Book Review - Once (an anthology)

(since this is an anthology, I'll be rating it story by story, then giving you my over-all rating)

3 STARS

Title: The Mountain of the Wolf
Author: Elisabeth Grace Foley

   I mus say, for a book set in the old west, I rather enjoyed it. As a reader of mostly fantasy/sci-fi and the like, I normally will steer clear of anything with a country flavor. But I decided that I might as well give The Mountain of the Wolf a try, seeing as I'd been waiting to read this anthology (plus, it was a Red Riding Hood retelling, which sounded pretty cool).

   It was a bit hard to get into right off the bat - but after a couple chapters I started to enjoy it more. The climax was good, and Elisabeth did pretty good at keeping me reading (though the beginning felt a bit slow). I would probably recommend this for 13+ and anyone who likes stories in a country setting. While The Mountain of the Wolf wasn't my favorite in this collection (but I'm a biased little fantasy-reader), I can still say that it earned those stars.

4 STARS

Title: She But Sleepeth  
Author: Rachel Heffington

   First things first. The main character's name was Maria.
   For those of you who've been reading my blog for awhile, you'll know that I'm writing a book called The Dreamer's Game, and the main character's name is Maria. So it was a little strange for me, just saying xD.

   Anyways. That aside, I loved this story - Rachel Heffigton did so well. I was hooked from the beginning, and I couldn't stop reading once I had started. Rachel's writing style is easy to read, and I though that She But Sleepeth was an amazing re-telling of Sleeping Beauty (I'm a bit partial to that fairytale, seeing as I wrote a retelling of it once). I thought the plot was great, and I loved the characters. And the ending, you guys.
   I'd recommend this for 13+. I almost want to go re-read it right now - it definitely deserved each of those four stars *nodnod*.

3 STARS

      
Title: Rumpled
Author: J. Grace Pennington

   I've never read a re-telling of Rumpelstiltskin (no, I didn't need to look up how to spell that word, why do you ask? *cough*), so I was curious as to how it would work out. Some parts of the plot were confusing, but Rumpled was still an enjoyable novella.

   The Rumpelstiltskin character was interesting - I'd never have thought of such a creative take on him! I would definitely give the author thumbs-up for that. The plot wasn't my favorite, but it was fun to read none the less. The way J. Grace Pennington mixed just a bit of sci-fi, a bit of steampunk, and some historical together was wonderful, I enjoyed that. I would recommend Rumpled for 13+.

4 1/2 STARS

Title: Sweet Remembrance
Author: Emily Ann Putzke

   I never thought I would enjoy a book set in this time period as much as I did - but Sweet Remembrance was wonderful. I have no idea whatsoever which fairy tale it was a retelling of, but I honestly don't care.  
  
   Emily's words and her beautiful, unique way of storytelling drew me in from the start. I absolutely loved the way she told this story, switching between memory and reality. It was beautiful. The characters were so realistic, and I couldn't stop reading the story after I had started it - and the end was satisfying and sad at the same time. I would recommend this book for 13+. It may have been my favorite in this anthology, though it would be hard to pick between Sweet Remembrance and She But Sleepeth.

2 1/2 STARS

Title: Death Be Not Proud
Author: Suzannah Rowntree

   It was a Snow White retelling, and basically the most confusing retelling I have read in my entire life.  Don't know how I even managed to recognize that it was Snow White at all.
 
   The first half was alright, thought it didn't really catch my attention all that much. But it started to get confusing in the middle, and by the end I honestly had no idea what had happened. I would recommend it for 14+, though I really wouldn't recommend it at all, unless you want to read a confusing story. Or maybe you'd just be better at figuring it out than I would be xD.

3 STARS

Title: With Blossoms Gold
Author: Hayden Wand

   I've read some of Hayden's work before, so I knew that this Rapunzel retelling would be good. And it definitely didn't disappoint! I love the idea of a Rapunzel who doesn't want to leave her tower, instead of one who is trapped.

   Hayden's writing style is lovely and easy to read, and the plot she thought of was intriguing and very original. And I just have to mention that she does a great job naming her wonderful characters ;). The overall feel of this story was beautiful, and I enjoyed it very much. I'd recommend it for 12+.   

OVERALL: 3 1/2 STARS

   Some of the stories were amazing (Sweet Remembrance and She But Sleepeth <3) ... some of them weren't quite as good (Death Be Not Proud), but overall I still very much enjoyed this book. The different takes on the fairytales were so much fun.I've almost been inspired to start on another retelling myself :D.

(I was given this ebook in by the author in return for my honest review)

Summary (taken from Amazon)

   Six fairytales you thought you knew, set against a tapestry of historical backgrounds.

A lonely girl plots revenge in the shadow of a mountain. A stolen princess fumbles a century backward. A dwarfish man crafts brilliant automatons. A Polish Jew strikes matches against the Nazis. A dead girl haunts a crystal lake. A terrified princess searches a labyrinth. A rich collection of six historically inspired retellings, Once is a new generation of fairytales for those who thought they'd heard the tales in all their forms.

Featuring the novellas of Elisabeth Grace Foley, Rachel Heffington, J Grace Pennington, Emily Ann Putzke, Suzannah Rowntree, and Hayden Wand.

Purchase Once here

~ Savannah Grace

   What's one of your favorite books that is a fairytale retelling? What fairytale would you like to see retold someday?