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sallyavena's review against another edition
3.0
Interesting take on Rumpelstiltskin. Fun quick read.
thepaige_turner's review against another edition
3.0
Check out my review here: http://thepaige-turner.blogspot.com/2011/11/crimson-thread-by-suzanne-weyn.html
kraley's review against another edition
2.0
This would have gotten more stars from me if the author had done a little more research to make her story more historically accurate since she sacrificed magic for history. Firstly, a yard of thread isn't enough to sew even part of the designs she describes, secondly, a spool of thread in 1880 wouldn't have cost more than 5-10 cents, not $1.00. The telephone hadn't even made it from NY to Chicago in 1890, so thinking it would be down in Georgia was silly. The statue of liberty wasn't completed in France until 1884, so that part was ridiculous too. The writing was ok, but the romance wasn't well developed. The whole book left me flat. Skip this one.
crystal_dark's review against another edition
5.0
I really enjoyed reading this retelling of "Rumpelstiltskin" and did not want to put it down! The characters are really interesting as well as complex and I especialy liked the role that Rumpelstiltskin played in this retelling.
lobeliaparides's review against another edition
5.0
This was an awesome book! I loved how the author did Ray's name. Also I'm glad that Bridget/Bertie found happiness and a job she adores :)
sqeeker's review against another edition
4.0
- This was a really good re-telling of Rumplestiltskin. I love how the name gets thrown in at the end too. It was really clever.
- I really liked that this took place in the late 1800s. It was a nice change from typical Fairy Tale Re-Tellings.
- I also liked that the story was about an immigrant family from Ireland. I'm sure a lot of families have similar stories to Bertie's.
- Bertie was SO blind!! There were several clues to tell her that James was rat!!!
- This is another Fairy Tale that doesn't get redone a lot. I wish it did!
- I really enjoyed Bertie's journey. Her life had vast changes in the up and down. I was so happy with her ending though! I'm glad we found out what happened to the rest of her family as well.
- I loved the descriptions of the dresses! It was so easy and clear for me to picture.
- This is one of the better Once Upon Time books.
- I really liked that this took place in the late 1800s. It was a nice change from typical Fairy Tale Re-Tellings.
- I also liked that the story was about an immigrant family from Ireland. I'm sure a lot of families have similar stories to Bertie's.
- Bertie was SO blind!! There were several clues to tell her that James was rat!!!
- This is another Fairy Tale that doesn't get redone a lot. I wish it did!
- I really enjoyed Bertie's journey. Her life had vast changes in the up and down. I was so happy with her ending though! I'm glad we found out what happened to the rest of her family as well.
- I loved the descriptions of the dresses! It was so easy and clear for me to picture.
- This is one of the better Once Upon Time books.
marshmallowbooks's review against another edition
2.0
This book was only ok for me. I liked that Bertie is from Ireland. I was not convinced of either of the romantic interests though. James was obviously a player from the start; I knew for certain he wouldn't be the one Bertie ended up with. But I was by no means impressed with the alternative. Ray/Rudolph was a little creepy. There's no doubt he filled that characterization of Rumplestiltskin very well. But believing in him as any part of the "happily ever after" was not working for me.
colorcrystals's review against another edition
2.0
I have read and enjoyed several of the Once Upon a Time novels so naturally I expected this to be just as good. I was sadly mistaken. The author attempted to weave in historical context and it just didn't work. The characters, motives, and romances were undeveloped. The prologue and epilogue were horrible and unnecessary. Overall, I found it tedious to read.
scribesprite's review against another edition
5.0
This book is the definition of short and sweet. There is no magic but that didn't disappoint me at all. Instead the author has the story set in America during the time when all the immigrants from Ireland (the protagonist and her family are Irish), Germany, Italy and all these others countries come in. You get a sense of what it might've been like. There are hardships at first but you don't lose hope.
I like the characters. There could’ve been more character development but for such a sort book it was enough. My favorite character is the “Rumpelstiltskin” of the story. He is courageous, a bit mysterious, and a lot nicer than I expected him to be. The Protagonist is likeable. She is kind but practical and she makes mistakes but I can understand why she does them.
The story didn’t have any dry areas, you know where the plot doesn’t seem to be moving along and it’s kind of boring, there was always something going on. It’s not a heart pounding, fast pace book but it kept me interested the whole time. The end was great and made me feel all hopeful and happy. I think this book would be perfect for preteens but that doesn’t mean older readers can't enjoy it too.
I like the characters. There could’ve been more character development but for such a sort book it was enough. My favorite character is the “Rumpelstiltskin” of the story. He is courageous, a bit mysterious, and a lot nicer than I expected him to be. The Protagonist is likeable. She is kind but practical and she makes mistakes but I can understand why she does them.
The story didn’t have any dry areas, you know where the plot doesn’t seem to be moving along and it’s kind of boring, there was always something going on. It’s not a heart pounding, fast pace book but it kept me interested the whole time. The end was great and made me feel all hopeful and happy. I think this book would be perfect for preteens but that doesn’t mean older readers can't enjoy it too.
lumos_libros's review against another edition
5.0
This tale is magically spun. Forgive me for the pun. I just wanted to have some fun. Oh gosh I really need to quit that! But more seriously I really did think this was done beautifully.
I have to admit I was kind of surprised about how much I liked this story. Don't get me wrong I love fairy tale retellings, but most of the time I enjoy them I just don't think they are very original. This was different though.
[a:Suzanne Weyn|99836|Suzanne Weyn|http://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1225668404p2/99836.jpg] chose the perfect setting. Early America during our Industrial Revolution when many immigrants were coming upon the country's shores. Bridget (later called Bertie) O'Malley and her family is one of the many Irish families coming to find a better life. Isn't it a perfect beginning? I liked Bertie right away. A faerie gives the prologue and epilogue of the story. That's the only bit of fantasy of the book. The rest is realistic and I appreciated the change. I love the Rumpelstiltskin of the story. He's probably my favorite character. I was a little wary of the book because of it's length, but I didn't feel I was robbed of any essential details of the story. I did feel that the romances weren't fully developed, but then again in most fairy tales they aren't. Oh I have to mention that I thought how everything weaved togther at the end to the original tale was perfect. I felt myself smile real big at the end.
Hands down this is the best retelling of Rumpelstiltskin I have read.
I have to admit I was kind of surprised about how much I liked this story. Don't get me wrong I love fairy tale retellings, but most of the time I enjoy them I just don't think they are very original. This was different though.
[a:Suzanne Weyn|99836|Suzanne Weyn|http://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1225668404p2/99836.jpg] chose the perfect setting. Early America during our Industrial Revolution when many immigrants were coming upon the country's shores. Bridget (later called Bertie) O'Malley and her family is one of the many Irish families coming to find a better life. Isn't it a perfect beginning? I liked Bertie right away. A faerie gives the prologue and epilogue of the story. That's the only bit of fantasy of the book. The rest is realistic and I appreciated the change. I love the Rumpelstiltskin of the story. He's probably my favorite character. I was a little wary of the book because of it's length, but I didn't feel I was robbed of any essential details of the story. I did feel that the romances weren't fully developed, but then again in most fairy tales they aren't. Oh I have to mention that I thought how everything weaved togther at the end to the original tale was perfect. I felt myself smile real big at the end.
Hands down this is the best retelling of Rumpelstiltskin I have read.