First off, I want to say I really enjoyed this book. There are so many good things I want to say about it (and will), but I also think I have to admit that for the first 25% I thought I was going to love it more than I did. The opening is very strong, the writing is gorgeous and highly-quotable, and it's got that beautifully eerie dark fairy tale vibe going on. I was thinking an easy five stars.

True to the Grimm brothers' version of Cinderella, the book opens at the end of the tale we know with the stepsisters mutilating their own feet to attempt to fit the glass slipper. Of course, this doesn't work out, and Ella and her prince get their happy ending anyway. Here, that's only the beginning. Isabelle and Tavi are left behind with their overbearing mother. Isabelle, especially, is overcome with bitterness. She's angry at a world that renders a woman worthless if she is not deemed beautiful.

Donnelly doesn't stop with something that simplistic, though. Almost all the women in this story are sympathetic, and though their actions are not excused, it is clear that the real "villain" behind it all is society and the way in which a girl's worth is determined. Ella is never dismissed as an airheaded beauty, nor is the "evil stepmother" entirely evil. It is interesting and sad how we see the way Maman's fear for her daughters drives her to horrific acts. She is deeply afraid of them being left without husbands and starving when she is gone. It's not an unrealistic fear.

Alongside this, there is another part of the story. A fantasy story and a game. One in which Fate, who has determined the course of Isabelle's life, plays against Chance, who wagers that he can change it. These two characters go head-to-head to see that Isabelle takes the path of their choosing. For the most part, it's thrilling, though I think the overlong and convoluted road this aspect of the plot took made it a four instead of a five star book for me. There was a definite part somewhere in the third quarter where it got a little too much.

But, ultimately, it's a gorgeously-written feminist fairy tale that unites women instead of demonizing them. I absolutely loved the shout-out to female military leaders of history, and the moments of perfectly-timed humour.

*I received this arc in exchange for an honest review. Thank you to NetGalley & Hot Key Books.

“Challenging the Fates is hard. Eating madeleines is easy. Most mortals choose the madeleines.”

This was a fun and imaginative retelling! I thought initially this was going to be the classic Cinderella story but from the point of view of the Step Sisters. I mean it was initially but this story goes much further than that, and I’m glad of it! I think I enjoyed it a lot more because it did.

This was full of twists and turns like any good story should be, but the thing I loved the most was the character growth in Isabelle. She was imperfect and bitter at the start and she came to accept herself and ended up being beautiful anyway regardless of her looks.
I enjoyed many characters in this story & many times had a smile on my face from a funny or cheeky (looking at you Chance!) moment.
The story definitely did have its dark moments - France is at war and you definitely get the feel of that throughout, and there’s some awful things that happen in this in terms of how people treat each other, but the story also had many truths in this - it showed society as it really is - unfortunate that we’re like it but true.
I think after reading Step Sister I’ll definitely be looking at reading more by Jennifer Donnelly - this was a creative spin on a tale we all know and love and I found it to be a lot of fun to read!

The description of this book reads “A powerful, feminist retelling of Cinderella” - What a statement, you can see why I was sold on this book straight away!

I love a good fairytale retelling, especially one which has been turned on its head and tells the “villains” side of the story. So I couldn’t wait to read Stepsister which is the story of what became of Cinderella’s ugly stepsisters after she goes off to marry the prince.

Everything about this book appealed to me. I love a good villain and I was intrigued to see if or how the ugly stepsisters could be redeemed. Let’s be honest they’re the Mean Girls of fairytales so they don’t have much going for them. However this book was written so well, and in such a way that you couldn’t help but root for them in the end especially Isabelle.

The writing was fantastic, so fluid and atmospheric. I enjoyed the mix of magic and fantasy, the hint of romance and the fight to be who you are rather than who society think you should be!

Isabelle was such an inspirational character, she starts off not particularly likeable but she grows more in strength and confidence as the story progresses. You start by feeling sorry for her. I mean she cuts off her toes to try and secure a marriage to the prince, all because her mother forces her to! But you soon realise that you don’t need to feel sorry for her because she is stronger and braver than most girls and is quick to adapt to her new situation. She becomes such a warrior and proves that girls can choose to do or be anything they want, in spite of the gender stereotypes.

