The Countess’ Captive (Book #2 of The Fairytale Keeper Series)Author: Andrea Cefalo
Genre: YA, Historical Fiction
Publisher: Scarlet Primrose Press
Release Date: 2015
Pages: 234
Source: Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours in exchange for an honest review
Synopsis: From the award-winning author of The Fairytale Keeper comes another masterful historically-set retelling of Grimm’s fairytales. The Countess’ Captive combines Grimm’s fairytale characters with real historical settings to create a tale that leaves readers wondering where facts ends and fiction begins.
During March of 1248, Adelaide Schumacher‒affectionately called Snow White‒has lost so much: her mother, her possessions, and now her home.
Adelaide hates abandoning her home city, her family’s legacy, and her first love. More than anything, she hates her father growing closer to her mother’s cousin‒Galadriel. Adelaide plots to end their tryst before her fate is sealed, and she never sets foot in Cologne again.
But good and pious can only get Galadriel so far. Never again will she be destitute. Never again will she be known by the cruel moniker‒Cinderella. Never again will someone take what is rightfully hers. No matter what it takes.
My review: In this highly anticipated sequel to The Fairytale Keeper, the story picks up right where the previous book left off. Adelaide is leaving Cologne and is forced go to Bitsch, where Galadriel, her mother’s cousin, rules as Countess. Desperate to save her love, Ivo, Adelaide is forced to comply with Galadriel's demands. However, she soon realises that she may never return to Cologne, and that her father may marry Galadriel, whom she so despises. Adelaide vows to do whatever she can to prevent the wedding and to return back to Cologne.
Adelaide has grown into a strong woman. She is smart and tries her best to live the life she wants. She loves stories and tries her best to become a great storyteller. However, she is still in grief. Her mother has barely been dead for a month, and her father is already looking for a new wife, one who is much younger, prettier, and richer. She feels that her father has betrayed her and sometimes she possesses deep anger for her father. She also feels hatred for her nemesis, Galadriel, for she believes that it is her fault that her father wants to have a new bride.
Galadriel is a great nemesis. She too is strong and wise. She is very manipulative, for she knows how to make Adelaide to be compliant to her. I found it very fascinating that she is the counterpart to the fairytale version of Cinderella. She rose up from an advantageous marriage to become countess. However, Galadriel is on the verge of losing her county of Bitsch, and with her marriage to a commoner she may lose it. Galadriel fights to keep the county under her rule.
The setting of the book is very dark and grim. This book has a very dark outlook upon the nobility. For while Adelaide is in a castle and is given pretty jewels, she is still a prisoner. She feels that her freedom has been stripped from her. The nobility look at her with disdain because she comes from common blood.
Overall, this book is about a girl who is trying to find her identity in a cruel world. The characters are well-developed and the plot is fast-paced. Even though this is a retelling of Snow White, I like how the fairy tales are interwoven in this story. Some of the fairytales are not very common, for example “The Army Surgeon”, and “The Girl with No Hands”. I also like how the villain in this story is Cinderella. This novel is not a standalone and I recommend you read The Fairytale Keeper first. This novel leaves one eagerly anticipating the next book of The Fairytale Keeper series. I recommend you to read this series, for it is a treat for anyone who loves fairy tales.
Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
Comments
Post a Comment