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annettebooksofhopeanddreams's review
4.0
I read everything Disney I can find (and pay). I discovered this book by accident on Amazon and had to pre-order it right away and I was actually quite surprised that they managed to deliver it so soon after the release date. I have to admit that I wasn't entirely sure what kind of book this was gonna be. I guessed it was some sort of origin story, but I was curious what would make it different from for example Disney Villains. So, the book came in and I started reading almost right away.
This book is in a way heavier than I had expected it to be. The writing style is a little tricky when it comes to that. It's easy to read, there are no complicated words used, I flew through the book with ease. But the themes in this book are quite dark in a way. Especially because this is indeed an origin novel which means that the book ends where the first cartoon actually starts. So, as a reader you know there's no happy ending.
I think this book is really showing in an impressive and heartbreaking way how hard life for girls used to be. We're not there yet, but it was a lot worse than it is nowadays and this book tells us all about it. We see two girls with dreams. Different dreams. Dreams fitting their personalities and how they look at life. And we already know that both their dreams are not allowed to be in a world where a girl's duty is to mary well and get babies.
So, basically this book has a sad start, a happy middle and then a sad ending. And knowing that the ending is gonna be sad and that the girls are not gonna get what they want makes reading the middle part so hard. We see them being happy, we see them being genuinely trying to be good people. Of course, they do say a mean thing once in a while and they're afraid to speak up, but still. I was rooting for them. The author made me LOVE them. The ending therefore really broke my heart.
This book is in a way heavier than I had expected it to be. The writing style is a little tricky when it comes to that. It's easy to read, there are no complicated words used, I flew through the book with ease. But the themes in this book are quite dark in a way. Especially because this is indeed an origin novel which means that the book ends where the first cartoon actually starts. So, as a reader you know there's no happy ending.
I think this book is really showing in an impressive and heartbreaking way how hard life for girls used to be. We're not there yet, but it was a lot worse than it is nowadays and this book tells us all about it. We see two girls with dreams. Different dreams. Dreams fitting their personalities and how they look at life. And we already know that both their dreams are not allowed to be in a world where a girl's duty is to mary well and get babies.
So, basically this book has a sad start, a happy middle and then a sad ending. And knowing that the ending is gonna be sad and that the girls are not gonna get what they want makes reading the middle part so hard. We see them being happy, we see them being genuinely trying to be good people. Of course, they do say a mean thing once in a while and they're afraid to speak up, but still. I was rooting for them. The author made me LOVE them. The ending therefore really broke my heart.
allie_schick's review
dark
emotional
sad
fast-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
3.5
issy24's review
4.5
The story was good, but the ending was just so sad it made me not enjoy it completely. But still a good book.
elle4352's review
dark
sad
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
2.0
The Wicked Ones is a YA fantasy novel that serves a prequel to Disney's "Cinderella" told from the POV of Drizella and Anastasia.
Things you'll find:
*An almost ridiculously evil Lady Tremaine*
*A sniveling version of Cinderella*
*An ending that pretty much spoils the whole book*
One massively important detail that Disney Publishing forgets to put in the summary of this book is that this is a prequel to Cinderella. That's something every reader needs to know before picking this up, because it's hard to decipher what it is otherwise. There are only a handful of small clues thoughout the novel that give the reader an idea that the events of this novel take place before the events of Cinderella, but not nearly enough, as I just wrote them off as this being a reimagining of the story. So before you go any further, again, this is a prequel and that's why the girls are aged down as well as why many of the events of Cinderella are missing in the story.
