Princesses Can Save the Prince Too!

Published:  December 17th, 2008

The Stepsister Scheme (Princess #1)

By: Jim C. Hines

DAW

ISBN-13:  9780756405328

You know how all those old fairy tales take you through lots of scary adventures till you finally reach that inevitable line: "And they lived happily ever after..."  Guess what?  It's not true.  Life in never-never land isn't all sweetness and light.  Cinderella - whose real name is Danielle Whiteshore (nee Danielle de Glas) - does marry Prince Armand.  And (if you can ignore the pidgeon incident) their wedding is a dream-come-true.

But not long after the "happily ever after," Danielle is attacked by her stepsister Charlotte, who suddenly has all sorts of magic to call upon.  And though Talia - otherwise known as Sleeping Beauty - comes to the rescue (she's a martial arts master, and all those fairy blessings make her almost unbeatable), Charlotte gets away.

That's when Danielle discovers a number of disturbing facts: Armand has been kidnapped and taken to the realm of the Fairies; Danielle is pregnant with his child; and the Queen has her very own Secret Service that consists of Talia and Snow (White, of course).  Snow is an expert at mirror magic and heavy-duty flirting.

Can three princesses track down Armand and extract both the prince and themselves from the clutches of some of fantasyland's most nefarious villains?

Review

     I am a fairy tale obsessed, freak!  I love retellings of fairy tales - modern ones, retro ones, historical fiction, christian fiction, disneyfied ones, humorous ones, etc.  Doesn't really matter what exactly it is, I am bound to be attracted to it, if not drawn in completely.  The cover on this book looks a bit like Charlie's Angels crossed with Brothers Grimm, so color me intrigued.  I was told by a couple of my online friends to read it, even if just to get to the second one (which they said is better).  So I decided to give it a go and see what would happen.  Is starts focused on Danielle de Glas (aka Cinderella), who has married the Prince and now has to learn to become a Princess.  She still can't help her instinct to befriend all the servants and clean the palace around her though; but she loves her husband, Armand, and is willing to make some changes to be what he needs.  Imagine her surprise when her stepsister Charlotte tries to kill her seemingly out of the blue, using magic she's never had before.  Danielle is saved from assassination by Queen Bea's secret protector - Talia, otherwise known as Sleeping Beauty.  It turns out she and Snow White work for Bea, and help her keep the kingdom and its royals safe from threats.  But when they find out Armand has been kidnapped by Charlotte and her sister, it's up to Danielle to rescue him - with the help of Talia and Snow she might even succeed.  However, what will the cost be to retrieving Prince Armand from the danger he's in?

     I enjoyed this one a lot.  At first it feels pretty slow moving (even with an assassination attempt), but once Talia, Danielle and Snow finally hit the road, the plot picks up its pace pretty quickly.  Probably my favorite thing about this book is that it uses the darker and older versions of the fairy tales that a lot of people only know from the Disney versions, for the back stories of the characters.  Talia's in particular is a real doozy and definitely gives a great basis for her inability to connect emotionally to other people and fondness for solving difficult situations with violent means.  Also, the fact that Snow herself worked with mirrors for magical purposes (a la the Evil Queen) was interesting and not something I've ever seen done before in a retelling or reworking of Snow White's story.  The lack of Prince Armand was both disappointing and refreshing.  So wonderful to see a fantasy/fairy tale book NOT laser-focused on the romance, but considering that Danielle is going to great lengths to save him, it would have been nice to get some more insight into her relationship with Armand (especially considering how little time they've actually known each other when you consider their relationship as a whole).

