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butterfly_bombshell's review
5.0
Freaking loved this!!!!! I loved all the versions of the Disney tales they did. They had done some of them before but put different twists on them.
miraclesantana's review
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
4.5
jessbrooks227's review
adventurous
lighthearted
relaxing
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
kitkat175's review
4.0
I liked how this book had so many stories in it, I especially loved that they included Treasure Planet one of my many favourite Disney movies. I do think that this book could have go without the repeat princesses for example we already have a twisted tale story about Snow White and Hercules, they could have picked different movies to write about and I know they are by different authors but I just think they should have picked stories that haven't been done before. Now let's get into the individual stories themselves.
Snow White: I have always loved the 7 little dwarfs they are so funny and just the cutest. I know that Grumpy always reminds us of someone in our family. Again though we already have this book as a twisted tale and I just felt like they should have chose a different story to write about.
Mulan: I had never watched the movie Mulan before and I don't know why, this movie was so witty and funny and I loved Mushu's character he was the funniest out of all of them. I also loved the lucky little cricket, even though he might not be very lucky. I liked this Twisted tale overall it was decent and a good read.
Remy/Colette: I would love to see this Twisted tale as an actual movie, it would be so cool to watch and see how it plays out. Colette and Remy's friendship was the cutest and she did not use him she just wanted to see what he could cook and make with the ingredients that she got for him. I liked this Twisted tale a a lot, but I am excited to see what the others are about.
Cinderella: When her father called Anastasia "Her Strawberry" that was the cutest thing. I loved it. I wish this Twisted Tale had also continued. I wanted to read about Cinderella's wedding and to see what Anastasia had in the future. I wanted to see if her and Cinderella every rekindled there sisterhood together. OH! and also I wanted to read about how the stepmother and Drizella found out/ took the news about there sister/daughter leaving, and if they ever looked for her. I liked this Cinderella retelling a lot.
Lion King: I did not mind this tale. I am glad that Scar got what he deserved because he was a real piece of work in my opinion. Scar needed to learn a thing or two. I am also glad that Mufasa was alive in this retelling, and also am glad that he got to see his son be a leader of the pack. I do wish some Twisted tale stories were longer.
Treasure Planet: I wish this story had it's own book, I would have loved it. I am biased though because I love the Treasure Planet movie, it has always been one of my favourites. Jim Hawkins was a childhood crush, I am pretty sure every little girl had a little crush on him. If you had given me the option for a full book or short story on Treasure Planet I would have easily picked a full book. I was very excited to read this story.
Robinhood: Sir Hiss deserves so much appreciation for trying to protect his sire. Oh my god was maid. Marian Robinhood in this twisted tale. Sir Hiss seems like a genuine snake, it seems like he does want to help other people. I knew she was Robinhood. I knew it.
The Little Mermaid: " I've heard tuna make better music than that."
I did not know Ursala's eels had names, and to be honest that aren't that good of names either. Prince Eric ended up getting a tail which is so cool, cooler than what happened in the movie. I do like how in the move=ie they got married though, that my opinion though.
Tinkerbell: Honey Cakes sound so good Oh my goodness. In my opinion Tink trusted to easily... A lot of the princesses trust to easily. I remember watching the movie and really disliking Peter Pan a lot. I felt he was mean to Tink and Wendy and just very childish, I know he is a child but still there's a time and place.
"You - Yes You! Can Fly.
Search! Seek. Find the mission, the magic
It may be Powerful, Strong and Frightening.
But it need not be dark.
Indeed, it's out there. For those who believe."
Princess and the frog: I honestly kind of liked it more when they turned into frogs. I don't know why I think they maybe had a better connection. If this story was turned into a movie I don't know how well it would do, I did not find it that entertaining.
Merida: Okay but where is Merida throughout this entire story I would like to know.
" I hated being a bear! I don't want to do that again." "Neither do I," Hubert agreed. "A highland cow wouldn't be so bad, though. They have epic horns."
This story was not bad I do however wish Merida had been present in this book.
