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Fairytale Verses #2
The Ice Princess's Fair Illusion
All Marian wants is for society to accept that she's just not interested in... whatever society thinks she ought to be interested in. A princess with a reputation for insults and snide remarks, she's afraid to show anyone who she would be if people would let her. In a fit of temper at her refusal to marry, her father creates her worst she is to be wed to the first beggar who arrives at the gates. Edel was visiting purely for diplomatic reasons, aiming to ensure her daughter inherits a strong and peaceful kingdom. She sees something in Marian that is achingly familiar and when Edel hears the king's proclamation, only one thing is on her to protect Marian from the fate that had befallen Edel herself. Their lives threaded together by magic, Edel and Marian will have to find their way in the world in this queerplatonic, sapphic verse novel retelling of King Thrushbeard .
377 pages, Paperback
First published November 6, 2018
3 people are currently reading
511 people want to read
About the author
S.L. Dove Cooper
21 books72 followersS.L. Dove Cooper (she/they) is a queer author and editor. She spends much of her time exploring asexuality and aromanticism in literature, finally having found a good use for her MA in English literature and creative writing. She currently resides on the European continent and her idiom and spelling are, despite her best efforts, geographically confused, poor things. She has been chasing stories in some way or another since she was old enough to follow a narrative.
S.L. Dove also writes poetry under Dove Cooper.
S.L. Dove also writes poetry under Dove Cooper.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 31 reviews
November 8, 2018
This book has the most interesting format of any book I've read this year. The conceit is that the two MCs--Princess Marian and Queen Edel--are recording themselves telling the story of how they got together, using some unspecified magic device. So it's composed entirely of dialogue, and the dialogue itself is in verse format. It's nifty.
I really liked the idea. Some ways it worked especially well were
-It made it feel appropriate for Marian and Edel to occasionally go off on tangents that would have felt more awkward in normal, narrated prose. For example, both Marian and Edel discuss their asexuality and how others have reacted to it in great depth, even debating terms, whether terms are better than complex descriptors, etc. In a normal novel I think this might annoy me because such discussions often don't flow very well and feel like awkward inserts. But in this novel it works very well bc it basically feels like you're sitting in on a long, sometimes reminiscent, sometimes philosophical conversation.
-You get a really good idea of Marian and Edel's personalities. Edel tends to be more reserved, both in her actions throughout the story and in the way she speaks. Marian, meanwhile, is less controlled, which certainly comes through in her narration--she's usually the one to initiate tangents, and she sometimes draaaaaws out words like thiiiiiis. Lols.
-Going off that, you get a great idea of how Marian and Edel get along because of how they banter, their small disagreements, their endearments, just the way they relate to each other. It's like...even though they're telling the story of their relationship, you know from the beginning that their relationship is strong because of how they talk to each other.
Yeah. It's a format that really works for this story. I do have two quibbles with it, though. For one, the free verse sometimes doesn't feel too different from prose, just with more line breaks--it would be nice to see a little more structure built into the verse format. I don't know if that would work with the dialogue, though, dialogue and verse being tricky to mesh in general. The other thing is that since the story is told as the musings of the two MCs after the fact they skip right over sections that I would have liked in more detail--like the MCs' early married life, for example, or --because the MCs already know what happened and are fine with just summarizing.
Anyway. Apart from the format.
The actual story is about how Edel, a widowed queen, marries Marian in the guise of a beggar. It's a retelling of the King Thrushbeard fairy tale, which I know and love but which is quite problematic, probably the reason O'Connacht takes such gusto in messing with it. It really is a story that lends itself well to a queer, especially ace, main character, because the crux of it is that the MC (Marian in this case) insults people who want to marry her and rejects them. In this retelling the reason for that is that she simply doesn't want to get married, largely because she's sex-repulsed. She's still a little impulsive and spoiled, but with that explanation a lot of the characterization falls into place.
Some content warnings:
I would recommend this book. But I would say that you might preview it on Amazon or wherever to see if you like the form first, because if you don't find it readable or you don't like verse novels, it would be kind of a tricky read.
