Of Cinder and Madness: Once upon a Darkened Night, Book 1

Once Upon a Darkened Night #1

by Nicole Zoltack

Cinderella's powers will destroy the Kingdom of Fantasia, and the only one who can save the kingdom is her "wicked" stepmother.

Lady Angelique puts her second husband to rest, then tries to do right by her step-daughter Eleonore, but when Eleonore's mystical abilities put Angelique's own daughters' lives at risk, she makes the difficult decision to lock the girl in the tower to keep the family safe.

After Eleonore's devil-bird minions unleash her on an unsuspecting royal ball, Angelique must join forces with the king to save Fantasia before Eleonore destroys it.

Genres: Fantasy, Young Adult, Retellings, Fairy Tales, Romance, Dark, Cinderella

Audible Audio

First published February 20, 2017

About the author

Nicole Zoltack is a USA Today bestselling author who loves to write romances. Of course. She did marry her first kiss, after all!

When she’s not writing about knights, superheroes, or witches, she enjoys spending time with her loving husband, three energetic young boys, and precious baby girl. She enjoys riding horses (pretending they’re unicorns, of course!) and going to the PA Renaissance Faire dressed in garb. She’ll also read anything she can get her hands on. Her current favorite TV shows are The Walking Dead and Stranger Things.

Everyone who signs up for her newsletter receives a free book, so sign up now! http://www.subscribepage.com/m0k3l8

Reviews

[⚜️XAR the Bookwyrm · Rating 2 out of 5]

I really didn't care for this story at all! I found it very boring, hated the flip flopping around on the timeline and didn't care for the dark twist that the story took. It wasn't a memorable story, and I won't be continuing with the series.

[Heather Hayden · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rounding up to four stars from 3.5.

The narrative took some getting used to, as the chapters switch between timelines. Once I figured out the flow of it, I had no trouble (they are marked with dates, but I have trouble remembering those.) However, the chapter always starts as though you know where you are in the timeline, so I had a few "uh?" moments.

The story itself is enjoyable, if rather dark. It's told from the stepmother's perspective and shows a very twisted version of Cinderella. (Don't get hung up on the blurb, by the way; although the blurb states that Eleanore deserves to die, the stepmother is actually trying to save her.)

Because you know from the start that Eleanore is dangerous, there isn't a suspense watching more of her darkness become unveiled as the two stories unfold, but there is the always underlying question of whether the stepmother will succeed in saving her or whether Eleanore will continue slipping even further into the darkness.

I was rooting for the stepmother the entire way. Yes, she makes mistakes, but she's human, and she's doing her best to love and care for all three of her daughters.

The story was shorter than I expected, but I liked the resolution. I'll add the warning that 10% of the ebook is devoted to an excerpt from the next book, which disappointed me as I don't like thinking I have another 6-8% to go only to find the story suddenly ending.

I'd recommend this book to readers who love darker fairy tales.

[Donna · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love fairy tale remakes and this doesn't disappoint. I loved how the story is told from the stepmother's point of view. Eleanor is using some dark powers but I am not sure that she wants to be evil. I loved Angelique's solution to the problem. This was definitely worth the read and I am looking forward to more by this author.

[Julia Rosenkrantz · Rating 2 out of 5]

I really did not enjoy this retelling of cinderella. I hated how confusing the timeline flips were and I didn’t like the negative twist on “Cinderella”. However, a cool idea of something that if it had more detail and slower pacing, I would’ve enjoyed more.

[rina dunn · Rating 2 out of 5]

Boring Af! I just didn't get this book at all! It was confusing AF all the leaping around with different times and expecting you to understand what was going on. I won't carry on with this series.

[Vasiliki · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 to main story oloklhrwthhke sto 50%???? to upoloipo htan side stories. giati toso rushed??? eixa expectations kai tha htan polu pio fun an to story htan pio analutiko

[Angel Leya · Rating 3 out of 5]

Yes, Angelique is Ella's (Eleonore's) stepmother, but she's not the bad guy. She just wanted to help the dark, troubled girl whose beauty was as captivating as her pain. But it's not that simple of a tale. And trust me, everything you know about it is wrong.

