katkinney's review
4.0
Thank you so much to NetGalley an Uncommon Universes Press for allowing me to read and review this lovely myth retelling by H.L. Burke. This was, I believe, actually based off a Greek myth, but also has strong elements of "Beauty and the Beast" incorporated. I thoroughly enjoyed it.
It takes place in a mythical island kingdom where twin princesses have been cursed shortly after birth. One is incredibly lovely, and only grows lovelier every time she is cruel to someone or something. Her twin has a sort of opposing power, the power to heal, but is physically ugly, and every time she uses her power, a new wart or other blemish appears. Laydra, the shunned sister, is forced to live under veils and kept away from anyone who might see her. Eventually, her parents send her away to another island where another pair of male twins is also cursed, Calen, the "worse" twin of the pair turning into a giant snake anytime someone sets eyes on him.
'
As you can imagine, a touching and sweet romance ensues, and I genuinely enjoyed the way the author developed their relationship despite the challenges and insecurities both carried. The secondary characters and political machinations were also interesting to read. Overall a very nice fairy tale retelling.
Disclaimer: I received a free copy of this book from the author.
Please excuse typos/name misspellings. Entered on screen reader.
It takes place in a mythical island kingdom where twin princesses have been cursed shortly after birth. One is incredibly lovely, and only grows lovelier every time she is cruel to someone or something. Her twin has a sort of opposing power, the power to heal, but is physically ugly, and every time she uses her power, a new wart or other blemish appears. Laydra, the shunned sister, is forced to live under veils and kept away from anyone who might see her. Eventually, her parents send her away to another island where another pair of male twins is also cursed, Calen, the "worse" twin of the pair turning into a giant snake anytime someone sets eyes on him.
'
As you can imagine, a touching and sweet romance ensues, and I genuinely enjoyed the way the author developed their relationship despite the challenges and insecurities both carried. The secondary characters and political machinations were also interesting to read. Overall a very nice fairy tale retelling.
Disclaimer: I received a free copy of this book from the author.
Please excuse typos/name misspellings. Entered on screen reader.
inkyinsanity's review
4.0
I bought a copy of this book at a local comic con. It sounded interesting, but I didn’t realize it was a Cupid and Psyche/Beauty and the Beast retelling until I started reading it. I definitely would have read it sooner if I had! I love retellings, especially of my favorite myths, and this book pulled it off so well.
Coiled was an adorable feel-good romance, although in hindsight, it had plenty of pain, cruelty, and general suffering, so it’s not all cute and comfy. However, the light parts are even better because of how strong the characters stayed when faced with terrible situations. Reading this made me so happy.
The characters are amazing—I absolutely loved Laidra right from the beginning. Her strength and compassion is such a relief, because she was a genuinely nice person who only wanted to help people and was perfectly willing to pay the price for every single time she did, no matter how worthless others considered the act to be.
Laidra is one sister of a set of cursed twins. Her curse is that whenever she uses her special healing magic, she grows slightly uglier. Her want to heal regardless of this has made life difficult for her, as her parents ostracize her and force her to cover her face at all times. Given this horrible situation, I expected Laidra to be at least somewhat bitter, and although she mourns that her parents are too shallow to love her, she never lets darkness grab her completely. It was really refreshing.
Calen, the other main character, is part of a different curse. Whenever someone sees him, he turns into a giant, mindless, hungry snake. Because of this, he lives on an island where hopefully no one will see him—except his brother and father want him dead. His only real ally is his mother, who can’t lay eyes on him. I liked Calen. He was clearly depressed by his situation, but like Laidra, he somehow found strength and joy in his life. He always hoped for the best even when he didn’t believe it was possible, and his faith in certain people was super strong and sweet.
The world presented in this book is actually really interesting. There’s a whole pantheon of deities that occasionally take a walk on the ground and have kids with humans, leading to half-gods with powers and a penchant for getting involved in human affairs. I would love to see more of this world.
I would totally recommend this if you like clean fantasy romance with refreshingly kind but strong characters and a neat world.
Coiled was an adorable feel-good romance, although in hindsight, it had plenty of pain, cruelty, and general suffering, so it’s not all cute and comfy. However, the light parts are even better because of how strong the characters stayed when faced with terrible situations. Reading this made me so happy.
