The Princess Tales: Final Thoughts and Giveaway Winners Announced!

Hello, my lovelies!!

I can’t believe this is the last Princess Tales post!

As I mentioned in my first post, I read this series years ago. So rereading them to review was interesting, as I came at them from a different perspective than I did as a girl.

I had a rough start reading them at first. The third book was especially rough for me. But by the end I was in love with this series. Especially the last three books. The series picked up by the end and I found I loved it as much as I did as a girl. Differently, but definitely just as much.

Books in Order of Favorite to Least Favorite:

Cinderellis and the Glass Hill- 5 Stars

For Biddle’s Sake!- 4.5 Stars

The Princess Test- 4.5 Stars

The Fairy’s Return- 4.5 Stars

The Fairy’s Mistake- 3.5 Stars

Princess Sonora and the Long Sleep- 3.5 Stars

That puts the average rating at 4.25 Stars but since I don’t think .25 stars is allowed, I’ll round up and give the entire series a 4.5 Stars. Definitely well deserved.

I said when I reviewed The Princess Test that I would hold off announcing it as my favorite until the finished the series and I was surprised to find that the last three almost all bumped that one down on the list (even as it stands, The Princess Test and The Fairy’s Return are tied in fourth place). There were so many good books in this series and it has been a delight to share them with you all over the last so many weeks.

As promised, here is the series playlist!

And now the part you really all came for- the giveaway.

Without further ado, I am excited to announce Abigail and Mara as the winners! I will be contacting you with further details about that.

NaNoWriMo is in full swing and I hope to further connect with those of you who are participating in that. If you want to stay in touch be sure to like my Facebook page for all the fun I’ve got in store for this month.

Next Friday I’ll be starting a new series for the rest of the month of movies based off classic tales. And on Monday I’ll be offering some mid-NaNo writing encouragement and advice. I hope to see you then.

Until the next time we meet don’t forget to live happily ever after <3

~Jennifer Sauer, the Ivory Palace Princess

P.S. Let’s Chat! What are some of your favorite movies based on classics or fairy tales?

The Fairy's Return: A Review

Hello, my lovelies!

I can’t believe this is the last book in the Princess Tales series!

The Fairy’s Return by Gail Carson Levine

4.5 Stars

Boy meets princess, and it's love at first sight. Both laugh of the same jokes. Both are named after birds. His name is Robin, hers is Lark. Could there ever have been a more perfect match?

But alas! King Harrumphrey won't let Lark marry a baker's son. And Robin is betrothed to someone else.

Now toss in Robin's nonsense-talking brothers, Nat and Matt, their versifying father, and Ethelinda, the fairy who wrought havoc in The Fairy's Mistake, and you've got a "nutcrazical" situation!

A hilarious spoof on 'The Golden Goose" by the Brothers Grimm, The Fairy's Return is the sixth Princess Tale from beloved Newbery Honor author and master fairy tale reteller Gail Carson Levine.

-From Goodreads

Goodness this was such a good way to end the series! This time the tale is a familiar one- The Golden Goose. But it’s not the classic tale you know. The author does such a wonderful job of bringing it new depth and character. What a way to end the series on a strong note.

What I Liked:

I feel like I keep repeating myself but I have to say it again- I love the characters in this book. Lark and Robin just might be my favorite couple in the series. They are so pure and innocent and adorable and reading about them was a pleasure. As always their relationship is done in a simple way that makes it sweet and pure and perfectly fine for a younger audience.

Since this is the last book in the series it was fun to see the author tie it back to the first one and bring the whole series full circle. There were also so many clever references to the other books and that was fun.

The plot is great. The author even went with the versions that add more to the end of the story that most common retellings don’t follow. So it was really cool to see that.

Robin’s dad makes up poems that don’t rhyme but if you replace the last word of the second line with a synonym they do so that’s really fun trying to figure out. And Robin’s brothers make up words by mixing two others which, while it might make this the hardest book to read aloud, were also super fun to read. I liked the clever things they came up with.

What I Didn’t Like:

As with the last book the brothers in this book felt like they were Burt and Ralph all over again. I don’t like recycle characters. They weren’t bad, I just wish we were given something else.

