GENRE: Dark Fairytale Fantasy Book
RATING: ⭐⭐⭐.75/5
FORMAT: eBook Arc from NetGalley

Would I recommend to others?: Yes, if you are in the mood for a short novel that has gothic fantasy vibes and a fairytale story AND if you are a fan of T.Kingfisher as well! If you choose to listen to an audiobook of The River has Roots, you will hear music that Amal & her sister performed together

Long Review:
Where do I begin? Usually, short novels (or novellas) are hard to write and truly captivate your audience as there isn't many pages to dive into the characters and the place. However, Amal El-Mohtar truly makes you attached to the sisters and the story a few pages in, which is quite rare in fantasy!

As an elder sister with only a younger sister, I truly enjoyed reading The River has Roots and seeing the bond between Esther and Ysabel was a wholesome experience. Make no mistake though, this book is meant to be a dark fantasy or as I like to call them: gothic fantasy book. The tale is an eerie one, in which we give power to those who do not deserve it.

The prose in The River has Roots is truly beautiful, with a unique concept of "Grammar" as well. I am HoH/Deaf so I did not get to listen to the audiobook (usually need to do that in immersive format) but if you are lucky enough to pick up an audiobook, Amal & her sister perform the music in this novella too and how wholesome is that? A song and melody performed by sisters in reality as Ysabel & Esther build their lives.

Essentially, The River has roots is a story of change, of understanding that life, like Grammar, can fluctuate and is not a solid shape. It is, in fact, a shifting shape that can be sad, happy and yearning all at once. In this novella, we see the consequences of two sister who wish for different things in life but one forsakes it for the sake of her younger sister and is truly fulfilled by the love of her sisterhood.

I'd recommend this novella to everyone as it gives you a taste of dark fantasy and dark fairytale, which are my one of my top favourites sub-genre in fantasy. I didnt include a lot of quotes with this review as I typically would as it is a short novella and it would be hard to avoid spoilers, but trust me when I say its worth the read!

Thank you to Netgalley and the Publisher for an eArc in exchange for my honest review