Nettle & Bone
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Nettle & Bone Audible Audiobook – Unabridged

T. Kingfisher (Author), Amara Jasper (Narrator), Macmillan Audio (Publisher)
4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars 13,373 ratings
Goodreads Choice Award nominee
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2023 - Hugo Award - Winner

2023 Nebula Awards - Nominee, Short-listed

2022 NYPL Best Books of the Year, Long-listed

2022 NPR Best Book of the Year, Long-listed

2022 BookPage Best Books of the Year, Long-listed

2022 Shelf Awareness Best Books of the Year Long-listed

From Hugo, Nebula, and Locus award-winning author T. Kingfisher comes an original and subversive fantasy adventure.

This isn't the kind of fairytale where the princess marries a prince.

It's the one where she kills him.

Marra never wanted to be a hero.

As the shy, convent-raised, third-born daughter, she escaped the traditional fate of princesses, to be married away for the sake of an uncaring throne. But her sister wasn’t so fortunate—and after years of silence, Marra is done watching her suffer at the hands of a powerful and abusive prince.

Seeking help for her rescue mission, Marra is offered the tools she needs, but only if she can complete three seemingly impossible tasks:

—build a dog of bones

—sew a cloak of nettles

—capture moonlight in a jar

But, as is the way in tales of princes and witches, doing the impossible is only the beginning.

Hero or not—now joined by a disgraced ex-knight, a reluctant fairy godmother, an enigmatic gravewitch and her fowl familiar—Marra might finally have the courage to save her sister, and topple a throne.

"Nettle & Bone is the kind of book that immediately feels like an old friend. Fairytale mythic resonance meets homey pragmatism in this utterly delightful story. It's creepy, funny, heartfelt, and full of fantastic characters I absolutely loved!”—Melissa Caruso, author of The Tethered Mage

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  1. Listening Length
    9 hours and 3 minutes
  2. Author
    T. Kingfisher
  3. Narrator
    Amara Jasper
  4. Audible release date
    April 26, 2022
  5. Language
    English
  6. Publisher
    Macmillan Audio
  7. ASIN
    B08TYT2GZZ
  8. Version
    Unabridged
  9. Program Type
    Audiobook
  10. See all details
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Product details

Listening Length 9 hours and 3 minutes
Author T. Kingfisher
Narrator Amara Jasper
Whispersync for Voice Ready
Audible.com Release Date April 26, 2022
Publisher Macmillan Audio
Program Type Audiobook
Version Unabridged
Language English
ASIN B08TYT2GZZ
Best Sellers Rank #4,002 in Audible Books & Originals (See Top 100 in Audible Books & Originals)
#32 in Fairy Tale Fantasy (Audible Books & Originals)
#142 in Folklore (Books)
#218 in Action & Adventure Fantasy (Audible Books & Originals)

Customer reviews

4.5 out of 5 stars
4.5 out of 5
13,373 global ratings
Atmospheric, enchanting & entirely absorbing
4 Stars
Atmospheric, enchanting & entirely absorbing
I absolutely adored this atmospheric, enchanting, entirely absorbing little story.With subtle yet distinct fantasy elements, a dash of fairytale vibes and a quiet sapphic relationship— I think all readers can find something to connect to & fall completely in love with!If you’re a sucker for stories with a fantasy quest, the best animal companions, and taking down a force of evil (aka an abusive husband), you will not want to miss out on this!!!!This author is quickly becoming a favorite and I cannot wait to read more.
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Top reviews from the United States

Terra Caldwell
5.0 out of 5 stars Absolutely beautiful
Reviewed in the United States on April 13, 2024
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I recently found Kingfisher and have been reading my way through her works. When I picked this one up, I wasn't sure at first because the first couple of pages are a little weird. But around page 5 the weirdness eases off and it turns into a more conventionally-told story, and then the weirdness becomes completely understandable. That said, the elements of the story are hardly conventional at all.

