So, I have woefully neglected our little corner of blogging, and I’ve been so very sad about it! In an effort to make it up to you, here are my takes on the last three notable books I’ve delved into…
I'm still a total sucker for re-takes on fairy tales, and as such, "Entwined" by Heather Dixon. This is one of the best that I've encountered in a long time. If you've ever read Robin McKinley's "Beauty", (a retelling of Beauty and the Beast) you might find that the literary styling is very similar. "Entwined" is a redo of the story of the 12 dancing princesses, which has long been a favorite of mine. (If you’re into fairy tales and folklore, make time to check out SurlaLune.com. Interesting site.) Ms. Dixon weaves an absolutely entrancing story of the princesses, their circumstances and their suitors. A little humor, a dark history, and a lot of dancing; I thoroughly enjoyed it.
I'm still a total sucker for re-takes on fairy tales, and as such, "Entwined" by Heather Dixon. This is one of the best that I've encountered in a long time. If you've ever read Robin McKinley's "Beauty", (a retelling of Beauty and the Beast) you might find that the literary styling is very similar. "Entwined" is a redo of the story of the 12 dancing princesses, which has long been a favorite of mine. (If you’re into fairy tales and folklore, make time to check out SurlaLune.com. Interesting site.) Ms. Dixon weaves an absolutely entrancing story of the princesses, their circumstances and their suitors. A little humor, a dark history, and a lot of dancing; I thoroughly enjoyed it.
I also just finished "The Night Circus" by Erin Morgenstern. There was quite a bit of media hype about this, which was one of the reasons I decided to look into it, and it is a neat read. Set in the Victorian period, it’s the tale of an ethereal and mystifying circus, in which two rival magicians vie for glory. Ms. Morgenstern’s tale has some very arresting and intriguingly fantastical descriptions, and if you can call a non-illustrated novel ‘visually astounding’, this is it. But as descriptive as the writing was, I always felt that I was only getting the 2 dimensional version. I wanted a bit more than what was presented. For those of you who have watched the movie "The Prestige", this is sort of along similar lines, only (sadly) less compelling and much more polished over all. I felt as if I could wander through the “The Night Circus” in white kid gloves, and never muss them. To my mind, a circus implies a dark, seamy underside where lurks the barely restrained power and mystique that bulges at the seams of the canvas tents. Still, it was an interesting book, but I can't bring myself to rave about it.
Lastly, I read "The Scorpio Races" by Maggie Stiefvater, which was also brought to my attention by outside sources. Apparently, this lady has written some wildly popular teen fiction regarding star-crossed were-wolves. I'm happy I didn't know that before I read "Scorpio", because it would have irrevocably biased me against picking up the book. I had a similar reaction to this as I did "The Night Circus"....felt that the story line had so much promise, but it took me a while to get into. The story revolves around a horse race on a small Scottish (?) island, where the horses racing are water horses. Not hippos, but the capaill uisce of mythology (meat eating horses of the sea which have a tendency to drag their riders to the depths.) Cool, huh? But I felt like it just didn't deliver on its promise. Any story placed by the restless ocean is incredibly attractive to me…Maybe I’m just too finicky, but, like the ocean, I wanted a bit more depth, and a little more undertow. But again, I would recommend it, because maybe you'd have a different reaction or appreciation to/for it than I did.
Overall, of the last tomes that I've tackled, "Entwined" is far and above the winner. Check 'em out, and let me know what you think!
