Reviews with content warning for Death - Cinderella Is Dead

“You’re wrong. I lost myself in caring for you. I cared for you so much I forgot that I deserve to be happy too. I’m sorry you don’t believe in me…I’m sorry I couldn’t save you.” The plot twist?! Phenomenal. Did not see it coming at all. Mouth was literally on the floor. There are some slow parts in the book where it lost my attention but it always caught it again by adding such interesting events that I couldn’t have guessed would happen. I found myself trying to figure the hints/foreshadowing out but was wrong every time. I love to see the women empowerment in this book and I like that it’s a key focus. Now I want to read more books with a twist on original fairytales.

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just_one_more_paige's review against another edition

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adventurous dark hopeful mysterious fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

I have had a soft spot for fairy tales since I was young. And, as we all know by now, I love a retelling. I especially love it when they reclaim the original as something feminist, queer, revolutionary. It's like, the best of all the worlds. So, I've had this one on my TBR for awhile and this most recent vacation, and the need for an entertaining airplane read, was the perfect opportunity. I read it all in a single flight.

Per Goodreads, the blurb for this novel is: "It's 200 years after Cinderella found her prince, but the fairy tale is over. Teen girls are now required to appear at the Annual Ball, where the men of the kingdom select wives based on a girl's display of finery. If a suitable match is not found, the girls not chosen are never heard from again. Sixteen-year-old Sophia would much rather marry Erin, her childhood best friend, than parade in front of suitors. At the ball, Sophia makes the desperate decision to flee, and finds herself hiding in Cinderella's mausoleum. There, she meets Constance, the last known descendant of Cinderella and her stepsisters. Together they vow to bring down the king once and for all--and in the process, they learn that there's more to Cinderella's story than they ever knew."

Alright, this was exactly as advertised. It met expectations, nothing more and nothing less. As far as the general story development and writing, it was fairly basic, especially as fantasy goes. The world-building was pretty surface-level and the characters pretty predictable. And really, it was very clear from the beginning that something weird was going on, that there were secrets and buried truths. But, I was interested enough to keep turning pages, adn the basic-ness meant that I was able to speed right through it. So, I went along for the ride. Things remained this recognizable throughout, even through the big twist and the ending (some elements, *SPOILERS* like soul stealing and the dead turning to ashes are decidedly not new). And yet, fantasy is always a bit trope-heavy. Plus, as this is a princess-story retelling, it makes sense that being groundbreaking wasn't necessarily ever on the table. Perhaps some things were heavy-handed, sure, but that doesn't make the messages wrong. The one thing that I wished I had bought into more was the romance. I mean, I loved that it was f/f, so much. But it just wasn't robust enough for me to fully believe it. Ah well.

There were also a few aspects that I was, objectively, very into. The reframing of the "wicked" stepsisters was great. That the men writing the history would reframe the women who resisted as wicked fits a deeply believable and relatable IRL narrative of victors (re)writing history. On this same point, that “Cinderella’s story is so much more complicated than I imagined.” is a central theme is something I really appreciated. Because isn't that all of it? That women are flattened into something aspirational and simplistic and all the nuance is pulled out in favor of promoting conformity and obedience. And the extremity and entitlement of that reaction to rejection?? Like I said, maybe heavy-handed, but only because it's so upsettingly accurate. I was also absolutely on board for the couple of ways that necromancy was infused into this story. That's a dark magic element that really did give something new to this typically very light and sweet plot fairy tale plot. I do love some dark sh*t now and again (see my love for Gideon the Ninth).

While this wrapped up pretty quick and easy, and you know the transition wasn’t that easy, I feel like the hopefulness in it is something big and worth celebrating. And all that being said about basic-ness, I was looking for a quick and easy plane read and it definitely delivered exactly as I had hoped on that front. I didn't have to think or try hard to follow, and the writing and pacing and development was solid enough that I wasn't negatively distracted by it. So, color me definitely entertained. I'll be keeping Bayron's other retellings in mind for the next time I want a similar vibe/level read.

“‘I’ve never heard of anyone leaving without the king’s consent.’ / ‘Neither have I, but that doesn’t mean it hasn’t happened. We’ve also rarely heard about people like us and yet here we are. Just because they deny us doesn’t mean we cease to exist.’”

“The truth is tricky. People want to know it, but when they do, sometimes they wish they didn’t.”

“The palace underestimates the resourcefulness of women forced into a dark and dangerous place.”

“It’s risky,” says Constance, reading my expression. “But sometimes that’s the only way to get things done. Take the risk, light the fuse. Onward.”

"Just because you don’t believe it doesn’t mean it can’t be true.”

“And you’re not lost?” I think for a moment. “Maybe I am. But the difference is that I want to be found. I’m not happy pretending everything is fine when I know it’s not.” “And just who is it that you suppose will find you?” Amina asks. “It’ll be me,” I say. “I will find myself.”

"Look at your children, your friends, your wives, and your daughters. Don’t do what is right because they hold those titles. Do what is right because they are people. Make a choice to change things.”

Content Warnings

minzzi's review against another edition

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adventurous fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.5

All I can say about this book is how forgettable it is.
It's just a mediocre story fulled with dark topics that are handled very poorly and at a very surface level.

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