The Fairytale Keeper: Avenging the Queen (The Fairytale Keeper #1)By Andrea Cefalo
Published by Scarlet Primrose Press
Received ARC from author for review (thanks!)
280 pages
"Snow White was a pet name her mother had given her, but her mother’s dead now. Adelaide hates that name anyway. A rampant fever claimed Adelaide’s mother just like a thousand others in Cologne where the people die without Last Rites and the dead are dumped in a large pit outside of the city walls. Adelaide’s father is determined to obtain a funeral for his wife, but that requires bribing the parish priest, Father Soren. When Soren commits an unforgivable atrocity, he pushes Adelaide to her breaking point, but if she seeks justice against the cruel priest, she risks sacrificing everything: her father, her friends, her first love, and maybe even her life." - Goodreads
Adelaide, "Addie" for short, is a girl who knows who she is. She knows what she wants, where she stands, when to fight, and when to submit. Addie is a cobbler's daughter and is devastated by her mother's death. As the summary says, Father Soren (how I do hate him so!) committed a terrible atrocity that disrespected her mother. Addie is angry - bitterly angry and wants revenge (hence the title). Her strength, loyalty, and devoutness is more than admirable. She sticks up for what is right and honorable - in a time when women were viewed as mere stock! A feisty go-getter, Addie is a great main character.
Ivo. Ivo, Ivo, Ivo. How I do love him! Ivo is Addie's best friend turned well, into something more. He is the sweetest guy ever! Ivo protects Addie and looks out for her well being all the time. He truly is in love with her and will do anything to protect her. Even when he has more than enough to deal with himself, he looks out for her. The romance was so innocent and yet spine chillingly sweet. I cannot wait to read the next installment.... I want more Ivo, oh and Addie of course!
We've got Adelaide as"Snow White", her father, Ansel as "the Shoemaker", her mother's cousin, Galadriel as"Cinderella", and Galadriel's sister as the little girl in "Six Swans". This made the book very interesting, as we see how all their stories are integrated into Addie's quest of fighting the church "government" of the time. The pace was alright, a little bit hard to get into but by the time you get to Ivo's entrance into the story, well, at least I was hooked *smirks*. Fine, I admit it, I was in it for the romance! Other than that though, I found the historical period very well done. The conversations and actions of all the characters were believable for that time period. The writing was smooth and easy to follow.
I'd recommend this to fairytale, romance, and historical lovers. I didn't know what to expect but what I got was an original story that integrated fairy tales cleverly and had some well developed characters!
Excerpt
"I'm not leaving."
"Fine," he huffs, and shakes his head at my stubbornness. "Take out your braid and cover your face with your hair."
He helps me shake my hair into my face and it is the first time he has ever run his fingers through my hair. "You still look like you," he scowls. "Here, wear my cloak over yours." I look up at him through my hair with the two cloaks on.
"Don't look at anyone," he orders. "Keep your eyes on the ground and don't smile. Hunch your back." He reaches down and smears dirt across my face. "Try to look uglier," he says and I smile because it means even though I am hunched over and covered in cloaks and dirt, he still thinks I'm pretty.
"That's not uglier, Addie."
Clip of Andrea Cefalo reading a passage of The Fairytale Keeper:
