Book Review: Hemlock & Silver by T. Kingfisher

I received a review copy from the publisher. This does not affect the contents of my review and all opinions are my own.

Hemlock & Silver by T. Kingfisher

Mogsy’s Rating: 4 of 5 stars

Genre: Fantasy

Series: Stand Alone

Publisher: Tor Books (August 19, 2025)

Length: 368 pages

Author Information: Website

As someone who reads just about everything T. Kingfisher writes, I jumped into Hemlock & Silver with a lot of excitement—and, admittedly, sky-high expectations. And while it didn’t end up being one of my favorites, I still thoroughly enjoyed the ride. After all, she is one of those authors where even a “not a favorite” is still a very good read.

Billed from the publisher’s description as a “dark reimagining of Snow White, Hemlock & Silver is pure Kingfisher: quirky characters, intellectual curiosity, and a sprinkling of fairy tale inspiration. The story follows Anja, a healer who specializes in the theory and treatment of poisons. Armed with a chime-adder (their venom happens to be an ingredient in a great number of antidotes) and a regular habit of ingesting toxins to better understand their effects, her unusual methods have made her something of an oddity within her community. But one day, her quiet life is suddenly interrupted when the king himself appears at her door with a desperate request. Having recently suffered the loss of both his wife and one of his children, he’s now determined to save his only surviving daughter, Snow, who has fallen gravely ill. The best doctors in the realm have already been consulted, and not one of them can determine what’s wrong. Suspecting that Snow’s symptoms are from poisoning, the king is turning to Anja as his final hope.

Left with little choice, our protagonist agrees to investigate and is escorted to the isolated desert retreat where Snow has been sequestered since her mother and sister’s suspicious deaths. Once there, she begins careful observation of the princess, interviewing the staff, and testing all the food. When nothing turns up, and Snow is still sick, Anja is forced to consider other possibilities, including magical influences and the unsettling behavior of the mysterious, finely crafted mirrors that the late queen had brought with her from her homeland. Before long, Anja finds herself pulled into a hidden world that seems to defy all logic and her training, but it might be the key to unlocking what is ailing Snow.

Though “Snow White reimagining” is what it says in the blurb, Hemlock & Silver is in fact quite sparse when it comes to elements from the original fairy tale. Instead, it hones in on the concept of a magic mirror and turns it on its head in a very clever and original way. But because the book is more inspired by the spirit of the fairy tale rather than its storyline, I wouldn’t go so far as to call it a retelling, and prospective readers should know this going in, especially those with a soft spot for Snow White who might be expecting more faithfulness to the plot.

Still, what really stood out for me was the tone. As always, Kingfisher strikes a great balance between dark and unsettling themes, with just the right amount of wit to take the edge off. The pacing was spot-on throughout, and you know how I often nitpick slow beginnings, but even the early chapters of Hemlock & Silver stole my attention as we got to know Anja and how her unusual fascination with poisons began. She’s also a classic Kingfisher protagonist: smart, socially awkward, and just a tad too hard on herself. But there’s no doubting her deep commitment to her calling, and that passion is infectious. I always appreciate a competent main character, and Anja absolutely fits the bill.

The world-building was also fantastic, particularly the quiet presence of the animal saints in the background, whose lore added depth to the setting. That said, once we reached halfway point of the story and the mirror element took center stage, I did find myself struggling to fully grasp some of the mechanics. Whether due to the limited explanations or the rather vague descriptions, it wasn’t always easy to visualize how things were working, and occasionally I felt a little lost in the details.

But like I said, even though Hemlock & Silver isn’t my favorite T. Kingfisher novel, I genuinely don’t think she’s capable of writing a bad book—and this one still hit all the right notes for me. It’s a strong entry in the fairy tale inspired fantasy genre: a little weird and a little creepy, but also clever and funny, and best of all, deeply satisfying in the way it weaves together science and magic. If you’re a fan of Kingfisher’s work, or offbeat fantasy and clever takes on folklore in general, you need to pick this up.