Unlike the quirks the author gives Robin’s dad and brothers, I wasn’t the biggest fan of the habit the king had. He would replace normal words with “harrumph.” Why is never explained and trying to figure out what he meant was a mental exercise I wasn’t exactly thrilled with.

Overview:

I loved this book. So much. So very much. Even though it’s the same length as the other books it felt so much shorter, the story moving faster than I wanted only because I didn't want it to be over. It was simple and sweet though and I adored it.

I’m sad that the series is over but excited to announce a giveaway!!! Head over to the giveaway page here on the blog or just click here for more.

The playlist will go live next week when I offer a recap on the series and announce the giveaway winners. I hope to see you then.

Until the next time we meet don’t forget to live happily ever after <3

~Jennifer Sauer, the Ivory Palace Princess

P.S. Let’s Chat! What’s one series that has a really great last book? And what fairy tale series would you like to see me review next?

For Biddle's Sake!: A Review

Hello, my lovelies!

So excited to share another of The Princess Tales with you! I can’t believe there’s only one more after this.

For Biddle’s Sake! by Gail Carson Levine

4.5 Stars

The young maiden, Parsley, will eat nothing but parsley, which in Snettering-on-Snoakes grows only in the fairy Bombina's garden. All is well -- until Bombina is released from the fairy queen's dungeon. Her crime? Failing to get along with humans. And turning them into toads!

Meanwhile, twin princes Randolph and Rudolph are causing trouble at Biddle Castle and pinning everything on their younger brother, Tansy. Prince Tansy cares about Biddle. Randolph and Rudolph don't. But one of the twins will be king, unless Prince Tansy accepts help from a green Biddlebum Toad!

A delightful retelling of the little-known German fairy tale "Puddocky," this fifth Princess Tale from Newbery Honor author Gail Carson Levine shows that nothing is quite as it seems and that anything is possible, with a dash of magic and a barrel of love.

-From Goodreads

I’m not going to lie- I didn’t know what fairy tale this was retelling until I read the Goodreads description about two minutes before reading this. Before that I thought it was a strange mix of Rapunzel and The Frog Prince with some other stuff mixed in. I’ve never heard of Puddocky before but a quick search of it on Google and it is definitely what this story is based on.

But even without knowing the original tale, I really liked this story.

What I Liked:

This author does the same things right over and over again- the characters are great, the light romance is sweet, and the plot and narrative style are on point.

I love Parsley and Tansy. They’re cute and watching them grow up together is fun. Individually they’re good characters, especially Parsley, who we are not only told is lovable but also shown. The story focuses on her and she’s a delight from start to finish. I can almost picture the adorable smile of hers that the author mentions again and again. She’s kind and good but also has a bit of spunk and sass to her that is really fun to see. Of all the girls in this series, she’s the one I have the most vivid picture of in my mind.

Tansy felt like a mix of Cinderellis and Princess Sonora, which I thought was cool since they would have been his ancestors. So it was fun to see the author incorporate that into the story.

The relationship between Parsley and Tansy is so stinkin’ cute! As with the others, the romance is light enough to be shared even with a younger audience. But it’s also developed so well- cute and sweet and a delight to read. I loved watching the way it progressed over the course of the story.

The plot of this one was fun and interesting, especially since I wasn’t familiar with the original tale and so I had no idea what to expect. And as always the narrative style was as fun as ever.

What I Didn’t Like:

One of the downsides of reading a series so fast is getting to see the similarities in the stories. While sometimes they’re fun callbacks, other times they just end up feeling like recycled ideas.

Tansy’s brothers felt a bit recycled to me, a lot like Burt and Ralph from the last story- the two brothers who are thick as thieves and have no use for their little brother. While they were good characters I also felt like they were a bit too close to the other brothers for my taste.

Also, in the context of the story I guess it made sense but Parsley is sort of stolen from her parents by the fairy without it really seeming like a bad thing. That sort of made me puzzled, like I wasn’t sure if I was supposed to be happy that she’d been taken away from her family or not. It sort of made sense in context but also sort of just didn’t quite sit right with me.

And as I mentioned last week, I’m not a fan of the way the King and Queen are named. But I won’t rant about that all over again…

Overview:

All in all, it was a really good story. I loved the characters and plot and narration and the way it all fit together. And I discovered a new fairy tale! Always a plus. Would highly recommend- especially, as always, to be read aloud to a younger audience.

