protagonist's internal life so palpable, that I found myself diving head first into the story with no desire to come out for air. I couldn't help but believe the kind of hopelessness, disillusion and desperation propelling our protagonist onto a journey she'd never have expected for herself (but which, I, for one, loved every minute of). There is a suffocating sense of loneliness creeping out of these pages. Dunn offers grace and tenderness even to the characters one might think she owes none to. She also plays with readers' expectations of what drives a character (i.e: The Witch) and refuses to give in to the predictable.
I must add that the lyrical writing style really helped bring the fairytale-like atmosphere to life, and I found myself so taken aback by the beauty of the writing and the way Dunn managed to put certain feelings into words so much that I feared that were I to start highlighting my favourite passages I'd end up with a fully highlighted book.
Cannot stress enough how much I loved this!!

[Minerva · Rating 2 out of 5]

I read Bitterthorn for a book club and should add that if it wasn't for that outward motivation, I wouldn't have picked it up based on the short summary alone, so perhaps I'm simply not the right audience for this book.
At the start I was intrigued. The build-up seemed a little bit slow, but then the main character joined the witch and I was ready for things to unfold. For things to happen! Which...they didn't. The main character got bored with nothing to do. So did I. The nineteenth-century gothic style didn't ring quite true to me; now and then there seemed to be a modern dissonant that plucked me out of the intended atmosphere. I didn't root for the romance, the plot seemed to rely completely on miscommunications/lack of communication, and I felt more and more as if this would have worked better as a short story.
Kudos for the gorgeous cover with the shiny skull!

[Abbie Toria · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

A truly gothic fairytale that grew on me with the telling.

[Emily Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 ⭐️ A hauntingly beautiful sapphic tale that will likely remain on my mind for a long while to come.

This was probably the first book club where everyone has enjoyed the book. It’s gripping, and draws you in with its mystery and gothic edge.

I will say it’s slow paced and a tad repetitive but for once that didn’t bother me because it’s used more as a tool to explore isolation and loneliness, and as such, it works.

It’s an incredibly beautiful and emotive read, and I really enjoyed every second. This is my second book by Dunn and I’m yet to be let down.

Rep// Sapphic woman MC, Sapphic woman MC. Central romance is Sapphic / WLW.

TWs listed below, please skip if you don’t want vague spoilers.







TW// isolation, loneliness, mental health, death of a parent (past), death, eye horror, self harm (burning), vomit, toxic parent, very brief sex scene (described vaguely.)

[Lizzie Huxley-Jones · Rating 5 out of 5]

I finished Bitterthorn one winter night while the rain battered the windows, and by gods, what a book. It’s a masterpiece, a slow burn gothic story of love and monstrosity and the weight of loneliness. It’s an instant favourite for me.

Bitterthorn by Kat Dunn follows Mina, grieving and lonely, who offers herself up to the town curse, and to the Witch to be her next companion. But what happened to the captors before her, and what awaits her in the castle?

Kat Dunn examines the power of loneliness and isolation and cruelty in making monsters of us, using a backdrop of a sweeping dark fairytale, but also the power of insistent, honest love that recognises the truths of each other. Mina and the Witch are a compelling pair, trapped in a castle in which time seems to follow no logic, or perhaps many logics, the mystery of which Mina seeks to solve in order to know the Witch, her Witch.

There is so much I loved — stony Wolf and her resilience, the quiet small acts of kindness between Mina and the Witch as they try and find a way to be, the mystery of the castle. And so much rattled my bones, dragged tears from me. I truly mean it when I say this is automatically one of my favourite books. A queer haunting of a story about loneliness, loss, and love that has lodged itself firmly in my head and my heart.

If you love Uprooted or any of the work by Melinda Salisbury or the tension of Kiran Millwood Hargrave’s The Mercies or Katherine Arden, and deep swooning enemies to lovers stories against the backdrop of a literal castle, you *have* to preorder this ready for its arrival in May. Think sweeping landscapes, logic defying magic, mysteries galore, complicated people trying their best, and some unnerving discoveries.

[Lea · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the fourth book to ever make me cry and it’s now one of my all time favourites as well.

