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karinafrederiksen's review against another edition
It just didn't catch on to me, Even though i really hoped it would.
liz56rose's review against another edition
4.0
I don't like the concept of Ugly girls and pretty girls. But this book was good regardless. Be you not who others try to make you.
karen_carazas's review against another edition
4.0
4.5 ⭐
El libro es todo lo contrario a lo que pensé que sería y creánme que eso es muy bueno.
Cuando pensamos en un retelling de un cuentos de princesas sabemos que mantendrá le escencia del poder del amor y cuando se trata de un retelling de un personaje que no salía bien parado pues es aquí en donde tendrá su final feliz y por fin encontrará el amor. Pero todo puede ir más allá.
Aquí sí se habla del amor, pero no solo del amor romántico que se tienen dos amantes, sino también del amor a la familia, del amor a las cosas que nos hacen bien, y sobre todo del amor que uno se tiene a sí mismo.
Hermanastra tiene como protagonista a una de las malas y feas chicas que vivían con "Cenicienta", especiaficamente la chica que terminó cortándose los dedos para que la dichosa zapatilla de cristal le quedara perfecta y pudiera vivir como una princesa por el resto de su vida. (Claramente se basa en la versión original del cuento); sin embargo la autora le da un giro bastante inesperado y a la vez curioso. un par de personajes que si se piensan por separado de la historia no tienen mucho sentido, pero que al final le aportan todo eso que un sencillo cuento necesita.
El viaje de la protagonista basicamente ya está trazado y es cuestión de unos tejes y manejes de estos nuevos personajes que ella acaba con un camino totalmente diferente. Y es muy hermoso ver cómo logra evitar un inminente y desastrozo final.
Claramente el camino no es nada fácil y más aún cuando tienes a todo un pueblo que, en medio de una guerra, se aferra a hacerte la vida imposible por lo que hiciste en el pasado.
Castigada y humillada, viviendo en la miseria, con una madre que pierde poco a poco la cordura, una hermana que se puede valer por sí misma, pero en un mundo que no la aprecia; Isabelle tiene que cargar con todo en sus hombros, buscarles techo y comida a su familia y de paso reparar un corazón que no sabía que tenía roto, maquillado con el deseo de ser bella como su hermanastra la ahora reina.
Esta protagonista podría ser cualquiera de nosotros, viviendo bajo el miedo de no agradar, con gustos que no son los "adecuados" y además con un amor que se creía perdido para siempre.
El libro es todo lo contrario a lo que pensé que sería y creánme que eso es muy bueno.
Cuando pensamos en un retelling de un cuentos de princesas sabemos que mantendrá le escencia del poder del amor y cuando se trata de un retelling de un personaje que no salía bien parado pues es aquí en donde tendrá su final feliz y por fin encontrará el amor. Pero todo puede ir más allá.
Aquí sí se habla del amor, pero no solo del amor romántico que se tienen dos amantes, sino también del amor a la familia, del amor a las cosas que nos hacen bien, y sobre todo del amor que uno se tiene a sí mismo.
Hermanastra tiene como protagonista a una de las malas y feas chicas que vivían con "Cenicienta", especiaficamente la chica que terminó cortándose los dedos para que la dichosa zapatilla de cristal le quedara perfecta y pudiera vivir como una princesa por el resto de su vida. (Claramente se basa en la versión original del cuento); sin embargo la autora le da un giro bastante inesperado y a la vez curioso. un par de personajes que si se piensan por separado de la historia no tienen mucho sentido, pero que al final le aportan todo eso que un sencillo cuento necesita.
El viaje de la protagonista basicamente ya está trazado y es cuestión de unos tejes y manejes de estos nuevos personajes que ella acaba con un camino totalmente diferente. Y es muy hermoso ver cómo logra evitar un inminente y desastrozo final.
Claramente el camino no es nada fácil y más aún cuando tienes a todo un pueblo que, en medio de una guerra, se aferra a hacerte la vida imposible por lo que hiciste en el pasado.
Castigada y humillada, viviendo en la miseria, con una madre que pierde poco a poco la cordura, una hermana que se puede valer por sí misma, pero en un mundo que no la aprecia; Isabelle tiene que cargar con todo en sus hombros, buscarles techo y comida a su familia y de paso reparar un corazón que no sabía que tenía roto, maquillado con el deseo de ser bella como su hermanastra la ahora reina.
Esta protagonista podría ser cualquiera de nosotros, viviendo bajo el miedo de no agradar, con gustos que no son los "adecuados" y además con un amor que se creía perdido para siempre.
bluenoni's review against another edition
5.0
El mejor retelling que he leído en el último tiempo, me siento muy identificada con Isabelle y siempre me hace feliz poder congeniar de esa forma con les protagonistas
mariaoverbooked's review against another edition
4.0
This book is sort of gorgeous. We all know I can’t resist a fairy tale retelling but add female strength and poetic writing and I was a goner from the start. This was a fairly easy and quick read for me. If you’re looking for world building/mind blowing fantasy this is not it. If you want to sink into some beautiful writing and a twist on an old favorite give this one a go.
worldsunlikeourown's review against another edition
4.0
Find this review and more on my blog at Worlds Unlike Our Own.
Thank you to I Read YA and Scholastic for providing me with an ARC of this book at BookCon.
"They were not pretty, these women.
Pretty did not begin to describe them.
They were shrewd.
