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cousinrachel's review against another edition
DNF. I’m only moderately invested in the characters. There’s not much humor or charm, and the often incredibly selfish sisters at the center of the plot spend far more time arguing than supporting each other even during their financial crisis and father’s illness.
Secondly, I anticipated the magical world they’re frequent visitors to and have partially grown up in would be more of a main focus, but it takes a back seat to the protagonist’s managing the household and conflicting with her family. I never felt much individuality from the “other kingdom” characters or a sense of being in said kingdom, in other words, that it was a “real” place.
Also it’s really heavy-handed with demonstrating the main villain is a huge misogynist, as he can’t ever go a single page without saying some exaggerated oafish thing to the female characters and talking about how stupid they all are. I don’t need the point shoved down my throat.
For books about siblings who find an enchanted country, I still gotta go with Narnia. Kind of want to reread it now, actually.
Secondly, I anticipated the magical world they’re frequent visitors to and have partially grown up in would be more of a main focus, but it takes a back seat to the protagonist’s managing the household and conflicting with her family. I never felt much individuality from the “other kingdom” characters or a sense of being in said kingdom, in other words, that it was a “real” place.
Also it’s really heavy-handed with demonstrating the main villain is a huge misogynist, as he can’t ever go a single page without saying some exaggerated oafish thing to the female characters and talking about how stupid they all are. I don’t need the point shoved down my throat.
For books about siblings who find an enchanted country, I still gotta go with Narnia. Kind of want to reread it now, actually.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Sexual assault, Violence, Sexual harassment, and War
Minor: Pregnancy
elisabethkatee's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
hopeful
lighthearted
mysterious
tense
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? N/A
4.75
yummy, delicious, scrumptious, ate it up and left NO CRUMBS !!! hehehe truly such a magical story and made me so nostalgic with its ties to ‘the twelve dancing princesses’ and magical lands i dreamt of as a child. can’t wait to read cybels secret and more of juliet’s works !!! so much warmth and love in one book🤍🥰
also… I WOULD DIE FOR GOGU 🥹🥹
also… I WOULD DIE FOR GOGU 🥹🥹
Content Warnings
Moderate: Eating disorder, Incest, Sexual assault, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Suicide attempt, and Sexual harassment
kennedyno's review against another edition
funny
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexism and Sexual harassment
Minor: Incest
printzgirl's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
medium-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
3.0
Plot: 3/5
Characters: 2/5
Worldbuilding: 3/5
Writing: 3/5
Overall: 3/5
Darkness level: mildly dark, but one scene of sexual harassment that verges on assault
Wildwood Dancing is a retelling of "The 12 Dancing Princesses" (weird that I read two of those this year...) set in 15th century Transylvania. The main character, Jena, is one of five sisters who travel to the faerie realm every full moon to dance with the people of that land. When her father falls ill and has to leave for the winter and her sister falls in love with a dangerous stranger, though, Jena has to protect her family from threats both human and fey.
This book felt like a pretty standard fantasy story. I didn't dislike the characters, but I didn't really love them either. The world was cool, although I would have liked even more Transylvanian mythology thrown in. The writing was a little flowery, but that seems to just be this author's style. The one thing that really frustrated me was the instance theme of sexism throughout the book. Not that we shouldn't talk about sexism, it's just frustrating as a woman to read a story about a woman who has all of her power taken away from her for 90% of the book. I wanted to punch the villain in the face so. many. times. And not in a fun way. In a "why does fantasy always have to come with a slice of patriarchy" kind of way. And Jena didn't even get to overcome him in the end through her wits and power. He just....disappears. So yeah. Not as bad as the other 12 dancing princesses adaptation that I read, but still not great. Come on, authors!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexual harassment
dannecingqueen's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
tense
slow-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
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Domestic abuse, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Self harm, Sexual assault, Violence, Death of parent, Gaslighting, and Sexual harassment
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