Hello, Angels! I bring to your attention:
Book: "Poison"
Author: Sarah Pinborough
Pages: 148
Snow White but not as you know her...
Jealous Queen, handsome Prince, beautiful Princess and a poisoned apple...
... now read the true story of Snow White, told the way it always should have been.
It sounds tempting, isn't it?
Ever since I was little I've loved fairy tales. There is something about them that makes you dive in to this wonderful and magical world, to run away from reality. There is something magical in them that isn't like anything else in the world.
Since I am such a big fan of fairy tales, I do enjoy the re-tellings as well. You know, the ones with a modern view, different than the classics.
This fairy tale is different. It was quite slow and I didn't like the transition. It was a bit boring. There was nothing of this magic, that sweeps you off and holds you from the beginning until the very end. There was nothing magical in this fairy tale. There was nothing childlike. This is truly a fairy tale, but for adults.
If I have to be honest on this, on the biggest part I was bored and I didn't like it. I was not that impressed. There was lack of the density and solidness of the world, and it contained way too much nudity. There was not that much nudity even in "Once Upon a Time" TV series...
The Jealous Queen, whose name was surprisingly Lilith, that I couldn't wrap my head around as to why this name was chosen, was beautiful, coldhearthed and greedy for power. The book started with the Queen satisfying the adult needs of the King. Amazing, right? The only thing is that I am not such a fan of this sexual intercourse in the fairy tales. Well, I might be a fan - if it wasn't for this straight forwardness of the descriptions.
There was no sign that the book should be read by 18+ audithory, which made me think what would happen if it gets in the hands of a child at around 12-13 years of age. I don't want to think about it as it makes me a bit sick. The worse thing is that the book is meant to be read by the teenage audithory and is a Young Adult fantasy. It's good that it is Young Adult fantasy, however the content of it is nothing for the young and more for the adult. Maybe it should have been educational? Yeah, right. What an education this would be! There should have been a sign that it is strictly for the adult and not for the young.
Despite all the nudity, I cannot say that the book was not interesting. Because it was. I liked the different point of view of the author. And it was well written.
If we have to talk about the author's writing - it was quite good. There was no unnecessary details or way too many descriptions. There was no excessive amount of actions or a complicated plot twist. It was simple fairy tale that would have been great for children... As long as it didn't contain too much of brutal sex scenes. Well, after all it says that this is Snow White's story as it should have been told. However, I have expected something more of the original Italian fairy tale with gruesome ending. I got a Disney version from adult porn movie insted.
Snow White - wild, unbridled, that cares only of dancing and drinking and doing something... that a Princess should not do.
The Queen - evil, jealous, cold but with a heart, filled with inner fears and demons. I have wondered if I did liked the Evil Queen more than Snow White. Because I didn't like Snow White's image not a little bit. I mostly pitty the Queen and feel ashamed of Snow White.
The Dwarves - should be seven, but actively present were only three of them. The rest? Not there. They were characterless, however we can't expect the author to buld complicated characters in just 140 pages.
The Prince - he definitely was not Charming. I don't want to even talk about the Prince! Nasty little excuse of a prince! Bigheaded, self - centered, self - loving, two - faced, that thinks only about the opinion of the people around him and what they would say. He wants a shy, quiet , trophy - wife that can show off in front of everyone. And when Snow White was nothing up to his imagination and his standards, what did he do? Well, he simply Poisoned her. With an Apple.
Yes, even fairy tales don't always have happy ending. There is no guarantee for "Lived happilly ever after". It sounds so familiar, right? Now when I come to think of it, the author is quite good. Why? It's because even if it is a re-telling there is a simple truth in it. She is shattering the stereotype of the typical perfect relationship and romanticized fairy tale. She is showing the true nature of the characters and brings it even closer to our modern reality. This is what I liked the most. Because it is a fairy tale, but so true in our modern world.
And I don't want to upset the past or to give you a reason to think that I am always so judgemental and so harsh or critical. This is why all I can say is: No. That is far away from criticism. Even though the book had its issues I would say it's very well measured and written re-telling of a classic fairy tale. One that with all its classic and beauty, shows what is really within. It shows us the ugly truth and that not always everything is what it seems to be. That in the real world the Prince on a white horse is dark and twisted and not a real prince, and the Princess is far away from innoscent and quiet girl that should be deemed only to stay at home and raise children, and be a pretty wife.
I will give it 3/5 golden stars only because there are a few
things that I would particularly change about the story.
After all, it is my personal opinion and I can't put my nose in the author's business.
If you have a different opinion than mine, it's perfectly okay. I would love to hear your thoughts on the book, so please, share them with me.
Now I am leaving you to dive into some other exciting and unknown adventure, and you , my dearest Angels, don't stop reading!