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: Toxic relationship, Eating disorder, Terminal illness, Sexual harassment, Incest, Suicide attempt, and Sexual assault
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: Sexual harassment and Sexism
Minor: Incest
printzgirl's review
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
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