nobles such as the duke and his young son. But since her father’s death, each
day has been filled with nothing but servitude to her stepmother. So when
Gisela meets the duke’s son, Valten—the boy she has daydreamed about for
years—and learns he is throwing a ball, she vows to attend, even if it’s only
for a taste of a life she’ll never have. To her surprise, she catches Valten’s
eye. Though he is rough around the edges, Gisela finds Valten has completely
captured her heart. But other forces are bent on keeping the two from falling
further in love, putting Gisela in more danger than she ever imagined.
fairy tale rewrite and Melanie Dickerson’s novels have been on my to-read list
for a good while now. The Captive Maiden
is a retelling of Cinderella that takes place in Germany in the early fifteenth
century.
It was a fairly quick read—not too long—and the characters
were enjoyable and fun. I loved the tournament setting which added a bit of
action and danger to the traditional boy-meets-girl/love-at-almost-first-sight
that comes with most fairy tales.
It is a part of a series that includes retellings of Snow White, Beauty and the Beast, Sleeping Beauty, etc. It’s not necessary to read the other books first (I didn’t!), but I imagine it would add to the depth since there are characters that carry across the stories.
Toward the end, the plot fell into a cycle of escape attempts/failure/capture/escape attempt/capture/escape attempt that felt just a wee bit repetitive and made me wish that something new would happen.
But all in all, it was a fun read. If you enjoy fairy tales, and love-at-first-sight, and retellings, than you’ll enjoy The Captive Maiden.
TW Wright says
I just bought this yesterday and my eyes have been glued to the pages!
Writer4Christ says
I have read the Physician's Apprentice (or something similar) by that author, and enjoyed it a lot. (: I'm going to have to read this one.
deborahocarroll says
I love fairytale retellings and I've been so looking forward to reading this one someday! I've only read "The Fairest Beauty" by the same author and I really liked it (and it had Valten in it too!) so I'm extra impatient to read this next one! :D Plus, the cover. Yes.
<3
Deborah
Bluebelle says
I just looked this one up the other day, but I haven't read it yet. Thanks for sharing your thoughts!
Jack says
I just read another post on another blog about this book. If it got two posts it must be a fun book to read. Now I will for sure have to see if I can find it. I like fairy tale re-telling sometimes. Sometimes they get a little boring, but I am always willing to try one and see how it turns out, because they are really enjoyable to read from time to time.