passionatereader78's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
This is the retelling of Aladdin! It was so well written. It even has Abu in it. I enjoyed every page. Aladdin is caught stealing from soldiers and is sent to Hagenheim, Germany to live with a priest. When the priest dies, Aladdin goes to the castle and become fast friends with the Duke's daughter, Kirstyn. They grow up together and enjoy long walks. When Aladdin realizes Kristyn is the woman he wants to marry, he sets out to make his own fortune so he can ask for Kirstyn's hand. While Aladdin is away Lady Kirstyn is kidnapped.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death
Moderate: Physical abuse, Violence, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Racism
psheflin's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
relaxing
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
liv_72's review against another edition
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
christygsp's review against another edition
3.5
A twist on Aladdin and Joseph from the bible.
What would have happened if Aladdin had been taken from those Arabian nights and deposited into a European place? This book is a potential answer.
Almost nothing the same as the actual Aladdin story, except his name and Abu’s name (though not a cute and mischievous monkey, but a little boy instead in this story).
I liked it. Christian themes were nice throughout. Not what I expected when I hear the words “Aladdin retelling” though.
What would have happened if Aladdin had been taken from those Arabian nights and deposited into a European place? This book is a potential answer.
Almost nothing the same as the actual Aladdin story, except his name and Abu’s name (though not a cute and mischievous monkey, but a little boy instead in this story).
I liked it. Christian themes were nice throughout. Not what I expected when I hear the words “Aladdin retelling” though.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Kidnapping
Moderate: Violence, Confinement, Gore, and Domestic abuse
Minor: Sexual harassment
banana83854's review against another edition
3.0
Oof I liked most of this, but there was a big chunk in the second half that got annoying and draaaaaaggged.
britneyfan19's review against another edition
dark
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
3.75
This was good, though it wasn't really my favorite from Melanie. But I'm still going to check out the others of hers.
catholicamanda's review against another edition
2.0
full review to follow but for now I will just say: What exactly was the plot again??
Okay… so this was supposedly a retelling of the story of Aladdin but, apart from the same name, I have a hard time seeing it.
Aladdin is rescued from the streets of the Holy Land by a knight and a priest at the end of the Crusades. We never learn the priest’s name. Seriously, the text only calls him “Priest” which is totally not logical and pretty irreverent. He would have been called “Father.” And he should have been a named character… but I digress.
Aladdin is taken to Hagenheim and raised there in the orphanage where he befriends the Duke’s daughter, Lady Kirstyn. They are fast friends and Aladdin even takes a bear mauling to save Kirstyn.
Then Aladdin turns 18 and decides to leave to become rich and make his own fortune. That is all he really wants, to be rich. So off he goes and meets Herr Kaufmann. Aladdin is so perfect that he impresses Herr Kaufmann and is named his heir over Herr Kaufmann’s own son, Michael.
While Aladdin is off making money, Kirstyn mopes around the castle missing him. Then she is tricked by Anna, one of the orphans from the orphanage, and kidnapped by Michael, who also happens to be Anna’s boyfriend. Originally this was to get a ransom from her father but that falls through. Now Michael wants to hurt Kirstyn to hurt Aladdin because he is jealous of Aladdin’s relationship with his own father.
So the Duke shows us and tells Aladdin that Kirstyn has been kidnapped. So Aladdin goes off to try to rescue Kirstyn. And Kirstyn tries to stay alive with Michael calling the shots.
Confused yet? A bit. And I don’t really see the connections to the fairy tale that this is supposed to be a retelling of… *shrug*
The characters are also pretty flat. Aladdin is portrayed as perfect and yet still tormented by being forced to steal as a literal child so now he wants to become rich apparently. Lady Kirstyn is beautiful but naive. Michael is cruel and just plain not nice. Abu is a little street orphan rescued by Aladdin.
And at 55% of the way through the eBook, it could have ended. Things were wrapped up enough and I honestly just did not see the plot continuing past there… but there was still over 40% of the book left to come…
This review first appeared at CatholicAmanda.com
Okay… so this was supposedly a retelling of the story of Aladdin but, apart from the same name, I have a hard time seeing it.
Aladdin is rescued from the streets of the Holy Land by a knight and a priest at the end of the Crusades. We never learn the priest’s name. Seriously, the text only calls him “Priest” which is totally not logical and pretty irreverent. He would have been called “Father.” And he should have been a named character… but I digress.
Aladdin is taken to Hagenheim and raised there in the orphanage where he befriends the Duke’s daughter, Lady Kirstyn. They are fast friends and Aladdin even takes a bear mauling to save Kirstyn.
Then Aladdin turns 18 and decides to leave to become rich and make his own fortune. That is all he really wants, to be rich. So off he goes and meets Herr Kaufmann. Aladdin is so perfect that he impresses Herr Kaufmann and is named his heir over Herr Kaufmann’s own son, Michael.
While Aladdin is off making money, Kirstyn mopes around the castle missing him. Then she is tricked by Anna, one of the orphans from the orphanage, and kidnapped by Michael, who also happens to be Anna’s boyfriend. Originally this was to get a ransom from her father but that falls through. Now Michael wants to hurt Kirstyn to hurt Aladdin because he is jealous of Aladdin’s relationship with his own father.
So the Duke shows us and tells Aladdin that Kirstyn has been kidnapped. So Aladdin goes off to try to rescue Kirstyn. And Kirstyn tries to stay alive with Michael calling the shots.
Confused yet? A bit. And I don’t really see the connections to the fairy tale that this is supposed to be a retelling of… *shrug*
The characters are also pretty flat. Aladdin is portrayed as perfect and yet still tormented by being forced to steal as a literal child so now he wants to become rich apparently. Lady Kirstyn is beautiful but naive. Michael is cruel and just plain not nice. Abu is a little street orphan rescued by Aladdin.
And at 55% of the way through the eBook, it could have ended. Things were wrapped up enough and I honestly just did not see the plot continuing past there… but there was still over 40% of the book left to come…
This review first appeared at CatholicAmanda.com
elle4352's review against another edition
3.0
Aladdin as a character is loving and fun to follow in a new story, however the plot drags quite a bit and many of the side characters in the story are uninteresting. Frequent flashbacks seem unnecessary and don’t help propel the story forward
esthery_rn's review against another edition
adventurous
medium-paced
- Loveable characters? No
1.0
This was supposed to be a riff on the Aladin fairytail. Other than the guy having that name and originally being from the Middle East, it did not resemble that story at all. It was a slog to get through. The timeline had a lot of gaps, the action was ok, but the writing was dull. The characters thought and remembered a lot. But it was way too much telling and not nearly enough showing. I didn't feel connected to any of the characters. After getting through half of the book, I skipped the next 25% so that I could get on with the ending.
f_r_e_d's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
relaxing
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
So good! I love this series!
(Although I'm probably being biased.)
(Although I'm probably being biased.)
Content Warnings
Moderate: Violence and Kidnapping