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ria_carina's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Als Liebhaberin der klassischen Disney-Filme habe ich mir mehr von dem Buch erwartet. Sprachlich hat es mich gar nicht abgeholt (es ist wohl eher für Kinder geschrieben, der Sprachgebrauch ist sehr 'leicht' und wiederholend); der Fortschritt der Geschichte war stolprig — manchmal zu langsam, manchmal viel zu schnell. Die Charaktere fand ich teilweise flach und lieblos hingeklatscht, manchmal aber wieder spannend. Die Grundidee selbst finde ich grandios, aber der Plot wäre eindeutig ausbaufähig gewesen. Schade, vielleicht sind die anderen Bände mehr nach meinem Geschmack.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Toxic relationship, Murder, Gaslighting, Death, Death of parent, Grief, and Emotional abuse
Minor: War
cjbuys's review against another edition
2.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Death of parent, and Suicide
seregelda's review against another edition
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
CW: character named "Slave," child abuse
Not what I expected, an interesting take followed by the story we know from the film.
Not what I expected, an interesting take followed by the story we know from the film.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Blood, Death of parent, Child abuse, Injury/Injury detail, and Slavery
emilyhooie22's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
💘"Perhaps it was the loss of her husband and her loneliness that brought her to the mirror each day, but she felt there was something else that compelled her to seek her father’s approval and love. Sometimes she felt she had to look in the mirror simply to reassure herself she was in the world. That she was human and not simply a floating gray mist haunting the walls of the castle. She felt real and alive when she looked into the mirror; she felt empowered by her beauty."💘
➡️➡️ The message of this book is... Never let others define you. Never get addicted to praise because lack of it can destroy you in a second.
I definitely think I'll read more of this series in the future. It gives backstory to a well-known and beloved fairytale quite well without overdoing it. It reminds me of the storytelling style of "Once Upon a Time" which I love so much.
Hatred turns people evil and against those we love...and that is a great loss in itself. 🥺
➡️➡️ The message of this book is... Never let others define you. Never get addicted to praise because lack of it can destroy you in a second.
I definitely think I'll read more of this series in the future. It gives backstory to a well-known and beloved fairytale quite well without overdoing it. It reminds me of the storytelling style of "Once Upon a Time" which I love so much.
Hatred turns people evil and against those we love...and that is a great loss in itself. 🥺
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent and Violence
junglejelly's review against another edition
dark
emotional
hopeful
sad
fast-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
4.0
I really enjoyed exploring the back story to Snow White's Evil Queen.
The writing is good with a nice character arc (even though you know where it's going). People aren't so simple and the author really created a complex character who was previously shown just to be evil.
As a book aimed at kids/pre-teens, you do have to keep this in mind with the language used and the length of the book. While I do wish some scenes would have been longer, I think the pace and length overall was good.
It is dark even as a children's book but it suited the origins of the Evil Queen.
Overall a fun quick read especially for Disney's Snow White fans.
The writing is good with a nice character arc (even though you know where it's going). People aren't so simple and the author really created a complex character who was previously shown just to be evil.
As a book aimed at kids/pre-teens, you do have to keep this in mind with the language used and the length of the book. While I do wish some scenes would have been longer, I think the pace and length overall was good.
It is dark even as a children's book but it suited the origins of the Evil Queen.
Overall a fun quick read especially for Disney's Snow White fans.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Death of parent, and Emotional abuse
Moderate: Grief
Minor: Blood
reading_books_as_escapism_lol's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide, Violence, War, Toxic relationship, Torture, Grief, Domestic abuse, Stalking, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Death, Child abuse, Death of parent, Blood, Gore, Emotional abuse, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, and Gaslighting
housedesignerking's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-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
4.0
This is the Evil Queen's backstory. One of the things Disney seems to be doing lately is creating slight or complete retellings of their classics or masterpieces. Valentino did a good job making the reader want to root for the Queen throughout this. But anyone who's seen the movie knows what an exercise in futility that would be. I'm not sure if these ideas were strictly Valentino's or if she was guided by Disney in some way to put this series together (my money's on the latter, but I could be wrong), but either way, it's an interesting take on it. The writing focuses quite a bit on description instead of commentary, which I found to be a tad disappointing. Snow White and the Seven Dwarves was never my favorite animated Disney movie, but with the well-crafted backstory, this is actually better than the movie, which got 3 stars from me. This book gets 4.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Mental illness, Gaslighting, Emotional abuse, and Toxic relationship
Minor: Death and Death of parent
destinystowe14's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
This book was good. It is geared toward a younger audience which is made clear in the writing. There isn’t a lot of detail, and it seemed rushed a good bit of the time.
With that being said I still liked this book. It was a good palate cleanser, and a very quick read. I’m a slow reader and I read this in 3 days.
It works really well as an origin story for the Wicked Queen. Snow White was one of my favorite movies growing up, so it was interesting seeing things through the queen’s POV. If you’re a fan of Disney or Snow White you should definitely read this book.
With that being said I still liked this book. It was a good palate cleanser, and a very quick read. I’m a slow reader and I read this in 3 days.
It works really well as an origin story for the Wicked Queen. Snow White was one of my favorite movies growing up, so it was interesting seeing things through the queen’s POV. If you’re a fan of Disney or Snow White you should definitely read this book.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Grief
Minor: Death, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, and Abandonment
lifeofchrstnlvly's review against another edition
dark
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
"But my dream has already come true, Momma. You came for me as I knew you would. I love you..."
This series is marketed towards children, but it's also for adults - especially those who grew up reading and watching Disney stories. Since it's for 10+ year olds, the writing is easy to understand and it's quick to read (Fairest of All is under 300 pages).
I love villain stories so of course I had to start reading this series. I never thought this will make me teary-eyed and sad. The Queen loved Snow White. She really did.
The story's build up was good, making you love The Queen so when she became evil, you'll find yourself understanding her actions.
Every villain has a story. Every villain has a reason why they became evil. It will never justify the evil things villains do, but origin stories help us understand them more. It's a pain knowing how a pure heart becomes corrupted.
I cannot wait to read the rest of the series. I think the next one is about Beauty & The Beast.
This series is marketed towards children, but it's also for adults - especially those who grew up reading and watching Disney stories. Since it's for 10+ year olds, the writing is easy to understand and it's quick to read (Fairest of All is under 300 pages).
I love villain stories so of course I had to start reading this series. I never thought this will make me teary-eyed and sad. The Queen loved Snow White. She really did.
The story's build up was good, making you love The Queen so when she became evil, you'll find yourself understanding her actions.
Every villain has a story. Every villain has a reason why they became evil. It will never justify the evil things villains do, but origin stories help us understand them more. It's a pain knowing how a pure heart becomes corrupted.
I cannot wait to read the rest of the series. I think the next one is about Beauty & The Beast.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Body shaming, and Grief
chloelj27's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse
Moderate: Death of parent