Wednesday, August 25, 2010

Wednesday Review and giveaway-Cinders



“With her fairy godmother imprisoned in the castle and a mysterious stranger haunting her dreams, Cinderella is on her own to discover true love untainted by magic.”

These intriguing lines drew me into Cinders, a debut novella by Michelle Davidson Argyle. Michelle had several challenges to overcome right from the start of this novel. One, she changed the tone of a much-beloved fairytale. Two, because it was a novella, she didn’t have a lot of time to delve into the intricacies of her world. And three, her main character had a flaw that made her hard to like. Now, if I stopped here, you might think, why would I ever buy that book? Which is why I’m not going to stop here. I’m going to tell you how Argyle overcame the challenges and won me over.

The tone: This isn't your daughter's Cinderella. If you're looking for a light fluffy fairytale, this isn't for you. This book is meant for a mature audience (no jokes about my maturity level). Because this book takes place after the “happily ever after” we get to see some doubts Cinderella is having. Cinderella having doubts about her prince? I know, that’s what I thought. But Michelle explained how the magic used to make the prince notice Cinderella made her question whether his love was real. That made sense to me and made it easier to understand her doubts. Plus, it added this darker undertone to the story of Cinderella that served as the backdrop for the entire novel and made some dark events that take place, not seem out of place.

The length: I would’ve loved to delve further into the world of the novel, but unfortunately, due to the brevity of a novella, it just wasn’t possible. The fact that I wanted more, though, is a good sign. What I did learn about the world and its history was unique and compelling.

Cinderella’s flaw: Cinderella was a bit selfish, which made her hard to like. Hard to like characters can sometimes lead to hard to like books. But not in this case. In order for the ending (which I LOVED) to take place, we needed to see Cinderella’s flaws.

These overcome challenges mixed with beautiful imagery made Cinders a novella that Argyle can be proud of.



To learn more about Michelle or to purchase a copy of Cinders, go here.

Good news! You have a chance to win a signed copy of your very own. Leave a comment on this post to be entered. Entries as follows: *comment +1pt *be/become a follower +2pts. *tweet or blog about this contest +3pts. Contest ends next Tuesday at midnight and winner will be announced next Wednesday. Good luck!

8 comments:

  1. Thanks for a fantastic review! I'm really excited and happy that you liked it. Can't wait to see who wins the book!

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  2. This looks like such a great story.

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  3. Nice review - I felt the about the same as you did. It is hard to like a book with a difficult character, but Michelle pulled it off. I tweeted about your contest, but don't enter me - I already have a copy.

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  4. I love Fairy Tale books in all the different varities that are out there. It would be great to read another!

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  5. Would love to check this one out! I'm a follower... :)

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  6. Looks good! I'm a follower!
    rivkarno1(at)hotmail(dot)com

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  7. I would just love to give this book a try! :D

    I'm a follower.

    Tweeted: http://twitter.com/thebookpixie/statuses/22247485282

    ~Briana
    thebookpixie[at]yahoo[dot]com

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  8. I would love a copy!:) I'm a follower! :)

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