The characters are amazing—I absolutely loved Laidra right from the beginning. Her strength and compassion is such a relief, because she was a genuinely nice person who only wanted to help people and was perfectly willing to pay the price for every single time she did, no matter how worthless others considered the act to be.
Laidra is one sister of a set of cursed twins. Her curse is that whenever she uses her special healing magic, she grows slightly uglier. Her want to heal regardless of this has made life difficult for her, as her parents ostracize her and force her to cover her face at all times. Given this horrible situation, I expected Laidra to be at least somewhat bitter, and although she mourns that her parents are too shallow to love her, she never lets darkness grab her completely. It was really refreshing.
Calen, the other main character, is part of a different curse. Whenever someone sees him, he turns into a giant, mindless, hungry snake. Because of this, he lives on an island where hopefully no one will see him—except his brother and father want him dead. His only real ally is his mother, who can’t lay eyes on him. I liked Calen. He was clearly depressed by his situation, but like Laidra, he somehow found strength and joy in his life. He always hoped for the best even when he didn’t believe it was possible, and his faith in certain people was super strong and sweet.
The world presented in this book is actually really interesting. There’s a whole pantheon of deities that occasionally take a walk on the ground and have kids with humans, leading to half-gods with powers and a penchant for getting involved in human affairs. I would love to see more of this world.
I would totally recommend this if you like clean fantasy romance with refreshingly kind but strong characters and a neat world.
amelianicholebooks's review
5.0
I loved this story! I loved the allusions to Greek myth and the story of Cupid and Psyche. This wasn't a retelling precisely, but a unique story of the romance between two people with timeless touches. I loved the characters and how they had to help each other heal. They built each other up and it made sense that they fell in love.
I have to admit I was getting nervous when I had half the book read and everything seemed to be finishing nicely. I knew something bad was going to happen, but I didn't see some of the twists coming at all.
I received a free copy of this ebook in exchange for an honest review.
I have to admit I was getting nervous when I had half the book read and everything seemed to be finishing nicely. I knew something bad was going to happen, but I didn't see some of the twists coming at all.
I received a free copy of this ebook in exchange for an honest review.
chocolatebooksthunderstorms's review
4.0
Greek mythology retold. A giant, man-eating serpent. A rejected princess with a hideous curse and an astounding gift.
From the moment I first heard about H.L.'s upcoming novel to the moment I saw the cover, I knew this was a story I wanted to read.
A retelling of Eros & Psyche, as well as a Beauty & the Beast retelling in its own right, Coiled is the story of Laidra -- a girl forced into hiding by her own family, treated as if she was the child who was never meant to be, and thrown into political schemes as bait for a monstrous snake.
The characters -- Calen is so adorable! Which is saying a lot, because I hate snakes. But (thankfully!), Calen was no problem for me! He was such a cute, lovely little ginormous guy! ^_^
ZEPHIA. She was probably my favorite character in the entire book! A clever, powerful demigoddess, daughter to a wind god? Yes, please!
And Valen. Uhg, Valen. He and his father are both such terrible people that I love/hate it. The pair of them would both, without a doubt, qualify for Paper Fury's "best worst villain to hate".
The romance -- The romance was definitely sweet. As the story progressed, however, I felt like the affection between Laidra and Calen was starting to be displayed a little too physically. A good dose of innocence in the romantic area would've been preferred, but otherwise, the romance was considerably clean. (See notes below.)
The writing -- H.L.'s voice is fast-paced, but not too much -- just enough to keep the story going at a likable, adventure-ready pace.
The setting -- The mythology elements shown through just enough to deliver an allegorical tale evidently set in a fantasy land inspired by ancient Greece. And, being the Greek mythology nerd that I am, I loved uncovering the subtle little references to characters such as Theseus and Perseus!
The plot -- About halfway through, when a certain unfortunate event occurred to a certain primary character, an unforeseen journey came into view. I tend to prefer romance in a story when it's "all or nothing", so I personally would've liked that journey to... not exist? It was certainly enlightening and relevant to the story, but I would've preferred to focus on the relationship between the main characters.