Powerful. Wily. Proud. Dangerous.
They were strong.
They were brave.
They were beautiful."
Stepsister begins with the ending of the original Grimm brothers' version of Cinderella, immediately creating that delightful dark fairytale vibe. Ella and the prince ride off to their happy ending, but this story is about her stepsisters Isabelle and Octavia who are now stuck in a town which hates them for their mistreatment of Ella, still with their overbearing mother due to whose coercion they mutilated their feet in the first place. There is more to this tale, however, as a supernatural element (well, more than a fairy godmother anyway) is added to it. Chance makes a wager with the Fates, that he can give Isabelle a better life than they have written for her, set her upon a better path than the grisly ending that has been already determined. The question is, how to get a girl who has already been through so much, who has always been called ugly, to fight back, accept and forgive herself, and see that true beauty is more than skin deep?
To be honest, Cinderella has never been my favourite fairytale, which is why I'm always eager to read retellings. Having previously read Revolution by the same author, I had high expectations for this one. Adventure, however, was about the last thing I expected from this book! These stepsisters are different. Far from the girls of the original story, Octavia just wants to be left alone with her mathematics and science books, and Isabelle is a fighter through and through. And looming above it all is the gamble between Chance and the Crone, which provided an additional layer of tension to the plot. Chance's eclectic and decidedly odd troupe, while interesting, linger as background characters who should have been developed as much more. I loved Ella's eventual reunion with Isabelle and the revelations that follow in that meeting. It was a surprising change to see Ella do something that was not completely good and honourable. I didn't much enjoy the plotline of a warlord invading the country as it felt like mostly a tool for the Crone to push Isabelle along the path she wanted, and while the ending was fun, it strained credulity for me, with the deus ex machina of the fairy godmother pointing the way just in time yet again.
With unexpected moments of humour interjected into an otherwise dark tale, this is by far the most unique Cinderella adaptation I’ve ever read. The stepsisters are usually a constant as antagonists throughout, but it was so interesting to read this story from one of their POVs! Stepsister is a wonderfully crafted feminist retelling that emphasizes that the journey is just as important, perhaps even more important than the ending - and Isabelle's path is an excellent characterization of that. Highly recommended!
Stepsister released on May 14th, 2019.
Thank you to I Read YA and Scholastic for providing me with an ARC of this book at BookCon.
"They were not pretty, these women.
Pretty did not begin to describe them.
They were shrewd.
Powerful. Wily. Proud. Dangerous.
They were strong.
They were brave.
They were beautiful."
Stepsister begins with the ending of the original Grimm brothers' version of Cinderella, immediately creating that delightful dark fairytale vibe. Ella and the prince ride off to their happy ending, but this story is about her stepsisters Isabelle and Octavia who are now stuck in a town which hates them for their mistreatment of Ella, still with their overbearing mother due to whose coercion they mutilated their feet in the first place. There is more to this tale, however, as a supernatural element (well, more than a fairy godmother anyway) is added to it. Chance makes a wager with the Fates, that he can give Isabelle a better life than they have written for her, set her upon a better path than the grisly ending that has been already determined. The question is, how to get a girl who has already been through so much, who has always been called ugly, to fight back, accept and forgive herself, and see that true beauty is more than skin deep?
To be honest, Cinderella has never been my favourite fairytale, which is why I'm always eager to read retellings. Having previously read Revolution by the same author, I had high expectations for this one. Adventure, however, was about the last thing I expected from this book! These stepsisters are different. Far from the girls of the original story, Octavia just wants to be left alone with her mathematics and science books, and Isabelle is a fighter through and through. And looming above it all is the gamble between Chance and the Crone, which provided an additional layer of tension to the plot. Chance's eclectic and decidedly odd troupe, while interesting, linger as background characters who should have been developed as much more. I loved Ella's eventual reunion with Isabelle and the revelations that follow in that meeting. It was a surprising change to see Ella do something that was not completely good and honourable. I didn't much enjoy the plotline of a warlord invading the country as it felt like mostly a tool for the Crone to push Isabelle along the path she wanted, and while the ending was fun, it strained credulity for me, with the deus ex machina of the fairy godmother pointing the way just in time yet again.
With unexpected moments of humour interjected into an otherwise dark tale, this is by far the most unique Cinderella adaptation I’ve ever read. The stepsisters are usually a constant as antagonists throughout, but it was so interesting to read this story from one of their POVs! Stepsister is a wonderfully crafted feminist retelling that emphasizes that the journey is just as important, perhaps even more important than the ending - and Isabelle's path is an excellent characterization of that. Highly recommended!
Stepsister released on May 14th, 2019.
odeno's review against another edition
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- 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
3.75
cgreaderbee's review against another edition
3.0
This book surprised me.
For one, the prose. It was decadent, & poetic in that way only true fairytales can be. I listened via audiobook (which was very good), but I almost wish I could have highlighted or tabbed lines & passages.
For two, the power. This book had a TON of important themes tackled, messages conveyed - specifically to young girls.
I hope this story reaches a wider audience & lives on, joining the greater fairytale narrative.
For one, the prose. It was decadent, & poetic in that way only true fairytales can be. I listened via audiobook (which was very good), but I almost wish I could have highlighted or tabbed lines & passages.
For two, the power. This book had a TON of important themes tackled, messages conveyed - specifically to young girls.
I hope this story reaches a wider audience & lives on, joining the greater fairytale narrative.