     The entire novel, while revolving around an assassination plot, still managed to feel like it was moving at molasses speed.  But when it hit Fairytown, shit really started to hit the fan!  I enjoyed them trying to find an ally and since by this point Danielle knows she's pregnant, the whole thing with every fairy asking for the baby in exchange for the help was hilarious!  Such a stereotypically fairy tale thing to do!  I also really was impressed at how much motivation and character development Hines managed to work in for the Stepsisters (Charlotte and Stacia) who are usually just cardboard cutout villains in any adaptation of Cinderella that's published/filmed.  The rescue of Armand and the imprisonment of Danielle are both full of very dark scenes and somewhat disturbing.  Especially when we're unsure whether or not the baby is going to come away from the ordeal unscathed.  The one complaint (as others have said) that I really can think of besides slowness, is the one dimensionality of Talia and Sleeping Beauty as characters.  But by the end of the novel, we've gotten closer to understanding what makes them tick.  Also, I have read the second book in the time before I started writing this review and it definitely gives us more meat to those two characters.  Overall, I had a swell time trying to figure out where Hines was taking this and I think I'm along for the whole ride.

VERDICT:  4/5  Stars

**No money or favors were exchanged for this review.  This book is now available in stores, online, or maybe even at your local library.**

Painting the Roses Red

Published: January 1st, 2013
Splintered
By: A.G. Howard
Amulet
ISBN-13: 978149704284

This stunning debut captures the grotesque madness of a mystical under-land, as well as a girl’s pangs of first love and independence. Alyssa Gardner hears the whispers of bugs and flowers—precisely the affliction that landed her mother in a mental hospital years before. This family curse stretches back to her ancestor Alice Liddell, the real-life inspiration for Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. Alyssa might be crazy, but she manages to keep it together. For now.  When her mother’s mental health takes a turn for the worse, Alyssa learns that what she thought was fiction is based in terrifying reality. The real Wonderland is a place far darker and more twisted than Lewis Carroll ever let on. There, Alyssa must pass a series of tests, including draining an ocean of Alice’s tears, waking the slumbering tea party, and subduing a vicious bandersnatch, to fix Alice’s mistakes and save her family. She must also decide whom to trust: Jeb, her gorgeous best friend and secret crush, or the sexy but suspicious Morpheus, her guide through Wonderland, who may have dark motives of his own.

Review

 

     Alyssa has grown up with a very valid fear of losing her sanity - the women in every generation of her family since her great-great-great Grandmother Alice Liddell have been committed to asylums.  Yes, Alyssa's three times great Grandmother was the inspiration for Lewis Carroll's books about the twisted world of Wonderland.  But she insisted that it was real.  And since Alyssa has been communicating with bugs and plants for most of her life, she's pretty sure she's going insane too.  Until she discovers that it's all true and she has to travel to Wonderland in order to break the family curse and free her Mom before more drastic measures are taken to 'cure' her.  But Wonderland is not the same as it was before Alice fell down the rabbit hole and Alyssa must fix all her mistakes if she's to ever be sent home again.  She didn't count on her best friend (and secret crush) Jeb getting dragged down into the rabbit hole with her.  And who will she trust with her life - Jeb or Morpheus, her childhood guide thorough Wonderland who has his own selfish and possibly deadly motivations.  When Alyssa uncovers a secret from her family's past that changes everything, can she still save Wonderland without sacrificing who she is?

     I was expecting disappointment when I went into this, even though I was giddy with excitement.  Thankfully it lived up to my expectations, unlike the 2010 Tim Burton film redux.  Everyone should skip that and go with Syfy's Alice miniseries from 2009.  There's a very HOT Hatter in it...but I digress!  The book managed to take a darker spin on Wonderland and still make it relatable and not completely out of context.  It was like coming upon a treasure chest of Gothic jewels.  And they were very well crafted.  It was pure awesomeness having a heroine, who while pretty much crush obsessed, managed to not let it overtake her entire life.  Alyssa was brave, strong, independent and wonderfully snarky.  I liked that she was being tested and (supposedly) had to fix Alice's mistakes to break the curse of madness in her family.  The author managed to make both Morpheus and Jeb both likeable love interests, even though about 80% of the time I wanted to smack one, or both, of them upside the head.  The mystery of all the original characters' true stories, Alyssa's family lineage and the motivations of everyone offering to 'help' her finish her quest make for a truly gripping story.  Some truly creepy scenes had me flipping pages, desperate to find out what happened next.  The ending leaves things open for a sequel, but could also be a fairly satisfying ending which is nice in a world full of never-ending trilogies and quartets.  Highly recommended for anyone looking for an innovative and well crafted tale with romance, adventure, twisted fairy-tale elements and pure surprise.