The sword in the stone: This was my first time watching The sword in the stone and it was good I enjoyed this movie a lot. This twisted tale however was a bit far fetched, I can not imagine Merlin ever kissing and falling in love with Mim, it just seems unrealistic. I know there's another twisted tale about the sword in the stone, I want to read that to see if I like it better than that this story. It was not my favourite story.
Beauty and the Beast: This tale had no beast, I though that it did I did read the title again and it was about her father's invention and I honestly really enjoyed this one. I liked how she opened up her own bookstore, despite what everyone said about her and her ideas. I really enjoyed how this Twisted tale played out I think every reader has a connection to Belle. Gaston is my least fave and the fact that Belle keeps turning him down is funny.
Hercules: It seemed like both Meg and Hercules were both having bad days on the first day of there jobs. I love how Meg and Hercules Mom get along so well together it's so cute. Hercules always been one of my favourites, I love the songs and just the whole movie itself it's such a good movie.
Bambi: I can see why Bambi does not want to be a prince, he wants to watch his children grow before they leave him. If it meant leaving your family all the time who would want to be a prince. I think I have watched Bambi once but I don't remember most of it or how the movie ended. I might have to watch it again one day soon.
Sleeping Beauty: This one was just okay, I watched Sleeping Beauty along time ago and don't remember what happened in the movie, but this Twisted tale was bad. I liked how her true love's kiss was along time best friend, that was the cute part.
Snow White: I have always loved the 7 little dwarfs they are so funny and just the cutest. I know that Grumpy always reminds us of someone in our family. Again though we already have this book as a twisted tale and I just felt like they should have chose a different story to write about.
Mulan: I had never watched the movie Mulan before and I don't know why, this movie was so witty and funny and I loved Mushu's character he was the funniest out of all of them. I also loved the lucky little cricket, even though he might not be very lucky. I liked this Twisted tale overall it was decent and a good read.
Remy/Colette: I would love to see this Twisted tale as an actual movie, it would be so cool to watch and see how it plays out. Colette and Remy's friendship was the cutest and she did not use him she just wanted to see what he could cook and make with the ingredients that she got for him. I liked this Twisted tale a a lot, but I am excited to see what the others are about.
Cinderella: When her father called Anastasia "Her Strawberry" that was the cutest thing. I loved it. I wish this Twisted Tale had also continued. I wanted to read about Cinderella's wedding and to see what Anastasia had in the future. I wanted to see if her and Cinderella every rekindled there sisterhood together. OH! and also I wanted to read about how the stepmother and Drizella found out/ took the news about there sister/daughter leaving, and if they ever looked for her. I liked this Cinderella retelling a lot.
Lion King: I did not mind this tale. I am glad that Scar got what he deserved because he was a real piece of work in my opinion. Scar needed to learn a thing or two. I am also glad that Mufasa was alive in this retelling, and also am glad that he got to see his son be a leader of the pack. I do wish some Twisted tale stories were longer.
Treasure Planet: I wish this story had it's own book, I would have loved it. I am biased though because I love the Treasure Planet movie, it has always been one of my favourites. Jim Hawkins was a childhood crush, I am pretty sure every little girl had a little crush on him. If you had given me the option for a full book or short story on Treasure Planet I would have easily picked a full book. I was very excited to read this story.
Robinhood: Sir Hiss deserves so much appreciation for trying to protect his sire. Oh my god was maid. Marian Robinhood in this twisted tale. Sir Hiss seems like a genuine snake, it seems like he does want to help other people. I knew she was Robinhood. I knew it.
The Little Mermaid: " I've heard tuna make better music than that."
I did not know Ursala's eels had names, and to be honest that aren't that good of names either. Prince Eric ended up getting a tail which is so cool, cooler than what happened in the movie. I do like how in the move=ie they got married though, that my opinion though.
Tinkerbell: Honey Cakes sound so good Oh my goodness. In my opinion Tink trusted to easily... A lot of the princesses trust to easily. I remember watching the movie and really disliking Peter Pan a lot. I felt he was mean to Tink and Wendy and just very childish, I know he is a child but still there's a time and place.
"You - Yes You! Can Fly.
Search! Seek. Find the mission, the magic
It may be Powerful, Strong and Frightening.
But it need not be dark.
Indeed, it's out there. For those who believe."