Every once in a while, you cross paths with a book that engraves itself in your heart and bones and has you convinced that it was somehow written for you. Little did I know that a recommendation from my friend Amy would soon be one of those books. I say this because it is both very rare for me to read almost an entire book in a single day and to cry whilst reading, but this is what happened with Bitterthorn.

Set in the imaginary German town of Blumwald and a mysterious castle hidden away in the depths of a mountainous forest, Bitterthorn was a truly mesmerizing and intimate story about love, companionship and how loneliness makes monsters out of all of us. From the very first page, Kate Dunn captivated me with a brilliantly dark, gothic and fairytale-like atmosphere as well as prose, that made it impossible to put this novel down. Along with that, was incredibly moved by the relationship between Mina and the Witch and how its changed from being rooted in fear and uncertainty into trust, desire and collective grief and heartbreak.
My heart is still mourning the end of my time with these two women, and I therefore cannot recommend Bitterthorn enough to everyone who is seeking for

[Danny_reads]

DNF @ 33%

I was really looking forward to this, but I'm now a 1/3 of the way in and I still don't care.

I don't care about the characters, the plot is unclear, and some of the writing is a bit too over the top for my tastes. I was really hoping for more gothic, creepy vibes, but I wasn't really getting any of that.

This book might be for other people, but I just found it boring.

[Lyra (Cardan's tail's version) · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’ll be writing a review for this at some point I swear, but not rn.

[Isabella · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’m so surprised I haven’t seen much hype for this book it was genuinely perfect in every way

[Leni · Rating 2 out of 5]

The entire premise of this book could be solved fairly easily: just give criminals sentenced to death to the wheel? The time period when the book is set, capital punishment was still on the books. How come in 400 years no one thought of that?

[AmyMayBooks · Rating 5 out of 5]

How do I give a book 6⭐️???

This book was incredible, like I literally have no words - it was the perfect queer gothic romance and I just loved it from start to finish

[I can't read straight · Rating 2 out of 5]

I've heard a lot about this book with quite enthusiastic tones, but honestly, I don't understand why. It's part of a new trend where they try to take the side of classic villains (like Malice). I like the genre, black-and-white villains don't appeal to anyone, but giving depth to these characters is much harder than it seems.

The beginning was great, the atmosphere, the witch, the idea of the sacrifice, the castle, and everything else. But soon, it all became incredibly corny. Mina is a rather unbearable character, but the real disappointment was the witch, the emblem of the misunderstood do-gooder. She's portrayed so poorly that everything lost its charm.

On the other hand, Mina starts off as the classic orphan who is ignored or mistreated by her stepmother. She lives on her own, devoting herself to reading and walking. She feels her life is worthless and then decides to "sacrifice" herself. Her self-pity persists throughout the book without any justification. She returns once to her family only to find that no one missed her (insert more self-pity here). You'd think that would make her get the message, but no! Mina runs away again from the witch's castle and can't do anything but go back to her family, who rejects her again.

All of this is coupled with a senseless need for approval and parental love from those who have never truly loved her (as she never misses a chance to remind us), memories of her deceased mother who is poorly described as depressed or bipolar (it's not clear to me), and the disasters faced when trying to "help" a family of one of the previous companions that I won't even try to describe.

Every attempt to lead her to an epiphany from all these life lessons she receives falls quite flat. At that point, her self-misery starts to match that of the witch (whose tragic fate we learn about)leading to a rather cheesy happy ending.

[Cristina · Rating 3 out of 5]

Majority of this book was a 4 star, but the last third dropped it down to 3 star because Mina pissed me the fuck off

How are you going to give this grand declaration of love after the Witch communicated her fear that she was too much of a monster to love, and then turn around and RUN AWAY when you learn the truth. Like oh my god grow a fucking spine. It was truly difficult to get on board with the romance

[Fifi · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5
With its haunting premise and eerie fairytale atmosphere, Bitterthorn by Kat Dunn sets the stage for a story steeped in gothic beauty, magic, and longing. At its core, this is a sapphic fantasy about sacrifice, isolation, and finding connection in unexpected places, all set within a cursed kingdom that lives under the shadow of an ancient tradition. Despite a compelling setup and a promising romantic thread, however, Bitterthorn ultimately doesn’t live up to the emotional or narrative potential it sets out to achieve.