I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
I really liked the idea. Some ways it worked especially well were
-It made it feel appropriate for Marian and Edel to occasionally go off on tangents that would have felt more awkward in normal, narrated prose. For example, both Marian and Edel discuss their asexuality and how others have reacted to it in great depth, even debating terms, whether terms are better than complex descriptors, etc. In a normal novel I think this might annoy me because such discussions often don't flow very well and feel like awkward inserts. But in this novel it works very well bc it basically feels like you're sitting in on a long, sometimes reminiscent, sometimes philosophical conversation.
-You get a really good idea of Marian and Edel's personalities. Edel tends to be more reserved, both in her actions throughout the story and in the way she speaks. Marian, meanwhile, is less controlled, which certainly comes through in her narration--she's usually the one to initiate tangents, and she sometimes draaaaaws out words like thiiiiiis. Lols.
-Going off that, you get a great idea of how Marian and Edel get along because of how they banter, their small disagreements, their endearments, just the way they relate to each other. It's like...even though they're telling the story of their relationship, you know from the beginning that their relationship is strong because of how they talk to each other.
Yeah. It's a format that really works for this story. I do have two quibbles with it, though. For one, the free verse sometimes doesn't feel too different from prose, just with more line breaks--it would be nice to see a little more structure built into the verse format. I don't know if that would work with the dialogue, though, dialogue and verse being tricky to mesh in general. The other thing is that since the story is told as the musings of the two MCs after the fact they skip right over sections that I would have liked in more detail--like the MCs' early married life, for example, or --because the MCs already know what happened and are fine with just summarizing.
Anyway. Apart from the format.
The actual story is about how Edel, a widowed queen, marries Marian in the guise of a beggar. It's a retelling of the King Thrushbeard fairy tale, which I know and love but which is quite problematic, probably the reason O'Connacht takes such gusto in messing with it. It really is a story that lends itself well to a queer, especially ace, main character, because the crux of it is that the MC (Marian in this case) insults people who want to marry her and rejects them. In this retelling the reason for that is that she simply doesn't want to get married, largely because she's sex-repulsed. She's still a little impulsive and spoiled, but with that explanation a lot of the characterization falls into place.
Some content warnings:
I would recommend this book. But I would say that you might preview it on Amazon or wherever to see if you like the form first, because if you don't find it readable or you don't like verse novels, it would be kind of a tricky read.
I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
October 22, 2022
CW: acephobia, arophobia, sexual assault, PTSD, brief allusion to self harm, spousal death, parental death, unsupportive parents.
Rep: lesbian asexual MC, aro ace MC.
This was really easy to read. Very fast, which is good. It felt like I was just being ‘told’ everything, which, given the way the story is laid out, that is exactly what was happening. It was only dialogue between Edel and Marian. But it was sweet, and I enjoyed it on the whole.
I talk about books at these places: Instagram / Twitter / TikTok / Blog
Rep: lesbian asexual MC, aro ace MC.
This was really easy to read. Very fast, which is good. It felt like I was just being ‘told’ everything, which, given the way the story is laid out, that is exactly what was happening. It was only dialogue between Edel and Marian. But it was sweet, and I enjoyed it on the whole.
I talk about books at these places: Instagram / Twitter / TikTok / Blog
November 6, 2018
This is an unusual little tale, retelling one of the less familiar fairy tales – King Thrushbeard – using a queerplatonic, sapphic relationship between a sex-repulsed asexual lesbian princess and an aroace queen. Which is a lot of labels, because this story is as much about labels and getting them out there as it is about the fairy tale. So if you happen to fall into any of those groups and long to see yourself in a story, or you want to know more about them and just how they work with relationships, this book has a lot to offer you.
It is frequently very cute, with occasional flashes of anger, but the chosen format probably won’t appeal to everyone. It’s a verse novel, which I’ll admit made me wary at first, but it’s actually not too bad once you get used to it. It’s also told in an extended dialogue between Marian, the princess, and Edel, the queen, as they recap their lives and the events that lead to them making a life together. Although this does definitely up the cute factor, there were times when I wished for a different format because I wanted more. More detail, more emotion, more suspense as to how it all turns out. As it was, I could enjoy it, but I couldn’t ever quite lose myself inside it.
