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a_ab 's review for:
Ogre Enchanted
by Gail Carson Levine
As modern fairy tale stories go this one is disgusting, and I do not mean the ogre descriptions.
We have a sensible main character with a level head on her shoulders forced into illegal marriage (she and her intended groom are 15 when the forcing begins and although the author made sure to include 16th birthdays in the story, the whole thing takes a few weeks, so it's hardly relevant) by a drunk dumb-head bimbo of a "fairy".
Now, if this were a tragedy and a cautionary tale for all meddlers/parents/social pressures which force unhappy marriages on young people and are responsible for generations of unhappiness and sorrow to follow (as the 15 year old heroine is aware at the very beginning of the book!), I would have been OK with this pile of nonsense. But the author tries to sell it as a happy ending!!! Seriously? Forced childhood marriage at 16 born out of desperation is the author's idea of a happy union??? YUCK and NO.
In my opinion this book makes the author into the real life Lucinda of this world. (Lucinda is the aforementioned "fairy"). The level of maturity and responsibility is definitely the same.
We have a sensible main character with a level head on her shoulders forced into illegal marriage (she and her intended groom are 15 when the forcing begins and although the author made sure to include 16th birthdays in the story, the whole thing takes a few weeks, so it's hardly relevant) by a drunk dumb-head bimbo of a "fairy".
Spoiler
And the stupid fairy succeeds in her evil plan! Twice! She also forces another underage girl into marriage with a much older sleazy callous womanizing predator.Now, if this were a tragedy and a cautionary tale for all meddlers/parents/social pressures which force unhappy marriages on young people and are responsible for generations of unhappiness and sorrow to follow (as the 15 year old heroine is aware at the very beginning of the book!), I would have been OK with this pile of nonsense. But the author tries to sell it as a happy ending!!! Seriously? Forced childhood marriage at 16 born out of desperation is the author's idea of a happy union??? YUCK and NO.
In my opinion this book makes the author into the real life Lucinda of this world. (Lucinda is the aforementioned "fairy"). The level of maturity and responsibility is definitely the same.