Stepsister

I didn’t really expect too much from Stepsister. Cinderella sequels are common enough —- some are better than others, of course, but they are rarely memorable. Stepsister is different, however. Stepsister is a gripping story of redemption, and I don’t think that I will forget Isabelle or her story too easily. Her backstory skillfully lets the reader understand why she did the things she did without whitewashing her more questionable moments away. The author did an exceptional job of building our empathy for Isabelle and teaching her (and us!) that she is far more than she believes herself to be.I did have some issues with the magical characters and their motivations —- Chance at times seemed more like comic relief than a serious player —- but the mortal individuals were convincing and utterly believable. It was particularly interesting to watch the two “ugly” stepsisters develop their personae without the “guidance” of their mother. Ella makes a satisfying appearance and reveals herself to be quite as human as her stepfamily.While the characters are at the heart of the novel, the plot is also a great deal of fun. This is a charming read, and I recommend it.

The story at first kind of caught me off guard because of the shortness of the chapters but after I gave it a chance I realized that they were short to draw attention more to the intimate details. When you take a warrior and put them in bad circumstances and beat them down they become lower then the dirt but when you rise up the warrior and give them the chance to shine the trueness of their heart comes out. This story spoke to me not because I was an ugly sister or ever called ugly but in fact I was always called Beautiful. My mother always taught me that it was far more important have Beauty in your heart then to be beautiful on the outside and this is a lesson that I teach my own beautiful daughter to this day. Girls are Fierce and strong no matter what they look like or where they come from give them the chance to show that strength and that fierceness and they can end up just like the heroine of this story.A wonderful read and I would definitely recommend to anyone ugly or beautiful in this world to remember who you truly are.

Oh Stepsister I wanted to love you. That cover! That premise! A feminist retelling of Cinderella from the stepsister's view point! Yessss. Well I didn't quite love it but I did really like it. First some things I really liked about the story:-The very mild, hardly there, romance was sweet.-The pro-woman slant was amazing and fit into the story very well. You don't have to be physically attractive to be beautiful. Your unique traits make you shine. Including Isabella's bravery and (deep-down) kind heart.-The looming war plot line was interesting and while we just skimmed over the villain, he was a pretty good big baddie.-The crazy mother, the other 'ugly' stepsister-Hugo...I loved Hugo. No he's not the love interest. Read for Hugo and feminism.-The backstory which told us how the stepsisters became the way the did.Some things that kept this book from being a full five star read:- The jewel of the story was twined between another plot where a guy named Chance fights an old crone called Fate to change the map of Isobella's life. While Chance and his band of buddies are entertaining I just felt like the book didn't need Chance or Fate. (There is a version of a fairy Godmother in this book and she made sense.)- Fate is determined to see Isobella die so she does some things (trying to edit this for no spoilers) that actually causes huge amounts of people to die. What about THEIR fate's? Didn't she just change all those lives? And why was Isobella's fate so special to outweigh tons of others? Wasn't explained in the book and caused some loopholes in my mind.So overall I did really like this one. It just didn't live up to the hype I built around it in my head. But this was still a really fun book and I love all the girl power. IF there were more stories written in this manner by Jennifer Donnelly I would read them but I hope she wouldn't continue with the tug of war between Chance and Fate.

This book is amazing! I could not stop reading. Page after page was another astonishing moment. I love fairytales and the original princess stories, but it’s not always that you find a book that show and tell the “ugly” side of fairytales. But somehow the ugly turned into beauty, courage, and bravery. Jennifer Donnelly wrote a breath taking book and I cannot wait to read more from her.

I loved this book. It was fun and hard to put down! Another one of Jennifer Donnelly 's fantastic books where the characters come alive . I love her strong and vulnerable heroines! This story is the real story of Cinderella and her ugly step sisters. It should be made into a movie. It was that good.

I wanted to like this more than I did. It was a bit too long and the duel between Fate and Chance dragged. There is a not very subtle subtext of tamale empowerment. On the positive side, there was quite a bit of action, and the character of Isabella was strong.

Can highly recommend this author. She goes behind the typical fairy tale and introduces more depth and realism to forgotten characters with engaging story lines. She is a favourite of my 11 year old daughter. I like as a father how the story shows that people are not black and white, not perfectly good or perfectly evil but a mix of both which is important to understand.

This was such a great story. The story was captivating. It was hard to put down. It is Cinderella told from the step sisters point of view. There are some interesting lessons learned. I would love to see this as a movie.

Beautifully written story about coming into ones own, but not in a way you expect. I highly recommend this book to everyone, but especially to anyone who loves a spin on classic fairytales.

Nunca esperé que este libro me gustara tanto. O sea, sí, sabía que era una versión feminista de lo que sucede con las hermanastras de Cenicienta, pero OMG realmente se voló la barda. Este libro te convence de que todo lo puedes hacer si tan solo crees en ti mismo. Brutal.

Very good

Ich liebe Jennifer Donnelly als Autorin einfach. Schon ihre vorherigen Bücher wie Teerose, Winterrose, Das Licht des Nordens, etc fand ich einfach genial. Einige davon gehören sogar zu meinen absoluten Lieblingsbüchern.Mit Stepsister und Poisend hat sie jetzt nochmal auf einem neuen Level den Vogel abgeschossen (natürlich im absolut positivem Sinne).Es sind diesmal komplett andere Art von Geschichten als die, die ich sonst von ihr gewohnt bin. Diesmal ist es im Fantasy Genre, genauer eine noch nie vorher gehörte Märchenadaption von Conderella in dem es allerdings um die hässliche Stoefschwester geht.Im Grunde ist die Message eine wunderschöne, nämlich, dass es um innere Schönheit geht bzw. darum dass es egal ist, was andere Menschen über dich sagen und denken. In erster Linie ist es nur wichtig, was du selber über dich denkst. Damit dich andere lieben, solltest du zuerst dich selbst lieben lernen und nicht darauf hören was andere Leute sagen.Sehr stark. Wirklich!

Book arrived in good condition no edges were tattered it arrived within delivery date. But it did have a lot of dust on it but that’s no problem just take a damp cloth and rub it over it and it should be fine. Overall satisfied with the service would recommend And would buy from the same seller again too.. :)