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vermithraxrose's review against another edition
dark
emotional
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
The book is more atmospheric, there's not a lot of "action", no battles or heavy things like that. The writing style feeds into this, building the atmosphere and vibes of the story. That's ok for the first two thirds of the book but by the last fourth or so it began to feel very flowery to me. There were a lot of things I did not understand, spoilers ahead: Part of the story is told by a character known simply as the "bridegroom" and one of the key parts of his story is a brother that supposedly went missing. He later remembers that the brother died and his family simply pretended he did not exist. I did not understand why they did that, what was the point of pretending the boy did not exist? And are we expected to believe that no family friends, teachers, or other children asked about this missing boy? The big twist at the end of the book is that Azure (who was supposedly missing) is actually alive and has been living as Indigo. I do not know why she hid what happened to Indigo, it was presumably an accident, right? And why would she embody such a toxic person after seeing how much hurt she caused? That's another part of the story, Indigo turns out to be an extremely terrible person, and her relationship with Azure and her aunt is destructive and toxic and it honestly made me feel sick. :(
phoebeneedsalife's review against another edition
4.0
this is like a fairy tale but if you were in a nightmare. well, i guess i like bad dreams.
starryclaudia's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
jenndub34's review against another edition
4.0
3.5 ⭐ Rounded up. I loved this gothic tale with a Heathers vibe...but saw the ending much too early on
jenpaul13's review against another edition
4.0
A man who believes in and has studied fairy tales, entertaining the idea of the beings that inhabit those tales, finds and marries a beautiful woman with an obscured past in The Last Tale of the Flower Bride by Roshani Chokshi.
To read this, and other book reviews, visit my website: http://makinggoodstories.wordpress.com/.
A scholarly man meets Indigo Maxwell-Casteñada, a beautiful young woman who is the heir to the Casteñada hotel empire, and in her he finds a match of someone who loves stories and myths surrounding faeries and other entities within fairy tales; the two soon marry, with the bridegroom promising Indigo that he’ll leave her past an unsolved mystery. Though he’s always been curious, he has managed to keep his promise for a few years until the couple travel to Indigo’s childhood home, the House of Dreams, to visit her estranged aunt, Tati, who is dying. Within the halls of the House, the bridegroom finds it increasingly difficult to adhere to the promise he made his wife as the intriguing puzzle of Azure, a former friend of Indigo’s whose existence is a captivating shadow lurking throughout the House and between them, draws his active mind to investigate, but doing so will force him to ultimately make a choice between reality and fantasy, which will determine the fate of his marriage and their lives.
Written with verdant description that evokes a vivid and magical sense of faeries and the Otherworld, and how they might manifest within the ordinary world, the story unfolds from two perspectives, the bridegroom, in the present, and Azure, starting in the past while moving closer toward the present as the narrative progresses. With information about the characters and scenarios starting out as thickly obscured, regarding the incorporation of faeries as well as character background, it slowly comes to light with clues surfacing at convenient points to bring memories forward for exploration; reflecting on these memories Indigo, Azure, and the bridegroom recognize that they make sacrifices throughout their lives that appear to provide them freedoms in their lives but in actuality they form a different kind of trap for them to be stuck within. The fae, and otherwise mythic, concept that names have power is demonstrated well throughout the story, and in particular with the bridegroom’s name not being revealed; his name remaining a secret from readers also serves as a method of shifting the focus of the story more centrally on the dynamic between and story of Indigo and Azure. The relationship dynamic between the bridegroom and Indigo felt underdeveloped, though perhaps there’s not much meant to be there with the story’s primary relationship focus being between Indigo and Azure and the differences of their life experiences, and the reason behind the couple’s initial meeting is quickly abandoned, which is one example of small details raised leaving many questions in their wake about their dynamic beyond the storytelling games they play with one another.
Overall, I’d give it a 3.5 out of 5 stars.
To read this, and other book reviews, visit my website: http://makinggoodstories.wordpress.com/.
A scholarly man meets Indigo Maxwell-Casteñada, a beautiful young woman who is the heir to the Casteñada hotel empire, and in her he finds a match of someone who loves stories and myths surrounding faeries and other entities within fairy tales; the two soon marry, with the bridegroom promising Indigo that he’ll leave her past an unsolved mystery. Though he’s always been curious, he has managed to keep his promise for a few years until the couple travel to Indigo’s childhood home, the House of Dreams, to visit her estranged aunt, Tati, who is dying. Within the halls of the House, the bridegroom finds it increasingly difficult to adhere to the promise he made his wife as the intriguing puzzle of Azure, a former friend of Indigo’s whose existence is a captivating shadow lurking throughout the House and between them, draws his active mind to investigate, but doing so will force him to ultimately make a choice between reality and fantasy, which will determine the fate of his marriage and their lives.
Written with verdant description that evokes a vivid and magical sense of faeries and the Otherworld, and how they might manifest within the ordinary world, the story unfolds from two perspectives, the bridegroom, in the present, and Azure, starting in the past while moving closer toward the present as the narrative progresses. With information about the characters and scenarios starting out as thickly obscured, regarding the incorporation of faeries as well as character background, it slowly comes to light with clues surfacing at convenient points to bring memories forward for exploration; reflecting on these memories Indigo, Azure, and the bridegroom recognize that they make sacrifices throughout their lives that appear to provide them freedoms in their lives but in actuality they form a different kind of trap for them to be stuck within. The fae, and otherwise mythic, concept that names have power is demonstrated well throughout the story, and in particular with the bridegroom’s name not being revealed; his name remaining a secret from readers also serves as a method of shifting the focus of the story more centrally on the dynamic between and story of Indigo and Azure. The relationship dynamic between the bridegroom and Indigo felt underdeveloped, though perhaps there’s not much meant to be there with the story’s primary relationship focus being between Indigo and Azure and the differences of their life experiences, and the reason behind the couple’s initial meeting is quickly abandoned, which is one example of small details raised leaving many questions in their wake about their dynamic beyond the storytelling games they play with one another.
Overall, I’d give it a 3.5 out of 5 stars.
readingthroughinfinity's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
A tale of control, co-dependency and dark magic that's really just imagination. It took me a while to get into this but once I did, I was intrigued. I didn't find the story as compelling as I'd expected, but the prose was absolutely glorious.
cozyinthenook's review against another edition
challenging
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
simone3993's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
This is a book that's outside of my current reading genre but I am so glad I stuck with it! I love the magical realism of it and the lyrically writing. It's a romance but also a story about trust, trauma, identity, and others. I really enjoyed it!
ruthabbi's review against another edition
4.0
This book was beautifully written. It was lyrical, haunting and just the right amount of creepy. It drew me in and held me fascinated until I had finished it.