This made for such a lovely read! I'd recommend this to anyone searching for a sweet, romantic read with mythological elements thrown in. :)
You may want to know: There are some brief and rather undescriptive references to nudity, as well as strong suggestions/implications. There is violence and references to warfare, along with the involvement of "gods", drinking, magical elements, and kissing. The "ba-word" is used once.
NOTE: I received a free ebook copy of Coiled from the author, in exchange for my honest review. Read my original review here: http://livkfisher.blogspot.com/2017/06/coiled-blog-tour-book-review-giveaway.html.
From the moment I first heard about H.L.'s upcoming novel to the moment I saw the cover, I knew this was a story I wanted to read.
A retelling of Eros & Psyche, as well as a Beauty & the Beast retelling in its own right, Coiled is the story of Laidra -- a girl forced into hiding by her own family, treated as if she was the child who was never meant to be, and thrown into political schemes as bait for a monstrous snake.
The characters -- Calen is so adorable! Which is saying a lot, because I hate snakes. But (thankfully!), Calen was no problem for me! He was such a cute, lovely little ginormous guy! ^_^
ZEPHIA. She was probably my favorite character in the entire book! A clever, powerful demigoddess, daughter to a wind god? Yes, please!
And Valen. Uhg, Valen. He and his father are both such terrible people that I love/hate it. The pair of them would both, without a doubt, qualify for Paper Fury's "best worst villain to hate".
The romance -- The romance was definitely sweet. As the story progressed, however, I felt like the affection between Laidra and Calen was starting to be displayed a little too physically. A good dose of innocence in the romantic area would've been preferred, but otherwise, the romance was considerably clean. (See notes below.)
The writing -- H.L.'s voice is fast-paced, but not too much -- just enough to keep the story going at a likable, adventure-ready pace.
The setting -- The mythology elements shown through just enough to deliver an allegorical tale evidently set in a fantasy land inspired by ancient Greece. And, being the Greek mythology nerd that I am, I loved uncovering the subtle little references to characters such as Theseus and Perseus!
The plot -- About halfway through, when a certain unfortunate event occurred to a certain primary character, an unforeseen journey came into view. I tend to prefer romance in a story when it's "all or nothing", so I personally would've liked that journey to... not exist? It was certainly enlightening and relevant to the story, but I would've preferred to focus on the relationship between the main characters.
This made for such a lovely read! I'd recommend this to anyone searching for a sweet, romantic read with mythological elements thrown in. :)
You may want to know: There are some brief and rather undescriptive references to nudity, as well as strong suggestions/implications. There is violence and references to warfare, along with the involvement of "gods", drinking, magical elements, and kissing. The "ba-word" is used once.
NOTE: I received a free ebook copy of Coiled from the author, in exchange for my honest review. Read my original review here: http://livkfisher.blogspot.com/2017/06/coiled-blog-tour-book-review-giveaway.html.
carat's review
4.0
Love me a good story based on Greek mythology and this is no exception. An easy and engaging romantic read with an interesting concept, loosely based on the myth of Eros and Pysche.
ravenmoon's review
4.0
This was a cute little retelling of the myth of Eros and Psyche/ Beauty and the Beast. There is adventure and romance in this tale and it was so addicting to read.
* I received a copy from NetGalley. All opinions are my own.
* I received a copy from NetGalley. All opinions are my own.
nytephoenyx's review
Laidra carries half of a curse.
She and her sister were given a mirror curse at birth. For one, kindness makes her hideous. For the other, cruelty makes her beautiful. Laidra knows the boundaries of her curse, and yet she presses them, because she has an extraordinary gift and wants to help people. The two princesses are not the only mirror-cursed, seeking a cure. In a neighboring kingdom two brothers suffer from a more terrifying fate.
By himself, Calen is a kind and gentle soul. However, when anyone lays their eyes upon him, he turns into a terrifying beast. It is a cruel curse, and it has split the family in two. Calen's mother champions him while his father chooses his brother Volen, who only becomes a monster when alone. A kingdom, after all, needs an heir. Volen and his father will do whatever they must to secure his future... even if that means allowing a hideous princess to be devoured by a monster.
The Greek influence in this was delightful.
