fae_noir's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This book is a love letter to bittersweet, tragic fairy tales and to artists who have lost themselves in the face of the cruelty and rejection not only found in the world at large, but also at home. It is also a love letter to the journeys that lead us to rediscover ourselves.
If you are any kind of artist- writer, painter, musician, actor, etc.- and have ever been made to feel so "less than" and unworthy that hiding your art and locking away the truest version of yourself was better than facing the scorn of others, this story is for you.
If you are someone who needs a race against time, a plot with a roaring pace, a feverish will-they-won't-they romance, and an overt external spectacle to prove character growth, then you might want to skip this one.
This is not a fast-paced adventure, or a hot and heavy romance. This is the deeply emotional, internal, exquisite personal journey of a young girl rediscovering herself after her father belittled her to the point where all she could do was sacrifice herself for others, at the cost of her own soul. Her romance with the Goblin King is a slow burn tragedy in the style of The Phantom of the Opera- achingly beautiful as these two people find each other only to realize that they are each other's own destruction.
The story comes beautifully full circle, and I wholeheartedly disagree with other reviews that say the protagonist ends up back at the beginning with no character growth. Elisabeth reminds me very much of Wendy, coming home from Neverland. Her story has come full circle, but she is not the same girl who left home, nor will her decisions going forward follow the same logic and motivation.
This book was exactly the emotional journey I needed, as I've been on my own personal journey of healing and rediscovering myself and my own artist's soul. Casting it as a retelling of Labyrinth with German folkloric elements was absolutely gorgeous- I tend to struggle with contemporary coming of age stories getting too full of themselves, so pairing the coming of age element with the magic and tragedy of classical fairy tales gave it just the dose of whimsy and wonder I needed. It was the perfect book at the perfect time so for my part it's a five star read for sure.
It does work beautifully as a standalone with a bittersweet conclusion, however, there are a couple things stated in the last chapters that do offer a potential springboard for a follow-up adventure. It really is reader's choice with this one- enjoy it as a bittersweet standalone, or read on in the hopes for a sequel with a more HEA ending. For me, I'm glad that the sequel is already out and I can dive right in, or else I'd be immediately rereading it since I'm not ready to leave this world behind yet.
If you are any kind of artist- writer, painter, musician, actor, etc.- and have ever been made to feel so "less than" and unworthy that hiding your art and locking away the truest version of yourself was better than facing the scorn of others, this story is for you.
If you are someone who needs a race against time, a plot with a roaring pace, a feverish will-they-won't-they romance, and an overt external spectacle to prove character growth, then you might want to skip this one.
This is not a fast-paced adventure, or a hot and heavy romance. This is the deeply emotional, internal, exquisite personal journey of a young girl rediscovering herself after her father belittled her to the point where all she could do was sacrifice herself for others, at the cost of her own soul. Her romance with the Goblin King is a slow burn tragedy in the style of The Phantom of the Opera- achingly beautiful as these two people find each other only to realize that they are each other's own destruction.
The story comes beautifully full circle, and I wholeheartedly disagree with other reviews that say the protagonist ends up back at the beginning with no character growth. Elisabeth reminds me very much of Wendy, coming home from Neverland. Her story has come full circle, but she is not the same girl who left home, nor will her decisions going forward follow the same logic and motivation.
This book was exactly the emotional journey I needed, as I've been on my own personal journey of healing and rediscovering myself and my own artist's soul. Casting it as a retelling of Labyrinth with German folkloric elements was absolutely gorgeous- I tend to struggle with contemporary coming of age stories getting too full of themselves, so pairing the coming of age element with the magic and tragedy of classical fairy tales gave it just the dose of whimsy and wonder I needed. It was the perfect book at the perfect time so for my part it's a five star read for sure.
