vchewy's review against another edition
3.0
I had a lot of high hopes for this book because I absolutely love a villain backstory trope. However, this fell a little flat for me. I still enjoyed it, but not as much as I wanted to. I really enjoyed seeing the evil queen as much more of a human and relatable. I didn’t enjoy the fact that she was never given a name - that would have really helped me invest in her as a character. I did enjoy the ending twist, and am looking forward to reading the other books in the series to see how it all ties together. Overall, this book is not bad by any means, but I’m not sure that it’s my favorite Snow White retelling.
kcoccia's review against another edition
3.0
It's okay. I was a little bored. Only reason I read it was to fit a very annoying POPSUGAR reading prompt. I won't be reading the rest.
xrionx's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
alexandra_vble's review against another edition
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
fortheloveofbats's review against another edition
This book is geared more for 12yrs+, and the writing style reflects that. I found the character's narrative to be overly repetitive. It wasn't for me.
skyesbookishlife's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
I thought this was a fun read. It was an interesting take on the story behind the Evil Queen and what happened to make her that way. I enjoyed this book and got through it pretty quickly! Will definitely be reading the rest of the series soon as well.
reeniecrystal's review against another edition
5.0
I came to this series as a fan of Serena Valentino's previous work, "Nightmares & Fairy Tales," a comic series which is also (as one might infer from the title) focused on telling fairy tales with a dark flavor. I was impressed then by her talent for the exercise, as many people try their hand at "dark fairy tales" but few succeed; Valentino always gave the stories sufficient horror without making them seem overly edgy, and notably, managed to preserve much of the original sweet charm to the tales as well. She also has a talent for weaving in important issues into stories—such as child abuse, LGBT+ rights, rape survival—without being anvilicious. As a member of black humor powerhouse Slave Labor Graphics, she has worked and is friends the likes of Jhonen Vasquez ("Johnny The Homicidal Maniac," "I Feel Sick," "Squee!," author of "Everything Can Be Beaten," creator of "Invader Zim"), Roman Dirge ("Lenore the Cute Little Dead Girl," poster artist for the band Scarling.—themselves an associated act of Marilyn Manson—writer for "Invader Zim"), Crab Scrambly (illustrator of "Everything Can Be Beaten," Hot Topic T-shirt artist, sculptor of "Spektors" toyline), Eric Jones ("Little Gloomy," "X-Ray Comics," "Tron: The Ghost in the Machine"), and many others.
So yeah, the lady's basically Spooky Scary Royalty. So when I heard about her being hired by Disney to write novels about their most famous antagonists, I knew there was no better person for the job and went in with high expectations.
The first book the series, as the name implies, is told from the perspective of the wicked stepmother of Disney's "Snow White and the Seven Dwarves," who much like in the movie is only ever referred to as "the Queen." Much of the old strengths of Valentino's previous works are on display here: The horrors to come are framed with flowery, elegant imagery—the blooming of apple blossoms, the shimmering of mirrors and jewels—but unlike other authors who merely use such tactics as a way of lulling the audience into a false sense of security, Valentino always places her lighter aesthetics in equal standing with her darker ones and incorporates both into creating a more complex, nuanced work of art. As mentioned before, she also weaves in real life issues in order to give the story more of a sense of grounding. It is for these reasons that I would not label Valentino as "grimdark," as nothing she does is without purpose and she has a good understanding of the fact that darkness needs light to better enhance it.
"Fairest of All," at its heart, is a story about the cycle of abuse, and the way things like addiction and depression contribute to it. We spend much of the beginning seeing what sort of person the Queen was before becoming the wicked witch we famously know her as, and are surprised to find a kind-hearted, vulnerable woman. It's easy to forget that the two are even the same character at first. The Queen grew up being physically and mentally abused by her father, whose primary weapon was his constant insistence that she was ugly and worthless, and it is only through her marriage to the King that she is finally able to know the joy of someone loving her (though her insecurities still linger.) Determined to be a better parent than her father, the Queen goes out of her way to bond with young Snow White, taking her to festivals and reading her letters from her dead biological mother. The early bond between the two is truly touching, especially when the Queen stands up for Snow White during the Christmas ball after being unfairly yelled at by her father.
