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bladelikesbooks's review
challenging
dark
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
This is a fairytale retelling novella that centres around 3 “villains” from 3 popular princess stories - Rapunzel, Snow White and Cinderella. The story swaps the roles of who the real ‘villain’ was in these stories. It takes place about 15 years after the princesses went through their traumas and follow the ‘mothers’ of the princesses known in their kingdom as the Wickeds.
The Wickeds are outcasts of society and as the story goes on, they reveal the truth of what truly happened to the princesses. Huge trigger warning for rape was needed for this part of the story. The Wickeds decide to seek revenge on the princesses after trying to prove the public wrong about their wickedness for 15 years. The ending was super confusing and quite abrupt. The Wickeds don’t get revenge and I think the author tries to say that the whole thing is just generational trauma or something like that but it really did not make sense.
There was also a really icky incestuous, pedophillic part where Cinderella’s stepmother says that Cinderella’s father said she was ‘hot’ and if they weren’t related he would date her…. Which is just…. So foul. The whole story also reads very anti-men which I definitely do approve of. There’s probably a bigger underlying message in here somewhere but I just really didn’t get that. Overall, the story is actually quite sad and the rape scene was incredibly triggering.
TWs/CWs - Alcoholism; Body Horror; Cussing; Death (past); Fatphobia; Gambling; Gaslighting; Gore; Incest; Misogyny; Pedophilia; Rape; Sexual Assault
The Wickeds are outcasts of society and as the story goes on, they reveal the truth of what truly happened to the princesses. Huge trigger warning for rape was needed for this part of the story. The Wickeds decide to seek revenge on the princesses after trying to prove the public wrong about their wickedness for 15 years. The ending was super confusing and quite abrupt. The Wickeds don’t get revenge and I think the author tries to say that the whole thing is just generational trauma or something like that but it really did not make sense.
There was also a really icky incestuous, pedophillic part where Cinderella’s stepmother says that Cinderella’s father said she was ‘hot’ and if they weren’t related he would date her…. Which is just…. So foul. The whole story also reads very anti-men which I definitely do approve of. There’s probably a bigger underlying message in here somewhere but I just really didn’t get that. Overall, the story is actually quite sad and the rape scene was incredibly triggering.
TWs/CWs - Alcoholism; Body Horror; Cussing; Death (past); Fatphobia; Gambling; Gaslighting; Gore; Incest; Misogyny; Pedophilia; Rape; Sexual Assault
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape, Sexual assault, Body shaming, Gaslighting, and Gore
Moderate: Body horror
Minor: Incest, Alcoholism, Fatphobia, Death, and Pedophilia
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