Wednesday 13 August 2014

Ever After High: The Unfairest of Them All by Shannon Hale (Children's, 11 years +, 9/10E, semi short 'n' sweet review)



May 2014, Little Brown, 334 pages, Hardback, Review copy

Summary from Little, Brown
It's the aftermath of Legacy Day, the day when the students at Ever After High are supposed to pledge to follow in their fairytale parents' footsteps, and everyone is in a huff and a puff! Raven Queen, daughter of the Evil Queen, has refused to sign the Storybook of Legends, rejecting her story - and putting everyone else's in jeopardy.

The Royal Apple White doesn't want to think Raven is being a rebellious pain, but Raven's choice means Apple might never get the poisoned apple, Prince Charming, and a kingdom to rule. Behind Apple stands the Royals, those who want to play by the book and embrace their stories. The Rebels, supporters of Raven, believe in breaking free from destiny and writing their own stories.

But when the chaos and rivalry land wonderlandiful Madeline Hatter in trouble, Raven and Apple must bring the Royals and the Rebels together to shut the book on their feud before it threatens to end all of their Happily Ever Afters once and for all.

Mirror, Mirror on the Wall...Who's the Unfairest of Them All?

Nayuleska's thoughts
Admittedly I've been going through a phase where I wanted straight forward, not bizarre reads, so I kept ignoring The Unfairest of Them All. Which, ironicly, is unfair to the book, because as soon as I started reading I couldn't stop. A truly unfair thing happens to the one person who least deserves it. I needed a tissue when it happened, because the shock was a biggie. It wasn't the only shock in the book. Cerise (Red Riding Hood's daughter) has secrets of her own. I almost jumped up and cheered when she faces her trials head one. I'd like to say she's my favourite character, with her awesome hooded cloak and secret abilities, but I can't. None of them are my favourite character because they all are!

There is something about all the female characters which makes them highly appealing. I love Madelaine's innocent nature, how everyone rallies round to help to help Briar at her time of need which, in the grand scheme of things, is sort of petty but it's such a humungous deal and her friends realise that. I love how hard Raven found life for a while, how people ignored her, how some people made her feel even more guilty than she had felt to begin with, how the plot twists just popped up without warning and left me blinking in stunned amazement. It's a story I'm most definitely going to reread, because I want to be there. One day I'll get one of the fun figurines too! It's a story you simply have to read if you love fairytales like Little Red Riding Hood, Sleeping Beauty, Snow White (which I don't like but shortly hope to have my mind changed soon) and many more. 

Find out more on Shannon's website.

Suggested read
This is a must read, book 1 Ever After High: The Storybook of Legends (Children's, 9 years +, 10E/10E)

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