Which is a huge shame, because there’s a lot of good here. Not just the use of labels, which are presented with excellent arguments for and against using them, but the way the story unfolds, especially in the first three sections. The fourth I felt was slightly lacking in detail, and the whole subplot about Edel being cast as a witch didn’t really seem to go anywhere. But the twist on King Thrushbeard was very nicely done, and it was great to see how it all turned out afterwards.
Most of the time, I’ll admit, I didn’t like Marian very much. She was incredibly immature at times and a little too cutesy for me, except when talking about the Duke, then I just wanted to hug her. I liked Edel a lot more, but at the same time was baffled by her ability to simply walk away from the kingdom for so long. I know she was only Snow’s regent, but she still had major responsibilities. If I was Snow I wouldn’t be talking to her either after it all came out.
So it’s not perfect, and probably won’t work for everyone, but if fairy tale retellings are your thing, and you like the sound of a queerplatonic relationship between an asexual lesbian, fashion-loving princess and a practical, aroace queen, then give it a try. You may just learn something.
(ARC provided by the author.)
It is frequently very cute, with occasional flashes of anger, but the chosen format probably won’t appeal to everyone. It’s a verse novel, which I’ll admit made me wary at first, but it’s actually not too bad once you get used to it. It’s also told in an extended dialogue between Marian, the princess, and Edel, the queen, as they recap their lives and the events that lead to them making a life together. Although this does definitely up the cute factor, there were times when I wished for a different format because I wanted more. More detail, more emotion, more suspense as to how it all turns out. As it was, I could enjoy it, but I couldn’t ever quite lose myself inside it.
Which is a huge shame, because there’s a lot of good here. Not just the use of labels, which are presented with excellent arguments for and against using them, but the way the story unfolds, especially in the first three sections. The fourth I felt was slightly lacking in detail, and the whole subplot about Edel being cast as a witch didn’t really seem to go anywhere. But the twist on King Thrushbeard was very nicely done, and it was great to see how it all turned out afterwards.
Most of the time, I’ll admit, I didn’t like Marian very much. She was incredibly immature at times and a little too cutesy for me, except when talking about the Duke, then I just wanted to hug her. I liked Edel a lot more, but at the same time was baffled by her ability to simply walk away from the kingdom for so long. I know she was only Snow’s regent, but she still had major responsibilities. If I was Snow I wouldn’t be talking to her either after it all came out.
So it’s not perfect, and probably won’t work for everyone, but if fairy tale retellings are your thing, and you like the sound of a queerplatonic relationship between an asexual lesbian, fashion-loving princess and a practical, aroace queen, then give it a try. You may just learn something.
(ARC provided by the author.)
Read
March 23, 2019this didn't work for me personally, i think. it took me until somebody else mentioned it to realise it was indeed a novel in verse and not weird formatting or like this because they were messaging.
the idea that the two main characters were together and occasionally had off-screen interactions but were messaging/ making a chronicle of their adventure so it wouldn't be forgotten... that last part is a cool idea! it just. i don't know.
society is a strong
Entity to fight against
but it might work for other people! it has a queerplatonic relationship, which i'd never read about and was really hoping i'd get to see once, so that was great. Mariam is a sex-repulsed asexual lesbian princess, and Edel is an aroace queen.
i thought Mariam's voice was a tad too childish, but maybe that's my own unrealised bias? i also didn't like that she wanted to use aro and ace as dramatic reveal words, but that was addressed by Edel. anyway, i can't speak for any of the rep so this isn't the review you should be reading anyway.
i did very very much like that it had this quote: "Sometimes people need // Other people to love them // In order to learn to love themselves"
because i am most definitely sick and tired of hearing nobody will love you until you love yourself because it's both false and harmful and the above statement is very important and true.
cw for sexual assault, aro/acephobia
the idea that the two main characters were together and occasionally had off-screen interactions but were messaging/ making a chronicle of their adventure so it wouldn't be forgotten... that last part is a cool idea! it just. i don't know.
