The Heart of the Sea is a gender-swapped Little Mermaid, but it has a lot to add to the original tale. In this version, the two main characters are separated childhood sweethearts, with the narrative bouncing between the past and present day. There’s a lot more world-building and magic to tie together the world of humans and merfolk, and I especially love the addition of the Condemned and the larger element of danger. Though the characters didn’t super pop for me, I thought this was a very original take on the Little Mermaid, and would definitely recommend to any Fairytale Retelling fans out there!
So first of all, I just love EP Stavs writing. It’s fast-paced, fun, and it sucks me right into the story every time. This one is probably one of my favorite reads from her. I love the Grimm-based world she created here, and the voicey characters practically popped from the page. Honestly, it reminded me of a mature Ella Enchanted, and I was SO here for it. Highly recommend if you’re looking for a fairytale retelling equal parts dark and quirky fun with a pop of spice.
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I love when a book turns out to be a fresh, unexpected surprise!
I loved Katherine Macdonald’s Thief of Spring duology, so I was absolutely ready to pick up another book for hers. A Curse of Hope and Shadows kind of reminds me of a cross between Beauty and the Beast and Downton Abbey. The romance is sweet and slowburn, and the plot closely shadows the source fairy tale, but (and this is a personal preference) there wasn’t quite enough tension for me. Adeline and Dimitri fall pretty steadily for each other throughout, although at times, I feel like Adeline was a bit motherly toward Dimitri. But as per usual, Macdonald’s writing is gorgeous and her characters are both likable and showcase a lot of depth. I would totally recommend it to anyone looking for a sweet, character-driven Beauty and the Beast retelling.
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Give me the frightening, monstery beasts that are something to fear.
What a super cute steampunkish Rapunzel retelling! The Girl in the Clockwork Tower by Lou Wilham follows Persi, a seer forced to work for the evil and anti-magic MOTHER agency, and quirky goofball, Captain Manu, Persi’s assigned Uprising point of contact in a world filled with all manner of familiar magical people (Mermaids, Werewolves, Unicorns etc) and a few subtle pop culture references peppered in.
I absolutely loved the characters. Persi is super sweet, but shows a lot of courage as she tries to subvert MOTHER from the inside, and Manu is just this dramatic, pineapple-loving dandy airship Captain that you really can’t help but love. I absolutely loved the tongue-in-cheek banter between he and his grumpy goblin first mate, Benard. And Manu and Persi were super cute together—just a heroic pair of cinnamon rolls. And I also really liked that even though Manu and Persi are wholesome and have this innocence to them, the story really didn’t shy away from the horridness of MOTHER.
The only thing that was a little off for me was the pacing. I thought the middle dragged a bit, and then the ending felt rushed—without the full closure I was expecting. It sounds like this is going to be the first book in a series, but I still felt there were some threads of the story that seemed to be left hanging. I would totally recommend to fantasy fans looking for a unique retelling with loveable characters, fun banter, and a clean, sweet romance.
Thanks so much to Booksirens and the publisher for the free ARC!
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Fun world and loveable characters in a steampunk retelling. Thumbs up!
Hayley Reese Chow 