I can’t believe next week is the last book! Be sure to come back for that, as well as a giveaway announcement. And I’ll be back on Monday to talk about writing again.

Until the next time we meet, don’t forget to live happily ever after <3

~Jennifer Sauer, the Ivory Palace Princess

P.S. Let’s Chat! What really obscure fairy tale would you like to see retold?

Cinderellis and the Glass Hill: A Review

Hello, my lovelies!

I’m back for Book 4 of The Princess Tales!

Cinderellis and the Glass Hill by Gail Carson Levine

5 Stars

In this unusual spin on an old favorite, Cinderella is a boy! He's Cinderellis, and he has two unfriendly brothers and no fairy godmother to help him out. Luckily, he does have magical powders, and he intends to use them to win the hand of his Princess Charming-- that is, Marigold. The only problem is-- Marigold thinks Cinderellis is a monster!

-From Goodreads

I knew there was a reason I was holding off on deeming The Princess Test my favorite! Having actually finished reading all of them now, this one definitely takes that title (though the last two are also great and I look forward to sharing them with you in the coming weeks).

This is a fun spin not only on the timeless Cinderella tale but also the lesser known Glass Hill fairy tale. I think there might even be another fairy tale mixed in that I’m missing. The stories mix well and I enjoyed the classic elements as well as the new twists the author put on them.

What I Liked:

Everything. What I liked about this book was everything. It was a fun tale with good characters, a solid plot, and the great narration I’ve been talking about since my review of the first book.

Cinderellis is such an endearing character, strong and brave and clever but also sweet and gentle and kind. He’s exactly what you would expect of a Cinderella character but in a nice, well-developed sort of way. I also adore the love interest, Princess Marigold. She’s the kind of character you wish you could just climb into the book and hug and hug and hug until every one of her broken pieces are put back together.

Together the two of them are one of the sweetest couples in this series (and it has a lot of sweet couples). I love them together and their relationship is great (though in keeping with the rest of the series, it’s written in a way you could read to younger kids without a problem).

The twists on the original tales was so fun! The “evil stepsisters” are Cinderellis’ two brothers who more ignore or barely notice Cinderellis than anything else. Most of his motivation throughout the story is to impress them, the little brother desiring for his older brothers to notice him and accept him as one of their own.

I also love the way the author manages to get inside so many characters’ heads in such a short book in such an effective way. Sometimes it’s the most random of characters (like the horses) but it adds something to the story when in so many other books the same thing takes away something. It’s just really good writing.

What I Didn’t Like:

Okay, so maybe I didn’t quite like everything. But I didn’t even dislike this enough to knock even a portion of a star off the rating, so it’s not even really worth mentioning. Except that it really annoyed me.

This started in Princess Sonora and the Long Sleep (Book Three) but for some reason all the kings and queens in this story have the same name now. In The Princess Test they were named King Humphry and Queen Hermione. In Princess Sonora they were named King Humphry II and Queen Hermione II. In this book they were named King Humphry III and Queen Hermione III. It continues into books four and five as well and every time I saw it, it would just make me mad. It just doesn’t make sense to me and I don’t understand it and I would have liked the author to make a different choice on that.

But like I said, it’s not even a huge deal. I just needed to rant.

Overview:

As stated, this is my favorite book in the series. I adored it so incredibly much and I’m so excited to share it with you. It’s a fun, lighthearted read that I plowed through in a day. It’s quick and simple but full of so many wonderful things. And I actually read this one out loud so I can say with certainty that it is in fact a great read-aloud book. I’m excited to have kids to read it to someday.

I started putting the series playlist together! Excited to share it with you in a few weeks.

Continuing along the theme of favorites, I’ll be back on Monday to share one of my favorite things with you! I hope to see you then. Until the next time we meet, don’t forget to live happily ever after <3

~Jennifer Sauer, the Ivory Palace Princess 

P.S. Let's Chat! What's your favorite lesser know fairy tale you'd love to see retold? What common fairy tales do you think it would mix well with?

Princess Sonora and the Long Sleep: A Review

Hello, my lovelies!