society is a strong
Entity to fight against
but it might work for other people! it has a queerplatonic relationship, which i'd never read about and was really hoping i'd get to see once, so that was great. Mariam is a sex-repulsed asexual lesbian princess, and Edel is an aroace queen.
i thought Mariam's voice was a tad too childish, but maybe that's my own unrealised bias? i also didn't like that she wanted to use aro and ace as dramatic reveal words, but that was addressed by Edel. anyway, i can't speak for any of the rep so this isn't the review you should be reading anyway.
i did very very much like that it had this quote: "Sometimes people need // Other people to love them // In order to learn to love themselves"
because i am most definitely sick and tired of hearing nobody will love you until you love yourself because it's both false and harmful and the above statement is very important and true.
cw for sexual assault, aro/acephobia
November 5, 2018
(Disclaimer: I received this free book from Netgalley. This has not impacted my review which is unbiased and honest.)
Content Warnings: acephobia/acemisia, arophobia/aromisia (called out), sexual assault, PTSD, brief allusion to self-harm, unsupportive parents, parent/spouse death, illness
You might have seen my review of Sea Foam and Silence and this is the same phenomenal author with another novella in verse! But this novella was truly lovely. I adored the representation of Marian, a homoromantic asexual sex-repulsed princess and Edel a panplatonic aromantic asexual queen. Yet they have a relationship built on love, friendship, and support. This is sapphic re-telling of King Thrushbeard, and although I haven't read the original, I'm obsessed with this re-telling. Let's talk about how much I loved the inclusiveness and diversity in this novella.
full review: https://utopia-state-of-mind.com/revi...
Content Warnings: acephobia/acemisia, arophobia/aromisia (called out), sexual assault, PTSD, brief allusion to self-harm, unsupportive parents, parent/spouse death, illness
You might have seen my review of Sea Foam and Silence and this is the same phenomenal author with another novella in verse! But this novella was truly lovely. I adored the representation of Marian, a homoromantic asexual sex-repulsed princess and Edel a panplatonic aromantic asexual queen. Yet they have a relationship built on love, friendship, and support. This is sapphic re-telling of King Thrushbeard, and although I haven't read the original, I'm obsessed with this re-telling. Let's talk about how much I loved the inclusiveness and diversity in this novella.
full review: https://utopia-state-of-mind.com/revi...
October 26, 2018
I loved this novella so much!
I was a little taken aback by the format. I knew it was in verse, but didn't expect the two main characters to talk to each other, often interrupting each other to complete the story. It took me a little while to get used to it, but once I got comfortable with the format, this became a very good read.
The two protagonist are a homoromantic asexual sex-repulsed princess (Marian) and a panplatonic aromantic asexual queen (Edel). Most of the words are used on-page, and this was also one of the particularities of the book. A fairytale retelling of King Thrushbeard, sapphic, with aro and ace leads. And the terms are used on-page, even if it's somewhat historical. At first it was weird and then I was like "hell yeah why shouldn't we use the words" and I think it's an important topic of the book, too. The author also always uses "men, women and enbies" (which is <3).
I related to both Marian and Edel, especially Edel, and I loved the two protagonists very, very much. There was some pretty sweet and domestic moments between the two women as they told the story of how they became partners.
But I guess that what got me the most was definitely the awesome rep. As an aroace reader, it's rare to read a book with an aroace lead and this felt really, really good.
Also, there are some queer minor characters, including a bi character and an aro/ace-spectrum character.
CW: acephobia, arophobia, sexual assault, brief allusion to self-harm and suicide, both of which never actually happen, spousal & parental death, PTSD, unsupportive parents.
I was given an eArc in exchange of an honest review.
PS: I think this is my first review in English, which isn't my first language, sorry for any potentital grammar mistake :DD
I was a little taken aback by the format. I knew it was in verse, but didn't expect the two main characters to talk to each other, often interrupting each other to complete the story. It took me a little while to get used to it, but once I got comfortable with the format, this became a very good read.