Marra is not a typical "strong female character." Or, rather, she is EXACTLY what a strong female character should be. She doesn't physically kick ass and she has no "useful" skills. Although she's a princess and was sent to a convent, she isn't really either. She can't *princess* very well and she hasn't taken orders to be a nun. All she can really do is embroider. But she has tremendous inner strength, wit, drive, willpower, and she has a special kind of courage. These things make her one of the strongest female characters I've ever read because she succeeds despite only being able to embroider, and her success is extremely satisfying and makes utter sense.

Also satisfying are the cast of characters who get roped into helping Marra along her way. They include a "dust-wife," who is a person who can talk with the dead; Marra's fairy godmother, who's not very good at her job; a foreign man they rescued from a Goblin market; a possessed chicken; a baby chick; and a dog made out of bones (the "bone" part of the title). The book is light on world-building in that you only get enough world-building to make sense of what's happening, but it is heavy on character voice, development, and interpersonal stuff so you get to know the characters quite well.

Themes include self-sacrifice, courage, justice, and (mostly familial) love. None of it's cloying or moralizing. There's a strong streak of woman-centric horror in this novel. Men will be able to relate, but as a woman I found the horror elements quite affecting. CN: domestic violence, sibling issues, teeth. No "on-screen" rape, though it's implied that a secondary character has had that happen to her.

After reading something like 10 of Kingfisher's books, I've finally been able to pinpoint what is so awesome about Kingfisher. First, she writes very, very well. Second, she's basically a cross between Terry Pratchett (especially his Vimes and Weatherwax books) and Lois McMaster Bujold. If you like them, you should love Kingfisher.

Note: unlike most of the rest of Kingfisher's books, this isn't a romance in a fantasy setting. While there is a romantic subplot, it's a minor subplot.
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Connie
4.0 out of 5 stars Fun unpredictability in Fairy-tale Land
Reviewed in the United States on April 28, 2024
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This award-winning book is set in what might be called Fairy-tale Land, as are a lot of the books of Robin McKinley and Diana Wynne Jones (and fans of those authors should love T. Kingfisher). There are kingdoms and princesses and magic workers, without too much worry about geography or how the magic works or the economic underpinnings of society,. Elements of kids' fairy tales pop up, here fairy godmothers who either bless or curse newborns.

Kingfisher makes up some new fairy tale tropes of her own, my favorite the "dust wife," an old woman who lives next to the graveyard, helps dig new graves, and can speak with the dead. She also has a very endearing dog assembled out of old bones and held together with wire.

The story carries one right along, with little predictability -- which is good! The heroine is definitely different from your standard YA heroine (and although the book tries to insist it's not YA, the heroine is 30 years old after all, it's YA). She's a princess who has become sort-of a nun (actually a "conversa" to use a real medieval term) and whose super-power is not that super, it's understanding fabric and embroidery. Embroidering nuns are not typical YA heroines, but one becomes very attached to Marra.