Back for Book Three! (Read the reviews for books One and Two)

Princess Sonora and the Long Sleep by Gail Carson Levine

3.5 Stars

A spiteful fairy. A beautiful princess. An outstretched finger. A spindle. A hundred-year snooze. A charming prince. A kiss. All the familiar ingredients.

But wait! Where did that extra prince come from? And those fairy gifts that were never there before? And what does a flock of balding sheep have to do with anything?

Gail Carson Levine has waved her magic wand over the old standby of "Sleeping Beauty" and presto! It reappears, transformed, sparkling and hilarious. Chuckles and giggles are guaranteed.

~From Amazon

I’m not going to lie, this one was harder to get through than the others- perhaps because I started reading it immediately after The Princess Test, which I enjoyed immensely.

But after getting through some rough patches at the beginning (which I’ll talk about later) I actually really started to enjoy this one. It certainly didn’t threaten Book Two’s spot as my favorite but is by no means a bad book.

What I Liked:

This was one interesting story. The author delves into things I’ve never seen before in a Sleeping Beauty retelling and explores themes I was really excited to find.

Sonora (our Sleeping Beauty) is cursed at birth to prick her finger on the spindle and die. She had been given the gift of being ten times smarter than everyone else earlier that day and so even though she’s still a baby she is fully aware of what’s going on when this happens. The fairy also never says when exactly this curse will take place. I haven’t seen either of these things done before and certainly never together.

Because of these events, Sonora spends a good deal of the story afraid of sleep and dreading the day when the curse comes. I’ve never seen that before and it was a really heavy subject handled very well. It really got me thinking about what it must be like to know something is going to happen yet being powerless to change it.

And while I’m not sure if the author was going for this or not (it’s quite possible I just read into it way too much) the story does seem to deal with the idea of what happens when we force our kids to be the way we want them to be. At Sonora’s birth she’s gifted with a loving heart. She then spends several different points in the book wondering if she loves someone because she loves them or because she’s forced too.

And beyond that, the gifts she was given often make her unlikeable- her being so much smarter than everyone else is more a curse than a blessing. So too it is with Prince Melvin XX. He’s so many things- brave, traditional, tall, honest, and strong, to name a few- and because of these things people find him hard to spend time with. These gifts often make them more awkward than anything and don’t enhance their place in society but rather make them fit into it even less.

Again, I’m not sure that’s what the author was going for and she was quite possibly just poking fun at a traditional fairy tale trope. But it made me think a lot and I enjoy it when books make me think so I wanted to include it.

There are also some very cute characters in this story. Elbert the shepherd and his family are such a fun addition to the story and Prince Christopher is the sweetest character (as we fangirls say- he is a cinnamon roll, too pure for this world).

What I Didn’t Like:

I'm going to try and keep this short and concise because I don’t want to keep anyone from reading this book. It really was a cute story, I just had issues with it. Mostly because there were a lot of places that were just plain illogical. I think the author was just trying to be humorous but it fell flat for me because of the jokes she was making.

Sonora is ten times as smart as everyone else and we’re told that even as a baby she thinks and acts as much like an adult as she’s able too- as she’s still a baby she still has to crawl and the like, but she can think and converse on a very mature level. She’s so smart that even as a kid, she never acts like a kid. She finds no use for toys and can’t play games with the other kids because she always finds problems with them. This bothered me because even highly intelligent children still act like children sometimes. Kids are still kids and they still have things that make them kids. But not so with Sonora!

But then, Sonora also spends a whole lot of time reading and studying and then sharing this knowledge with the world. And one of the things she likes to do is tell people what the purpose of things are. Except the purpose of things are more childish than factual.

For instance, she says that the purpose of winter is to produce ice so that people can eat flavored ice in the summer. Except that isn’t the purpose of winter, as someone who reads every book she can get her hands on would know. And it’s not like she can’t get her hands on a lot of books because she’s a princess who lives in a castle with the very well-stocked library.

Basically I just struggled with the inconstancy of whether or not Sonora was capable of acting childish. I felt like it kept me from really knowing her and that made me feel disconnected from her. A book can be really hard to read when you feel disconnected from the main character.

As I said, I’m sure it was just the author trying to keep the same light-hearted, comical tone of the other books, but in this story it fell short for me.