It does work beautifully as a standalone with a bittersweet conclusion, however, there are a couple things stated in the last chapters that do offer a potential springboard for a follow-up adventure. It really is reader's choice with this one- enjoy it as a bittersweet standalone, or read on in the hopes for a sequel with a more HEA ending. For me, I'm glad that the sequel is already out and I can dive right in, or else I'd be immediately rereading it since I'm not ready to leave this world behind yet.
cadencex's review against another edition
4.0
This book was everything I was asking for . The whole story seemed to flow very nicely which I enjoyed. A lot of Fantasy’s I have read didn’t really have that nice flow to it and would feel rushed . The development of the characters was perfect. The only reason I gave it a 4 star is because I wished that the plot thickened a little more but other than that nothing to complain.
readingwithhippos's review against another edition
3.0
This is a story of failure.
It starts like this: I read Wintersong and liked it, but didn’t feel like I got the full experience because I wasn’t familiar with the source material (the movie Labyrinth). So I got a DVD copy from the library and planned to watch it on a Friday night after work. I thought watching the movie would magically make the plot of the book click in my brain.
If you’ve seen Labyrinth, then you know the idea that someone could watch it and the world would subsequently make more sense and not less is balderdash. David Bowie, rest his soul, dancing around in tights with a roomful of Muppet backup singers did not help me understand anything. Also, I fell asleep around 30 minutes in, because in my dotage I’m pretty much incapable of staying awake for an entire movie.
So I have to admit, what I enjoyed about Wintersong was the gorgeous writing and the equally gorgeous setting it evoked. I read it slowly over a couple weeks, and every time I dipped into it, I felt like I was falling into a fever dream that, while beautiful, never coalesced into anything I could really grasp. Are Liesl and the Goblin King in love? Or is he her jailor? Which of them is saving humanity by staying in the underground, again? How many ways can the Goblin King take away Liesl’s music? And what exactly does he want with it once he gets it?
Soooo many questions, so few answers. If there were a quiz to take at the end of this book, I would fail it. Plot-wise, I have pretty much no clue what happened. But if I were judging a book beauty contest based on looks alone, Wintersong has enough flash and sparkle to win first runner-up, no problem.
More book recommendations by me at www.readingwithhippos.com
It starts like this: I read Wintersong and liked it, but didn’t feel like I got the full experience because I wasn’t familiar with the source material (the movie Labyrinth). So I got a DVD copy from the library and planned to watch it on a Friday night after work. I thought watching the movie would magically make the plot of the book click in my brain.
If you’ve seen Labyrinth, then you know the idea that someone could watch it and the world would subsequently make more sense and not less is balderdash. David Bowie, rest his soul, dancing around in tights with a roomful of Muppet backup singers did not help me understand anything. Also, I fell asleep around 30 minutes in, because in my dotage I’m pretty much incapable of staying awake for an entire movie.
So I have to admit, what I enjoyed about Wintersong was the gorgeous writing and the equally gorgeous setting it evoked. I read it slowly over a couple weeks, and every time I dipped into it, I felt like I was falling into a fever dream that, while beautiful, never coalesced into anything I could really grasp. Are Liesl and the Goblin King in love? Or is he her jailor? Which of them is saving humanity by staying in the underground, again? How many ways can the Goblin King take away Liesl’s music? And what exactly does he want with it once he gets it?
Soooo many questions, so few answers. If there were a quiz to take at the end of this book, I would fail it. Plot-wise, I have pretty much no clue what happened. But if I were judging a book beauty contest based on looks alone, Wintersong has enough flash and sparkle to win first runner-up, no problem.
More book recommendations by me at www.readingwithhippos.com
juliterario's review against another edition
4.0
- SIN SPOILERS -
WOW. Qué manera de empezar el año.