I really loved this book. My only criticism is that the ending felt a little rushed. It didn’t stop my enjoyment of it but I would have liked it to have been covered in more detail which is why I’ve rated it 4.5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫 (Rounded up to 5)

3.5 - 4 stars

Steal your stomach for the start of this book because it delves in all twisted up and the story that ensues is every kind of unexpected. The protagonist of this book, Isabelle, is the kind of character that you have to grow to admire. She's an ugly stepsister with past behaviour and characteristics that speak of inner ugliness. Interestingly, her physical appearance isn't particularly sketched out, leaving the reader to imagine.

We meet Isabelle at a late juncture in the traditional Cinderella story, from the initial opening you will never be able to guess where this story goes. In fact, the book's biggest strength is the ability to tell a unique story when it is a retelling. Both Isabelle and Tavi, the other stepsister are quirky, determined characters, with Isabelle in particular, showing strength and tenacity. The backdrop for this tale is that France is at war and the battle is getting closer and closer to the main characters' dwelling.

There is a clever underlying story of Fate and Chance, two beings with the power to influence the lives of Isabelle, warring over her destiny. This made for interesting manipulation of the story and characters that Isabelle met. Tanaquill, the fairy queen, could not have been less Disney-like if she tried and I loved that aspect and the quest she sent Isabelle on.

Whilst my enjoyment of STEPSISTER is clear in this review, I didn't fully connect to the characters outside of Isabelle. Sometimes I struggled with the pacing, but it always picked up again fairly quickly.

I am impressed by Jennifer Donnelly's creativity and writing of STEPSISTER and I would definitely be interested in seeking more from her in a similar vein. STEPSISTER will appeal to those readers like myself who like a side of twisted with their fairytales.

I voluntarily read an early copy of this book, thank you Hot Key Books.

I'm a fan of retellings and have a collection in my library. So, I was very eager to read this. I'm so glad it was a very good re-telling. It was entertaining, I loved the characters and the messages in the story.

The story is a re-telling of the original Grimm Brothers version, not the Disney one, which was great. It's told after the events of Cinderella becoming the Queen marrying the charming Prince. And we follow the 'ugly' step sister, Isabelle de la Paume.
The opening is very impactful and intriguing giving a glimpse of the other characters, Chance and Fates. Fates are creating maps of people's lives, but suddenly Chance walks in to steal these maps.
Isabelle is miserable after her beautiful and gold-hearted step sister moves to the palace to marry the Prince. She starts questioning herself and how her relationship with her sister changed from their childhood.

Then, the story becomes richer as Fates, Chance and Fairy Godmother joins the tale. We understand Isabelle even more from her own perspective, and it soon becomes a story of villains. Through this, we follow Isabella in her journey to change her fate, and become who she really wants to.

I really enjoyed Donnelly's writing, how she creatively built the story in the aftermath of Cinderella. It was an interesting take. I thought the beginning of the book was a bit slow until we get to the part where Fate and Chance joined back. I loved the rest of it, and the fact that it had so many nice quotes and messages all throughout Isabelle's journey.

I'd definitely recommend this if you like fairy tales, children's or YA books, re-tellings. There are so many out there, but this was very creative and well done.

Thanks a lot to Netgalley and Bonnier Zaffre for this review copy.

I received this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

This is the story of the ugly stepsisters and I loved every single second of it. It finally tells a story that makes sense to me, about why they are mean to Ella. I wanted more around the abuse that their mother was obviously putting them through, but other than that, it was glorious.

Isabelle is fierce and wonderful, but also bitter and angry. Tavi actually spoke to me more, as she is seriously into her maths (yay maths nerds! 💙) and doesn’t understand why she should ditch that for a husband. Girl, I hear that! Hehe. But Isabelle is a great lead, and I loved her interactions with Fate, Chance and the fairy queen. Her ending was perfect.

I also loved the play between Fate and Chance, they were so fun. Fate definitely comes across as the “bad guy” but I would have liked it to show a little more that she thinks she’s doing her job, so to speak. Though I liked her ending too. And we do see that a little, but I don’t like how she goes about it. Chance’s free wheeling, happier attitude is great, but actually in contrast to how he ended up in the situation. I liked him realising that actions have consequences and sort of want a whole book on him dealing with that more.

