I was provided Gretel On Her Own by Elna Holst as an ARC through NetGalley in return for an honest review. All opinions are my own and thanks is extended to the author, publishers and NetGalley for allowing me to do so.
Once upon a time, a brother and sister were led away into the depths of the forest. It was only to protect them, their mother explained and the brother concurred; yet he insisted on pebbles, bread crumbs. He insisted on looking back for cats and pigeons and whatnots, brightened by the touch of the sun.
Twenty years later, Gretel Kindermann is on her own: her father has taken himself off to Dortmund, her mother is a fixture at the local mental healthcare institution, and her brother Hänsel, oh— thats a whole other story
At the heart of the matter, like a thorny-rooted weed, is Frau Heckscher, the purveyor of all things sweet in the little village at the lip of the forest. And now, perhaps, also a niece that no one has heard of before, lately arrived from Vienna to wreak havoc on poor Gretel’s nerves and heart.
In Gretel on Her Own, Elna Holst offers a contemporary sapphic twist to your favourite Germanic fairy tale of homicidal arsonists and houses built out of baked goods, trickster witches, and parenting skills that leave a lot to be desired.
I have always loved fairy tales and retelling of fairy tales so this instantly appealed to me. However, to simply say it is just a retelling of Hansel and Gretel is both true and false at the same time. The author takes the much loved and incredibly well-known tale and puts her own spin on it with twists and turns that will make this a very familiar yet completely new tale.
The one thing that really stood out to me in this novella is the emphasis that is put on the sense of smell and taste, which is no surprise when the original tale is all about sweets, sugar and all things nice, however, it is nonetheless done in a very clever and thought-provoking manner.
The reader is kept guessing even looking through Gretel’s eyes as for the longest time she is unsure of what is happening too. It had a sense of gothic creepiness about it which is everything that a true fairy tale- and truly talented storyteller should invoke.
This is the quintessential bedtime story for adults and I will definitely be looking for more work by Holst. I loved it and will read it time and time again so it is a 5 star read for me.
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