Princess and the frog: I honestly kind of liked it more when they turned into frogs. I don't know why I think they maybe had a better connection. If this story was turned into a movie I don't know how well it would do, I did not find it that entertaining.
Merida: Okay but where is Merida throughout this entire story I would like to know.
" I hated being a bear! I don't want to do that again." "Neither do I," Hubert agreed. "A highland cow wouldn't be so bad, though. They have epic horns."
This story was not bad I do however wish Merida had been present in this book.
The sword in the stone: This was my first time watching The sword in the stone and it was good I enjoyed this movie a lot. This twisted tale however was a bit far fetched, I can not imagine Merlin ever kissing and falling in love with Mim, it just seems unrealistic. I know there's another twisted tale about the sword in the stone, I want to read that to see if I like it better than that this story. It was not my favourite story.
Beauty and the Beast: This tale had no beast, I though that it did I did read the title again and it was about her father's invention and I honestly really enjoyed this one. I liked how she opened up her own bookstore, despite what everyone said about her and her ideas. I really enjoyed how this Twisted tale played out I think every reader has a connection to Belle. Gaston is my least fave and the fact that Belle keeps turning him down is funny.
Hercules: It seemed like both Meg and Hercules were both having bad days on the first day of there jobs. I love how Meg and Hercules Mom get along so well together it's so cute. Hercules always been one of my favourites, I love the songs and just the whole movie itself it's such a good movie.
Bambi: I can see why Bambi does not want to be a prince, he wants to watch his children grow before they leave him. If it meant leaving your family all the time who would want to be a prince. I think I have watched Bambi once but I don't remember most of it or how the movie ended. I might have to watch it again one day soon.
Sleeping Beauty: This one was just okay, I watched Sleeping Beauty along time ago and don't remember what happened in the movie, but this Twisted tale was bad. I liked how her true love's kiss was along time best friend, that was the cute part.
smart_girls_love_trashy_books's review against another edition
4.0
~POTENTIAL SPOILERS~
Another day, another anthology of short stories, and yet another Disney novel. I won't lie, the entire reason I read this was only for the Treasure Planet story. My fellow fans, we are finally being fed! However, actually picking this book up to read, I had several pleasant surprises....and many disappointments. I didn't think the stories were horrible. The vast majority had the same exact issue that I can say as; rushed, simply-developed, and left me on a rushed ending wanting more, to the point most of these I don't even want to review separately because the vast majority had that same exact problem. So many of these needed to have been full-length novels to properly flesh these things out. And yet I'll still try my best to, since it'll help you understand my overall ranking.
Cast-Out: A perfect way to start this collection, and easily one of the best ones in the whole collection. I'm a huge sucker for any story of Snow White, just the character in general, learning magic from anyone or anything in general, such as her mother, herself, or even the Evil Queen, as the original is very earthy and imbued with magic and talk of the seasons and the cycle of life and femininity and all that. That's me saying I loved this story. Snow White herself was beautifully in-character, the ending line was brilliant, and the idea was executed well. Still, the climax and ending felt extremely rushed. Four stars.
A First Mission: More of an epilogue, since there's no indication Mulan didn't do this. I really liked seeing her relationship with Shang develop here, since they end in the movie as being on friendly but not romantic terms. This was good, three stars.
Et Voila: Good idea, very rushed. So much stuff just seemed to happen just because it happened in the movie so the author felt the need to have it happen here too. Like it's randomly revealed that Linguini is Gusteu's son, just because the movie did it. It's not needed. This is an alternate universe anyway so why not just have him know from the start? And the ending is so rushed. 'Hey I got fired I'm quitting let's start a new restaurant with this rat!' Yes that also happens in the movie but it's actually earned there. Three stars.
The Envelope: Cute, I liked seeing Anatasia's father and some development for her mother, but this was way too rushed and underdeveloped. It ends before much of anything happens. Plus, a Drizella redemption might be nice to see once. Three stars.
A New Dawn: One of the worst in this collection. The idea is interesting, but Mufasa is completely out-of-character here, and the plot is rushed with a confusing and poor climax. The Lion King is already a Disney movie I'm not the biggest fan of, so I was ready for this to win me over. Alas, it did not. Two stars.