As for the book itself, this novel is guilty of the Disney Novel curse; the characters presented in this novel don't all match their movie counterparts. Now the protagonists, Drizella and Anastasia, I could get behind. I thought the author did an excellent job at expanding on them, transforming them from the goofy, buffonish girls they are in "Cinderella" to young ladies with their own unique personalities and interests. It wasn't a huge leap to imagine that these girls in the novel were the same girls in the movie. This novel is, until the end, rather entertaining to read. I enjoyed the new characters introduced throughout the story and reentering the world of "Cinderella"
However, the Lady Tremaine presented in this novel is almost deranged. She's excessively and almost cartoonishly cruel to not only Ella but her own children, and this is supposed to emphasize her wicked nature, but it doesn't aline with the Lady Tremaine we already know. Yes, she was the evil stepmother, but her character in Disney's "Cinderella" is a very calculating, muted evil. The kind of person presented to us in "Cinderella" likes to toy with her like mouse, presenting her with priviledges only to yank them away later, subtlely making snide remarks and adding chores to remind her of place in the home, just a very manipulative and calm sort of evil. The Lady Tremaine in this book walks around half-cocked, ready to explode at any given moment. She doesn't really feel genuine. Plus, in "Cinderella" while we see Lady Tremaine is often frustrated with her daughters, there's never any indication that she despises them or does not care for their feelings. By the end of this book, there's little love between any of the three Tremaines. It's hard to imagine that their relationship magically heals in the two years of time between this prequel and the events of "Cinderella"
Simarly, the Ella in this book is almost pathetic. She is ready to fall apart at the drop of a hat and cowers anytime anyone seems to look at her. She has none of the collected, level-headedness that's presented to us in "Cinderella" This Ella feels like the version of Ella that the people who hate Disney Princess movies want us to subscribe to. Again, people can change and grow in two years, but this Ella would have to become an entirely new human being to be the Ella we see in "Cinderella"
I also struggled toward the end of this book when the author bursts the bubble of the world by inserting real world places, like Paris. My thought process is if Paris exists in this book, its not a stretch to say France exists in this book, and if France exists in this book, then doesn't the French Monarchy also exist in this time period?? So how would they be apart of a small village ruled by a different King and Prince? I think we should've made fictional names and cities to keep us within the scope of the Disney universe.
My final gripe with this book is one that it seems even people who really enjoyed the story take issue with, the epilogue. Which I'll hide for spoilers but if you want to know: At the end of the novel, we find out that Lady Tremaine has threatened both Drizella's mentor and Anastasia's love interest in order to get them to abandon the girls and leave town without them. Her threats are both similar; if they don't leave and never contact the girls again, she'll essentially spread nasty gossip around town about them both and they'll be ruined. Except will they? Because here's the thing; this ENTIRE novel it's made clear that Lady Tremaine doesn't have the best reputation in this village. She's been labeled the "Black Widow", doesn't seem to belong to any social groups or have any social standing that matters anymore, so why would the town believe her? Why would the king or prince believe her word against that of a royal groom that's been in their service for years?Why would the town believe her spreading gossip about a friendly old woman in town? And not only that, why would it matter? Both Drizella and Anastasia were planning on leaving the village to head to Paris anyway, so who cares if the reputation of the groom and the mentor are ruined in their tiny village? There were no plans to come back and settle there and there's no reason to believe Lady Tremaine's gossip was going to be worth anything in a large city like Paris, if it even traveled that far to begin with. There's no credible threat being made here. And let's take it a step further, say Anastasia and Dominic (the groom) do still marry and run away. It's established in the book that this world operates under very real world principles for the time period where women are second class citizens to men and often treated like property. So if, when Lady Tremaine threatens to find them or "set the wolves" on them, they still run away together, again I ask, how does she plan on doing this?? Anastasia is 16 and more than likely of legal age in this time period to consensually marry since Lady Tremaine is pushing for them to find matches at this ball. Once married, she's his wife, essentially his property. Why would anyone be on your side to bring her back to you? Why would anyone even question the validity of their marriage if they found the two of them and asked for their side of the story? And this man should be all accounts know this. As for Drizella's mentor, Lady Tremaine threatens to out her as a female scientist that seduced her daughter's mind to the village. Again, why would this woman care about what this backwards village thinks of her when she has the ability to enroll in classes at universities in places like Paris as a woman? This woman has been a scientist her whole life, wouldn't she be used to criticism by now and developed thick enough skin not to care what a few rural villagers think of her when she lives miles away? She has a bit more of a struggle with taking Drizella with her then Dominic does with Anastasia, but at the end of the day, they could always choose a different university after they leave the village? None of it really holds water or makes sense, both girls could've easily escaped Lady Tremaine.
