Scan barcode
A review by ceraphimfalls
A Royal Christmas Fairy Tale by Karen Schaler
hopeful
lighthearted
relaxing
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
0.5
I'll start by saying that I am not the audience for this book- I'm not a fan of Christmas or Hallmark movies or 5 day romances. But I can see the value of a story when well written, when the heart of a book is sincere. This was neither.
Knowing that the author wrote screenplays really explains the repetitive, stunted writing. Every character reads the same, every cliche is lit with a spotlight, every turn screams "look at me! I'm important!" This isn't subtle or nuanced or felt like any care was put into its writing. It felt smushed together to meet a publishing deadline for a paycheck, like it was a rejected Hallmark script that had the chance to be turned around quickly. The heart of this book is simply the word "Christmas" and the expectation that the reader will insert magic and joy appropriately on their own.
Just to give you a taste of this book, the head of the kitchen is always referred to as Chef Jake, who is the prince's best friend who he met while at Harvard. I finished this book because I don't quit books partway, but it was a slog to say the least, mainly because of characterization and writing like this.
Knowing that the author wrote screenplays really explains the repetitive, stunted writing. Every character reads the same, every cliche is lit with a spotlight, every turn screams "look at me! I'm important!" This isn't subtle or nuanced or felt like any care was put into its writing. It felt smushed together to meet a publishing deadline for a paycheck, like it was a rejected Hallmark script that had the chance to be turned around quickly. The heart of this book is simply the word "Christmas" and the expectation that the reader will insert magic and joy appropriately on their own.
Just to give you a taste of this book, the head of the kitchen is always referred to as Chef Jake, who is the prince's best friend who he met while at Harvard. I finished this book because I don't quit books partway, but it was a slog to say the least, mainly because of characterization and writing like this.