It’s a fun, easy read and one of the best Cinderella retelling I’ve seen. I also love that it starts almost at the end of Ella’s story, so it’s easier for it to work without tripping over reader expectations. Brilliantly done.

This book has a great introduction and an even greater first chapter where we are reintroduced to the main characters, the ugly stepsister everyone knows from their childhood.
The characters are well developed and the writing is smart and elegant from the stepsister to the Fates and the Marquis of Chance.
We are all used to see beautiful characters being portrayed as good and villains being scarred or even handicapped as if their physical shortcomings were a warning to the others and are interesting to see a book that shows goodness, not as a consequence of beauty but as a fight that we all to wage with ourselves.
This is essentially a feminist book with girls coming into their own power and refusing to be defined by men but the most interesting of all is seeing Isabelle refusing to be the classic heroine and being the classical brooding, uncomprehended hero throughout the entire book.
This is a book that has very short chapters, ideal to be read at night, just like ou old fairytales and I think that was made on purpose, a way to show us that the ideals we live by now are completely different from the ones we had just a few years ago.
My only problem with this book is that it is too long: even though there is no chapter there where nothing matters and Isabelle learns from her mistakes, some of the things that she has to face seem to only be there so we can pity her after all the bad things she did. Even the last few chapters were nice to read but ultimately I could do without them.
Thank you to NetGalley and Scholastic Press for this ARC.

Fate and Chance intervene in the story of the ugly stepsister, which might not be quite as you think. Not only is the story of Isabelle interesting, but you actually feel and root for her.

This story is about self-awareness, belief in yourself and your potential, determining right from wrong. Playing with the notion of fate, and if there is such a thing, can someone change it? Do our choices weigh in?

This is not a cutesy, happy ever after tale, far from it. Dark, tinged with melancholy, full of imaginative unexpected embellishments so fantastical, but not 'yelling' their presence. A bit of a slow burner, but worth the pay off.

A story about second chances and changing people's preconceived perceptions, a testament to bravery.

This book was amazing!, I gave this book 4.5 stars, I loved the plot, I loved how it is based on the grim brothers version of cinderella, and I love how it focuses on the step sisters. I really like Isabelle the most out of all the characters because in a way I can relate to her in other ways I felt sorry for her. The way this book is written is amazing,

You know what? That summary doesn’t even nearly do this book justice. Because this book does something that I honestly didn’t expect. So often in ‘villain redemption’ retellings the way they choose to go is to show it was all a misunderstanding and really they were lovely all along and it was the heroine (in this case Ella) who was trash all along. In this case, it’s never in doubt that Isabelle and her sister and mother were awful to Ella and the story told isn’t one of re-writing but one of redemption. The thing that tends to bother me about this kind of story is that we’re often expected to forgive the ex-villain their past wrongs and move on with them as the protagonist without too much bother. There’s usually a good amount of ‘oh but they had a really hard time in childhood’ thrown in there. Perhaps I’m not as forgiving of a person as I ought to be, but I find it difficult to just go along with a redeemed character unless I feel as though they truly have changed. I thought that this book did a really good job of combining an explanation for why the stepsisters were so horrible alongside a real journey of learning, growing and truly repenting. It makes the whole character arc so much more believable and impactful - this may have the feel of a fairytale but it takes more than magic to fix everything that has happened.

I mentioned the feel of a fairytale, which is another thing I think this book did really well. So often people try to capture the language of fairytales and everything ends up feeling pretentious and false. What this book does is it takes some of the hallmarks of fairytales, such as the rule of three and the idea of fate vs chance but manages to make the language, particularly the dialogue of the characters, feel very real and very accurate to the intended time period (if not the setting - but my French isn’t good enough to read all the dialogue in French!).

There is romance in this story, which I don’t want to dwell on for too long because I think you should experience it for yourself, but let me just say that it is incredibly sweet and I thought it was a nice addition to the story as a whole.

I thought that the sibling relationship between Isabelle and her sister Tavi was well done also, Tavi is a mathematician and a scientist - but somehow this book manages to steer clear of the ‘she’s the girl who’s into maths so she’s the nerd and she’s into nerd things’ kind of feeling - it’s just what she’s interested in. I liked how the relationship between the two girls fluctuated throughout the book - I’ve never had a sister but it certainly felt like an accurate sibling relationship.