Rattle the Stars: TREASURE PLANET BABY! Whoohoo!! I loved this, Jim's cunning reminded me of how he plays Hands in Treasure Island, Silver still being fatherly and trying to talk him out of this life, Jim only caring about his mom, the action, the references! Scroop just getting shot! However, this was also cut very short. It literally ends after the mutiny. This is what I keep saying, great ideas, but the length makes them hard to end properly. Five stars just because it's Treasure Planet.
A Royal Game of Chess: I do love me stories where Maid Marian is doing her part to help the Merry Men, either as herself or in disguise, perhaps even as a Merry Man herself! So I hoped this one would be good, but while the idea was, the execution was not. Rushed pacing and dull action combined with way too much stuff going on made this ironically feel like a slog. I know one of the newly-announced novels in this line is this idea, so maybe I'll read that instead. It's a good idea but in need badly of expansion. Two stars.
The Secret Exchange: I love Little Mermaid stories where she learns about life on land and the prince learns about the sea and they're cute and perfect and wonderful and I love it! And King Trident realizing merpeople and humans can learn a lot from each other and giving both the power to be on sea or shore?! So good. Literally my one complaint is the climax and ending were way too rushed, which as you can tell by now is a huge problem with almost all of these. Still, five stars.
Dust to Dust: I loved how this followed lore of both the original play and the Disney Fairies line in regards to fairyfolk, and the twist was a really good one, as well as the setup. But the actual story was rushed, had too much going on, and ultimately fell flat. Peter Pan stories are very hard for me to get invested in, so perhaps that was the case here and not really anything the story itself did. Two stars.
Gonna Take You There: I love seeing Tiana and Naveen bond, as humans! People! Black people hanging out! We love to see it! This was cute, I liked the budding romance as well as the hints to the culture of the time and place(Tiana and her mother live in the Ninth Ward. If you know, you know) but once again came off as a bit flat. It's a roadtrip story, but stories like that need way more than ten/twenty pages to properly flourish, so I was left wanting more by the end of this, and not really in a good way. Three stars.
Fates, Three: I've never seen Brave. To my understanding, this is also similar to the Mulan story where this could very easily just be a sequel or continuation of the first movie, as it doesn't contradict anything from that one. The triplets are cute, I like rambunctious teenagers, and the messages they had to learn were cliche but still nice. The importance of family, don't rush into things, don't waste your life sitting inside, etc. Two stars because it felt very bland and cliche, but from what I hear that fits the movie perfectly anyway.
Dragon in the Snow: This story proves you can write a story, literally anything, and it will be more interesting than the actual Sword in the Stone movie that we actually have. Disney did us so dirty with that movie. In that movie, Merlin and Mad Madame Mim know each other, and this story is a prequel explaining that. I loved how this has Arthurian lore in it, the implication Arthur himself has magic because the sword is enchanted to where only a magic-user can use it, I love the implication Madame Mim is Morgan le Fey?! I loved seeing a younger Merlin and Madam Mim, as well as seeing where their idea and knowledge of a wizard's duel came from. Still, I wasn't a big fan of the fact they were lovers, that felt unneeded and cliche, I would've vastly preferred them being friends or magic rivals. A good prequel nonetheless. Four stars.
The Journey Home: Short, sweet, simple. What else do you want me to say? I liked the ending where Belle learned to appreciate her small-town life and takes over the local bookshop. Three stars.
Cal it a Hunch: This feels so much like a prequel to the Hercules novel that I'm considering it a prequel to that. Hercules' story of learning how to be a god was interesting, figuring out how to do it his own way, but Meg's story fell flat to me. It wasn't interesting watching her solve a mystery, and I didn't really get Hermes' motivation at the end. He did this all just because he could? Two stars.
The Reluctant Prince: This story did not have to be so good. Bambi is a Disney movie I really don't like, yet this story slapped hard. I loved seeing Bambi's reluctance and his realization that he's not afraid of being a prince, rather he's afraid of becoming just like his father, aloof and distant and uncaring. IO did feel like once again this easily fits into the timeline of the movie, who's to say Bambi didn't think that stuff offscreen, but this was a super good story nonetheless. Five stars.
