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A review by savage_book_review
Part of Your World by Liz Braswell
dark
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.0
Ariel is now Queen of the Seas but remains voiceless, Ursula having won the day, killed Triton and married Prince Eric herself. But when a little bird tells her that her father might still be alive and in Ursula's clutches, Ariel must brave heading back into the Dry World to free him. Her wuest quickly becomes about more than saving one merman though, when she sees just what's happened to Eric and his kingdom at Ursula's tentacles...
I will admit, I think I've only seen the Little Mermaid once, and it was a very, very long time ago. It's not a Disney story that ever really inspired me (despite its links to Greek myth!), and Ariel just doesn't rank highly as a Disney Princess IMO. As a result, I appreciate that I don't have the best grasp of the story to understand what has been twisted, or the draw to the characters that would make this a must-read. So I can only really judge the book on its own merits.
I'm just not sure that any element of this story really hit the nail on the head. None of the characters felt like they related in any way to their screen counterparts; they've only aged five years (the blink of a eye in a mer lifespan), but Ariel doesn't have any real drive, Flounder and Sebastian aren't the light relief and Ursula is more of a bored and spiteful princess than the evil sea witch we know. I'd argue that the secondary human characters were the best drawn, but even then you aren't given a whole lot to play with. As a result, I didn't really care about their roles within the story or the jeopardy they faced.
The storyline itself was also pretty weak. Given the length of the book, I was expecting far more than a glorified treasure hunt. There is a severe lack of gripping moments, whether action, romance, darkness or otherwise. The story just plods along, not really doing very much to keep the reader's engagement, and at various points there were sudden shifts that seemed to come from no-where - I'm thinking Eric and Ursula's private dinner scene for one. These could have been far more integral to the story, and far more colourful to give the narrative tempo. The conclusion is lukewarm at best, with Ursula's comeuppance being quite pedestrian and the 'reveal' being fairly predictable.
I'm also not entirely sure how this qualifies as a 'twisted' tale. Yes, it's taken away the happily ever after from the film and it's not a happy story, but I was expecting something much darker. I appreciate it was never going to be one of Emily McIntire's Never After stories (the reveal of book 6's title and inspiration yesterday is what had me reaching for this book from my TBR pile), but even so it could have gotten away with more. This illustrates another issue; I could not tell you what age group this book is pitched at. It's clearly not meant for the same age group as the film, but equally there's nothing in here that really makes a grab for those who remember Disney fondly from their childhood, however long ago that might be. It feels like the brief might have been lost along the way with this one.
Another one for the book swap shelf at work, I think.
I will admit, I think I've only seen the Little Mermaid once, and it was a very, very long time ago. It's not a Disney story that ever really inspired me (despite its links to Greek myth!), and Ariel just doesn't rank highly as a Disney Princess IMO. As a result, I appreciate that I don't have the best grasp of the story to understand what has been twisted, or the draw to the characters that would make this a must-read. So I can only really judge the book on its own merits.
I'm just not sure that any element of this story really hit the nail on the head. None of the characters felt like they related in any way to their screen counterparts; they've only aged five years (the blink of a eye in a mer lifespan), but Ariel doesn't have any real drive, Flounder and Sebastian aren't the light relief and Ursula is more of a bored and spiteful princess than the evil sea witch we know. I'd argue that the secondary human characters were the best drawn, but even then you aren't given a whole lot to play with. As a result, I didn't really care about their roles within the story or the jeopardy they faced.
The storyline itself was also pretty weak. Given the length of the book, I was expecting far more than a glorified treasure hunt. There is a severe lack of gripping moments, whether action, romance, darkness or otherwise. The story just plods along, not really doing very much to keep the reader's engagement, and at various points there were sudden shifts that seemed to come from no-where - I'm thinking Eric and Ursula's private dinner scene for one. These could have been far more integral to the story, and far more colourful to give the narrative tempo. The conclusion is lukewarm at best, with Ursula's comeuppance being quite pedestrian and the 'reveal' being fairly predictable.
I'm also not entirely sure how this qualifies as a 'twisted' tale. Yes, it's taken away the happily ever after from the film and it's not a happy story, but I was expecting something much darker. I appreciate it was never going to be one of Emily McIntire's Never After stories (the reveal of book 6's title and inspiration yesterday is what had me reaching for this book from my TBR pile), but even so it could have gotten away with more. This illustrates another issue; I could not tell you what age group this book is pitched at. It's clearly not meant for the same age group as the film, but equally there's nothing in here that really makes a grab for those who remember Disney fondly from their childhood, however long ago that might be. It feels like the brief might have been lost along the way with this one.
Another one for the book swap shelf at work, I think.
Content Warnings
Minor: Gun violence, Violence, Blood, Dementia, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail