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A review by chuskeyreads
My Contrary Mary by Brodi Ashton, Cynthia Hand, Jodi Meadows
4.0
Hilarious retelling of Mary Queen of Scots! For those of you who are fans of the show Reign, you'll love this story.
Told with three narrators - Mary, Francis, and Ari - this story is simply delightful!
MARY:
Magic, murder, and mayhem surround Mary as she is betrothed to the dauphin, Francis. Mary has her ladies - all named Mary (which is historically correct, BTW), but they're given nicknames to avoid confusion: Mary Beaton "Bea," Mary Fleming "Flem," Mary Livingston "Liv," and Mary Seaton "Hush." Oh, and all the Marys are Eðians (shapeshifters), who turn into animals. Mary (the Queen of Scots) is a mouse. However, this is a secret that Mary cannot share because her soon-to-be mother-in-law Catherine de Medici is a Verity and detests Eðians. When King Henry meets an untimely demise, Mary's world is turned upside down. She's unsure of who to trust and whether she'll be next.
FRANCIS:
His character is fairly spot on with his wimpy, sickly ways. He's just not interested in becoming king. When Henry dies, he's forced onto the throne and has his evil mother Catherine to "guide" him. The problem arises when Francis his idea of ruling France doesn't exactly match that of his mother.
ARI:
Ari, short for Aristotle (not that Aristotle) is the daughter of the famous Nostradamus, the great seer. She does have visions, but she's much better at making potions. Besides, Ari can't really make sense of what she sees:
"I see a girl with pale hair singing in the snow. She wants to let it go, but I don't know what it is."
Just like the Janies series, this one is laugh-out-loud funny. Between Ari's "visions" of popular movies and the inserted commentary of the authors, the first of the Marys series doesn't disappoint. I highly recommend that you read My Lady Jane first, as the characters from that book appear in the last few chapters of this story.
Told with three narrators - Mary, Francis, and Ari - this story is simply delightful!
MARY:
Magic, murder, and mayhem surround Mary as she is betrothed to the dauphin, Francis. Mary has her ladies - all named Mary (which is historically correct, BTW), but they're given nicknames to avoid confusion: Mary Beaton "Bea," Mary Fleming "Flem," Mary Livingston "Liv," and Mary Seaton "Hush." Oh, and all the Marys are Eðians (shapeshifters), who turn into animals. Mary (the Queen of Scots) is a mouse. However, this is a secret that Mary cannot share because her soon-to-be mother-in-law Catherine de Medici is a Verity and detests Eðians. When King Henry meets an untimely demise, Mary's world is turned upside down. She's unsure of who to trust and whether she'll be next.
FRANCIS:
His character is fairly spot on with his wimpy, sickly ways. He's just not interested in becoming king. When Henry dies, he's forced onto the throne and has his evil mother Catherine to "guide" him. The problem arises when Francis his idea of ruling France doesn't exactly match that of his mother.
ARI:
Ari, short for Aristotle (not that Aristotle) is the daughter of the famous Nostradamus, the great seer. She does have visions, but she's much better at making potions. Besides, Ari can't really make sense of what she sees:
"I see a girl with pale hair singing in the snow. She wants to let it go, but I don't know what it is."
Just like the Janies series, this one is laugh-out-loud funny. Between Ari's "visions" of popular movies and the inserted commentary of the authors, the first of the Marys series doesn't disappoint. I highly recommend that you read My Lady Jane first, as the characters from that book appear in the last few chapters of this story.