Publication Date: June 2, 2015
Fairy Tale Survival Rule #32: If you find yourself at the mercy of a wicked witch, sing a romantic ballad and wait for your Prince Charming to save the day.
Yeah, no thanks. Dorthea is completely princed out. Sure being the crown princess of Emerald has its perks—like Glenda Original ball gowns and Hans Christian Louboutin heels. But a forced marriage to the brooding prince Kato is so not what Dorthea had in mind for her enchanted future.
Talk about unhappily ever after.
Trying to fix her prince problem by wishing on a (cursed) star royally backfires, leaving the kingdom in chaos and her parents stuck in some place called "Kansas." Now it's up to Dorthea and her pixed off prince to find the mysterious Wizard of Oz and undo the curse...before it releases the wickedest witch of all and spells The End for the world of Story.
Spelled is a quick, fun read that isn't to be taken too seriously and is very light. I was actually surprised by how much I enjoyed the story, but there were 2 main complaints I had, which resulted in me going down to 3 stars. First, even though the story was fun, I felt it was a bit too over-the-top. I just felt there could have been some things taken out because there was just too much. It's very hard to describe, but if you read this book, you'll see exactly what I'm talking about. A couple of times while reading, I just couldn't help but sigh because I just felt the author was incorporating things just for the sake of incorporating them. The second thing I had a problem with was the fact that as of right now this seems like a once-and-done book. With an ending like this one, me no likey this. This was extremely open-ended and so many things were left unanswered. The no-sequel thing has happened to me before, and I still haven't gotten over it with those books. It makes me a bit mad because I feel like the author could wrap things up a bit more. But if this wouldn't be the only book, and this actually would be a series, I would be much much happier and might go up a star.
Nevertheless, this was a very unique and interesting spin on the Wizard of Oz, and I very much enjoyed the author's creativity. Dorthea is a spoiled brat, but I loved her progression and growth over the course of the novel. While she was a bit annoying at times, she was also hilarious. In fact, this book had me laughing quite a bit. There were many twists and turns, and like I said before, the ending was left wide open. The pacing was very good and there weren't any slow or dull moments. One thing that stood out to me with this novel was how Ms. Schow portrayed the classic "good vs evil" theme. It wasn't hero pitted against villain, it was much more realistic. It was girl can choose to be a hero or villain, with everything actually trying to get her to turn into a villain. This was something that really made this book stand out to me, and something I really enjoyed. Something else I loved...NO INSTA-LOVE!!!
Overall, if you're looking for something fun and quick that puts a unique and creative spin on the Wizard of Oz story, pick this one up. It's lighthearted and has plenty of humor, action, and adventure to satisfy any reader. It's not perfect, but it's still a good read.
Happy reading :)
~Cassie
I never have a good experience with re-tellings outside of Cinderella! I was thinking about picking this up but one, the cover is ew lol, and two, I've heard some pretty mixed things about it that seriously has me on the fence. I kinda get what you're saying with this story being over-the-top. I've read novels before where the plot contained scenes that weren't necessary at all, feeling like the author included them as a mere after statement. That exact situation reminds me of this book called Anything Can Happen by Will Walton, it was just too much for me!
ReplyDeleteThere aren't many re-tellings that I've had a good experience with either. I feel like it shouldn't be that hard, but every time it lets me down. There are some that are great, but not many. It sucks though that no one can seem to do a good re-telling.
Delete~Cassie
I'm not really sure how I'm feeling about the plethora of Cinderella retellings because I haven't really enjoyed any of them. It just sounds like something that might be good but nothing i need to waste time on. I'm not sure. Great review though!
ReplyDeleteThank you :) Re-tellings are always a weird thing with me. Some are great, but the majority aren't good at all. I think there are much better books out there than this one (if you want total honesty). Not that I wouldn't recommend it, but you're right in that you probably don't need to waste valuable reading time on this one.
Delete~Cassie
I've been seeing this book in GR and everywhere for a long time now, but I never really got the chance to read it. It actually didn't help that there seems to be a lot of retellings about Cinderella now, but I still might give this a try out of curiosity.. :) Great Review Cassie. <3
ReplyDeleteDonita @ My Random Book thoughts
Glad you enjoyed this one despite its over-the-top-ness! I read this book and totally get what you're saying. I was kinda miffed at the ending too, but then discovered there's going to be a sequel! That will be exciting.
ReplyDelete