Blog Tour: Cinderella's Shoes (Cinderella's Dress #2) by Shonna Slayton: A Book Review

Cinderella's Shoes
by Shonna Slayton
Release Date: 10/06/15
Entangled Teen 
Genre: YA, Historical Fiction, Fantasy
Source: This book was given to me by YA Bound Book Tours in exchange for an honest review.
Summary from Goodreads: The war may be over, but Kate Allen’s life is still in upheaval. Not only has she discovered that Cinderella was real, but now she's been made Keeper of the Wardrobe, her sole responsibility to protect Cinderella’s magical dresses from the greed of the evil stepsisters’ modern descendants.  But Cinderella’s dresses are just the beginning. It turns out that the priceless glass slippers might actually exist, too, and they could hold the power to reunite lost loved ones like her father—missing in action since World War II ended. As Kate and her boyfriend, Johnny, embark on an adventure from New York to Italy and Poland in search of the mysterious slippers, they will be tested in ways they never imagined. Because when you harness Cinderella's magic, danger and evil are sure to follow...

     My Review: Cinderella Shoes is set after WWII. Kate Allen has been given a hard task to protect Cinderella’s dresses from the descendants of Cinderella’s evil step-sisters. She finds out that Cinderella’s shoes also exist. Kate, her boyfriend, Johnny, and a few friends journey from New York, Italy, and Poland to search for the missing shoes all along as Kate searches for her dad who has gone missing in the war.

     Kate is stubborn and hopeful. She still has hope that her dad is alive, and she stubbornly clings to that hope even by trying to prevent her mother from dating. Throughout the novel, Kate is very persistent in finding her dad and is always on the lookout for clues to where he might be. She is also intelligent and curious. Kate asks tons of questions and is very observant. She sees things that her other companions have missed. It is through Kate’s observation that she finds clues that lead to her dad’s whereabouts. I do find that Kate is very insecure. She believes that Johnny fell in love with her through the magic of Cinderella’s dress. Therefore, she has occasional prones of jealousy.

     Overall, this book is about love, friendship, family, and hope. This book is filled with magic, mystery, and adventure. I did feel that the characters were not developed fully. I felt all of the characters were cardboard characters and very one-dimensional. The characters felt blended in together and I could not distinguish them from one another. I also felt that this book was slow-paced for it did not pick up action until halfway through the book. Still, I felt that the setting of the aftermath of WWII to be very interesting. I suggest that you read the first book in the series, Cinderella’s Dress, so that you can get into the feel of this novel.  Because Cinderella’s Shoes picks up where Cinderella’s Dress ended, and I have not read the first book, I was lost in the beginning and had to re-read to understand what is going on. Still, I felt this to be a touching story about a girl searching for her dad. I recommend this book to anyone interested in fantasy, historical fiction, and World War II and its aftermath.

Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

About the Author:

     SHONNA SLAYTON is the author of the YA novels Cinderella's Dress, (Summer 2014) and Cinderella's Shoes (Fall 2015) published by Entangled Teen. She finds inspiration in reading vintage diaries written by teens, who despite using different slang, sound a lot like teenagers today. When not writing, Shonna enjoys amaretto lattes and spending time with her husband and children in Arizona. Find her on her website, Goodreads, Twitter, and Facebook.

GIVEAWAY:

Giveaway Info: U.S. Only. A paperback of Cinderella’s Dress and a CD of the Disney Cinderella (2015) Soundtrack