 

VERDICT:  4.75/5  Stars (I can't go higher because of the loose ending.  I would have liked more definite closure or cliffhanger.  One or the other.)

 

**No money or favors were exchanged for this review. This book is now available in stores, online, or maybe even at your local library.**

Enchanted To Know You

Published: May 8th, 2012
Enchanted
By: Alethea Kontis
Harcourt Children's Books
ISBN-13: 9780547645704

It isn't easy being the rather overlooked and unhappy youngest sibling to sisters named for the other six days of the week. Sunday’s only comfort is writing stories, although what she writes has a terrible tendency to come true.

When Sunday meets an enchanted frog who asks about her stories, the two become friends. Soon that friendship deepens into something magical. One night Sunday kisses her frog goodbye and leaves, not realizing that her love has transformed him back into Rumbold, the crown prince of Arilland—and a man Sunday’s family despises.

The prince returns to his castle, intent on making Sunday fall in love with him as the man he is, not the frog he was. But Sunday is not so easy to woo. How can she feel such a strange, strong attraction for this prince she barely knows? And what twisted secrets lie hidden in his past - and hers?

Review

   Sunday Woodcutter is the seventh daughter of a seventh daughter.  But she feels alone and ignored as the youngest in a large family.  Sunday loves writing and telling stories, but even that becomes dangerous when it's apparent that she has the power to make them come true.  Then she meets an obviously enchanted frog who wants to hear all her stories and know all about her for a change.  They build a friendship and one night after Sunday kisses him, the frog becomes Prince Rumbold once more.  Too bad he's the Prince that her family blames for the loss of her older brother Jack.  Sunday is missing her friend the frog and wondering what happened to him, when all of the sudden Prince Rumbold, who has been missing for months, appears and states that he will be throwing a few balls to find a bride.  All the young ladies in the kingdom are invited.  But will he be able to win Sunday's heart now that he's a man again?  What is the mystery about the King and Godmother Sorrow, with such a sinister feeling?  And did Jack really die or is he out there somewhere?  Most of all, will they have a happily ever after?  This book was something that I expected to be a straight re-telling of The Frog Prince - boy was I ever in for a surprise!  This book had bits and pieces of that story, Cinderella, The Princess and the Pea, Rumpelstiltskin, Twelve Dancing Princesses, Sleeping Beauty, Jack and the Beanstalk, and probably one or two I didn't even pick up on.  It made the story slightly wacky, but definitely all the more interesting.  I never truly knew what was going to happen.  Sunday was slightly disconnected from me as a reader, but I found myself loving the plot and her sisters so much that I didn't even care.  The warring Godmothers were a nice touch and the twist about Sunday's Mother and her connection to them was unexpected to say the least.  I really enjoyed this book and all of it's magical twists and turns.  The romance between Sunday and Rumbold was sweet and light-hearted, even with the familial mis-understandings and tension.  The sub-plot with Wednesday and the King was creepy enough to send shivers up my spine and totally fairy tale, through and through.  The ending was cute and overall about what I'd expected.  I would recommend this book to fans of fairy tales, who would like to read something a little off the beaten path.

VERDICT:  4/5  Stars

*No money or favors were exchanged for this review. This book is now available in stores and online.*

Fairy Godmother Sans Cinderella...

Published: November 1st, 2004

The Fairy Godmother (The Five Hundred Kingdoms # 1)

By: Mercedes Lackey

Luna Books

ISBN-13: 9780373802456

In the land of the Five Hundred Kingdoms, if you can't carry out your legendary role, life is no fairy tale....

