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lazygal's review against another edition
4.0
This isn't quite a fractured fairy tale, but there are so many familiar elements that it could almost be one.
Violet is (most emphatically) not a beautiful princess, with frizzy unmanageable hair, splotchy skin and eyes that don't match in size and color, but none of that seems to matter. She has one friend, Demetrius, and lives in the castle with her parents. One day, while exploring, she and Demetrius find a hidden room, with a dusty book and a very odd, very disturbing painting.
In her world there are twelve gods, but somehow she hears about a thirteenth - although everyone denies that one exists. There used to be dragons, but they've all died or disappeared - although there seems to be one, and her father (and Demetrius) set out to capture it. While they're gone, she starts exploring again and rediscovers this room. Turns out there is a thirteenth god and he's a little cranky (and mad... and dangerous).
The idea of the not-at-all beautiful princess, dragons and so forth are interesting twists on the usual themes. Where the book lost me was at the ending, which seemed to be faster paced than the rest of the book yet filed with more action than the earlier parts. The ending owes a lot to C.S. Lewis' The Last Battle, which really does require a slower pace to understand.
ARC provided by publisher.
Violet is (most emphatically) not a beautiful princess, with frizzy unmanageable hair, splotchy skin and eyes that don't match in size and color, but none of that seems to matter. She has one friend, Demetrius, and lives in the castle with her parents. One day, while exploring, she and Demetrius find a hidden room, with a dusty book and a very odd, very disturbing painting.
In her world there are twelve gods, but somehow she hears about a thirteenth - although everyone denies that one exists. There used to be dragons, but they've all died or disappeared - although there seems to be one, and her father (and Demetrius) set out to capture it. While they're gone, she starts exploring again and rediscovers this room. Turns out there is a thirteenth god and he's a little cranky (and mad... and dangerous).
The idea of the not-at-all beautiful princess, dragons and so forth are interesting twists on the usual themes. Where the book lost me was at the ending, which seemed to be faster paced than the rest of the book yet filed with more action than the earlier parts. The ending owes a lot to C.S. Lewis' The Last Battle, which really does require a slower pace to understand.
ARC provided by publisher.
racheljoy7's review against another edition
3.0
A fun fairy tale with unusual, non-traditional heroes.
squishies's review against another edition
3.0
The story starts of a bit slow, but my interest did pick up as it progressed.
Having a very flawed narrator telling the Violet and Demetrius' story was interesting; when he berates himself for his foolish actions, you know something's up.
The story took a bit of a darker turn than I had anticipated, but it worked so well.
Favourite character: definitely Demetrius.
Having a very flawed narrator telling the Violet and Demetrius' story was interesting; when he berates himself for his foolish actions, you know something's up.
The story took a bit of a darker turn than I had anticipated, but it worked so well.
Favourite character: definitely Demetrius.
lolajoan's review against another edition
3.0
Lovely and a novel tale, but, much like The Witch's Boy, I found it to be strangely slow going for the amount of story there is. But definitely enjoyable.
kylielovesbooks's review against another edition
3.0
This one didn't really catch my attention, which I'm sad about because I loved Kelly's other book The Witch's Boy. I also listened to it on audiobook, so it may have been that I kept getting distracted.
It just kind of didn't sit well with me that the main character Violet was called ugly throughout the whole book and got turned into what she thought was a "perfect princess" with long flowing hair and small feet and perfect skin.
I felt like there were tons of things going on and I couldn't keep track of everything. Maybe if I had read it as a physical book it would have come together more for me, but it was just kind of all over the place for me.
It just kind of didn't sit well with me that the main character Violet was called ugly throughout the whole book and got turned into what she thought was a "perfect princess" with long flowing hair and small feet and perfect skin.
I felt like there were tons of things going on and I couldn't keep track of everything. Maybe if I had read it as a physical book it would have come together more for me, but it was just kind of all over the place for me.
yapha's review against another edition
5.0
This is not your typical fairy tale and Violet is not your typical princess. But oh how she wants to be! She wants to be a beautiful princess, like in all of the stories, so that her people will love her. This is a powerful story about the power of stories. Recommended for anyone who likes fairy tales where the princess isn't beautiful, the dragon isn't evil, and there is no prince that comes to save the day.
ARC provided by publisher.
ARC provided by publisher.