I tend to love fairy tale retellings, so I was excited to snap this one up.

I kind of expected this story to be a bit dark (I mean, just look at the title). But as I wound my way through the story, I was somewhat perplexed at the complete rewrite of the original story, having little in common besides the roles of the characters (barons, prince, step children, etc.) and the settings in which they participated. Honestly, I kept reading it wondering if the stepmother was the one who was afflicted by madness, and the Cinderella story I've come to love would be restored.

I found the pacing a bit difficult as well. The story starts not in the middle of action, but somewhere floating before the action. the opening statements make Angelique seem bitter, almost vengeful, but we find out through the story this is not the case (over and over again). Between the current story chapters are flashback chapters, detailing how they got to this place. The flashbacks skip around, and it ended up being a bit confusing at times, trying to decipher where I was in the story. Besides that, the constant back and forth, even when the current story finally got interesting, interrupted the flow.

Finally, though I wanted to like the characters, Eleonore was less than sympathetic, and Angelique's constant struggle felt overdone, and she wallowed in self pity more than I could truly enjoy. The prince was perplexing as well (was he disturbed, too?).

The story is imaginative, and it totally turns the original on its head. It was obviously not the right fit for me, but I think others who like dark and twisted fantasies/fairy tales with a more casual pace and somewhat experimental format would enjoy this book.

[Isabelle Grey · Rating 3 out of 5]

Honestly, this felt more like a short story than a novel. It took me less than an hour to read and overall, it was not a terrible story at all.

It's Cinderella, sort of, but told from the point of view of the stepmother, who this time, is not a villain, but rather a terrified woman at her wits end. the Cinderella character is still a beautiful girl but she's...twisted. Her grief somehow made her able to use some kind of magic and the birds she sings to do whatever she wants and she's used them several times to harm people, including one of her stepsisters.

Told in two timelines, it's a well-written short story, but it's not a novel, despite being marketed as one. It's too short and too many things are underdeveloped to fit the concept of a novel. I think the author would've benefited from putting this story in with others to create an anthology of tales rather than just these little bites of stories.

[Camillea Camillea · Rating 2 out of 5]

A short story retelling of the classic fairytale, Cinderella. It is very, very different from the usual retellings we find. I wasn't prepared for the sudden twist at all. Of Cinder and Madness is told from the perspective of the stepmother with alternating timelines which was enjoyable. However, I found the telling to be too fast paced and not as detailed for me to properly enjoy the book. I had neither pity nor understanding for Eleonore. The ending was too messy and too rushed, in my opinion. But if you're looking for a quick and creative read, then try this book.

[Dana · Rating 1 out of 5]

I love the idea of retelling a fairytale but the writing was atrocious. I quite 0ften got the feeling I was reading a fanfiction....and a bad one at that. The characters are one-dimensional, the plot is sloppy and I often found myself wondering if this was written by a kid with no understanding of how things work in reality. Even fantasy has to bow down to the rules of logic, psychology and realistic portrayal. Well this book failed on all accounts on that. So I won't be coming back to this writer.

[Dianna · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am on the fence about this story. It was disorienting to read from the two timelines. I kept expecting to learn the horrible thing that had been done to deserve a 16 year old being locked away in a tower, and kept from associating with any other people. The stepmother seems horrified at the birds that are accumulated by her stepdaughter, but avoided discussing them with her husband or the stepdaughter, feeling like avoiding the situation would somehow help.
She dislikes the magic she sees her wield, but has no issue seeking magical solutions from faeries and witches to ease her mind. Is there no one in this society who can help with mental illness, or power crazed beings? The girl is grieving her father, never fully dealt with the death of her mother, and is cast out for being different.
I really wanted to like the stepmother, but I found myself bored by her tale. I wanted to know more about our snow white representative, and see how dark she could become. I suppose I found the story lacking. It feels like so much more could have happened. I barely got to know the characters. The step daughters barely made an appearance, and the step mother didn’t seem to make an effort to be around her step daughter, giving up too quickly.
I was glad for the happy ending, but found myself wondering whether the dark trees are linked, or both sealed.
Will being locked away for eternity in a happy memory be the best solution for the mad young woman?

