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wondernikel's review against another edition
3.0
I still enjoyed this novel, but I think the beginning of the story was repetitive and drug on too long. The ending was extremely rushed, and there are definitely several unanswered questions. Intriguing!! I am also wondering about the Odd Sister tie-in here??? Is just knowing Tulip is a character in a series Cruella reads it???
znygren's review against another edition
5.0
This was my favorite retelling in Valentinos series. The writing style was much different in this one and I enjoyed it SO much. I was also happy that we got a retelling that was not flooded with “the odd sisters”… I was a bit bored of their story line within every single retell. This series has been more of a YA or teen series, however this book had more of adult theme, and touched on family trauma, and mental illness. I read this whole book in one sitting!
whiterice9051's review against another edition
3.0
Honestly… I feel sad for her but is it true? Villains are not born but made? ☹️
emma_t04's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
kmaries2017's review against another edition
adventurous
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
mbenzz's review against another edition
4.0
Not being a fan of Cruella or the '101 Dalmation's' movie, I wasn't expecting to enjoy this book as much as I did. I considered skipping it, but having read all the other books in the series, I just couldn't bring myself to do that.
This book is completely different from the previous six in this series as it's a 100% stand-alone story. You can read this book without reading any of the others and still get the exact same experience as someone who's read them all.
There's no Odd Sisters (which was kind of refreshing) and no magic (maybe a little bit of a curse, but that's up to the reader to decide). Princess Tulip and Prince Poppinjay are mentioned only as characters in Cruella's favorite childhood fairy tales. Other than that, this is ALL Cruella.
I love what Ms. Valentino did with Cruella's childhood. The dynamic between Cruella and her mother really sets the stage nicely for her behavior later in life. I really liked the intense and very close friendship Cruella enjoyed with Anita as a child and into their teens. It made their later relationship much more tragic.
The only thing I was a bit bummed about was the ending...it felt very rushed. We go from normal fun-loving Cruella (who has bursts of anger and impatience) to all of a sudden...BAM! Crazy, off-the-rails, straight-up-lost-her-damn-mind Cruella. It was kind of jarring. The Cruella at the end, who was quoting the lines in the movie, felt like a completely different person than the one I had just spent an entire book reading about. Much more dramatic and obnoxious. It was a struggle to picture her behaving that way...but I suppose madness will do that to a person.
Overall though, much to my surprise, this is one of my favorite books in the entire series. It doesn't have that other-worldly fairy tale vibe to it, but it's a really good story and gives Cruella a layer of humanity she seemed to be otherwise lacking.
I definitely look forward to whatever comes next in this series. I've really enjoyed it thus far.
*** I received this book for free via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review***
This book is completely different from the previous six in this series as it's a 100% stand-alone story. You can read this book without reading any of the others and still get the exact same experience as someone who's read them all.
There's no Odd Sisters (which was kind of refreshing) and no magic (maybe a little bit of a curse, but that's up to the reader to decide). Princess Tulip and Prince Poppinjay are mentioned only as characters in Cruella's favorite childhood fairy tales. Other than that, this is ALL Cruella.
I love what Ms. Valentino did with Cruella's childhood. The dynamic between Cruella and her mother really sets the stage nicely for her behavior later in life. I really liked the intense and very close friendship Cruella enjoyed with Anita as a child and into their teens. It made their later relationship much more tragic.
The only thing I was a bit bummed about was the ending...it felt very rushed. We go from normal fun-loving Cruella (who has bursts of anger and impatience) to all of a sudden...BAM! Crazy, off-the-rails, straight-up-lost-her-damn-mind Cruella. It was kind of jarring. The Cruella at the end, who was quoting the lines in the movie, felt like a completely different person than the one I had just spent an entire book reading about. Much more dramatic and obnoxious. It was a struggle to picture her behaving that way...but I suppose madness will do that to a person.
Overall though, much to my surprise, this is one of my favorite books in the entire series. It doesn't have that other-worldly fairy tale vibe to it, but it's a really good story and gives Cruella a layer of humanity she seemed to be otherwise lacking.
I definitely look forward to whatever comes next in this series. I've really enjoyed it thus far.
*** I received this book for free via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review***
eemillers15's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
shaunie991's review against another edition
5.0
5 stars on the narration by Susanne Blakeslee alone.
zsabretooth's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0