Overall, I think this is a really strong story. Maybe too much emphasis is put on one particular cheese - you have to read it to find out - but I still had a great time reading it. It’s a lot of short chapters so would be perfect for someone looking for something quick to read or someone who likes to block out their reading and do just a little each day. While at times it can feel a bit ‘feminism 101’ I think it would be a valuable starting point for wider conversations about beauty and self-worth among young people, particularly young women.

My rating: 4/5 stars

I received a free digital advanced review copy of this book from the publisher. All opinions are my own.

Stepsister published May 15th!

I really loved this book, a tale of Fate and Chance. Fate believes that your path in life can not be changed while Chance believes it can, they make a bet and choose one of Cinderellas ugly stepsisters Isabelle. Isabelle has believed everything she has been told in live, that she is to ugly, to outspoken and doesn’t act like a lady and will never find a suitable husband. When she unintentionally summons the fairy queen Tanaquill, who helped Cinderella in her time of need. She wishes she was pretty, but the fairy queen tells her she must find the broken pieces of her heart first.
This is such a beautifully written story, the writing style is so wonderful and easy to read and I have so many wonderful quotes! It is a great story about women and all the things they can be and pretty isn’t everything. I truly recommend this book for everyone to read!

You need to read this ! This isn’t just a retelling, it’s an amazing, empowering book for women , but for everyone. Lessons about what really is beautiful in people, morals, heart and ugliness like vanity and selfishness may sound cliche but it is done perfectly with strong real characters and again empowering female roles.

You really need to read this


Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for a free copy for an honest opinion

I loved this book I love fairy tale retellings. I lokes the different take on the Cinderella story I likes the back story of how Cinderella or ella in this case fell out with her sisters by her sisters getting overlooked because ella was a prettier then them. Brilliant book will recommend loved it.

This took me a LONG time to get into the story. I contemplated putting it down, but I'm really trying to finish EVERY book this year and actually I'm glad I stuck with it.

Get past the "woe is me" angle for the first 30% and you will be in for a treat.

I loved the twist on a classic fairytale where we know what happens at the end, but what happens after the ever after and what happens to the stepsisters?

This is a good fem fiction novel, which does empower you by the end. Isabelle and Octavia (the two stepsisters) both become quite loveable by the end.

I do give this 3 out 5, just because it was such a slow burn at the beginning.

Thank you netgalley for my ARC in exchange for an honest review

There are a lot of retellings being written at the moment. In the same way vampires, and fae, and dystopian have been popular, it is undoubtedly the time of the retelling. I have been wary, there is only so many ways an old story can be retold before the market is thoroughly saturated, but I felt something different when I read the synopsis for this book, and I am now extremely glad that Titan sent me an eARC to review, because it was a golden light in a sea of similar stories.

Stepsister is a retelling of Cinderella, but instead of focusing on the life before the glass slipper, or on Cinderella itself, it focuses heavily on the stepsisters (Isabelle in particular) and tracks life before and after Ella’s marriage to the Prince. The characters are everything we know, kind, beautiful, and thoughtful in Ella’s case; vain, cold, and manipulative in the case of the stepmother, and morally vacuous and ugly (more inside than out) in the case of the stepsisters.

The first thing to note in this booking is that the character arc of the stepsisters is not to the detriment of Ella. So many stories have to put a downer on one character to advance the cause of another and I really like that Donnelly has kept Ella morally and aesthetically kind and beautiful. It is a genuinely brilliant example of feminism, and in itself is a moralistic lesson in improving yourself and adding to your own profile without damaging anyone elses. Ella appears at different points, without spoiling the plot, and is exactly as described by everyone as well, no-one lies, downplays her characteristics, and her story is wonderfully honest.

The stepmother, and Tavi (the second sister) are more what I would expect from the character themselves (in the stepmother’s case) and the characters around them (in the case of Octavia/Tavi). The stepmother is vain to an extreme, and at the beginning of the story manipulates her daughters for her own selfish gain – dismissing Ella as a servant and irrelevant. As the story progresses, she becomes less and less coherent and descends from morally repugnant to mentally unstable in a sad downward spiral. The stepsisters do their best to hide it from the world and support her in a surprising display of morally good behaviour, but she does not have a redemption arc as is probably expected through the story.