It is only after the King dies in war that the Queen begins her downward spiral. Clearly depressed, she struggles to find motivation to continue being happy and begins to project this onto the people around her, including Snow White, twisting her bewilderment at their ability to move on with their lives as selfishness and irreverence for the King. After realizing that one of her mirrors, a wedding gift, has been enchanted with the imprisoned soul of her dead father, the Queen begins to cope by constantly forcing her father's face—the one that abused her and called her ugly her whole life—to tell her that she is the fairest in the land. In a clear parallel to substance addiction, this becomes the only thing capable of giving her a sense of power and motivation in life and suffers from severe withdrawals without it, and her need to preserve this high is what drives her to ultimately betray and abuse her own family members.
The book does a good job of teaching several important lessons:
—That abuse, while never justified, often has deeper root causes other than just the abuser being an inherently bad person.
—That seeking validation from one's abuser will only lead to self-destruction.
—That seeking solace in addition, while more satisfying in the short-term, will ultimately only keep you from actually dealing with your problems. Finding solace in the support of loved ones, even though it takes more time and patience, will put you on the path to true healing.
—The best way to honor those who are gone is to live as they would have wanted us to; happily.
The ending is a very emotional one that can be read as both happy and ambiguous.
The happy:
The Queen, finally snapping out of it after seemingly killing Snow White and becoming devastated and what she's allowed herself to become, chooses to go down the path she knows will lead to her death. In spite of everything she's been through, Snow White happily imagines her father, birth mother, and stepmother all dancing with her at her wedding to the Prince, explaining that she always considered her stepmother to have "died" along with her father and that the wicked queen was merely what was left behind. i.e., She chooses to remember her stepmother as the kind protector she was before her downspiral.
The ambiguous:
Much like her stepmother before her, Snow White receives the enchanted mirror as a wedding gift. The Queen's face appears in it and tells Snow that she loves her and always has, which makes Snow smile. This parallels the way the Queen's father appeared in the mirror and told his daughter that she was beautiful, something she always wanted him to say, only it is now the Queen in the mirror telling Snow that she loves her, something the book establishes is what Snow always wanted her to say. Both are facing their abusers through the mirror and having them tell them what they want to hear. While this could be read as a happy ending—the freed soul of the Queen telling Snow her true feelings—it can also be seen as an open question of whether or not Snow White will also continue the cycle of abuse. The fact that this is open-ended though, and knowing Snow White's character, this question manages to give more of a sense of hope than dread, a kind of reassurance that it's never too late to make the right choices and end the cycle.
All in all, a very good story for those who love the Disney villains and also appreciate stories that deal with serious themes and message. I am not disappointed in Serena Valentino in the slightest and can't wait to follow her along with whatever project she takes on. (So long as she finally takes "Nightmares & Fairy Tales" out of hiatus! :P C'mon, I miss Annabelle!)
So yeah, the lady's basically Spooky Scary Royalty. So when I heard about her being hired by Disney to write novels about their most famous antagonists, I knew there was no better person for the job and went in with high expectations.
The first book the series, as the name implies, is told from the perspective of the wicked stepmother of Disney's "Snow White and the Seven Dwarves," who much like in the movie is only ever referred to as "the Queen." Much of the old strengths of Valentino's previous works are on display here: The horrors to come are framed with flowery, elegant imagery—the blooming of apple blossoms, the shimmering of mirrors and jewels—but unlike other authors who merely use such tactics as a way of lulling the audience into a false sense of security, Valentino always places her lighter aesthetics in equal standing with her darker ones and incorporates both into creating a more complex, nuanced work of art. As mentioned before, she also weaves in real life issues in order to give the story more of a sense of grounding. It is for these reasons that I would not label Valentino as "grimdark," as nothing she does is without purpose and she has a good understanding of the fact that darkness needs light to better enhance it.