The two protagonist are a homoromantic asexual sex-repulsed princess (Marian) and a panplatonic aromantic asexual queen (Edel). Most of the words are used on-page, and this was also one of the particularities of the book. A fairytale retelling of King Thrushbeard, sapphic, with aro and ace leads. And the terms are used on-page, even if it's somewhat historical. At first it was weird and then I was like "hell yeah why shouldn't we use the words" and I think it's an important topic of the book, too. The author also always uses "men, women and enbies" (which is <3).
I related to both Marian and Edel, especially Edel, and I loved the two protagonists very, very much. There was some pretty sweet and domestic moments between the two women as they told the story of how they became partners.
But I guess that what got me the most was definitely the awesome rep. As an aroace reader, it's rare to read a book with an aroace lead and this felt really, really good.
Also, there are some queer minor characters, including a bi character and an aro/ace-spectrum character.
CW: acephobia, arophobia, sexual assault, brief allusion to self-harm and suicide, both of which never actually happen, spousal & parental death, PTSD, unsupportive parents.
I was given an eArc in exchange of an honest review.
PS: I think this is my first review in English, which isn't my first language, sorry for any potentital grammar mistake :DD
November 24, 2021
I did like this though the formatting was a little strange to get used to at the beginning. I was able to get used to it quickly though and I thought it was a very interesting way to tell the story, in verse and with only dialogue between the two main characters talking to each other.
Both Marian and Edel talk about their sexuality and romantic orientations and it was really nice to see their different experiences.
I got a little confused about how much time had passed between the start of the story and the events that the characters tell about in the book though I think that might just be me.
I was so glad to be reading about a queerplatonic relationship at all and then Marian and Edel's relationship was just so good and cute, I was very happy with it.
Both Marian and Edel talk about their sexuality and romantic orientations and it was really nice to see their different experiences.
I got a little confused about how much time had passed between the start of the story and the events that the characters tell about in the book though I think that might just be me.
I was so glad to be reading about a queerplatonic relationship at all and then Marian and Edel's relationship was just so good and cute, I was very happy with it.
Read
September 28, 2022Not rating this because it's not that this story itself was in any way bad, I just... could not get past the framing device and the resultant writing style. It's just this weird situation where the story itself is pretty cute, but the framing device overshadows it for me. It's written as the two characters going back and forth, recalling and sharing their story. And it just... yeah, it doesn't work for me the way I think it was supposed to.
It's a cute fairy tale type story that plays with both existing stories and new ideas in an interesting way, at its core about two princesses (a princess and a queen, technically) dealing with society's views of and expectations for them and finding understanding in each other.
Also, the main characters are an aroace woman and a sex-repulsed ace lesbian who are in a queerplatonic relationship. (Yes, they use the words.) The world is somewhat queer-normative, with certain kingdoms/regions normalizing queer relationships and experiences and others displaying various forms of queerphobia (particularly arophobia). Their relationship is wonderfully negotiated and portrayed, not at all hindered by the one having romantic feelings for the other and the other not.
It's a cute fairy tale type story that plays with both existing stories and new ideas in an interesting way, at its core about two princesses (a princess and a queen, technically) dealing with society's views of and expectations for them and finding understanding in each other.
Also, the main characters are an aroace woman and a sex-repulsed ace lesbian who are in a queerplatonic relationship. (Yes, they use the words.) The world is somewhat queer-normative, with certain kingdoms/regions normalizing queer relationships and experiences and others displaying various forms of queerphobia (particularly arophobia). Their relationship is wonderfully negotiated and portrayed, not at all hindered by the one having romantic feelings for the other and the other not.
May 19, 2023
3.5/3.75, rounded up
Rep: aroace MC, ace lesbian MC, QPR, aro-spec demi-ace side character
The rep here is everything 😭 And reading the word "aromantic" caught me completely off guard, I- The validation!!!
