Hello, our lovely readers!!!
I've gotten to read an awesome book lately; one I was iffy on reading. It turned out to be so unique of a story that it was moved up in the list of books to review! In fact, it's today's book: Cinderella's Dress by Shonna Slayton!
Summary: "Being seventeen during World War II is tough. Finding out you’re the next keeper of the real Cinderella’s dresses is even tougher.
Kate simply wants to create window displays at the department store where she's working, trying to help out with the war effort. But when long-lost relatives from Poland arrive with a steamer trunk they claim holds the Cinderella’s dresses, life gets complicated.
Now, with a father missing in action, her new sweetheart, Johnny, stuck in the middle of battle, and her great aunt losing her wits, Kate has to unravel the mystery before it’s too late.After all, the descendants of the wicked stepsisters will stop at nothing to get what they think they deserve." (Thank you so much, Goodreads!)
So the main character has this dream of being a window dresser, which I didn't know was unusual for a woman to do back then. I also didn't know how important and immensely creative that profession is. It's so cool to learn. I also learned a lot more about people, and the War, and also just little details in general. It's truly like being back in the WWII era, working and dreaming with Katie!
So take that and add on the fairytale dresses of Cinderella, and the mystery of it all. Is it true? Is it just a fantasy? What is going on? All of the questions are asked and answered wonderfully in this novel. I loved the magic of it all, and how this novel makes it feel like magic and fairytales can be true; we'd never know. I love that feeling, and truly, this novel has done it better than the novels I've been reading/have read.
The only downside for me is that I wanted to reach the conclusion and figure it all out faster than I did. However, stay patient, because it's all worth it.
In Conclusion: Please read this, even if you don't like historical fiction. It's so creative and fun!
Rating:
4/5 dresses
Till next time!!!
XOXO,
Alexis
Readers,
For some reason, I'm feeling quite sickly today, so this is going to be a quick-y review.
Today's book is Magic Under Glass by Jaclyn Dolamore! I got it at Half Price Books, and must write thank you to my mom for not only letting me go in, but paying for my four new books! It was a sweet blessing and gesture, and I truly appreciate it.
Now on to the review!
Summary (from Goodreads): "Nimira is a foreign music-hall girl forced to dance for pennies. When wealthy sorcerer Hollin Parry hires her to sing with a piano-playing automaton, Nimira believes it is the start of a new and better life. In Parry's world, however, buried secrets are beginning to stir. Unsettling below-stairs rumors swirl about ghosts, a madwoman roaming the halls, and Parry's involvement with a league of sorcerers who torture fairies for sport. Then Nimira discovers the spirit of a fairy gentleman named Erris is trapped inside the clockwork automaton, waiting for someone to break his curse. The two fall into a love that seems hopeless, and breaking the curse becomes a race against time, as not just their love, but the fate of the entire magical world may be in peril."
This novel was sooooooo good! It kept me on my toes, and then developed like a child's fairy tale (but a bit creepier). All the mysteries, magic, and beauty just were phenomenal. I loved how it seemed so very realistic of a story! The characters, mannerisms, speech, and world all seemed completely possible, and you get yanked into the world that Namira is in. Then, you just don't want to leave it.
In the technicalities, like world building and character development and such, everything was spot on. The only thing is that you shouldn't attempt to read this novel in one night. You should let yourself absorb, enjoy, and ponder over all of the details and happenings, letting the story go into your brain and soul. It just has too many fun and interesting details and happenings for one to just gloss over the story without letting it into your heart and head. It is never ever boring though, and is very fast-paced with a great cast of characters, without provoking confusion. Perfection, in my opinion.
In Conclusion: If you loved fairy tale movies growing up (especially Disney), and you also have respect for the classics (whether you've read them or not), you will love this novel. Be sure to let yourself truly just experience the story, and you will love it!!!
Rating:
5/5 piano keys
Love,
Lexi
Hello, you awesome (fellow) book nerds!
This is my awesome-lé-possum (stole that from my friend, Ashlynn) book review on Tiger's Curse by Colleen Houck.
The first thing to know is that this book is part of a series, but you can read this as a one-shot, and you'd still be satisfied. At least I was. (Oh, and if you're not aware, please read my other post from today, which should be right under this one. Thank you!)
The gorgeous book front looks like this:
Summary (from Goodreads, of course): "Passion. Fate. Loyalty.