[Ashley Poteet · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really loved this wicked dark telling of cinderella!
Elenore is quite strange and evil. Angelic is amazing for still wanting to help her after everything Elenore has done. She cares so much for her stepdaughter, though she is all the girl has left. Her mother died a tragic death when she was small. Then years later, after Angelic married Elenores dad, he passed away in a hunting accident leaving Angelic with his daughter. She sees the girl is beside herself with grief and is not herself. That may be the case, but still needs to be locked awaysy! If only for the safety of everyone!

One night Angelic decides its time for her two daughters to live a little, she decides to take them to a royal ball, in hopes her daughters will find nice men to marry. She leaves Elenore at home, under a potion induced sleep, or so she thought. When angelic spots Elenore looking like a princess dancing with the prince she is shocked and frightened for everyone's wellbeing. Things go badly when Elenore sees the Prince dancing with her sister and unleashes birds that do her bidding, scaring everyone and forcing angelic to spill her secrets to the open and handsome ear of the king.

Angelic realizes something must be done when the prince disappears to hunt for his love Elenore.

[Jamie (The Kansan Reader) · Rating 4 out of 5]

I normally tend to stay away from Cinderella retellings. I'm not a big Cinderella fan. Most the time I am reading a retelling because it is part of a series. That is what I had to do with this one. I did not expect to get a Cinderella retelling through the stepmother's eyes.

The story goes back and forth between past and present. The stepmother tells of the time before she married Jacques leading up to the present and the present of being a widow and having to learn to deal with her new stepdaughter. She tells of her encounters of Eleonore (Cinderella). 

If you like a darker fairy tale this is for you. Eleonore has a power and she uses it for harm instead of good. There is a HEA for everyone but it is not the same one we grew up knowing.

I loved seeing from the stepmother's eyes. The guilt she felt for not treating Eleonore the same and the fear she had once her power started to grow. I loved it all. 

Best part about this retelling is that even though Eleonore lost a slipper the prince didn't go around to ever home and use the slipper to find a girl he danced with.

On to the next retelling which I think is one of my favorites, Sleeping Beauty.

[Melissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nicole Zoltack's Of Cinder and Madness is a re-telling of "Cinderella" from the point-of-view of the stepmother, Angelique. In this version, Cinderella aka "Elle" or "Eleanore" may not be the sweethearted maid that features in most re-tellings of this story.

I really liked how Zoltack played with the Grimm version of "Cinderella" ("Aschenputtel"), keeping the elements of a tree planted at her mother's grave and the birds that like to peck out eyes. This is definitely a darker "Cinderella" re-telling, but not as dark as I was expecting. And someone's grief and guilt turning into dark powers is an interesting concept.

I do, however, wish more time was spent on the magic of Eleanore's tree. I also thought that the initial cutting off of Angelique's internal thoughts at the beginning of the book would prove later that Angelique was an unreliable narrator, but that did not seem to be the case.

I would recommend this to any readers who love fairy tale re-tellings with a slightly darker edge to them.

[Eating Between · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love the idea of Cinderella actually being the villain in this story! I found the premise and idea of this book to be so creative and actually quite brilliant it makes the reader think What if all those princesses weren’t the heroes of the stories but actually the villains?

The author creates a deliciously wicked world were Danielle (Cinderella) has dark powers and isn’t as sweet as we all grew up thinking but quite mad and devious. The events portrayed in the book match up with the fairytale, She is looked away in an attic but out of fear. There is a ball that she crashes but there is no fairy god mother the magic is all Danielle and it’s not sparkles and happy thoughts it’s dark and mad. The prince falls for her and she disappears but there is no glass slipper left behind.

You can read the rest of my detailed review here-
https://eatingbetweenthelinesinc.word...