While this is definitely not a direct Greek myth retelling, there is the feel of Perseus and Hercules in these pages. You do see influences of Greek myth - I've seen other reviewers reference both Eros and Psyche and Beauty and the Beast, which is fair - but this story felt fresh. There is a Greek style pantheon and there are quests and gorgons and I thought it was delightful.
On the flip side of that, I will admit that the format of the story is very familiar. There's a boy meets girl story. There's a quest. The quest felt a bit rushed? I feel like Burke made good choices in the twists of this story, choosing to make the journey difficult for the protagonists when at some point maybe they could have caught a break.
Everyone loves a simple, light read.
As a 200-something page fairytale retelling, don't expect this book to be deep and philosophical. The subplots are few and the cunning of the villains is incredibly Disney-esque. All of these things are perfectly fine, but it's a good thing to know before you jump in. The YA/MG market is flooded with dark fairytale retellings lately, but this is definitely not one of them.
You can't help but to root for Laidra and Calen. Beyond any aspect of a love story, these are two tortured souls. They are good people who are ostracized because of their curse. They are not instantly in love and I think that's wonderful because it's interesting how much of insta-love is defined by looks. When two people cannot (or do not) see each other, then the love story is different. I thought it was sweet and well done.
I'd read this story to my younglings.
While not particularly intense, heartbreaking, or complicated, Coiled is a really lovely story. It's a great vision of fairytale and myth and completely accessible. Even as an adult, I thought it was charming.
I believe this book would be best suited to middle grade or YA readers on the younger end of the spectrum. While the characters are older, the way this book is written may leave more advanced readers wanting for more. It's a fun romp for fans of Greek myth, or for fantasy lovers that want something light and fluffy that won't make them want to vomit from all its cheesy goop.
She and her sister were given a mirror curse at birth. For one, kindness makes her hideous. For the other, cruelty makes her beautiful. Laidra knows the boundaries of her curse, and yet she presses them, because she has an extraordinary gift and wants to help people. The two princesses are not the only mirror-cursed, seeking a cure. In a neighboring kingdom two brothers suffer from a more terrifying fate.
By himself, Calen is a kind and gentle soul. However, when anyone lays their eyes upon him, he turns into a terrifying beast. It is a cruel curse, and it has split the family in two. Calen's mother champions him while his father chooses his brother Volen, who only becomes a monster when alone. A kingdom, after all, needs an heir. Volen and his father will do whatever they must to secure his future... even if that means allowing a hideous princess to be devoured by a monster.
The Greek influence in this was delightful.
While this is definitely not a direct Greek myth retelling, there is the feel of Perseus and Hercules in these pages. You do see influences of Greek myth - I've seen other reviewers reference both Eros and Psyche and Beauty and the Beast, which is fair - but this story felt fresh. There is a Greek style pantheon and there are quests and gorgons and I thought it was delightful.
On the flip side of that, I will admit that the format of the story is very familiar. There's a boy meets girl story. There's a quest. The quest felt a bit rushed? I feel like Burke made good choices in the twists of this story, choosing to make the journey difficult for the protagonists when at some point maybe they could have caught a break.
Everyone loves a simple, light read.
As a 200-something page fairytale retelling, don't expect this book to be deep and philosophical. The subplots are few and the cunning of the villains is incredibly Disney-esque. All of these things are perfectly fine, but it's a good thing to know before you jump in. The YA/MG market is flooded with dark fairytale retellings lately, but this is definitely not one of them.
You can't help but to root for Laidra and Calen. Beyond any aspect of a love story, these are two tortured souls. They are good people who are ostracized because of their curse. They are not instantly in love and I think that's wonderful because it's interesting how much of insta-love is defined by looks. When two people cannot (or do not) see each other, then the love story is different. I thought it was sweet and well done.
I'd read this story to my younglings.
While not particularly intense, heartbreaking, or complicated, Coiled is a really lovely story. It's a great vision of fairytale and myth and completely accessible. Even as an adult, I thought it was charming.
I believe this book would be best suited to middle grade or YA readers on the younger end of the spectrum. While the characters are older, the way this book is written may leave more advanced readers wanting for more. It's a fun romp for fans of Greek myth, or for fantasy lovers that want something light and fluffy that won't make them want to vomit from all its cheesy goop.
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