"Fairest of All," at its heart, is a story about the cycle of abuse, and the way things like addiction and depression contribute to it. We spend much of the beginning seeing what sort of person the Queen was before becoming the wicked witch we famously know her as, and are surprised to find a kind-hearted, vulnerable woman. It's easy to forget that the two are even the same character at first. The Queen grew up being physically and mentally abused by her father, whose primary weapon was his constant insistence that she was ugly and worthless, and it is only through her marriage to the King that she is finally able to know the joy of someone loving her (though her insecurities still linger.) Determined to be a better parent than her father, the Queen goes out of her way to bond with young Snow White, taking her to festivals and reading her letters from her dead biological mother. The early bond between the two is truly touching, especially when the Queen stands up for Snow White during the Christmas ball after being unfairly yelled at by her father.
It is only after the King dies in war that the Queen begins her downward spiral. Clearly depressed, she struggles to find motivation to continue being happy and begins to project this onto the people around her, including Snow White, twisting her bewilderment at their ability to move on with their lives as selfishness and irreverence for the King. After realizing that one of her mirrors, a wedding gift, has been enchanted with the imprisoned soul of her dead father, the Queen begins to cope by constantly forcing her father's face—the one that abused her and called her ugly her whole life—to tell her that she is the fairest in the land. In a clear parallel to substance addiction, this becomes the only thing capable of giving her a sense of power and motivation in life and suffers from severe withdrawals without it, and her need to preserve this high is what drives her to ultimately betray and abuse her own family members.
The book does a good job of teaching several important lessons:
—That abuse, while never justified, often has deeper root causes other than just the abuser being an inherently bad person.
—That seeking validation from one's abuser will only lead to self-destruction.
—That seeking solace in addition, while more satisfying in the short-term, will ultimately only keep you from actually dealing with your problems. Finding solace in the support of loved ones, even though it takes more time and patience, will put you on the path to true healing.
—The best way to honor those who are gone is to live as they would have wanted us to; happily.
The ending is a very emotional one that can be read as both happy and ambiguous.
The happy:
The Queen, finally snapping out of it after seemingly killing Snow White and becoming devastated and what she's allowed herself to become, chooses to go down the path she knows will lead to her death. In spite of everything she's been through, Snow White happily imagines her father, birth mother, and stepmother all dancing with her at her wedding to the Prince, explaining that she always considered her stepmother to have "died" along with her father and that the wicked queen was merely what was left behind. i.e., She chooses to remember her stepmother as the kind protector she was before her downspiral.
The ambiguous:
Much like her stepmother before her, Snow White receives the enchanted mirror as a wedding gift. The Queen's face appears in it and tells Snow that she loves her and always has, which makes Snow smile. This parallels the way the Queen's father appeared in the mirror and told his daughter that she was beautiful, something she always wanted him to say, only it is now the Queen in the mirror telling Snow that she loves her, something the book establishes is what Snow always wanted her to say. Both are facing their abusers through the mirror and having them tell them what they want to hear. While this could be read as a happy ending—the freed soul of the Queen telling Snow her true feelings—it can also be seen as an open question of whether or not Snow White will also continue the cycle of abuse. The fact that this is open-ended though, and knowing Snow White's character, this question manages to give more of a sense of hope than dread, a kind of reassurance that it's never too late to make the right choices and end the cycle.
All in all, a very good story for those who love the Disney villains and also appreciate stories that deal with serious themes and message. I am not disappointed in Serena Valentino in the slightest and can't wait to follow her along with whatever project she takes on. (So long as she finally takes "Nightmares & Fairy Tales" out of hiatus! :P C'mon, I miss Annabelle!)
chandraleereads's review against another edition
4.0
3.5/5 stars. Snow White is not one of my favorite Disney movies, nor is the Evil Queen a favorite Disney villain. As a result I went into this book somewhat skeptical, but as the queen became more evil I found myself more invested. I look forward to the next book in the series.
huitthuitt's review against another edition
3.0
I thought this was an interesting take on a villain origin story. I like how Valentino doesn't make up a name for the Evil Queen and just uses that title. But at the same time it's changing the narrative. So you have to be comfortable with your perception of the villain to be completely changed.