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hrhaphrodite1's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
informative
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I saw an interview with Kate Forsyth and in it she described the gruelling 5-year process that went into the research and writing of this book, and honestly? It shows. This is a historical epic sweeping almost 300 years and covering the lives of women in Europe from the late 1400s through to the end of the 1600s.
Forsyth brilliantly weaves together a braid of three women seemingly trapped by their locations, their minds and their sex. All yearn for freedom or a change of circumstance, but find themselves restrained as they fight against a world that doesn't want to hear them. So beautifully brilliant are all three of these women, and so realistically portrayed that it feels more like a biography than fiction.
I adored the characters and events woven into the fabric of the stories: from the carnival atmosphere of Venice in the early 1500s, through to the glimmering and scheming court of Louis XIV in Versailles. I loved that no one in this book was a perfect character, and none of them were helpless in their situations; they worked, they schemed, they dreamed and they plan their ascent to better things.
It's a well paced, excellently executed reimagining and re-contextualising of a fairy tale we thought we knew.
Forsyth brilliantly weaves together a braid of three women seemingly trapped by their locations, their minds and their sex. All yearn for freedom or a change of circumstance, but find themselves restrained as they fight against a world that doesn't want to hear them. So beautifully brilliant are all three of these women, and so realistically portrayed that it feels more like a biography than fiction.
I adored the characters and events woven into the fabric of the stories: from the carnival atmosphere of Venice in the early 1500s, through to the glimmering and scheming court of Louis XIV in Versailles. I loved that no one in this book was a perfect character, and none of them were helpless in their situations; they worked, they schemed, they dreamed and they plan their ascent to better things.
It's a well paced, excellently executed reimagining and re-contextualising of a fairy tale we thought we knew.
anniejarman's review against another edition
It was not really what I expected. I understand and can appreciate what the author was trying to do, but the two different storylines didn’t mesh well. I really felt like I was reading two different books. I imagine it would have come together in the end, but I just could not get invested in them.
rebelkiss's review against another edition
5.0
Wow. Wow wowowowowow. The book started out a bit slow for me. But I stuck with it. And I'm so glad I did. It was a delight to read.
rwnhlfx's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
inspiring
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
heylook's review against another edition
1.0
Utter garbage. A re-telling of "Rapunzel" as if it were non-fiction, but with a few more rape scenes. All the homosexual characters are portrayed as evil and/or rapists. The main character of the frame story is in love with writing and books, but we have to be told this, because she only ever writes once, at the very end (though in real life this character had published numerous works at that point), and is never shown reading anything. She's also apparently devoutly Protestant, but that only matters when being horrified at the prospect of converting to Catholicism. But then, in the end, she decides to REALLY become a Good Catholic. Nothing in this fucking book makes much sense, really.
mary00's review against another edition
4.5
4.5 Stars
This fairy tale retelling of Rapunzel is dark and definitely written for adults, but I was pretty captivated.
The author weaves together the stories of three different women. Charlotte-Rose is based on a real woman living in France at the time of Louis XIV who penned the Rapunzel story as we know it. Margherita is the Rapunzel character, and Selena is the witch who steals and imprisons her.
This is a hefty book with a lot going on, but it did not feel its length to me. It is not a perfect book (Charlotte's sections sometimes get slightly bogged down in details, for example), and there are parts that were difficult for me to read because of the content, but it kept me on the edge of my seat and made me feel transported. I had to bump it up a half star because of how immersive I found it to be.
This fairy tale retelling of Rapunzel is dark and definitely written for adults, but I was pretty captivated.
The author weaves together the stories of three different women. Charlotte-Rose is based on a real woman living in France at the time of Louis XIV who penned the Rapunzel story as we know it. Margherita is the Rapunzel character, and Selena is the witch who steals and imprisons her.
This is a hefty book with a lot going on, but it did not feel its length to me. It is not a perfect book (Charlotte's sections sometimes get slightly bogged down in details, for example), and there are parts that were difficult for me to read because of the content, but it kept me on the edge of my seat and made me feel transported. I had to bump it up a half star because of how immersive I found it to be.
ssorchaa's review against another edition
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? No
2.5
chloec18's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
thestoryowl's review against another edition
5.0
A magical dark rebelling if Rapunzel wrapped in an enchanting story about a female author named Charlotte Rose. I gobbled this up in an afternoon and was just sucked fully into the worlds that collided.
amshmobr's review against another edition
3.0
As a lover of both historical fiction and fairy tales, I was curious about this book. I was immediately drawn in by the story and character of Catherine-Rose, by the familiarity of the Rapunzel tale, and by the story of Titian and his muse, but eventually, the melodrama of everyone’s terrible childhoods and the repetitive and ridiculous sex scenes caused me to rush through to the end, where I was further frustrated by how quickly everyone found happiness, acceptance or goodness. Overall, the book built on an interesting idea and history to provide an easy and entertaining read.