Stepsister – Cannonball Read 17

Once Upon a Time, a Girl Lost Herself

Stepsister by Jennifer Donnelly

September 7, 2019 by Jen K Leave a Comment

I picked this up due to crystalclear’s review, and since I have a weakness for fairy tale retellings. Stepsister takes place after the prince has chosen Ella, and taken her away from home to marry her. Her stepmother and stepsisters are left behind in a village where they are now hated for their abuse of the country’s future queen. Donnelly decided to use the Grimm’s version of the fairy tale as her starting base so Tavi (Octavia), the older sister, and Izzy (Isabelle), the main […]

There Was Once A Girl Named Isabelle

Stepsister by Jennifer Donnelly

August 23, 2019 by Classic Leave a Comment

Wow this book was perfection. I laughed, held my breath, cried a bit, and cheered. Donnelly did such a wonderful job with this book I can’t wait to read more from her. “Stepsister” follows what happens after Cinderella (Ella) is locked away and her two stepsisters remove parts of their feet (Tavi cutting away her heel and Isabelle her toes) and are found out by a bird singing in a tree. What follows is the two girls and their mother are shunned by their village […]

One of my top recommendations right now!

Stepsister by Jennifer Donnelly

July 21, 2019 by crystalclear 1 Comment

This is a Cinderella retelling focusing on one of the ugly stepsisters. There is magic in this story, but also a lot of realism. We start with Isabelle, the younger of the stepsisters, getting ready to reluctantly cut off her toes to fit into the glass slipper. Her older sister, Octavia, has already cut off her heel and was caught out, so now it’s Isabelle’s turn to try to secure their future. As expected, it doesn’t turn out well. The tale of Cinderella has a […]

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Emmalita on “It came to something when you found yourself hoping that the footsteps you heard were ghosts.”I loved the ending! I don’t think it’s been out long enough to talk about why though.
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Roland of Gilead on How can you give us the gift of a crazy character named Rando Thoughtful and then just as suddenly take that gift away? We need to talk, Uncle Stevie.I came across this randomly years after it was written because I was searching "Random Thoughtful. But I have the...
Emmalita on “Only you, Em, would refer to heartbreak as a distraction. I think I would have a more sympathetic response if I asked to marry a bookcase.”Oh my goodness, Gallifrey was beautiful. I’m sure her mittens were gloriously murdery.

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