Tavi, however, is cast as being ugly and unpleasant because she is an example of not fitting the ideal of a classic woman of her time. She isn’t interested in dresses and physical beauty, or in being an example of perceived femininity of the time, and is interested in experimenting at any moment she can. She is fascinated and incredibly able at conducting scientific experimentation and loses herself in books and research rather than sewing and parading around in her finery. For this, she is viewed as irrelevant, troublesome, and ugly (in part because she also shunned Ella to follow said pursuits). I really like that she stands for what she believes in, nothing holds her endeavours back, and her experimentation, however successful, is weaved back into the story for positive rather than negative reasons.

The main body of the story follows Isabelle and her interactions with the human forms of Chance and Fate. Isabelle is fairly awful at the beginning of the story, cutting her toes off to fit the glass slipper, talking down about Ella, and generally being unpleasant to many of the characters she interacts with. It’s not from her childhood, because her younger self was strong (physically, mentally, and moralistically), she developed to be ‘ugly’ in the behavioural self, and it is these behaviours and morals that she is arguably correcting as the story proceeds.

The story actually tracks old crone fate and Marquis Chance, who are literal embodiements of the idea of following your fate or taking a chance on a new path. Fate has (literally) mapped a life for Isabelle and due to an unfortunate incident with the villain of the piece, the chance he took had a negative effect on her path and he is trying to change her life for the better. After a meeting with the fairy queen, she begs to be pretty, and Fate and Chance intervene to try and influence her down her pre-mapped path (Fate) and for a new path (Chance).

It’s not actually about these influences, more how she changes. Her morals evolve, and the wants she has at the beginning of the story change as she realises what is important in life and to her. As she changes, and her sister solidifies her scientific stance, there outward ‘ugliness’ dissolves to one of abject beauty. It’s not that they have changed, but they personalities shine through in a new way and I can help but admire the author for spectacularly passing such a valuable message in a YA book. In a world where beauty is regularly considered to be skin deep, despite the life lessons we’re told from a young age, Donnelly proves her characters are more beautiful when they’re honest and follow their passions and paths, and not when they changes for the whims of others.

As someone who prides themselves on liking sports, and science, and also liking feeling good, i am so pleased to see a book where young women are at their best and most beautiful when they stand up for their passions and beliefs. They are not forced to change and become better people, and more desirable, the more they are true to themselves.

I do have to say, as almost the only negative, is that this book is quite weird. I like weird books, don’t get me wrong, but it seemed to flip and flop this way and that way with a ferocity that almost gave me whiplash. Yes, it sticks to the story’s internal logic flawlessly, and it does keep the reader abreast of what is going on, but it is relentless in its craziness. It was sensical to me, but I can’t help but wonder if younger readers would lose themselves slightly or think elements are nonsensical. I also hope younger readers do pick up on the heavily moralistic element. I didn’t really think it was hidden, but I am reading it as a 27yr old and not a youngster!

Overall, this book really took me by surprise in the best way. It was a great example of what a good retelling can be, and told a story that hasn’t been told before. It felt fresh and different, and even though it was a brilliant example of feminism (something I hugely appreciate in fiction), it was just a great example of being an honest person who follows their path irrespective of what others think or try to influence. It’s rare I thank an author (I should more really) but in this case, I have to say that this is a masterpiece in being a good person and we should both praise and appreciate that, and then celebrate the author, and the book, and the message!

Thank you to Hot Key Books for allowing me the opportunity to read this title ahead of release.

Stepsister is a fairytale retelling based on the classic story of Cinderella, given a feminist angle. It combines elements from different variations on the plot arc from a number of different eras and cultures which creates a varied and interesting narrative arc. The characters are three dimensional and flawed, which makes for a rounded story. However, it becomes quite dark and deals with distressing themes at times which some readers may not be expecting (although I believe the cover alludes to the fact it is not your Disneyfied version).

Personally, I struggled a little with the language and time period but I’m sure that’s personal preference and would be enjoyed by other readers.

One to look out for if you’re interested in retellings but perhaps for older readers given some of the content.

