2 out of 4 stars
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Most people probably know the story of Cinderella. It’s the story about the poor, orphan girl who is abused by her step-mothers and sisters. She meets a fairy godmother, meets a prince, loses a slipper and then marries the prince…the end. Well Jennifer Morse’s Fairy Godmothers of The Four Directions, tells a slightly different version.
In this version, Cinderella’s real name is Charlotte and her step-mother is a serial killer who knows blood magic. The prince is no ordinary prince, he has a few magic tricks up his sleeves too. There isn’t just one fairy godmother, there are four. They are known as the fairy godmothers of the four directions; north, south, east and west. What part do they play in the fairy tale, you ask? Their job is to help Charlotte overcome her tragic past with her step-mother and find inner strength so she can marry the prince and help rule the kingdom. When an evil chimera threatens the safety of the kingdom, Charlotte must hurry and separate herself from her past so she can gain the power to protect her future.
The language of the book was the first thing that caught my attention. The story has a sophisticated tone to it as the author is very descriptive and poetic in her language. That kind of writing style would have been received well in an adult novel. This novel is categorized as a YA and I feel the language will alienate a teen audience. In every line, the author uses many metaphors and personifications. Readers will get so lost in the words that they will find it hard to focus on the plot. The author had a habit of straying from the story and giving out long explanations on the meaning of fairy tales or other things that weren’t important to the plot. There was a lot of unnecessary information.
Even though I struggled to follow the plot because of reasons already given, I was impressed with the originality and overall message of the story. The fairy godmothers were a great addition to the tale. The West Fairy helps Charlotte to conquer unresolved feelings. The North Fairy tasks Charlotte with gaining strength and wisdom so that she will always know right from wrong. The East Fairy gives Charlotte a fresh start. Lastly, the South Fairy helped her to nurture her spirit.
I enjoyed the development of Charlotte. She started off being weak and pitiful, but through her trainings with the fairies, she became a character you would want to root for. Readers can also gain a lot of understanding through her time with the fairies. Each fairy had valuable advice and great words of encouragement that I believe readers can benefit from.
I rate this story 2 out of 4 stars. I give it two stars because of its originality, development of Charlotte and the lessons that were imparted. I can’t award it anymore because it was hard to focus on the plot at times. The fact that the author had a habit of interrupting scenes to write irrelevant speeches, didn’t help much. The book is categorized for teenagers, but I think adults may have an easier time understanding it. If I had to recommend it, I would recommend the book to an adult audience who may want to hear an encouraging fairy tale. If it had been for adults, I would have given it 3 stars.
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Fairy Godmothers of The Four Directions
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