No tenía idea de que esto era un retelling de quién sabe qué cuento. Tal vez por eso no lo sabía jajaj. Porque no conozco el cuento de este retelling. La trama es básicamente una mezcla de Caraval y la historia de Hades y Perséfone o algo así. No es solamente mágica, pero misteriosa y sorprendente, llena de momentos que te tocan el corazón. La amistad, el amor, la familia. Esta novela está llena de magia, traición y juegos. Es una mezcla de un juego tras otro y otro. Atrapante y adictivo. Esta es una historia de monstruos y esas princesas que nunca consiguen su propio libro. Es una historia sobre la "hermana fea", el talento oculto y lo qué significa descubrirse a sí mismo. Y me encantó.
“What’s the use of running, if we are on the wrong road.”
Lo único que no me gustó fue que la segunda mitad del libro fue extraña. La primera mitad tenía una trama sólida, pero ese conflicto se resuelve al llegar a la mitad del libro. Desde ahí, la nueva trama estuvo floja y en momento inexistente. Hubieron escenas con conversaciones donde no pasaba nada.
Una protagonista con una evolución enorme, una ambientación preciosa, una historia atrapante y una escritura que lo une todo. Me fascinó esta novela. No creo que vaya a estar en mis favoritos de nada, pero la leería de nuevo. Fue de lo mejor. Oscura y seductiva.
stygianvixen's review against another edition
1.0
Heard a lot of good things but DNF. Was bored out of my mind made it about half way by forcing myself but I read for enjoyment and this was painfully boring to me unfortunately. I did not understand all of the references to music and all of the German? words so there was a lot of googling which didn’t help things.
saluki's review
3.0
I expected to really-like/love this Goblin King myth. And, the cover is so, so pretty!
Loved the beginning but didn't especially love the last quarter of the book. It's slower paced than I usually like but I liked the premise, settings and writing. I suppose it was the musical minutae that I wasn't fussed with and I found myself glossing over paragraphs here and there, even though music along with love are the major themes. Still, apart from that, I liked it enough as the romance was awkward and hard earned.
I'll look out for S. Jae-Jones' future novels.
1morepaige's review against another edition
4.0
This book really felt like something written for a younger me. My favorite movies as a child were Beauty and the Beast and Labyrinth and Wintersong contains much of what was so great about both of those movies for me.
This book is lush, poetic, fast-paced, and dreamy. It's one of those stories that lingered with me in my consciousness every time I was forced to set it down, rendering everything just a bit stranger than it had been last I looked.
I liked Elisabeth, I liked the Goblin King. I liked the setting, the vivid descriptions, the additions of music and faith to a story I thought I knew well enough.
I can't in all honesty give it five stars.
Sometimes the beautiful, flowery words actually got in my way. I was trying to dive face first into The Underground and about 3 distinct times I was like "I don't think I've understood what was going on for like two and a half pages" and I had to go back and figure out where I was.
It wasn't enough to knock me out of the story entirely, but I can see how it might be off-putting for people who aren't enamored of that sort of writing. It was like I got lost in metaphors and wasn't always sure I could find my way back to the plot. But instead of making the book difficult to get into, I did feel a little like the highly metaphorical lost places I wound up in sort of added to the MOOD of the story even if I got a bit hindered in the telling.
This book is lush, poetic, fast-paced, and dreamy. It's one of those stories that lingered with me in my consciousness every time I was forced to set it down, rendering everything just a bit stranger than it had been last I looked.
I liked Elisabeth, I liked the Goblin King. I liked the setting, the vivid descriptions, the additions of music and faith to a story I thought I knew well enough.
I can't in all honesty give it five stars.
Sometimes the beautiful, flowery words actually got in my way. I was trying to dive face first into The Underground and about 3 distinct times I was like "I don't think I've understood what was going on for like two and a half pages" and I had to go back and figure out where I was.
It wasn't enough to knock me out of the story entirely, but I can see how it might be off-putting for people who aren't enamored of that sort of writing. It was like I got lost in metaphors and wasn't always sure I could find my way back to the plot. But instead of making the book difficult to get into, I did feel a little like the highly metaphorical lost places I wound up in sort of added to the MOOD of the story even if I got a bit hindered in the telling.