Reviews

This book was very slow to start, we didn’t really get into it for the first 10 chapters. However, once all the characters appear this book picks up pace and kept me interested til the end. It ended on a sweet note that felt right for Laura. Overall I feel the beginning could be shortened quite a bit and the ending drawn out a smidge but still worth a read.

tangodiva's review against another edition

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2.0

While I love Maguire's "Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister," I have come to realize that's the ONLY book by him I will ever like. I did not enjoy this. Nothing happened. You are stuck in the mind of a very boring, sour young girl in 1960s New York. Does she have reason to be sour? Yes. But it goes beyond that. Her grandmother and grandfather and the cook of their home are given one-dimensional characterizations and though they all help her and show her kindness, she has nothing but contempt for them. The "Swan" is just a thing of mystery with little explanation or even any indication he has changed our protagonist Laura in any way.

I did learn a little about the feast of the seven fishes, which an old co-worker of mine used to celebrate. So that was cool?

What should have been as the cover showed, a snow-globe fairy tale in the New York City of the past was instead last week's melted, dirty snow.

audreylee's review against another edition

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I did not enjoy the writing. The characters are flat. There appears no plot on the horizon. Life is too short to waste it.

booksarebetter's review against another edition

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2.0

I just can't get into this. Laura seems like a spoiled little girl, and fifty pages in I sincerely do not care or identify with the story whatsoever. Sorry to the author as I adored Wicked but this just wasn't for me. 2 ⭐

elysahenegar's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

This book feels like a modern fairy tale in the telling, and the writing is lovely. I thought the characters were very well drawn and the scenery well described. The swan part is very strange, though. I felt underwhelmed by the relationship between Laura and Hans, and finished feeling that "A Weird Wild Swan" might have made a good title. I get that Laura was probably just working out her frustration through that whole imaginary plotline, but if she was or wasn't, it's still just pretty strange.

andrealozoya's review

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emotional sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.75

freddikb's review against another edition

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I made it about a third of the way through before DNF-ing it. I felt like it was going nowhere, all I had read about was that Laura had been expelled from school and her family apartment had leaks.

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