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A review by celia_thebookishhufflepuff
Mistress of All Evil: A Tale of the Dark Fairy by Serena Valentino
5.0
This was a definite favorite of the series so far!
Warning: This review may contain spoilers for the previous three books in the series, but not for [b:Mistress of All Evil|34220302|Mistress of All Evil (Villains, #4)|Serena Valentino|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1495803202l/34220302._SX50_.jpg|55271944] itself. Read at your own risk.
I'm a huge fan of retellings, and I've found that Sleeping Beauty retellings do the story so much more justice than the 1959 Disney version, or of what I understand of the Grimm version (rape, anyone?). [b:Mistress of All Evil|34220302|Mistress of All Evil (Villains, #4)|Serena Valentino|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1495803202l/34220302._SX50_.jpg|55271944] had that same feel.
There's so much to unpack in this installment, and I'm glad it was slightly longer than the first three because there's a lot that needs to be said, from many different points of view.
Like in [b:Fairest of All|6124802|Fairest of All (Villains, #1)|Serena Valentino|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1360570756l/6124802._SX50_.jpg|6303264], Lucinda, Ruby, and Martha aren't the main focus of this novel. Instead, we see a lot more of Circe and Nanny, as well as, of course, Sleeping Beauty's Maleficent. We also see a lot more of Tulip's growth, as well as Snow White and Grimhilde, who I honestly didn't expect to reappear.
One of the main themes of this installment is female friendship, which often gets overlooked in fairytales and their retellings. In [b:Mistress of All Evil|34220302|Mistress of All Evil (Villains, #4)|Serena Valentino|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1495803202l/34220302._SX50_.jpg|55271944], [a:Serena Valentino|172512|Serena Valentino|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1549066065p2/172512.jpg] creates a complex world of female friends and family and their roles in each other's lives. All characters have connections I did NOT see coming, and this makes the story even more engaging because of their interactions.
It's so interesting that all these stories occur in the same general area, as derived from the Disney versions. In a lot of ways, I don't think this would work out as well as it does, especially with the intricate web of villains and their connections, but Valentino creates a world where each and every character has a place among the rest. I love a good story with complex relationships, and this book promises those relations for the rest of the series.
I'm looking forward to [b:Mother Knows Best|36244423|Mother Knows Best (Villains, #5)|Serena Valentino|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1521206538l/36244423._SX50_.jpg|57889589]. This is the first series with more than four books that I've read or binged in a long time, and I'm really excited to keep going, which hasn't always happened with series in the past.
Warning: This review may contain spoilers for the previous three books in the series, but not for [b:Mistress of All Evil|34220302|Mistress of All Evil (Villains, #4)|Serena Valentino|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1495803202l/34220302._SX50_.jpg|55271944] itself. Read at your own risk.
I'm a huge fan of retellings, and I've found that Sleeping Beauty retellings do the story so much more justice than the 1959 Disney version, or of what I understand of the Grimm version (rape, anyone?). [b:Mistress of All Evil|34220302|Mistress of All Evil (Villains, #4)|Serena Valentino|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1495803202l/34220302._SX50_.jpg|55271944] had that same feel.
There's so much to unpack in this installment, and I'm glad it was slightly longer than the first three because there's a lot that needs to be said, from many different points of view.
Like in [b:Fairest of All|6124802|Fairest of All (Villains, #1)|Serena Valentino|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1360570756l/6124802._SX50_.jpg|6303264], Lucinda, Ruby, and Martha aren't the main focus of this novel. Instead, we see a lot more of Circe and Nanny, as well as, of course, Sleeping Beauty's Maleficent. We also see a lot more of Tulip's growth, as well as Snow White and Grimhilde, who I honestly didn't expect to reappear.
One of the main themes of this installment is female friendship, which often gets overlooked in fairytales and their retellings. In [b:Mistress of All Evil|34220302|Mistress of All Evil (Villains, #4)|Serena Valentino|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1495803202l/34220302._SX50_.jpg|55271944], [a:Serena Valentino|172512|Serena Valentino|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1549066065p2/172512.jpg] creates a complex world of female friends and family and their roles in each other's lives. All characters have connections I did NOT see coming, and this makes the story even more engaging because of their interactions.
It's so interesting that all these stories occur in the same general area, as derived from the Disney versions. In a lot of ways, I don't think this would work out as well as it does, especially with the intricate web of villains and their connections, but Valentino creates a world where each and every character has a place among the rest. I love a good story with complex relationships, and this book promises those relations for the rest of the series.
I'm looking forward to [b:Mother Knows Best|36244423|Mother Knows Best (Villains, #5)|Serena Valentino|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1521206538l/36244423._SX50_.jpg|57889589]. This is the first series with more than four books that I've read or binged in a long time, and I'm really excited to keep going, which hasn't always happened with series in the past.