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kketch's review against another edition
dark
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? Yes
3.0
lizziesmith's review against another edition
5.0
Oh my gods, this book was gorgeous! I mean that ending was beautiful! The Evil Queen is definitely my favorite Disney Villain now! The author made me hate the queen at some points or made me love her or feel bad for her. So I love this author and I love the Evil Queen and I truly LOVED THIS BOOK
katariinatoivanen's review against another edition
dark
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
verdantjoy24's review against another edition
4.0
Definitely a YA read! An interesting read if you grew up watching Disney movies!
vmpspbspi's review against another edition
4.0
I’m giving this a 4/5 because I realize it wasn’t exactly my taste (I read a lot more Adult Fantasy more so than YA).
That being said, I did enjoy the backstory for the Queen for the most part. But the ending did feel rather abrupt.
That being said, I did enjoy the backstory for the Queen for the most part. But the ending did feel rather abrupt.
thepaperwitch's review against another edition
4.0
Reviewed on Books Cats Tea
The Wicked Queen was not always so. At one time, she had a heart filled with love for the King and his daughter, Snow White. But sometimes events beyond our control happen and we never truly recover from them. Sometimes we try to fill that terrible void to escape our fear and loss. And sometimes the things we fill it with can do great damage to those we love.
This is the Queen's story.
I'm going to be upfront and say that I'm not really a Disney person. I somewhat was as a kid and wore out my fair share of Robin Hood tapes, but my preferences for anthropomorphic characters rather than thin princesses in dresses only grew as I got older.
On the other hand, I really enjoy retellings*. This little book was a chance to see some solid backstory and it truly delivered^. I actually cried for the Wicked Queen. Fairest of All offers clever and deep character background to a figure we are only used to seeing one side of. It also ties in the original Disney story together at the end with an epilogue that leaves you wondering.
I like the small size of the book. It makes me feel like I have found a tiny treasure. There are small drawn pictures that correspond with each chapter and give the book a touch of fairy tale feel. The black cover with half the face of the grimacing Wicked Queen and the black endpapers give the small book a sinister weight. My only criticism would be that it could use some more editing. Some sentences were long winded and others redundant ("their downcast eyes gazed down from a towering height." -p37). I read Fairest of All in a day and recommend it to fans of (or even those who are just meh about) Disney, or enjoy retellings, fantasy, or short novel readers.
* I had given Once Upon A Time several seasons to eek out a great modern story, but became disenchanted at the back and forth nature of the "who was evil this season and who was good now".
^ I loved the sly reference to Maleficent and Sleeping Beauty, too.
The Wicked Queen was not always so. At one time, she had a heart filled with love for the King and his daughter, Snow White. But sometimes events beyond our control happen and we never truly recover from them. Sometimes we try to fill that terrible void to escape our fear and loss. And sometimes the things we fill it with can do great damage to those we love.
This is the Queen's story.
I'm going to be upfront and say that I'm not really a Disney person. I somewhat was as a kid and wore out my fair share of Robin Hood tapes, but my preferences for anthropomorphic characters rather than thin princesses in dresses only grew as I got older.
On the other hand, I really enjoy retellings*. This little book was a chance to see some solid backstory and it truly delivered^. I actually cried for the Wicked Queen. Fairest of All offers clever and deep character background to a figure we are only used to seeing one side of. It also ties in the original Disney story together at the end with an epilogue that leaves you wondering.
I like the small size of the book. It makes me feel like I have found a tiny treasure. There are small drawn pictures that correspond with each chapter and give the book a touch of fairy tale feel. The black cover with half the face of the grimacing Wicked Queen and the black endpapers give the small book a sinister weight. My only criticism would be that it could use some more editing. Some sentences were long winded and others redundant ("their downcast eyes gazed down from a towering height." -p37). I read Fairest of All in a day and recommend it to fans of (or even those who are just meh about) Disney, or enjoy retellings, fantasy, or short novel readers.
* I had given Once Upon A Time several seasons to eek out a great modern story, but became disenchanted at the back and forth nature of the "who was evil this season and who was good now".
^ I loved the sly reference to Maleficent and Sleeping Beauty, too.
livcashmere's review against another edition
reflective
medium-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
1.5
thereadingdandy's review against another edition
4.0
Before Snow White met her Prince waited a story to be told. In “Fairest of All” Serena Valentino does just that, telling the story of a Mirror Maker’s Daughter and a king enraptured by her beauty. A beauty that would take her on a path of darkness…
scrapbookqueen's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0