The beginning was kind of tricky. I couldn't quite figure out what's going on but the reader gets used to it as the story progress. There were a few moments that felt too juvenile, considering the MCs are people in their late twenties/early thirties. But these are my only complains! I think this is one of these rare cases when I would recommend a book solely for the rep because it's so RIGHT. It captures aro and ace experiences so well. I loved the talks about aromatisism and asexuality so much. We are presented two completely different perspectives on how an a-spec character navigates the world and one's identity, without putting them in a box. Truly, for such short book it captures the diversity of the spectrum so damn well. Oh, and Edel reclaiming the word love? Heck yeah. One of the best unapologetic a-spec rep out there.
Rep: aroace MC, ace lesbian MC, QPR, aro-spec demi-ace side character
The rep here is everything 😭 And reading the word "aromantic" caught me completely off guard, I- The validation!!!
The beginning was kind of tricky. I couldn't quite figure out what's going on but the reader gets used to it as the story progress. There were a few moments that felt too juvenile, considering the MCs are people in their late twenties/early thirties. But these are my only complains! I think this is one of these rare cases when I would recommend a book solely for the rep because it's so RIGHT. It captures aro and ace experiences so well. I loved the talks about aromatisism and asexuality so much. We are presented two completely different perspectives on how an a-spec character navigates the world and one's identity, without putting them in a box. Truly, for such short book it captures the diversity of the spectrum so damn well. Oh, and Edel reclaiming the word love? Heck yeah. One of the best unapologetic a-spec rep out there.
January 1, 2019
Very rambling. Not the fairy tale story I was expecting - it is told entirely retrospectively and entirely in dialogue. The dialogue was a fun gimmick at first but grew weary when it was too realistically meandering and repeated sentiments. It was less a story about two aromatic and asexual characters and more about those two characters telling each other their own past in intricate detail and heavy handedly explaining to each other their already established sexuality and some previously unknown facts about each other. Some parts were moving and for a good while I was invested and interested. But around the 55% mark I kept catching myself thinking I was bored. I guess I expected a story of plot discovery rather than dictation and one that showed me their relationship rather than explained it as if I'd walked into a support meeting. Sadly disappointed. I'm sorry.
Read
December 8, 2018(Based on an Advance Review Copy [ARC] provided by the author)
I haven't given this a star rating because it would feel a little unfair; I didn't get along with the writing style, and probably wouldn't have read it if I had previewed it or noticed it described as being written in "verse". (It's written as a two-way conversation with the two characters' words on opposite sides of the page, with non-standard line breaks, as opposed to rhyming verse or the like.) To an extent, I'm glad I did read it, because it was interesting to try something different, but I didn't really enjoy it, due to the aforementioned style and other issues I had with it, which I'll detail below.
However, on the positive side, the book is clearly written in a very heartfelt way, and it does do what it set out to do, exploring a traditional fairytale narrative not only with a female/female relationship but with characters who are asexual and/or aromantic. This was what attracted me to read it in the first place, and I thought it did explore the experience of being aromantic/asexual in a romance-obsessed world in a way which felt focused on and told through the characters rather than just being a thinly disguised tract. Unfortunately, I didn't think the theme and characters were meshed very well with the fairytale plot and setting. Problems included:
All in all, I felt this book was an experiment which sadly didn't work for me, despite obviously being quite personal to the author and exploring ideas well worth exploring in an honest way. I hope the author can continue to keep that authenticity and impassioned voice while improving some of the writing "nuts and bolts" in future works.
I haven't given this a star rating because it would feel a little unfair; I didn't get along with the writing style, and probably wouldn't have read it if I had previewed it or noticed it described as being written in "verse". (It's written as a two-way conversation with the two characters' words on opposite sides of the page, with non-standard line breaks, as opposed to rhyming verse or the like.) To an extent, I'm glad I did read it, because it was interesting to try something different, but I didn't really enjoy it, due to the aforementioned style and other issues I had with it, which I'll detail below.