Trigger Warning: This book features discussion of considering suicide, threat of sexual assault, dead bodies, and war.

I had been so looking forward to reading Stepsister by Jennifer Donnelly ever since first hearing about it. A feminist retelling of Cinderella, a sequel from an ugly stepsister's point of view! What could be better?! Unfortunately, I was pretty disappointed with this one.

The positives first. Stepsister is very feminist. The reason the stepsisters, Isabelle and Tavi, were cruel to Ella? Jealousy. They all live in a world where women are meant to be good and kind and pretty. All things Ella was and is, and charms the people around her. They adore her. But being into fencing and horse riding and the great generals of the past, like Isabelle is, or into maths and science like Tavi is, isn't very ladylike. Plus, they're not very pretty, and what man is going to want to marry a woman who isn't pretty? Both Isabelle and Tavi have been hurt by the things people say about them because of how they look and their interests, and that they're not particularly feminine, yet see Ella constantly being praised and told how pretty she is, so they took their hurt and anger out on her. Time and again, throughout the novel, Isabelle, and Tavi to a smaller degree, are pretty much told that who they are is wrong, because they are women. Stepsister is all about Isabelle learning to embrace who she is, learning to like who she is, and being herself unapologetically, despite the world trying to force her into a box she clearly doesn't fit in, and, honestly, doesn't really want to fit in. Stepsister took a really interesting look at gender roles, and what beauty actually means, what beauty actually is.

I loved how the story is about a fight for Isabelle's life, not just from her, but from one of the Fates and from Chance. The three Fates - the maiden, the mother, and the crone - draw maps for every single person's life, and Isabelle's map is destined to end violently. Chance is a young man who steals Isabelle's map from the Fates, believing that people shouldn't have their lives mapped out for them, ad should be able to decide on their own path. He steals the map to give Isabelle a chance to change her fate, and the crone and Chance bet on how Isabelle's life will end up - and then interfere with her life to get the outcome they want. I've read this kind of story before - where beings take an interest in particular people's lives, and compete with each other, bending the lives of these people who have no knowledge of how their lives are being manipulated, like The Game of Love and Death by Martha Brockenbrough - but it was really fascinating to see this kind of story melded with a retelling. It was quite an interesting twist.

However, Stepsister was written for what felt like a much younger audience, which generally isn't for me. There's not a problem with it, I just don't like MG books, and this felt like, throughout, a book that would make a great MG/YA crossover novel. But then there would be moments where it was quite clear that this was definitely a YA novel. It got quite dark in places; there's a time when Isabelle confronts a thief trying to steal her chickens, and the thief notices her eyeing the rake and trying to figure out how to get to it, and he suggest she should use "my tool" instead, quite threateningly. Stepsister has an omnipresent narrator that talks to the reader; sometimes, they're pointing things out to us that the characters have missed, other times, they're almost advising the audience - and to be honest, it did feel a little heavy handed at times, a little preachy. But there's one point where Isabelle is despairing at the situation she's in, and the narrator talks to the reader, and says, pretty much, if you want to hang yourself, wait to get the rope until the morning, because you might change your mind. And it's so blasé. And it just felt so wrong. The narrator is talking to the reader about the reader hanging themselves! That just really didn't sit right with me at all. Am I over reacting? But this and the threat of sexual assault - making this book very much a YA novel, and potentially a bit older than the younger end of YA - did not fit the way in which the story was written, where Stepsister felt like it was aimed at quite a younger audience.

And I just wanted more from the story, I think. In the great scheme of things, not a huge deal actually happens. Perhaps it's because I've read a number of other retellings, but I was expecting a more complex story. And while, yes, Chance and the crone's interfering put obstacles and opportunities in Isabelle's path, apart from the odd time or two, nothing really major happens. And some of the relationships I just didn't find to be that believable. With the romance, it's nothing to write home about; we never really know why the two like each other (not giving names because of spoilers). Hugo, who Isabelle and Tavi have to spend time with, can't stand either of them, but he is like such a child; his problems regarding them are based on what I've said above - neither Isabelle nor Tavi behave the way women are expected to - but how he insults them is just bloody ridiculous. He's like a five-year-old! So the hate to something like friends relationship that develops is just irritating. I couldn't stand him.

