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A review by calisotas
Let It Go by Jen Calonita
adventurous
emotional
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
i've consumed pretty much every version of frozen out there because i am obsessed with this story for some reason, so this was a necessary read for me. it was also my first twisted tale and i definitely enjoyed it! i wasn't quite sure where things were going at first, but it sucked me in and i ended up finishing it pretty quickly. the way the characters were written was interesting and i honestly enjoyed this version of hans much more than the movie's- the fact that he's involved earlier and thus also gets to 'turn' quicker made him so much more believable and i have to admit i was always excited when he showed up. it was also neat seeing him get an equal dynamic with both anna and elsa. in general, like most disney adaptations this was another case of 'fixing the problems most people have with the original', but in a creative way that didn't feel forced or spiteful, and i enjoyed the extra time and new situations we got to have with these characters.
my one big critique is that as the story went on, it started to feel almost too close to the original. i thought that maybe this was just a twisted tale thing, but from others' reviews, it seems like this one shied away a bit more than the rest perhaps due to the movie's impact. the new characters lost focus and there were a lot of times during moments that were originally songs where lyrics would be converted into dialogue, or where a conversation from the movie would be added in with only a slight change. it felt a bit forced, like the scene had to go that way just because that's what happened before. the ending especially was almost one-to-one, and with the altered relationships i think it would've been more interesting to get more closure to the new material ie. elsa dealing with hans' betrayal, anna and elsa getting more time to catch up as sisters, etc., especially as it all wrapped up in only a chapter or so.
my one big critique is that as the story went on, it started to feel almost too close to the original. i thought that maybe this was just a twisted tale thing, but from others' reviews, it seems like this one shied away a bit more than the rest perhaps due to the movie's impact. the new characters lost focus and there were a lot of times during moments that were originally songs where lyrics would be converted into dialogue, or where a conversation from the movie would be added in with only a slight change. it felt a bit forced, like the scene had to go that way just because that's what happened before. the ending especially was almost one-to-one, and with the altered relationships i think it would've been more interesting to get more closure to the new material ie. elsa dealing with hans' betrayal, anna and elsa getting more time to catch up as sisters, etc., especially as it all wrapped up in only a chapter or so.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Grief and Death of parent