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3.74 AVERAGE
3.74 AVERAGE
fast-paced
It’s Melanie Dickerson’s work, it’ll always be amazing
This book is the first book I read of Melanie Dickerson's. I wasn't expecting it to be very good, as I dislike romance. I was wrong! It was amazing!
The characters in this book were very real, my favourite was either Gisele or the prince's sister Margareta. Even though some of the other reviews were complaining about how the prince was very prideful, I do agree with them, but I think it was a good thing. It helped along with the character development, and made him seem less perfect. I do think Gisele could've noticed it a little more though.
The style of writing in this book was amazing. I loved it, it drew me into the book immediately, and kept me on my toes. Even though I knew somewhat about the original tale of Cinderella, I didn't guess everything in the beginning. I was very interested to find out what the author would do about the fairy Godmother. I thought she addressed it perfectly, and I really loved that part.
It did remind me a little of the 'Ever After' movie it was different in many ways. It was Christian, and had good message. The sister's were different. It also had different plot twists.
I loved the character development in this book. The prince was out for revenge, and he did lancing at the beginning of the book. I loved that he gave up lancing, and he learned that vengeance belongs to the Lord by end of the book.
Overall I would rate this book 4/5. The only thing I didn't like about it was the romance, it wasn't inappropriate or anything, but could've been a bit less day-dreamy.
The characters in this book were very real, my favourite was either Gisele or the prince's sister Margareta. Even though some of the other reviews were complaining about how the prince was very prideful, I do agree with them, but I think it was a good thing. It helped along with the character development, and made him seem less perfect. I do think Gisele could've noticed it a little more though.
The style of writing in this book was amazing. I loved it, it drew me into the book immediately, and kept me on my toes. Even though I knew somewhat about the original tale of Cinderella, I didn't guess everything in the beginning. I was very interested to find out what the author would do about the fairy Godmother. I thought she addressed it perfectly, and I really loved that part.
It did remind me a little of the 'Ever After' movie it was different in many ways. It was Christian, and had good message. The sister's were different. It also had different plot twists.
I loved the character development in this book. The prince was out for revenge, and he did lancing at the beginning of the book. I loved that he gave up lancing, and he learned that vengeance belongs to the Lord by end of the book.
Overall I would rate this book 4/5. The only thing I didn't like about it was the romance, it wasn't inappropriate or anything, but could've been a bit less day-dreamy.
I decided to read this before Mrs Dickerson’s latest book The Princess Spy to ‘catch up’- although her titles are really standalone books and you don’t need to know what happened in one to follow the other. As what it is advertised to be a Young Adult Fairy Tale romance it generally delivers well- though it must be admitted that some parts seemed corny or else the characters and decisions just seemed silly to the point of being almost painful for the audience, simply because they fell for ploys that were so glaringly obvious.
As with the others the setting is Medieval, this time the second decade of the 15th century (1400s), yet another reviewer remarked that the setting did not seem as authentic as it did in the others. In some ways, I’m inclined to agree, but not for the same reasons. The mention of ‘coachmen’ was the main ones that seemed out of place- more at home on the seventeenth or eighteenth century that the fifteenth. Now carriages did exist in the Middle Ages- but they were really little more than covered wagons and quite cumbersome affairs- not like the smaller, lighter and faster ‘coaches’ of later centuries, which is what the description of them in this novel made them sound like.
Then there were the jousting scenes- which others have criticized for various reasons- such as them being themed around a Queen of Love and Beauty. That was not an issue for me, I suppose as someone who has been adaptations of Ivanhoe which these passages were inspired by.
My main gripe, as an Englishwoman who has seen ‘real’ jousting and tournaments a number of times, was the mention of combatants’ helmets flying off.
I have never seen such a thing happening at a joust- it would seem to defeat the protective purpose of helmets if they came off with one blow. From what I have seen they were quite securely fastened- and jousters of the 15th century usually wore padded doublets under their armour for extra protection- so the notion of stabbing naked skin under joins in the armour did not entirely ring true either.
The problems aside, and without wanting to sound too critical The Captive Maiden was a good story, which clearly echoed the Cinderella fairy tale, and sometimes resembled Ever After with Drew Barrymore and Anjelica Huston- but without the fake accents. It was good to see Valten, eldest son of Rose and Wilhelm, finally coming into his own, confronting some of his demons, and finding happiness, as well as some important messages about overcoming pride and bitterness. Gisela was a typical heroine- though I felt she did not always live up to what Valten said about her being brave.
There were, inevitably, kissing scenes, but the characters didn’t seem quite so consumed or obsessed with it as they do in some stories, so it was perhaps a little less ‘fluffy’ on the romance side than other such novels. There was enough romance, excitement and intrigue to keep even an adult wanting to read to the end. I did like the way that issues surrounding Medieval marriage laws and customs were dealt with towards the end (albeit in in the manner or a rather sudden realisation), rather than the author just falling into the trap of assuming forced marriage was normal or acceptable.
Overall, this was a sweet inspirational story, with a few issues, but generally worth the read. I would recommend for younger reads above the ages of 11 or so, with adult discretion.
As with the others the setting is Medieval, this time the second decade of the 15th century (1400s), yet another reviewer remarked that the setting did not seem as authentic as it did in the others. In some ways, I’m inclined to agree, but not for the same reasons. The mention of ‘coachmen’ was the main ones that seemed out of place- more at home on the seventeenth or eighteenth century that the fifteenth. Now carriages did exist in the Middle Ages- but they were really little more than covered wagons and quite cumbersome affairs- not like the smaller, lighter and faster ‘coaches’ of later centuries, which is what the description of them in this novel made them sound like.
