Reviews with content warning for Death - Cinderella Is Dead

Cinderella is long since dead, but not her story. Every girl has to recite it every day, from when they're tiny until the ball when they have the chance of being chosen as wife to a man. But Sophia doesn't want to be chosen by a man. She's in love with Erin, but that's not acceptable. Sophia tries to prompt Erin to run away with her before the ball, but Erin wants them to abide by the King's laws - no matter how unfair they are. Sophia refuses to give up, but to resist the King may lead to death...

A delightful and different twist of Cinderella! The crown approved version of the story is actually pretty far from the truth. With it the King has gathered unprecedented power of the people and anyone trying to oppose is punished with death. It's mostly women who suffer under the King's laws, and it's clear they're considered less valuable than men. It's really frustrating to read, especially when we know there are women suffering like this in some parts of the world, even today. Sophia refuses to accept this, but I wouldn't call her a classic heroine. She's afraid and doesn't quite know what to do, but she's still intent on making a change. At the beginning she's alone, but then she meets Constance, a descendant of one of Cinderella's step sisters. She's got the real story about Cinderella, the ball and Prince Charming, and together they plan to overthrow the King.

I enjoyed this book very much and I was always eager to pick it up and continue reading again! I like that the main character is a black, gay woman; it's a great contrast to the original story. I also appreciate that Sophia is very human, and someone who eventually can't stand the life she's meant to live. She decides that she and every other woman is worth more. A strong feministic message! I definitely want to read more by Kalynn Bayron!

Content Warnings

jachnax's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark hopeful inspiring slow-paced

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

4.0

I liked it but the plot was a little bit all over the place and some stuff was just a bit unlogical and convenient for the characters. Some repetitions were also a little annoying and i would have liked the book to explore the ending a bit more and get some more after. Overall its good.

Content Warnings

pkc's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous dark emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring mysterious tense 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? No

5.0

I bought this on a bit of a whim in 2021 thinking “why not indulge in another subversion of the Cinderella fairytale?” but I guess…like there’s no other subversion worth consuming. This is it.

Holy crap I LOVED this story.

The protagonist was so engaging, so strong but proudly showed her vulnerabilities. The villain made my skin crawl. The love interests were fully formed characters in their own right who didn’t just serve to enhance the protagonists story. Representation was incredible (a POC MC, very queer).

Around the tail end of last year, I saw someone do a list of reading icks that they’d hope might be left in 2022. One of them was adults reading young adult books, as if it was somehow a lower class of read that shouldn’t be indulged. It really rankled me when I saw it as a 33 year old lover of YA and books like this beautifully explain why.

This a story, aimed at young adults, that is absolutely about using your voice to speak out against oppression. It’s not the manic pixie dreamgirl or feelingsy guy that you find in the stereotypes that the genre is wrongly thought to comprise of exclusively.

Sophia is a strong, ferocious human being who is guided by and intently focused on the right thing to do.

Content Warnings