[Laurie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed the story of Angelique and her struggles with Eleonore. This is classed as a fairy tale retelling, but it is only loosely based on the classic Cinderella story that is well known. As the name suggests, it has darkness and madness. Told from a different perspective, with many plot twists and an entirely different ending, this tale is sure to give you pause.

I found the start of each Chapter to be well crafted with the past and present tense - I was able to follow the time jumps in the story as they fitted together to fill out the story. I enjoyed the hints within each chapter that related to events prior to that point of the story. The characters' depth, conflicting emotions and varied motivations have created full and developed characters.

One of the lessons I took away from this story is that there are multiple sides to a story, and you should try not to take one person's story at face value. There are an additional three short stories (The Cost of Love, The Cost of Grief, and The Cost of Power). They add depth and understanding to Eleonore's journey.

[Wren · Rating 4 out of 5]

A Strange, Wonderful Fairytale Retelling

I won this book in a giveaway. This is an unsolicited review.
I started this book, and almost didn't continue, as I don't usually enjoy fantasy from the 1500's. I'm so glad I continued. This short story is a retelling of Cinderella, but I believe the reader should throw that idea out of their minds. It truly is the story of a mother's unconditional love, mental illness, and fantasy.
The story is well written, if not for a few timeline hiccups. The world building is lovely. I truly saw the land of Fantasia. The characters were engrossing. I especially enjoyed the independence, and strength of the main character.
This book was completely original. I kept thinking about it when I wasn't reading it. That,to me,is the mark of a fantastic read.

[Topsues · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have to give this book 4 stars because, you can’t get away from the brilliant creative mind of Nicole Zoltack or the way she can recreate emotions into real feelings within you. My own memories sort of kicked against this twisted tale of Cinderella, so even though I thought it was a great imaginative piece of work, I kept thinking this is going to happen next, and it did, but not in the way I expected. This tale is very close to the original and it’s characters are mostly the same but with different personalities. It was easy to imagine the settings of the tale as you have the original ones in your mind. I have to recommend that this is definitely worth a read as it’s such an original twist on such a unforgettable fairy tale. I would say it’s a challenge for your mind to try and adapt to, that on its own is worth it.

[Heather Quarnstrom · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic twist on a beloved fairy tale.

I started this and was first incredibly impressed by the writing style. I haven't read anything so expertly written in quite some time.

That aside, I was pulled directly into the story. I loved the twist that was put on the ages old Cinderella tale. It was fresh and imaginative and I was hooked. This author is now one of my absolute favorites.

The characters are so real that I expect them to jump right off of the pages. The story has so many unexpected twists and turns, especially the ending, that I couldn't put it down.

I highly recommend this book to everyone! I personally look forward to reading more from this amazing author.

[Vania Nunes · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've read several adaptations of fairy tales, but I've never read one so different as this.

Starting, Cinderella is not good at all.
She has powers - probably even black magic. She talks to animals and causes them to obey her in the worst of actions.

Eleonore is not an angel as she looks like.
When her mother dies and her father marries again, with Angelique, and takes her two daughters, Marguerite and Madeleine home, Eleonore's life changes drastically.

Forget everything you've ever seen in Disney cartoons or movies.
There is no evil stepmother here.
But there is evil. There is magic. And a more unexpected ending yet.

If you do not want to shake your dreams about your favorite fairy tale, do not read.
But if you have the courage, good reading.
4 stars

[Sue · Rating 4 out of 5]

I quite enjoyed this dark retelling of the Cinderella fairy tale. I thought the book was well written and easy to read, in fact, it only took me a few hours to read it. It was a great storyline and it was interesting getting the stepmother's perspective. Eleonore was a sad, tragic character with magical abilities, nothing like the original Cinderella, and those birds of hers were scary as hell. I loved the characters in the story and especially the stepmother who tries valiantly to save Eleonore despite the young girl's wickedness. If you're a fan of fairy tale retellings, you are sure to enjoy this book.

