Ebook Soot and Slipper eBook Kate Stradling

Product details File Size 2279 KB Print Length 144 pages Simultaneous Device Usage Unlimited Publisher Eulalia Skye Press (April 1, 2019) Publication Date April 1, 2019 Sold by  Digital Services LLC Language English ASIN B07Q14D878

Soot and Slipper eBook Kate Stradling Reviews

• So. I love Kate Stradling's books, and it will be no surprise to anyone who knows me to find that I loved this one, too. It's quite a short book/novella (I think it took me a little less than two hours to read it) but the amount of characterisation it manages in that short time is amazing. Unlike Brine and Bone, where it is Magdalene and the prince who are finely drawn out in ink, in this book I find it's the stepmother who is drawn in the most detail. I'm not saying I didn't like the mcs, because I loved them--or that they're not fleshed out--but the stepmother was layered the best. It was delightful to have good and kind mcs, and fun to see them together.
  
  But.
  
  But.
  
  I WAS TOLD THIS WAS LIGHT AND FLUFFY.
  
  I WAS TOLD IT WAS A ETHEREAL DISTRACTION FROM THE AUTHOR'S MAIN THING.
  
  IT MADE ME CRY.
  
  And yeah, I suppose it kind of IS light and fluffy--on the surface. Beneath that, the beautiful bones of it are finely drawn and deadly sharp. I've known exactly what Eugenie goes through when the masks come off; the terror, the sudden recognition of barely concealed contempt in a person you trusted--the disbelief that anyone could have done what was done to her. Every line and shade rang true.
  
  Masterfully done, so I suppose I can forgive Kate for making me cry ;)
• Was it bad? No. Was it as amazingly wonderful as the other positive reviews built it up in my mind to be? Not...really. I've read most of Stradling's other works and LOVED "Brine and Bone," and was hoping for something as delightfully reimagined...but this fell short. I spent the entire 2-hour read waiting for the new "twist"--but it didn't really deliver. There's nothing here that hasn't been done before, except the explanation behind the baddie's badness, and even that felt a bit contrived. I spent most of the time comparing it to *Ever After* and came away feeling like this one fell short. The characters were mostly unmemorable and the romance way too sudden. I had the Domino pegged from the moment he took off his top mask, and suspected the baddie from the get-go--again, I spent most of the story waiting for the twist but--spoiler alert!--the only twist is that there wasn't one.
  
  3 stars because the writing was mostly okay (except, seriously, "heft" is a transitive verb...you can "heft *yourself* from the bench" but you can't "heft from the bench"...there were a few others) and the story, for what it was, delivered a fairly coherent plot with palatable characters. I've reread many of Stradling's other stories--the Ruse books make me smile every time--but I won't be rereading this one any time soon. Which is a bummer. Here's hoping the next one is as amazing as "Brine and Bone"!
• Cinderella is my absolute favorite fairy tale and I've read many different stories on it and loved every one - this one is no different. It's so unique in its twists and I devoured every minute of it. I love that there's some actual depth to their relationship instead of just love at first sight. Don't get me wrong - I'm a sucker for love at first sight - but that's one of the BEST aspects of these retellings that there's backstory and the two are able to interact more. I liked that she personally knew the Prince when they were younger. And those masquerade dresses! Wow! So detailed - but not too detailed where we're bombarded with every stitch and smallest flounce and nuance until I want to skip forward a few paragraphs - and beautiful and very clever! So I knew our Cinderella's name was Eugenie from the get go - most of the stories I've read have had the heroine's name with some variation of "Elle" or "Ella" in it - and I'm thinking, "Okay, this one's not and that's fine. It's just a name." No big deal, right? But when we learned both her step-sisters and stepmother all had "Elle" in their names instead and Eugenie refers to the three of them as "The Elles", I about busted a gut! Well done, Kate Stradling. Well done. And that's just the tip of the iceberg. I won't go into any spoilers, but I am very interested in reading more books by this author and that's the best compliment I can give.
• I have thoroughly enjoyed each of the six Kate Stradling books I've read, and was delighted when she came it with her soon on the story Cinderella, as we await her sequel to Namesake.
  
  I've lost count of how many retellings/adaptions I've read or seen, and yet this one by Kate is truly unique. I enjoyed it so much I "had" to go back and reread much of it again a second time right away just to further savor certain scenes and dialogue.
  
  This is a Novella so it'sa pretty quick read, but while the bare bones of the fairy tale are there, Kate's Eugenie, is a lovely, loving girl who comes to be known as Cinderella in different way in this story. Her relationship with her stepmother, her fairy godmother, and then her ultimate meeting with the prince are all different, which makes it perhaps my favorite retelling of all.
• I have been waiting and waiting for Mrs. Stradling to write a new book, and she does not disappoint with her version of Cinderella. She puts so much depth into each character, and so much bright imagery in the words she uses. There is just enough nail biting tenseness to give the story a fully gratifying climactic scene. The baddie is bad, and so very good at being bad. The Cinderella in this story, Eugenie, is sweet and smart, but quite innocent in thinking anyone could have ill intentions. Though the book only covers a couple of weeks in its timeframe, Eugenie grows as a character and finds her Happily Ever After.
  
  Mrs Stradling, PLEASE keep writing. You have a way with storytelling that I do very much enjoy.
  
  I absolutely recommend this book.