The Castle Behind Thorns

When Sand wakes up alone in a long-abandoned castle, he has no idea how he got there. The stories all said the place was ruined by an earthquake, and Sand did not expect to find everything inside torn in half or slashed to bits. Nothing lives here and nothing grows, except the vicious, thorny bramble that prevents Sand from leaving. To survive, Sand fires up the castle’s forge to mend what he needs, discovering that the things he fixes work better than they should, hinting at possible magic or the return of the saints who once guarded the place. Along with the castle’s lost heir, Perrotte, Sand begins to unravel the dark secrets behind the destruction. Together, they work to piece together stone and iron, and mend their broken lives in a quest for freedom. Merrie Haskell's 'The Castle Behind Thorns' encapsulates the essence of memory, story, forgiveness, and the true gifts of craft and imagination with its beautiful language and enchanting magic.