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mrose21's review against another edition
1.0
Ok I tried, very very hard to like this. Its my favourite fairy tale, was my favourite movie as a child so I was looking forward to this but I'm sorry it was boring.
I think this series is not for me.
I think this series is not for me.
scribesprite's review against another edition
4.0
I was completely at a loss on how I was going to rate this book. It’s not that I didn't like the story or the writing. It just wasn't what I expected, mostly just the ending though. I'm sure others would think that the ending was obvious but I was actually surprised.
The princess Aurora is the type of princess everyone loves. She does everything from archery to sheering sheep to embroidery. She may not be good at everything but she tries it all. She is terrible with the royalty stuff such as dancing and she can't seem to be very graceful. Aurora isn't a spoiled brat of a princess. She cares for her people and is practical minded.
As in most Dokey books that I've read the real adventure doesn't happen until about half way. I think Dokey does this to give you a sense of the character, setup for the adventure, and establish the protagonist's relationship with her family/freinds. I like the relationship she has with her parents. The relationship with her cousin has it's ups and downs but it ends well.
There is a happy ending. I like a happy ending so that wasn't the problem. Aurora was happy but there were things that didn't quite sit right with me because I'm not sure that I would've been able to be happy with how things went down. I thought about it and decided that if Aurora could accept it then I might as well too.
The princess Aurora is the type of princess everyone loves. She does everything from archery to sheering sheep to embroidery. She may not be good at everything but she tries it all. She is terrible with the royalty stuff such as dancing and she can't seem to be very graceful. Aurora isn't a spoiled brat of a princess. She cares for her people and is practical minded.
As in most Dokey books that I've read the real adventure doesn't happen until about half way. I think Dokey does this to give you a sense of the character, setup for the adventure, and establish the protagonist's relationship with her family/freinds. I like the relationship she has with her parents. The relationship with her cousin has it's ups and downs but it ends well.
There is a happy ending. I like a happy ending so that wasn't the problem. Aurora was happy but there were things that didn't quite sit right with me because I'm not sure that I would've been able to be happy with how things went down. I thought about it and decided that if Aurora could accept it then I might as well too.
lumos_libros's review against another edition
4.0
What a surprise! You know most of these books are fairly predictable, which I don't mind, but this one wasn't. Don't get me wrong it's not like a thriller with major twists at every page, but I honestly didn't have everything figured out from the beginning. A totally refreshing change.
Aurore is of course the girl with that golden hair and startling eyes, but she is different apart from that. Though her curse at first is a hindrance, in some weird way it turns into an advantage. She explores as much as she can, and she has her cousin Oswald to thank for that. She learns to start a fire, shear a goat and countless other things that seem "unprincess like". Once she is sixteen havoc starts to ensue upon the kingdom and she knows what she has to do...or at least she thinks she does.
One of the things I enjoyed the most was the host of secondary characters. In fairy tales they tend to play minor roles, but here they certainly stand out more. Go into this like you haven't heard the fairy tale before because in all reality I think it's better than the original Sleeping Beauty. I mean how cool is it to be helpless and asleep for years on end? I can answer that: it's not cool. Dokey defintely knows how to weave a story and make things come full circle. What I like so much about this series that they are light reads, and you know they'll make you smile. This one has to be the most romantic of the fairy tales oddly enough. What I did think was kind of off was how much she told about the ending. I've read a lot of Dokey's other retellings and it's not usually her style. I just wonder what made her do it here. That aside this retelling is one of the most original of the series; a total heart warmer for all those romantics out there.
Aurore is of course the girl with that golden hair and startling eyes, but she is different apart from that. Though her curse at first is a hindrance, in some weird way it turns into an advantage. She explores as much as she can, and she has her cousin Oswald to thank for that. She learns to start a fire, shear a goat and countless other things that seem "unprincess like". Once she is sixteen havoc starts to ensue upon the kingdom and she knows what she has to do...or at least she thinks she does.
