loved it

TW : attempted rape, bullying, murder, body modifications, animal cruelty

I haven't been able to get into fantasy for years. So when I had the opportunity to listen to an audio copy of a book sitting on my shelves, I thought... why not!!

I absolutely loved this book. The world was unique, creative, but not too complicated either. This is the first fantasy I've actually been able to listen and actually follow what was happening (visual learning style problems, am I right).

ABOUT THE BOOK :

This story is set in a bright, colorful world reminiscent of the lavish French lifestyle (Marie-Antoinette vibes for sure), but add magic. I was reminded quite a lot of the society in which we live, but amplified : these people are so set on outward appearances, that they are willing to undergo frequent and very painful modifications in order to maintain themselves. It definitely highlights how harmful and toxic a society based on beauty standards actually is.

I also had the impression this book combined various elements from reknown fairytales, such as Sleeping Beauty, Cinderella, and Snow White.

I appreciated the diversity of the characters, and how every skin color, body shape, gender, and sexual orientation was welcomed and celebrated. Oh, and the importance of family is definitely one of the main themes of this book!!

For some reason, I thought this was a stand-alone, and I was super excited to cross it off my TBR. But damn it, now I need to add its sequel 😂😂

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Beautifully written and performed!

I loved this story! It's not my usual genre, so I was surprised that I enjoyed it as much as I did. The author does an amazing job with the world building and character arcs. The descriptions help you really see this world and its people without being boring. There is enough mystery and suspense to keep you turning pages (or listening for just 5 more minutes) and the evil characters are delicious. The performance by the narrator was top notch!

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Disappointing

So disappointing. Started off so strong and good with the way we were introduced to the characters and the world. But then increasingly became worse and worse. The villains were comically evil, the characters were comically naive, and the magic was the only interesting part and was barely touched. I have the second book already so I'll continue but it's just not shaping up to be great.

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Good narrator, terrible story.

if you enjoy hearing the words "Beauty" and "favourite" so frequently that you're not sure why these words exist, or how there is a political structure or social structure or anything else in this Kingdom which should be called a Queendom. If you care about frivolity and an obsession with youth and beauty in your teens you might enjoy this book. However, if you enjoy a story that is nuanced has proper world-building component to it, a political structure (if you're going to be in a castle), a social structure, or why these girls seem to not have asked any questions through their life about how they came to be - did they really think that they came from [spoilers]. This is a terrible book... stop it, just stop it. Give it a pass and read anything else.

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