A fun and heartfelt retelling of a little known fairy tale. Though similar in several ways to Beauty and the Beast, East of the Sun and West of the Moon is very much its own story and Edith Pattou brings it to life very well in her novel.
The characters are fleshed out well. Rose stands out as the main protagonist, even though she is not the only narrator. The white bear is given a great deal of character, despite the fact that he does not get that much time on the page. Even the Troll Queen, who is wonderfully sympathetic, is a fun character to read. The minor characters dont get as much development but still show enough variety and personality to keep them interesting.
The story is engaging. Even the parts that could potentially be very dull, such as the long stretches of silence in the castle where Rose has little to do but explore and work on her needlepoint, still hold the readers attention.
My only complaints are the ending and the frame story. For the entire long and difficult journey that Rose faces to get to the land of the trolls, the Troll Queens defeat is a little too easy. Of course, its following the original tale but for all the liberties to book took, I wish the ending had been a little more exciting. And the frame story gives away the ending! Despite there being a prophecy that says Rose will die, it is completely spoiled when the frame story of Rose writing down her journey at the end of it all is revealed on the very first page.
Despite these minor issues, its still a wonderful story that hooked me. Ive read it twice now, once when I was in high school and now again years later. Oddly enough, I enjoyed more during the second read than I did the first, even though this is a YA book. But whatever my age, I still find this to be a great read, especially for those eager to read a fairy tale they might not be familiar with from their childhood.
The characters are fleshed out well. Rose stands out as the main protagonist, even though she is not the only narrator. The white bear is given a great deal of character, despite the fact that he does not get that much time on the page. Even the Troll Queen, who is wonderfully sympathetic, is a fun character to read. The minor characters dont get as much development but still show enough variety and personality to keep them interesting.
The story is engaging. Even the parts that could potentially be very dull, such as the long stretches of silence in the castle where Rose has little to do but explore and work on her needlepoint, still hold the readers attention.
My only complaints are the ending and the frame story. For the entire long and difficult journey that Rose faces to get to the land of the trolls, the Troll Queens defeat is a little too easy. Of course, its following the original tale but for all the liberties to book took, I wish the ending had been a little more exciting. And the frame story gives away the ending! Despite there being a prophecy that says Rose will die, it is completely spoiled when the frame story of Rose writing down her journey at the end of it all is revealed on the very first page.
Despite these minor issues, its still a wonderful story that hooked me. Ive read it twice now, once when I was in high school and now again years later. Oddly enough, I enjoyed more during the second read than I did the first, even though this is a YA book. But whatever my age, I still find this to be a great read, especially for those eager to read a fairy tale they might not be familiar with from their childhood.
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