One of the things I enjoyed the most was the host of secondary characters. In fairy tales they tend to play minor roles, but here they certainly stand out more. Go into this like you haven't heard the fairy tale before because in all reality I think it's better than the original Sleeping Beauty. I mean how cool is it to be helpless and asleep for years on end? I can answer that: it's not cool. Dokey defintely knows how to weave a story and make things come full circle. What I like so much about this series that they are light reads, and you know they'll make you smile. This one has to be the most romantic of the fairy tales oddly enough. What I did think was kind of off was how much she told about the ending. I've read a lot of Dokey's other retellings and it's not usually her style. I just wonder what made her do it here. That aside this retelling is one of the most original of the series; a total heart warmer for all those romantics out there.
hannahcramerica's review against another edition
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
2.0
bookshy's review against another edition
4.0
I remember loving this series of books about 10 years ago. I still like the comfortable familiarity of the story, And it's a great short read, but I think I would prefer something a little more grown up currently.
raemelle's review against another edition
4.0
A simple, definitely Young Adult, book. I enjoyed this quick read. A little predictable (both for obvious reasons and not-so-obvious), but while I guessed at most of the ending, there was a significant part that for whatever reason I didn't anticipate. Probably because it's kind of weird, I had already dismissed the possibility out of my head at the beginning.
So other than the kind of weird ending, I enjoyed this retelling of Sleeping Beauty.
So other than the kind of weird ending, I enjoyed this retelling of Sleeping Beauty.
bethw1ef0b's review against another edition
3.5
I was enjoying my reread of this until the whole "my true love is my cousin" thing
danicapage's review against another edition
3.0
It was cute, but a very light book. I tend to like books that have a little more substance. However, it did depict an interesting light upon one of the classic fairty tales that we have all heard. I read it in a day. It's a cute, easy read that you can read in a short amount of time. If that's your kind of book, then this one is a cute one. Wierd ending, but cute.
thepastelnerd's review against another edition
1.0
1.5 stars rounded down. I usually round up, but...
*inhales deeply*
Okay.
So.
I really enjoyed most of the book. The descriptions were nice and fanciful, the characters felt real, the fairytale element was clear even though it was also clear this tale deviated from the core story of sleeping beauty significantly.
Honestly, the writing and editing isn't the best. It was at times vague, repetitive, and/or confusing, but I was still enjoying the story so I thought I'd give it probably 3 stars.
*Spoiler below*
And then....and then Aurore's cousin who she had a strangely close relationship with that I just chalked up to being siblings originally was revealed to be her one true love! He waited for her for 100 years and they get married and have many children! Yay, right?
NO.
I don't care how romantic you write it. Ew. No. I don't care if in the time the book was roughly placed first cousin intimacy was okay. Today, in this society, it is very wrong and very gross. I could have given a pass for like a fourth or fifth cousin that was raised alongside the crown princess, but not a first cousin.
It's even more upsetting because we spend a significant chunk of the book watching her cute budding romance with her fifth-great-nephew or something like that. Still weird, but I was willing to give it a pass because I was still enjoying the book before Aurore decided to commit incest right at the end.
By the way, I read this series as a tween and didn't remember anything about Beauty Sleep until I read it. Now I remember that middle school me was also grossed out. Sigh. Also, the bit about the world falling apart because she hadn't fallen victim to the curse was too dark. It didn't really fit the tone of the rest of the book.
TL;DR: Could have forgiven some of the bad writing in favor of the cute fairytale-ness if it wasn't for the incest at the very end.
*inhales deeply*
Okay.
So.
I really enjoyed most of the book. The descriptions were nice and fanciful, the characters felt real, the fairytale element was clear even though it was also clear this tale deviated from the core story of sleeping beauty significantly.
Honestly, the writing and editing isn't the best. It was at times vague, repetitive, and/or confusing, but I was still enjoying the story so I thought I'd give it probably 3 stars.
*Spoiler below*
And then....and then Aurore's cousin who she had a strangely close relationship with that I just chalked up to being siblings originally was revealed to be her one true love! He waited for her for 100 years and they get married and have many children! Yay, right?
NO.
I don't care how romantic you write it. Ew. No. I don't care if in the time the book was roughly placed first cousin intimacy was okay. Today, in this society, it is very wrong and very gross. I could have given a pass for like a fourth or fifth cousin that was raised alongside the crown princess, but not a first cousin.
It's even more upsetting because we spend a significant chunk of the book watching her cute budding romance with her fifth-great-nephew or something like that. Still weird, but I was willing to give it a pass because I was still enjoying the book before Aurore decided to commit incest right at the end.
By the way, I read this series as a tween and didn't remember anything about Beauty Sleep until I read it. Now I remember that middle school me was also grossed out. Sigh. Also, the bit about the world falling apart because she hadn't fallen victim to the curse was too dark. It didn't really fit the tone of the rest of the book.
TL;DR: Could have forgiven some of the bad writing in favor of the cute fairytale-ness if it wasn't for the incest at the very end.