[Linda Rorex · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is kind of a twisted version of the fairy tale Cinderella. Lady Angelique’s step-daughter Eleonore is evil with mystical powers. After Angelique’s husband Eleonore’s father dies in a hunting accident. Angelique loves Eleonore but must lock her in a tower to keep her from using her powers against her sisters and mother. While Angelique and her daughter’s attend a royal ball, Eleonore escapes and dances with the Prince. Eleonore unleashes her birds to get whatever she wants. Angelique along with the King of Fantasia join forces to save Fantasia from Eleonore powers. I really enjoyed this romantic fantasy novel.

[Isabelle · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was based off an interesting premise and it was executed fairly well, but it wasn't my type of story. The writing was vivid and engaging, but I found myself put off by the fact that there really isn't a reason for Elle to act the way she does, besides this mysterious hereditary madness. All in all, I suppose that it was the darkness without the redemption that bothered me. If this doesn't bother you, then you would probably enjoy this book. I'm not sure if I'll continue with this series if they all contain this message.

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

[Carla Peñaloza · Rating 5 out of 5]

Of Cinder and Madnes is a esplendid retelling of Cinderella that not only try to tell us the story of the stepmother, but place us under an unespected version of this fantastic classic. What happens when your grief is so strong, when madness takes over your soul? Would you kill someone whitout giving her a chance to redeemed herself? If you have never loved you'll never would be able to forgive those who hurt you and this retelling would take you to unespected limits that would make you distressed, but this time for the second mother.

[H.A. LYNN · Rating 5 out of 5]

Exciting dark twist to a normally happy story, this book kept me glued to the page from start to finish. It’s fast pace makes it a quick read. There wasn’t one time where the narrative slowed or interrupted me. The backstory, the time jumping from past to present and the dialogue were well written and well executed.

This might be one of my new favorite Cinderella stories. I didn’t want it to end, and look forward to reading more from Nicole Zoltack.

I read this book for my own enjoyment. You can see this review on my site, linked in my profile.

[Ami · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a very interesting version of a classic fairy tale. Nothing is as suspected or accepted as true. The twists and turns are well managed in a nicely developed world and the characters are wonderfully described. I thoroughly enjoyed the tale although I did lose my way a couple of times because I didn't pay attention to the dates. They are very important to this 'alternate' fairy tale. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for my honest opinion.

[Myla L A · Rating 3 out of 5]

Dark twist to a Fairy Tale

I just could not get completely into this story Maybe because I prefer a happy ending. I felt the step mother who is the supposed good person was not that good. Being a mother of a mentally disabled child, I just felt that the step mother did not try enough and instead alienated Elle further by her inaction, the story jumped to different time periods which were confusing at times and was a short story which I am not a fan of. It does have the basis for a good story.

[Kalli Kounavong · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a retelling of Cinderella and is told from the view of the step-mother. It basically paints a picture of he said/she said in a way. You've only ever heard Cinderella's side and it makes her stepfamily out to be evil abusers, but in this version, Cinderella is the evil one (and a little bit crazy). I didn't like how it switched between time frames but the story itself was good. I wish it would have started at the beginning and went from there, but It went back and forth from past to present. All in all, it was a good story.

[Elizabeth · Rating 2 out of 5]

Dark or twisted fairytales can be super fun, but this one was all over the place. It had as many as five narrators (the first narrator jumped back and forth in time). It equated madness with being evil (or evil visitations brought madness), and that made me sad. It ends as a tragedy, which is fine, but also it just kinda ends. I guess Hubert, who is the narrator at the end of the book, narrates the next book? And is maybe the conventional villain?

Anyway, there are 11 more books in this series, it seems.

[Kris McKenzie · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 ⭐️

I found the premise of Cinderella being the villian, but I felt she was a bit underdeveloped and her powers didn't fully make sense.

I thought when I bought the book that it was gonna be a romantic retelling, so I was a bit confused for awhile.

I liked the back and forth between past and present, it was an interesting way of giving the backstory without dumping it all at once on the reader.

The ending for Elle was satisfying in a better way, it felt like it was a beneficial thing for everyone.