Elena Klovis was supposed to be her kingdom's Cinderella -- until fate left her with a completely inappropriate prince! Determined not to remain with her stepfamily, Elena set out to get a new job -- and ended up becoming the Fairy Godmother for the land. But breaking with "The Tradition" was no easy matter. True, she didn't have to sleep in the chimney, but she had to deal with arrogant, stuffed-shirt princes who kept trying to rise above their place in the tale. In fact, one of them was so ornery that Elena could do nothing but change him into a donkey.

Still, her practical nature couldn't let him roam the country, so she brought the donkey -- er, the prince! -- home to her cottage to teach him some lessons. All the while keeping in mind that breaking with tradition can land everyone into a kettle of fish -- sometimes literally!

And so begins a whole new tale...

Review

   Elena Klovis has a miserable life with her demanding and cruel Stepmother and two Stepsisters.  She is forced to cook, clean, dress in rags and live on almost nothing.  Unknown to her, Elena has magic swirling around her, building up due to her unfulfilled potential - she was supposed to be her kingdom's Cinderella.  But with an unsuitable Prince she is eventually rescued by a Fairy Godmother, who offers to train Elena as her replacement.  Excited to have a way out, Elena agrees.  Then she finds out firsthand how hard it can be to circumvent the Tradition, a magical force that steers people into retelling fairy tales, folk stories, ballads, etc. in their real lives without them having any choice in the matter.  When she is helping questers and trying to avoid tragedies, Elena comes across a Prince who goes too far.  She does the only thing she can think of - she turns him into the donkey (ass) that she thinks he already is.  Elena must find a way to help the Prince realize how to become a better man.  But can she accomplish it without losing her heart in the process?  It is really easy to love this book.  I am already a major sucker for anything to do with fairy tales, or re-tellings of them.  I loved the aspect of Fairy Godmothers having to fight against an unseen and unintelligent force like the Tradition.  It explains why so many people don't get a happy ending.  Elena was a good heroine, wanting to do the right thing, easy to empathize with and with a sense of humor.  By no means was she perfect, but that just made her even more fun to read about.  Prince Alexander was not appealing to me until almost the end of the novel.  He truly was a complete ASS for most of the book, constantly being cruel to Elena and barely viewing her as a person.  The side characters were interesting as well, especially the Maleficent type character who only wanted to be loved for who she was (she had been alone all her life except when an evil sorceress took her in) and the village woman Rosalie, who narrowly escaped having a 'Ladderlocks' (Rapunzel) child.  The unnecessary sex scenes were a bit discouraging, but there were only a couple so they were fairly easily overlooked.  The book does take a little while to really gain any speed, the plot dragging through the beginning Cinderella portion quite a bit.  But once it gets going it is truly funny and wonderful to read.  I really liked this book for its originality and sense of humor.  Highly recommended to fans of fairy tales.

VERDICT:  4/5  Stars

*No money or favors were exchanged for this review. This book is now available in stores and online.*

Family Ties That Strangle

Expected Publication: January 24th, 2012
The Legacy of Eden
By: Nelle Davy
MIRABooks
ISBN-13: 9780778329558



For generations, Aurelia was the crowning glory of more than three thousand acres of Iowa farmland and golden cornfields. The estate was a monument to matriarch Lavinia Hathaway's dream to elevate the family name—no matter what relative or stranger she had to destroy in the process. It was a desperation that wrought the downfall of the Hathaways—and the once-prosperous farm.
Now the last inhabitant of the decaying old home has died—alone. None of the surviving members of the Hathaway family want anything to do with the farm, the land or the memories.
Especially Meredith Pincetti. Now living in New York City, for seventeen years Lavinia's youngest grandchild has tried to forget everything about her family and her past. But with the receipt of a pleading letter, Meredith is again thrust into conflict with the legacy that destroyed her family's once-great name.
Back at Aurelia, Meredith must confront the rise and fall of the Hathaway family…and her own part in their mottled history.