The Rose and the Thorns: A nice story to end it on. I liked how it showed Aurora's kingdom suffering from the ban on spinning wheels, how her and Prince Phillip actually got to grow up together so they're closer, and Aurora learning magic. I also liked the dig at the live-action Maleficinet movie. While the climax also felt rushed, I felt there was more good stuff leading up to it in comparison to the other stories. Three stars.
Overall, a very mixed bag. I liked the ideas of these stories, but so many were rushed and underdeveloped that it hampered my enjoyment of them. So many of these might make better novels, and seeing as how that Maid Marian one is, I do hope that's a realistic possibility for some of these as well. Not bad, pretty good, but not perfect.
Another day, another anthology of short stories, and yet another Disney novel. I won't lie, the entire reason I read this was only for the Treasure Planet story. My fellow fans, we are finally being fed! However, actually picking this book up to read, I had several pleasant surprises....and many disappointments. I didn't think the stories were horrible. The vast majority had the same exact issue that I can say as; rushed, simply-developed, and left me on a rushed ending wanting more, to the point most of these I don't even want to review separately because the vast majority had that same exact problem. So many of these needed to have been full-length novels to properly flesh these things out. And yet I'll still try my best to, since it'll help you understand my overall ranking.
Cast-Out: A perfect way to start this collection, and easily one of the best ones in the whole collection. I'm a huge sucker for any story of Snow White, just the character in general, learning magic from anyone or anything in general, such as her mother, herself, or even the Evil Queen, as the original is very earthy and imbued with magic and talk of the seasons and the cycle of life and femininity and all that. That's me saying I loved this story. Snow White herself was beautifully in-character, the ending line was brilliant, and the idea was executed well. Still, the climax and ending felt extremely rushed. Four stars.
A First Mission: More of an epilogue, since there's no indication Mulan didn't do this. I really liked seeing her relationship with Shang develop here, since they end in the movie as being on friendly but not romantic terms. This was good, three stars.
Et Voila: Good idea, very rushed. So much stuff just seemed to happen just because it happened in the movie so the author felt the need to have it happen here too. Like it's randomly revealed that Linguini is Gusteu's son, just because the movie did it. It's not needed. This is an alternate universe anyway so why not just have him know from the start? And the ending is so rushed. 'Hey I got fired I'm quitting let's start a new restaurant with this rat!' Yes that also happens in the movie but it's actually earned there. Three stars.
The Envelope: Cute, I liked seeing Anatasia's father and some development for her mother, but this was way too rushed and underdeveloped. It ends before much of anything happens. Plus, a Drizella redemption might be nice to see once. Three stars.
A New Dawn: One of the worst in this collection. The idea is interesting, but Mufasa is completely out-of-character here, and the plot is rushed with a confusing and poor climax. The Lion King is already a Disney movie I'm not the biggest fan of, so I was ready for this to win me over. Alas, it did not. Two stars.
Rattle the Stars: TREASURE PLANET BABY! Whoohoo!! I loved this, Jim's cunning reminded me of how he plays Hands in Treasure Island, Silver still being fatherly and trying to talk him out of this life, Jim only caring about his mom, the action, the references! Scroop just getting shot! However, this was also cut very short. It literally ends after the mutiny. This is what I keep saying, great ideas, but the length makes them hard to end properly. Five stars just because it's Treasure Planet.
A Royal Game of Chess: I do love me stories where Maid Marian is doing her part to help the Merry Men, either as herself or in disguise, perhaps even as a Merry Man herself! So I hoped this one would be good, but while the idea was, the execution was not. Rushed pacing and dull action combined with way too much stuff going on made this ironically feel like a slog. I know one of the newly-announced novels in this line is this idea, so maybe I'll read that instead. It's a good idea but in need badly of expansion. Two stars.
The Secret Exchange: I love Little Mermaid stories where she learns about life on land and the prince learns about the sea and they're cute and perfect and wonderful and I love it! And King Trident realizing merpeople and humans can learn a lot from each other and giving both the power to be on sea or shore?! So good. Literally my one complaint is the climax and ending were way too rushed, which as you can tell by now is a huge problem with almost all of these. Still, five stars.
