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A review by mycatismybookmark
The Wish Granter by C.J. Redwine
3.0
I was reluctant to pick up The Wish Granter since I did not care for The Shadow Queen (book #1 in the Ravenspire series; although there are complete standalones set in the same world) but was surprised that I liked it quite a bit more than TSQ.
The writing is fast-paced, intriguing (it keeps readers guessing) and very dark. There are no happy woodland creatures and delicate singing princesses in these fairy tale re-imaginings. TWG has hope, heartbreak, and a dash of sweet budding romance in a high-stakes gamble to save the ones they love, but unlike TSQ we get a nice breathe of levity every now and then thanks to Ari (which really saves the story).
I really like Ari. She's fierce, loyal, determined and courageous. She doesn't care what anyone thinks of her and she's not afraid to put others in their place. She's intelligent, fiery clever and determined, and described as tall, "curvy" and at times hopelessly uncoordinated. Sebastian is a brave man to teach her weapons training and certainly doesn't come out unscathed. She loves to bake and eat, and would much rather be in the kitchen with her hands in pastry dough than whatever a proper princess should be doing. She's a fun, friendly character that's easy to relate to. Her dialogue and quirks bring much needed moments of levity to this dark tale. I wish there were more of these light moments: weapons training with Sebastian (I don't think she ever managed to learn anything - always getting distracted by Sebastian shoulders...) threatening to withhold chocolate cake from people who annoy her or promising snacks to those that please her, and jokes between her and Thad about what proper princess behavior is (which definitely don’t include inarticulate noises or smuggling snacks out of the ballroom in a handbag).
I would have liked more interaction between her and her twin brother, Thad overall. I don't really feel a connection between them, even though they always tell each other: "You and me against the world." "Always." He's too busy trying to protect Ari and keep her out of it, that we don't see/feel their connection as brother and sister.
"... and for one glorious moment, nothing existed but the steady patter or the rain and the boy who'd followed her to the liar of a monster and who was willing to risk everything to stay."
The budding romance between Ari and Sebastian is very sweet. He has such a tragic past and he's rather determined to keep everyone out that Ari's stubborn insistence that they be friends is completely new territory for him. He doesn't know quite what to make of her. But Ari is so determined to be his friend he never anticipates that she's capture his heart. They have such a wonderfully compassionate understanding and respect for one another, and both are determined to do anything to save the other.
“He closed his eyes and pressed his forehead to hers. He was still horrified. Still grieving. So was she. But they weren’t facing any of it alone.”
Redwine’s re-imaginings are very dark, but what I think saved TWG is Ari and Sebastian. I found them more relatable than the characters in TSQ and far more likable. Ari’s unique, quirky, friendliness and sense of humor were the highlights of TWG and I would have like more of those moments to balance the dark tale.
The writing is fast-paced, intriguing (it keeps readers guessing) and very dark. There are no happy woodland creatures and delicate singing princesses in these fairy tale re-imaginings. TWG has hope, heartbreak, and a dash of sweet budding romance in a high-stakes gamble to save the ones they love, but unlike TSQ we get a nice breathe of levity every now and then thanks to Ari (which really saves the story).
I really like Ari. She's fierce, loyal, determined and courageous. She doesn't care what anyone thinks of her and she's not afraid to put others in their place. She's intelligent, fiery clever and determined, and described as tall, "curvy" and at times hopelessly uncoordinated. Sebastian is a brave man to teach her weapons training and certainly doesn't come out unscathed. She loves to bake and eat, and would much rather be in the kitchen with her hands in pastry dough than whatever a proper princess should be doing. She's a fun, friendly character that's easy to relate to. Her dialogue and quirks bring much needed moments of levity to this dark tale. I wish there were more of these light moments: weapons training with Sebastian (I don't think she ever managed to learn anything - always getting distracted by Sebastian shoulders...) threatening to withhold chocolate cake from people who annoy her or promising snacks to those that please her, and jokes between her and Thad about what proper princess behavior is (which definitely don’t include inarticulate noises or smuggling snacks out of the ballroom in a handbag).
I would have liked more interaction between her and her twin brother, Thad overall. I don't really feel a connection between them, even though they always tell each other: "You and me against the world." "Always." He's too busy trying to protect Ari and keep her out of it, that we don't see/feel their connection as brother and sister.
"... and for one glorious moment, nothing existed but the steady patter or the rain and the boy who'd followed her to the liar of a monster and who was willing to risk everything to stay."
The budding romance between Ari and Sebastian is very sweet. He has such a tragic past and he's rather determined to keep everyone out that Ari's stubborn insistence that they be friends is completely new territory for him. He doesn't know quite what to make of her. But Ari is so determined to be his friend he never anticipates that she's capture his heart. They have such a wonderfully compassionate understanding and respect for one another, and both are determined to do anything to save the other.
“He closed his eyes and pressed his forehead to hers. He was still horrified. Still grieving. So was she. But they weren’t facing any of it alone.”
Redwine’s re-imaginings are very dark, but what I think saved TWG is Ari and Sebastian. I found them more relatable than the characters in TSQ and far more likable. Ari’s unique, quirky, friendliness and sense of humor were the highlights of TWG and I would have like more of those moments to balance the dark tale.