And then there's Isabelle and Tavi themselves. I mean, Isabelle thinks back over some of thing they have said or done to Ella in the past, and while, yes, they were mean, apart from locking her in her room when the prince came with the glass slipper, they never really did anything that I would consider to be monstrously cruel; it was more like the kind of fights that happen between siblings when they're young. Isabelle and Tavi weren't mean, cruel people - they just had moments where they weren't very nice. But otherwise they're pretty normal? Fairly decent human beings? They're just not the ugly stepsisters I was expecting. I know we get villain origin or sequel stories where they're written so that we come to understand and maybe even sympathise with them as we get the story from their perspective, but they're still the characters we know, we just find out why they are the way they are. Isabelle and Tavi are unrecognisable as the ugly stepsisters we've grown up loathing.

So Stepsister turned out to be quite a disappointment, sadly. It really wasn't for me, but it might be for you, so do read a few more reviews before deciding whether or not you'll read it yourself.

If you can forgive the heavy handedness of the feminist message, this is an inventive twist on the classic fairy-tale. It's beautifully written with plenty of action as well as food for thought & some memorable supporting characters. Very enjoyable.

3.5 stars!

Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a free copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review!

“A wolf lives in Isabelle. She tries hard to keep him down, but his hunger grows. He cracks her spine and devours her heart.”

As a huge fan of fairytale retellings, particularly ones with a feminist twist, stepsister was one of my highly anticipated releases this year and I definitely wasn’t disappointed. However, because I’ve read so many books of this type the issues were more noticeable than they may have been to a different reader.

On the positive side I thoroughly enjoyed the use of parts of Grimm’s original tale, starting off the novel seeing the sisters being made to chop of parts of their feet to fit the glass slipper made for a strong start. Both sisters, Isabelle and Tavi, made compelling characters to follow as two women who don’t fit the traditional mould that a women is expected to fit herself into. I also loved the overall message about women needing to support each other and the toxic nature of jealousy.

However, on the negative side I ended up feeling that a lot of the world building didn’t mesh as well as it could have. The different magical characters and elements on there own were intriguing, such as Tanaquill the fairy queen, but when combined didn’t always feel like they belonged in the same story.

Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed reading Stepsister, and would definitely recommend it to anyone looking for a Cinderella retelling. But, I wish everything could have been a little more developed and come together a little more cohesively.

“Who set us against each other, Ella? she wondered. Was it those men? Was it Maman? Or was it the whole heartless world?”

Jennifer Donnelly's retelling of Cinderella has been a joy to read. The chapters are fairly short and keep you moving along, although I did find it a little slower in the first half I loved the second half of the book.

Leaning on the original Grimm's tale, we start off in the story when the sisters are maiming their feet to fit in the slipper. We meet The Fates who have mapped out Isabelle's (one of the sisters) life, and Chance who seeks to change her fate. An enemy is scouring the land with his army - a path that Chance accidentally set - and by changing Isabelle's fate, he hopes to stop what he set into motion.

Ella doesn’t feature much in the book - we follow the story from a couple of viewpoints but predominantly Isabelle's. In this tale, they weren't always the mean stepsisters but turned towards it in their childhood. Isabelle and Octavia, the other sister, are both strong willed and do not fit into the box that a girl is expected to by the world around them - they're described as not making good wives.

The fairy queen is nothing like the Disney version (I haven't read Grimm's version, I just know odd details). She's dangerous and has a penchant for live rabbits. Without saying too much, she also has a hand, along with Chance, in helping Isabelle find her place in the world and accept who she is - rather than trying to conform and shut out everything that she is. This story is all about realising that beauty isn't skin deep - it's so much more - and that you shouldn’t change yourself because of what others say and perceive you should be.

“Go now, girl. Remake the world.”

I absolutely adored the story so much from when Isabelle starts putting it all together. I didn’t find the world was all too fleshed out, but considering its set in (I'd guestimate) 1600/1700s France I suppose it doesn’t need to be - there's already an image you build up based on that knowledge and what you know Cinderella to be. It feels like there's a second tale interwoven throughout between Chance and The Fates, its dark, and its enticing. I'd definitely recommend this book to others.

Thank you to Hot Key Books and NetGalley for a free ARC in exchange for an honest review.