Genre: Fantasy
Release Date: July 11th, 2023
Pages: 416
Publisher: Del Rey
My Rating: ⭐⭐⭐
It started out so well; I loved the interesting take on a classic story. I loved the main character, the backstory was intriguing, as well as the world-building. It felt magical, wistful, and also daring and cunning. But the middle 40-60 percent is where things started to fall off for me. I started to feel a disconnect between the original tale and this story, like it began to feel as though it didn’t even matter that she was supposed to be a new version of Cinderella. The retelling aspects of the novel just didn’t feel relevant or imperative to the direction of the story. Another thing that lost me was the amount of political intrigue, which is basically the entirety of the plot. It started to get a little boring if I’m being honest. I wanted more action and something more driving the plot. I still think this is a solid debut, and I think the right audience will fall in love with it. The writing itself and the author’s voice is enchanting and really does weave an enrapturing setting. I would definitely read more from this author in the future. Even though I didn’t absolutely love this book, it was still an enjoyable read.
Disclaimers:
Huge thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for gifting me an early copy of this story! I voluntarily read and reviewed this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
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