Overview:

Overall, this wasn’t a bad book; not my favorite but I’m also pleased to have reread it again. It’s an interesting take on Sleeping Beauty and one that certainly has a lot of merit. And as with the others, it’s a fun, light-hearted story that could easily be read aloud even to a younger audience.

Looking forward to reading the other books in the series.

I’ll be back Monday with some musings on my own writing and I hope to see you then. Until the next time we meet don’t forget to live happily ever after <3

~Jennifer Sauer, the Ivory Palace Princess

P.S. Let’s Chat! What are some of your favorite Sleeping Beauty retellings? What’s something you’d like to see happen in a Sleeping Beauty retelling someday?

The Princess Test: A Review

Hello, my lovelies, I’m back for book two!

The Princess Test by Gail Carson Levine

4.5 Stars

King Humphrey has decided it's time for his son, Prince Nicholas, to marry. But he must make sure the bride is a real princess. So he devises a series of princess tests, designed to weed out the phonies and the fakes. Meanwhile, Nicholas has fallen in love with Lorelei, a mere blacksmith's daughter. She's no princess, but he wants to marry her all the same--but how will she ever pass the terrible tests?

-From Goodreads

When I read this series as a teen I read them out of publication order because I read them in the order I could get them from the library. This was actually the last book that I read so it was nice to actually read it in the “right” order this time around.

I really love this book. It’s a Princess and the Pea retelling and the author does such a wonderful job with it. Her additions are clever and fun, while also keeping with the original heart of the tale.

What I Liked:

As I stated, I really like this book. It might be my favorite of the series (I’ll hold out on making that decision until I’ve reread all of them though). The story is sweet, much like its predecessor. But this story feels tighter than the other, better put together.

I love the twist the author put on the original tale, stating right from that start that Lorelei (our “princess” who actually happens to be a blacksmith’s daughter) is a very particular person. From her birth she has always needed things to be just so.

But this need is just that- a need more so than the desire most Princess and the Pea interpretations tend to make it out to be. Lorelei doesn’t do the dishes not because she’s spoiled and stuck-up but because she gets a rash when she does. She is also very accident-prone so any game she plays or chore she is set to almost always ends in blood.

At heart she is a sweet girl who hates how much of a burden she is to everyone. And when she does point out that things aren’t just so she does it kindly and discretely. She is never stuck-up, picky, or rude. She’s kind and loving and gentle and I love her so much.

Just as much as I love Prince Nicholas, the love interest. He’s kind and earnest and endearing. He isn’t particular at all, not noting the subtle imperfections that his parents and Lorelei so easily pick out. He is quite happy and content with taking life as it comes.

His and Lorelei’s relationship is sweet and charming (and like the last book very appropriate even for younger readers). The author puts a nice twist on the “love at first sight” cliché, while also avoiding the “bickering at first sight” cliché. I loved them together from the start and that never changes over the course of the story.

As with the last book (and as is a running theme in this series) the writing style is clever and fun. The King and Queen (as a twist on the original tale) are very finicky and their words choices fit that. It’s really fun and makes the story even better. The narration is also great, making it the perfect sort of book for reading aloud.

What I Didn’t Like:

The villain in this book is the housekeeper Lorelei’s dad hires to look after her when her mother passes. The woman gets fed up with how particular Lorelei is and how much work she is to care for and she decides to do her in. It’s honestly all a bit weird. I don’t know why the author felt this was the right thing for her story because I frankly find it really, really strange.

It’s only a part of the book’s conflict though and I was able to overlook how odd I thought it was (perhaps from all my years of reading actual fairy tales and having to overlook other really strange things?)

Overview:

As I have said several times, I really like this book. Save for the weird side-plot of the murderous housekeeper there isn’t much I dislike about it. I definitely liked it more than the first book and am so very excited to keep rereading the series to see what else the author has in store for this world.

The playlist, as I stated last week, will be up when I've finished reviewing the rest of the series!

On Monday I’ll be sharing my thoughts on how writers can talk to non-writers (a follow-up to this post) and I hope to see you then! Until the next time we meet, don’t forget to live happily ever after <3

~Jennifer Sauer, the Ivory Palace Princess

P.S. Let’s chat! What are some of your favorite Princess and the Pea retellings? What are some things you haven’t seen but would like to in a retelling of this tale?