Review

   Meredith Pincetti (it used to be Hathaway, but she took her Mother's maiden name) thought she was done with Aurelia for the rest of her lifetime.  She has managed to push down into oblivion the mostly disturbing memories of her time there.  But now that Cal Jr. her oldest cousin is dead, the farm is without an owner and in serious disrepair.  Either Meredith or one of her older sisters must return to take care of matters and choose what they want from the house before it's sold.  But it means reliving all of the memories that have haunted her for almost twenty years.  This book was an interesting family chronicle that spent much more time in the past than the present.  Most of the story is Meredith being told things by her Grandmother Lavinia, who is a very twisted and manipulative woman.  The family has had it's share of troubles and nasty conflicts over three generations.  All of these things have shaped a bitter relationship between Meredith and her sisters, Ava and Claudia.  I liked the backstory, but I felt like the ending was very anti-climactic for the way the build-up progressed.  I was disappointed, because I had been truly engrossed and couldn't wait to see what happens.  But I feel like I went to the end for nothing.  I would recommend this to avid readers of depressing adult fiction who don't mind ambiguous endings.

VERDICT: 3/5  Stars

*I received an Advanced Reading E-book Copy from the publisher, via NetGalley. No money was exchanged for this review. The expected publication of this book is January 24th, 2012.*

Severed Fingers and Lukewarm Endings

Expected Publication: July 10th, 2012
Lies, Knives and Girls in Red Dresses
By: Ron Koertge, Illustrated by: Andrea Dezso
Candlewick Press
ISBN-13: 9780763644062


Writing in free verse honed to a wicked edge, the incomparable Ron Koertge brings dark and contemporary humor to twenty iconic fairy tales.

Once upon a time, there was a strung-out match girl who sold CDs to stoners. Twelve impetuous sisters escaped King Daddy's clutches to jiggle and cavort and wear out their shoes. A fickle Thumbelina searched for a tiny husband, leaving bodies in her wake. And Little Red Riding Hood confessed that she kind of wanted to know what it's like to be swallowed whole. From bloodied and blinded stepsisters (they were duped) to a chopped-off finger flying into a heroine's cleavage, this is fairy tale world turned upside down. Ron Koertge knows what really happened to all those wolves and maidens, ogres and orphans, kings and piglets, and he knows about the Ever After. So come closer
- he wants to whisper in your ear.

Review

   This book is a compilation of twisted versions and bonus point of views from well known fairy tales.  There are stories for Cinderella,  The Little Match Girl, Rapunzel, Thumbelina, Beauty and the Beast, Twelve Dancing Princesses, Hansel and Gretel, The Ugly Duckling, Diamonds and Toads, The Robber Bridegroom, East of the Sun and West of the Moon, and other very recognizable tales.  I did enjoy the dimension that these poems added to the original tales.  But my major complaint would be the stark, crudeness of the language and imagery that is used.  It felt like there was absolutely zero finesse woven into the story telling process.   I loved the illustrations and though their starkness matched the language of the poems, it lifted the quality of the book.  They had a unique, black and white silhouette, shadow puppet feel to them and it was the highlight of the time I spent with this book.  Overall, I was not that impressed and felt like it has been done so often and so much better, that I could have lived without this addition to the realm of twisted fairy tales.  Nothing new or exciting, but that said it was an interesting collection.  I would only really recommend this if you're a hardcore Koertge fan or way into fairy tale re-imaginings.  Even if you don't read the text you should definitely check out the illustrations though.  The cover for this book is as of yet unreleased, but when it is available I will change the blank picture on this review.

VERDICT:  3/5  Stars

*I received an Advanced Reading E-book Copy from the publisher, via NetGalley. No money was exchanged for this review. The expected publication of this book is July 10th, 2012.*