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printzgirl's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
inspiring
reflective
medium-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
The Charmed Wife is written as an epilogue to the classic Cinderella story—what happens after Cinderella marries her prince and lives happily ever after? In Grushin’s telling of it, Cinderella and her prince drift further and further apart, until Cinderella is compelled to seek out a witch and ask for the prince to be killed so that she can be freed of her misery. But that’s just the beginning of the story. To find true happiness, Cinderella must look deep inside herself and understand what she’s really been looking for all these years.
I heard about The Charmed Wife through a Dominic Noble YouTube video, where he and his friend debate whether The Charmed Wife is a sad story or a hopeful one. In my opinion, it’s both. Cinderella certainly goes through some heart-wrenching events and gets kicked down multiple times throughout the book. Yet she keeps going on, and I’d say the ending leans more hopeful than sad.
This book did a great job of re-telling the Cinderella story with truly original touches. The mice that Cinderella befriends have an entire sub-plot, unbeknownst to her. Many other fairy tales are woven into Cinderella’s story, each with their own unique twists. And Grushin deftly weaves together flashbacks with the present day, which keeps the plot at a rapid pace.
Grushin also uses language beautifully. Her words are fitting for a fairy tale, and I couldn’t get enough of them.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Drug abuse and Infidelity
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