The Fairy's Mistake: A Review

Hello, my lovelies! Excited to share today’s book with you!

The Fairy’s Mistake by Gail Carson Levine

3.5 Stars

Two very different sisters have two very different encounters with the fairy Ethelinda. Rosella is kind and helpful. Her reward: Jewels and gems tumble out of her mouth whenever she speaks. Myrtle is rude and spiteful. Her punishment: Bugs and vipers slither out of her mouth. The fairy Ethelinda feels she's meted out justice just right--until she discovers Rosella has been locked up by a greedy prince and Myrtle is having the time of her life!

-From Goodreads

This is the first book in the Princess Tales series.  It’s a retelling of Toads and Diamonds, a classic, lesser-known fairy tale. This series has been a part of my life since I was a teen and I am so excited that I get to read it again and share it with you over the next several week!

What I Liked:

This book is cleverly written, the tone being set from the very first sentence. You immediately know this is going to be a fun, light-hearted story. It has a very classic fairy tale feel, this story able to be put right alongside an original fairy tale with ease.

It’s a quick read- I read it in a single sitting- with the airy tone making the story move easily. There isn’t much meat to the story; the plot advances rather fast with each scene furthering the main plot. And yet the author manages to pack a good deal of character development into what little space she uses.

The characters are so well-done. I really loved Rosella, who is “blessed” with precious jewels. She is sweet and kind but the author, though she doesn’t delve too much into it, gives her a depth that makes her feel more than a pushover. She is sweet and kind and she lets herself be taken advantage of by the people around her partially because of these qualities but also partially out of fear. It’s a well-done explanation and one I really appreciated seeing.

Myrtle as well, Rosella’s sister and the one “cursed” with toads and snakes and bugs, is someone I found myself liking. There isn’t much to like about her as she isn’t necessarily a nice person. But still, for some unexplained reason, I found myself unable to dislike her. Still, her rudeness is never portrayed as something that is good or right or that should be emulated.

Prince Harold has some nice character development as well. He changes the most over the course of the story and I really like what the author did with him.

The relationship between Rosella and Harold is really adorable, despite my reservations about their age (see my comments below in “What I Didn’t Like”). It’s hardly such that can be called a romance given that there is so little time to dwell on it, making it a good story even for a younger audience.

And the book has illustrations! I don’t know when the last time I read a book with illustrations was and it’s quite refreshing.

What I Didn’t Like:

The story is simple and sweet but I felt it moved rather fast in places. I wished there was more time to delve into the characters or plot a little deeper, instead of just moving on quickly. It suffered from the same things original tales do- there were holes I wished to see filled instead of glossed over. Also, as much as I liked Harold’s development, it might have been nice to see it take a little more time so that it could grow more naturally. And I would have maybe liked to see Myrtle grow a little more as a character.

My biggest concern is that Rosella and Myrtle are only fourteen. I didn’t remember this being the case when I first read the series but it’s stated quite clearly in this first book. And from what I've reread of the others it feels like this is a common theme in the stories- very young people getting into relationships. There is a disconnect, given that it’s a fictional kingdom and things move too quickly to really delve into how young they are, so I don’t think the author is encouraging anyone that young to actually be in a relationship. But it still startled me a bit when I read it now.

Overview:

I enjoyed this book a lot. It’s simple and quaint and while not anything extraordinary, it’s charming and clever and well-written. For the first book in a series I think it could have started out on a bigger bang. But it offered hope for greater things to come in the future and I’m looking forward to rereading the rest of the series!

I would highly recommend this book for middle grade readers or older. Or it could even be read aloud to younger readers who might not quite be able to read some of the bigger words on their own.

Have you read this book or any others by this author? Does this sound like something you would like?

Since the book is so short I’m going to hold off posting a playlist until I review the last book since it will be a series playlist rather than a separate list for each book. I look forward to sharing that, along with the rest of the books, with you in the upcoming weeks!

I hope to see you on Monday for a writing related post. Until the next time we meet, don’t forget to live happily ever after <3

~Jennifer Sauer, the Ivory Palace Princess

P.S. Let's Chat! What's your favorite fairy tale retelling series?