Dust to Dust: I loved how this followed lore of both the original play and the Disney Fairies line in regards to fairyfolk, and the twist was a really good one, as well as the setup. But the actual story was rushed, had too much going on, and ultimately fell flat. Peter Pan stories are very hard for me to get invested in, so perhaps that was the case here and not really anything the story itself did. Two stars.
Gonna Take You There: I love seeing Tiana and Naveen bond, as humans! People! Black people hanging out! We love to see it! This was cute, I liked the budding romance as well as the hints to the culture of the time and place(Tiana and her mother live in the Ninth Ward. If you know, you know) but once again came off as a bit flat. It's a roadtrip story, but stories like that need way more than ten/twenty pages to properly flourish, so I was left wanting more by the end of this, and not really in a good way. Three stars.
Fates, Three: I've never seen Brave. To my understanding, this is also similar to the Mulan story where this could very easily just be a sequel or continuation of the first movie, as it doesn't contradict anything from that one. The triplets are cute, I like rambunctious teenagers, and the messages they had to learn were cliche but still nice. The importance of family, don't rush into things, don't waste your life sitting inside, etc. Two stars because it felt very bland and cliche, but from what I hear that fits the movie perfectly anyway.
Dragon in the Snow: This story proves you can write a story, literally anything, and it will be more interesting than the actual Sword in the Stone movie that we actually have. Disney did us so dirty with that movie. In that movie, Merlin and Mad Madame Mim know each other, and this story is a prequel explaining that. I loved how this has Arthurian lore in it, the implication Arthur himself has magic because the sword is enchanted to where only a magic-user can use it, I love the implication Madame Mim is Morgan le Fey?! I loved seeing a younger Merlin and Madam Mim, as well as seeing where their idea and knowledge of a wizard's duel came from. Still, I wasn't a big fan of the fact they were lovers, that felt unneeded and cliche, I would've vastly preferred them being friends or magic rivals. A good prequel nonetheless. Four stars.
The Journey Home: Short, sweet, simple. What else do you want me to say? I liked the ending where Belle learned to appreciate her small-town life and takes over the local bookshop. Three stars.
Cal it a Hunch: This feels so much like a prequel to the Hercules novel that I'm considering it a prequel to that. Hercules' story of learning how to be a god was interesting, figuring out how to do it his own way, but Meg's story fell flat to me. It wasn't interesting watching her solve a mystery, and I didn't really get Hermes' motivation at the end. He did this all just because he could? Two stars.
The Reluctant Prince: This story did not have to be so good. Bambi is a Disney movie I really don't like, yet this story slapped hard. I loved seeing Bambi's reluctance and his realization that he's not afraid of being a prince, rather he's afraid of becoming just like his father, aloof and distant and uncaring. IO did feel like once again this easily fits into the timeline of the movie, who's to say Bambi didn't think that stuff offscreen, but this was a super good story nonetheless. Five stars.
The Rose and the Thorns: A nice story to end it on. I liked how it showed Aurora's kingdom suffering from the ban on spinning wheels, how her and Prince Phillip actually got to grow up together so they're closer, and Aurora learning magic. I also liked the dig at the live-action Maleficinet movie. While the climax also felt rushed, I felt there was more good stuff leading up to it in comparison to the other stories. Three stars.
Overall, a very mixed bag. I liked the ideas of these stories, but so many were rushed and underdeveloped that it hampered my enjoyment of them. So many of these might make better novels, and seeing as how that Maid Marian one is, I do hope that's a realistic possibility for some of these as well. Not bad, pretty good, but not perfect.
nickimonkey's review
3.5
The novellas about stories I know, I loved. I didn’t really understand the others. I also didn’t like how most of the media would already had books were written by the same author as the book
smarz11's review
adventurous
emotional
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
3.5
Some of the stories are 4-5 stars, but overall there were some I just couldn’t get into taking this rating down for me. I love the full length novels in this series and was a little disappointed by these shorter storylines. I was hoping the bit sized versions would just be smaller version, but the quality of some of the short stories were either drawn out or rushed.
narunii's review
adventurous
hopeful
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75