Review – Stepsister by Jennifer Donnelly (3.5/5 stars)
Reading Level: Young Adult
Genre: Fantasy
Length: 352 pages
Publisher: Scholastic Press
Release Date: May 14, 2019
ISBN-13: 978-1338268461
Stand Alone or Series: Stand Alone
Source: Bought
Rating: 3.5/5 stars
“ Isabelle should be blissfully happy – she’s about to win the handsome prince. Except Isabelle isn’t the beautiful girl who lost the glass slipper and captured the prince’s heart. She’s the ugly stepsister who’s cut off her toes to fit into Cinderella’s shoe . . . which is now filling with her blood.
When the prince discovers Isabelle’s deception, she’s turned away in shame. It’s no more than she deserves: she’s a plain girl in a world that values beauty; a bold girl in a world that wants her to be pliant.
Isabelle has tried to fit in. She cut away pieces of herself in order to become pretty. Sweet. More like Cinderella. But that only made her mean, jealous, and hollow. Now she has a chance to alter her destiny and prove what ugly stepsisters have always known: it takes more than heartache to break a girl.”
Series Info/Source: This is a stand alone book that I purchased.
Story (4/5): This was a creative and well done extension to the Cinderella fairy tale. For the most part I enjoyed it. I did feel like the start was a bit slow and I did have some trouble engaging with the story. I like the idea behind the story of “being true to one’s self” more than the execution of it.
Characters (3/5): I never really liked or engaged with any of the characters. They were okay but just felt a bit distant and a bit cookie cutter to me.
Setting (4/5): This is a very typical fairy tale setting, nothing all that unique here.
Writing Style (3/5): I had a bit of trouble just following the flow of the writing here and I am struggling to pinpoint why. I just found myself having to go back and reread things a lot because I kept losing my place or skimming parts. The small and crowded way the type was set probably contributed to this but I just never really got sucked into the story or enjoyed the writing style.
Summary (3.5/5): Overall I did enjoy the story and characters even though this just wasn’t one of the those books that grabbed me. I enjoyed it but also wished the story was a bit more engaging. I just had trouble with the flow of the writing and because of this probably won’t pick up a book by Donnelly in the future. This is one of those books with a great message and a unique story delivered with mediocre writing quality.