Things you'll find:
*An almost ridiculously evil Lady Tremaine*
*A sniveling version of Cinderella*
*An ending that pretty much spoils the whole book*
One massively important detail that Disney Publishing forgets to put in the summary of this book is that this is a prequel to Cinderella. That's something every reader needs to know before picking this up, because it's hard to decipher what it is otherwise. There are only a handful of small clues thoughout the novel that give the reader an idea that the events of this novel take place before the events of Cinderella, but not nearly enough, as I just wrote them off as this being a reimagining of the story. So before you go any further, again, this is a prequel and that's why the girls are aged down as well as why many of the events of Cinderella are missing in the story.
As for the book itself, this novel is guilty of the Disney Novel curse; the characters presented in this novel don't all match their movie counterparts. Now the protagonists, Drizella and Anastasia, I could get behind. I thought the author did an excellent job at expanding on them, transforming them from the goofy, buffonish girls they are in "Cinderella" to young ladies with their own unique personalities and interests. It wasn't a huge leap to imagine that these girls in the novel were the same girls in the movie. This novel is, until the end, rather entertaining to read. I enjoyed the new characters introduced throughout the story and reentering the world of "Cinderella"
However, the Lady Tremaine presented in this novel is almost deranged. She's excessively and almost cartoonishly cruel to not only Ella but her own children, and this is supposed to emphasize her wicked nature, but it doesn't aline with the Lady Tremaine we already know. Yes, she was the evil stepmother, but her character in Disney's "Cinderella" is a very calculating, muted evil. The kind of person presented to us in "Cinderella" likes to toy with her like mouse, presenting her with priviledges only to yank them away later, subtlely making snide remarks and adding chores to remind her of place in the home, just a very manipulative and calm sort of evil. The Lady Tremaine in this book walks around half-cocked, ready to explode at any given moment. She doesn't really feel genuine. Plus, in "Cinderella" while we see Lady Tremaine is often frustrated with her daughters, there's never any indication that she despises them or does not care for their feelings. By the end of this book, there's little love between any of the three Tremaines. It's hard to imagine that their relationship magically heals in the two years of time between this prequel and the events of "Cinderella"
Simarly, the Ella in this book is almost pathetic. She is ready to fall apart at the drop of a hat and cowers anytime anyone seems to look at her. She has none of the collected, level-headedness that's presented to us in "Cinderella" This Ella feels like the version of Ella that the people who hate Disney Princess movies want us to subscribe to. Again, people can change and grow in two years, but this Ella would have to become an entirely new human being to be the Ella we see in "Cinderella"
I also struggled toward the end of this book when the author bursts the bubble of the world by inserting real world places, like Paris. My thought process is if Paris exists in this book, its not a stretch to say France exists in this book, and if France exists in this book, then doesn't the French Monarchy also exist in this time period?? So how would they be apart of a small village ruled by a different King and Prince? I think we should've made fictional names and cities to keep us within the scope of the Disney universe.
My final gripe with this book is one that it seems even people who really enjoyed the story take issue with, the epilogue. Which I'll hide for spoilers but if you want to know:
moodreaderschaoticlibrary_92's review against another edition
3.0
I went into this blind and I wished I hadn't. I wanted to dnf multiple times but I kinda stuck with it. I skimmed the last several chapters. I do think it's a fantastic background for the characters. A lot of emotions towards the end and mixed feelings all around. I don't love it but I don't hate it either.
srcamacho93's review
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
The pace of the book was a bit slow at the beginning but it picked up at the end. This story really show what’s domestic violence and how can someone that is poisonous and miserable can manipulate people lives just for their joy. I feel sorry for Drizzela and Anastasia. The author really got me hoping for their happy ending.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Emotional abuse
Minor: Domestic abuse
sereniti_sparkle's review
3.0
This was a fun quick read. A villain origin story of Cinderella's ugly step sisters. There were definitely some parts that I found difficult to read with lady Tremaine. It was neat to get the povs of Drizella and Anastasia!
squiggs's review
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
analogdreams92's review against another edition
challenging
dark
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0