A review by zatannacomic
The Pleasure of Drowning by Jean Bürlesk

adventurous dark lighthearted mysterious fast-paced

5.0

A creative twist on fairytales, featuring Rapunzel, a mermaid and arthurian legends. I mostly enjoyed the poem about Bluebeard and the darker version of Beauty and the Beast. 

Some stories more gruesome than the children versions and others took a more humorous approach, which I enjoyed immensely. There is still very much a fairytale or fable atmosphere, but there are new elements added to it, like fears and worries these characters might have, a new modern setting or a new POV. It heightens the experience and makes you relive the stories again. I had a great time trying to figure out which characters were going to appear in each short story.

The author also added humour and sarcasm, while also being critical and impactful. What I also liked is what the author does with the book. He tries using the concept of a book in a new original way. He uses the element of a book and mixes them up by putting them differently. The afterword as the second chapter and the foreword at the end of the book.