My only real criticism is that the book's whole plot starts with the decision that a spousal abuser needs to be murdered. Certainly I'd say such an abuser needs to be punished and separated from victims and potential victims, but I'm not sure it's a capital offense (the characters have no such doubts).
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Robin
5.0 out of 5 stars So much better than the other ones like it!
Reviewed in the United States on March 28, 2024
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I literally just muddled though Krista Street's Court of Winter (saw all the 5 star reviews for that terrible story, wondered if I had lost my mind) and then finally opened this book, which I have had in my library for months. Do you know that feeling? When when you read one (or a series of) bad or mediocre book(s), and then finally, you read a good book and you realize you were just settling before and you shouldn't have. Its probably very unfair to compare books by different authors, but I'm going to go ahead and do it anyway. Both books have a female protagonist who has had a loved one killed by an eligible prince. However, this books calls the prince what he is...a monster...not a love interest. I know it's all fiction, but can we have more female protagonists with healthy boundaries and even some really basic standards? I would have respected this book more just on principle alone, but Kingfisher had a great way of storytelling that made this story so engaging. Once I started I couldn't stop. Even the characters you didn't see much had nuance and depth. Just really good! This was my first time reading anything by this author, and now I can't wait to try her other works.
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Belle Zimet
5.0 out of 5 stars A delightful tale
Reviewed in the United States on March 28, 2024
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This fairytale was pure joy. T. kingfisher’s work feels like slices of fantasy life told in an almost non-linear fashion. It’s like hearing an oral tale rather than a constructed, written one. I find every bit of her writing in this to be beautifully unusual and inventive even with a cast of characters inspired by fairytale standards. Marra gathers her cohorts one by one until we have a menagerie of magical beings, humans, and animals who all seem to have individual personalities, and you love them all. If you like fairytales and humor, look no further.
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Ashley
4.0 out of 5 stars Wait until the magic kicks in
Reviewed in the United States on April 25, 2024
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I had a hard time getting started on this book with the royal politics and whatnot. But oh boy, once the magic started in and Marra took action on her half-cooked plan, I flew through the rest of this book! I loved all 4 of the characters traveling together (5 if you count her dog, 6-7 if you're particularly fond of chickens). Give this a read!
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Kimberleigh
5.0 out of 5 stars Delightful read
Reviewed in the United States on April 29, 2024
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I couldn't put this book down. The characters and plot are irresistible. It's a read I am sure you're going to enjoy, I would also recommend this for teens as well as adults.
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Top reviews from other countries

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Dan Lacroix
5.0 out of 5 stars A true delight to read.
Reviewed in Canada on February 8, 2024
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One the best fantasy stories I have read in a while. Great plot, well crafted characters and excellent mix of dread, action, tenderness and humour.
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Jonas Allen
5.0 out of 5 stars Anders ... gut!
Reviewed in Germany on February 18, 2024
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Eine Prinzessin, die fast eine Nonne ist, eine Hexe, die mit den Toten spricht, eine gute Fee, die eigentlich nur gut im verfluchen ist, ein Krieger der Unrecht gerächt und dabei selber Recht gebrochen hat, ein Hund, der aus Knochen besteht und ein Huhn, das von einem Dämon besessen ist, machen sich auf um die Schwester der Prinzessin zu retten.
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Manuel Rodriguez Funieles
4.0 out of 5 stars ERA PARA UN REGALO
Reviewed in Spain on January 28, 2024
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TODO OK
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mashiro
5.0 out of 5 stars Good
Reviewed in Italy on December 24, 2023
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Well written, featuring a nice female ensemble, speaking of women empowerment in a fresh wayand overall quite enjoyable. Plus there's a dog. Highly recommended
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Ilona
5.0 out of 5 stars Nettle & Bone
Reviewed in France on September 26, 2023
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Oh, this was amazing!

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I have tons of T. Kingfisher's on my TBR list, and I'm just so glad the first I read was ‘Nettle & Bone’!

I absolutely loved Kingfisher's style of writing—she is so hilarious, and her characters are truly lovely and loveable. The book had some really fun passages and some very touching ones, both well-balanced.

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I also completely fell in love with all of the characters.

Marra, the main one, is a princess who's not very good at politics; she was sent to a convent, so she's also a nun but not really, as she herself states. And she's got an absurdly adorable skeleton dog.
She wants to save her sister Kania from her husband, the king of the Northern Kingdom, who is beating her—and to do so she'll need the help of a few folks who'll accompany her along her quest.

So, our little team of heroes is composed of a dust-wife with a possessed hen, a warrior who tried to die, and a godmother who's quite bad at gifting babies but ends up with a cursed chick.
And have I mentioned Marra's dog made of bones? Oh, yes.

This was such a surprising and hilarious team of heroes, they had so many memorable and unique dialogue, and I just loved each of them so, so much!

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If you tend to like reading twisted fairy tales, cosy fantasy, and books with absolutely gorgeous female characters, then you may definitely enjoy this one!
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