Then there were the jousting scenes- which others have criticized for various reasons- such as them being themed around a Queen of Love and Beauty. That was not an issue for me, I suppose as someone who has been adaptations of Ivanhoe which these passages were inspired by.
My main gripe, as an Englishwoman who has seen ‘real’ jousting and tournaments a number of times, was the mention of combatants’ helmets flying off.
I have never seen such a thing happening at a joust- it would seem to defeat the protective purpose of helmets if they came off with one blow. From what I have seen they were quite securely fastened- and jousters of the 15th century usually wore padded doublets under their armour for extra protection- so the notion of stabbing naked skin under joins in the armour did not entirely ring true either.
The problems aside, and without wanting to sound too critical The Captive Maiden was a good story, which clearly echoed the Cinderella fairy tale, and sometimes resembled Ever After with Drew Barrymore and Anjelica Huston- but without the fake accents. It was good to see Valten, eldest son of Rose and Wilhelm, finally coming into his own, confronting some of his demons, and finding happiness, as well as some important messages about overcoming pride and bitterness. Gisela was a typical heroine- though I felt she did not always live up to what Valten said about her being brave.
There were, inevitably, kissing scenes, but the characters didn’t seem quite so consumed or obsessed with it as they do in some stories, so it was perhaps a little less ‘fluffy’ on the romance side than other such novels. There was enough romance, excitement and intrigue to keep even an adult wanting to read to the end. I did like the way that issues surrounding Medieval marriage laws and customs were dealt with towards the end (albeit in in the manner or a rather sudden realisation), rather than the author just falling into the trap of assuming forced marriage was normal or acceptable.
Overall, this was a sweet inspirational story, with a few issues, but generally worth the read. I would recommend for younger reads above the ages of 11 or so, with adult discretion.
I really enjoyed reading this book. While it is not technically a series, it does follow The Healer’s Apprentice and The Fairest Beauty in story line and time. I felt like the characters grew throughout the story. But one thing bothered me a bit. Gisela often had no regard for the consequences of her actions, especially near the beginning. Perhaps I just cannot relate. I am not sure where the disconnect comes in, but it seemed that when making some of her choices she did not think at all about the consequences, significant consequences. Beyond that, I found it a good read. Many of the descriptions made me feel as if I were almost there experiencing it. I enjoyed reading this take on the Cinderella story.
Content: Clean – some mild violence
See my review at http://www.iamareader.com/2014/02/book-review-the-captive-maiden-by-melanie-dickerson.html
Content: Clean – some mild violence
See my review at http://www.iamareader.com/2014/02/book-review-the-captive-maiden-by-melanie-dickerson.html
adventurous
hopeful
inspiring
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I liked The Captive Maiden though it was the least imaginative of the retellings so far – or at least the first half was. It was Cinderella, the classic version, barely changed until the midnight escape from the ball which was when the story finally went an entirely different direction. I liked the story (jousting!) but there were several times I thought it stretched believability. The second half was interesting since it was covering new ground – except it got repetitive so the new ground was…not so new very quickly.
Specifically:
There was a moment during the grand climax that I expected something to happen and was disappointed when it did not. I felt like there was an opportunity for a more complex resolution to occur and the author opted for the easy way out instead. The romance was sweet and funny but I never quite bought into it. After 4 books, my feelings about the series have cemented – very cute but simple. I still love the series but they’re categorized as light YA romances in my brain now so I can stop expecting more complexity.
Specifically:
Spoiler
I thought it was a real stretch to believe the bad guy (or his men) were able to sneak in, get in touch with evil girls, and kidnap Gisela all while soldiers were on guard searching. And then the escape, get caught, escape, get caught, escape… Was it just me or did Valten shorten their hiding every other sentence? They hide in the cave, he said, “We’ll hide 2-3 days.” They wake up, he says, “We’ll hide a couple days.” They eat breakfast, he says, “We’ll leave tonight”. So I can’t say I was surprised when they got caught after essentially *not* hiding. Most especially, the climactic ending made little sense to me. The random blindfold for no reason and then throwing them in a tower was crazy. Why would any sane bad guy leave his captives alone together? And then they escape (again) only to discover two more seconds and they’d have been rescued anyway. Honestly, I felt like the whole tower scenario was written just so there could be a “making out blindfolded” scene. Also, the big reveal at the end was too sudden. Some foreshadowing could easily have been worked in earlier.)There was a moment during the grand climax that I expected something to happen and was disappointed when it did not. I felt like there was an opportunity for a more complex resolution to occur and the author opted for the easy way out instead. The romance was sweet and funny but I never quite bought into it. After 4 books, my feelings about the series have cemented – very cute but simple. I still love the series but they’re categorized as light YA romances in my brain now so I can stop expecting more complexity.
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I will remember for future reference that I do not like fairy tale stories where the charming prince saves the captive maiden and they instantly fall in love :). I feel like if this book was read by someone who did in fact like that, this would be a higher rating.
adventurous
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
A fairy tale retelling of Cinderella! This story is complete with lots of fun twists, some cute characters and a good story. Fun light read!
While the story was sweet, it wasn't my favorite of Melanie's. The characters didn't emotionally grip me as strongly and there seemed to be less transformation compared to other books in this series.