Dunn’s writing is lyrical and rich with atmosphere, conjuring crumbling castles, snow-draped forests, and an underlying sense of melancholy that lingers over every scene. The gothic aesthetic is strong throughout, and the quiet moments between Mina and the Witch are among the most emotionally resonant. Their relationship is tentative, fragile and slow-burning—elements that would normally work well in a fairytale setting, but here often feel underdeveloped.

The biggest challenge with Bitterthorn is its pacing. The middle section drags considerably, with much of the narrative devoted to introspection, wandering, and repetition rather than plot progression. While the story is clearly aiming for a slow, meditative tone, it unfortunately struggles to maintain momentum, and the emotional payoff in the final act feels muted as a result. Characters outside of Mina and the Witch lack depth, and even the central romance, while sweet, is often buried beneath the weight of the novel’s more philosophical musings.

There’s a beautiful, aching story buried within these pages, and for readers drawn to quiet, poetic fantasies with gothic flair and feminist themes, there’s still something worthwhile here. But it’s difficult to shake the feeling that Bitterthorn could have been something more—sharper, more urgent, and ultimately more impactful.

Pre-Review: This had all the gothic vibes I wanted, but the pacing dragged so much. Loved the eerie atmosphere and sapphic romance, but I needed more from the characters.

[Sky. · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.25 ⭐️

“I don’t understand love,’ I said, submerging the cloth in the water. ‘I don’t know how it works or what it is for. I’ve read poetry and novels and listened to music and viewed art all about love but it was like another language. I thought it must be something that wasn’t meant for me. Until I met you.”

I am at lost for word, this book literally made me cry my heart out (I’m still crying) 😭

This book reminded me a lot of the beauty and the beast, but guess what? It’s SAPPHIC!!!🔥

The writing is fantastic and poetic, the vibes was Atmospheric, mysterious and so addictive
The story is beautiful and heartbreaking 🥺

“I felt power in my independence: far, far safer to be alone than to want and be unwanted.”

A witch come every 50 years to take a companion? Why, what for? Tell me more!!!!
I was literally hooked form the first line

I hoped we will get the witch pov to understand her more but unfortunately we didn’t, I expected her to be more powerful from the way the talk about her, but she’s just misunderstood and lost and needed someone to care for her and love her 😢

The way Mina and the witch loved each other was so overwhelming, they were willing to sacrifice so much for each other 😭😭!

I must say there’s a lot of things I still don’t understand but I don’t care! I enjoyed reading this book and I can’t wait to read more by the author! Though i hope she doesn’t make cry the way i did here 😭😭

[bri]

Enchanted. Kat Dunn has tactfully braided together the motifs and conventions of fairytales and gothics into this hopeful, dark, sapphic fantasy out of my dreams. This one hit all the right notes for me: gothic tension, fairytale structure, rich atmosphere, compelling romance, luxurious prose. Bitterthorn is for the lonely hearts who are tired of waiting for their life to begin.

CW: suicidal ideation, self-harm, death of mother (past), grief, emesis, fire, blood, dead bodies, death, animal death, illness, sexual content (not graphic)

[erica ࣪ ִֶָ☾. · Rating 5 out of 5]

5★
”By oak. By ash. By bitterthorn. I swear a bloody oath to you.”

Kat Dunn the author that you are…

This was SOOO good I can’t get over it. Honestly a perfect fall read. I looooved the characters and the weirdness of the castle, it was so much more interesting than I was expecting it to be!! The ending had me in tears 😭

Also…I know I literally just said I was giving up on romantasy but a sapphic gothic fantasy does NOT count 🙅‍♀️🙅‍♀️🙅‍♀️

[amie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beauty & The Beast if the beast is a beautiful ‘evil’ witch & Belle was Cinderella (& they’re sapphics !!!!!)

Kat really wrote this for the trauma girlies & it hit (I.e. hurt). This is an exploration of grief and loneliness wrapped up in a gothic fairytale romance.

I loved it; wholly recommend

[L.R. Lam · Rating 5 out of 5]

I blurbed this!

"Bitterthorn is like all of your favourite fairy tales had a gothic, sapphic child. A mesmerising, atmospheric story."