Would you risk it all to change your destiny?
The last thing Kelsey Hayes thought she’d be doing this summer was trying to break a 300-year-old Indian curse. With a mysterious white tiger named Ren. Halfway around the world. But that’s exactly what happened. Face-to-face with dark forces, spellbinding magic, and mystical worlds where nothing is what it seems, Kelsey risks everything to piece together an ancient prophecy that could break the curse forever."
This seriously is a great book! I was hesitant at first, but once you meet the characters and read the first chapter, you get yanked into the story. The further you go, the more and more attached you get. The author, Colleen Houck, seriously just keeps a hold of your attention this entire book, and she takes you on this amazing journey across the world!
The details she includes are very descriptive. She shows a lot, not just telling. This is shown especially when they end up at a hut. The details Houck includes makes you very able to picture everything in her novel. She makes sure that you are entangled in the entire story, and grabs your imagination. The story even feels like it's completely possible, not just a novel.
I really just love this book, and the characters. The plot is great as well.
In Conclusion: If you're into books that are like mature fairytales, especially ones with awesome, well-done love stories inside, read this book. Reading it for me felt like reading one of the stories from Arabian Nights, maybe a fairytale from childhood. It just made me comfortable and completely in the story.
Rating:
5/5 beautiful, blue-eyed white tigers (my favorite!!!)
Until Thursday, your book babe,
Lexi
Hello, Readers...
As I sit here and watch "Valley Girl" (complete with a Valley girl saying "Gag me with a spoon!" said by the same chick who did Timmy's voice in "Fairly Odd Parents" and Tommy in "Rugrats") starring Nicolas Cage at his finest (*laughing*), I'm wondering what exactly to write about this book... Strands of Bronze and Gold by Jane Nickerson. It's a novel based on the fairytale "Bluebeard." If you know the tale or not, this book is going to take you by surprise.
OMG. "I'm humiliated to the max!" was just said. Why have I taken so long to see this movie again? I need to buy this horrid blast from the past on DVD...
Anywho, this is a dark novel. The fairytale is dark as well, so it's very fitting. For a girl who is a fan of hilarious Southern fiction, this was not humorous, but depressing (again, fitting). There are slaves, treated horribly, without mercy. It is obviously realistic, so just be prepared for that (it broke my heart).
Summary: "When seventeen-year-old Sophia Petheram’s beloved father dies, she receives an unexpected letter. An invitation—on fine ivory paper, in bold black handwriting—from the mysterious Monsieur Bernard de Cressac, her godfather. With no money and fewer options, Sophie accepts, leaving her humble childhood home for the astonishingly lavish Wyndriven Abbey, in the heart of Mississippi.
Sophie has always longed for a comfortable life, and she finds herself both attracted to and shocked by the charm and easy manners of her overgenerous guardian. But as she begins to piece together the mystery of his past, it’s as if, thread by thread, a silken net is tightening around her. And as she gathers stories and catches whispers of his former wives—all with hair as red as her own—in the forgotten corners of the abbey, Sophie knows she’s trapped in the passion and danger of de Cressac’s intoxicating world." (Goodreads, I love you. Just sayin'.)
Now for those who know the tale, you'll still be terrified out of your wits at appropriate times. I've thought about this tale being retold, and this novel surpassed what I wanted and expected out of a retelling of it. For those who don't know the tale, get ready for an awesome book with freak out moments.
I guess since I knew it, I was trying to get through the novel quickly to see how it all was going to turn out, and if the author was going to make this real or not, and how the tale was going to wind itself/tell itself. This novel has you wanting to yell at Sophia, and other times you want to sit down with her and give her a hug.
The action is there, the characters are whole when need to be, and this novel feels and sounds so realistic, that you start wondering if this whole thing really happened or not. It sounds plausible, and when you can get a fairy tale to become real, you have great talent and tons of imagination. And this author? She definitely has both. You'll be on the edge of your seat during this entire novel. You'll wonder who the "bad guy" is.
For me, because I wanted the novel to go faster, the pace was slow. However, it's meant to build up the tension, which it does wonderfully. Also, the story has time to truly develop. The setting is shown instead of told, as are the little details that you want to be able to picture in your head. The overall structure is amazing.
So without giving away any more, I'm giving this novel a 4.8...
So... read it! It's worth the money!