However, on the positive side, the book is clearly written in a very heartfelt way, and it does do what it set out to do, exploring a traditional fairytale narrative not only with a female/female relationship but with characters who are asexual and/or aromantic. This was what attracted me to read it in the first place, and I thought it did explore the experience of being aromantic/asexual in a romance-obsessed world in a way which felt focused on and told through the characters rather than just being a thinly disguised tract. Unfortunately, I didn't think the theme and characters were meshed very well with the fairytale plot and setting. Problems included:
All in all, I felt this book was an experiment which sadly didn't work for me, despite obviously being quite personal to the author and exploring ideas well worth exploring in an honest way. I hope the author can continue to keep that authenticity and impassioned voice while improving some of the writing "nuts and bolts" in future works.
October 22, 2018
4.5 stars*
Content Warnings pulled from the back of the book:
• acephobia/acemisia
• arophobia/aromisia
• sexual assault
• brief allusion to self-harm
• PTSD
• spousal death
• parental death
• unsupportive parents
Although it took me a while to get into the book because of the way it was written, I really liked this book and the way it was formatted. It was a validating f/f queerplatonic relationship between a character (Snow White’s stepmother) who is aroace and her lesbian sex-repulsed asexual wife.
The book is written interesting in the fact that it’s written in prose and the two main characters are creating the story just by speaking to each other. They go into deep topics about the aromantic and asexual community including labels and to use them when it’s asked – or not to use them at all. In fact, one of Edel’s comments really hit me hard after I had believed I was not normal for so long.
“I want to hear no more of people like yourself who needed words they never learned because no one believed they were needed.”
Way to make me cry.
Then there was mention about not using queer identities as a dramatic reveal. We are not a spoiler.
Another deep topic this book explores is sexual assault. It was painful to read about how family members thought that she was broken and forced her into a marriage where she believed she would be raped and that it was her fault she was assaulted.
This book also has side characters that are queer! Snow White is bisexual and her father is on the aromantic and asexual spectrum. Edel explains what queerplatonic relationships are, how they have no romance but can include sex if it’s desired.
I was given an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Content Warnings pulled from the back of the book:
• acephobia/acemisia
• arophobia/aromisia
• sexual assault
• brief allusion to self-harm
• PTSD
• spousal death
• parental death
• unsupportive parents
Although it took me a while to get into the book because of the way it was written, I really liked this book and the way it was formatted. It was a validating f/f queerplatonic relationship between a character (Snow White’s stepmother) who is aroace and her lesbian sex-repulsed asexual wife.
The book is written interesting in the fact that it’s written in prose and the two main characters are creating the story just by speaking to each other. They go into deep topics about the aromantic and asexual community including labels and to use them when it’s asked – or not to use them at all. In fact, one of Edel’s comments really hit me hard after I had believed I was not normal for so long.
“I want to hear no more of people like yourself who needed words they never learned because no one believed they were needed.”
Way to make me cry.
Then there was mention about not using queer identities as a dramatic reveal. We are not a spoiler.
Another deep topic this book explores is sexual assault. It was painful to read about how family members thought that she was broken and forced her into a marriage where she believed she would be raped and that it was her fault she was assaulted.
This book also has side characters that are queer! Snow White is bisexual and her father is on the aromantic and asexual spectrum. Edel explains what queerplatonic relationships are, how they have no romance but can include sex if it’s desired.
I was given an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
January 5, 2021
This is a fairy tale retelling, and a fairly quick read.
The fairy tale being retold is "King Thrushbeard", the story about a princess who refuses to marry and keeps insulting her suitors until her father decides to marry her off to the first beggar who knocks on the palace doors. The princess in this version, Marian, is a sex repulsed lesbian ace, who is so rude because she is trying to protect herself. The beggar is in truth Edel, a single queen very obviously based on Snow White's evil stepmother, who is aro ace and decides to marry Marian in order to rescue her from a situation she knows is a torture for her.
The format of the book is very interesting, as it is told exclusively as a dialogue between Marian and Edel as they talk about how they first met. The author is really good with their voices, so that you get a good insight into who these women are and what their life is like together. They also bicker and go off toppic from time to time, to discuss among others their different experiences with asexuality.
Personally, I loved this story. It is a quick read, but well-written and loudly ABOUT US, and I also liked how it was based on a fairy tale other than those handful Disney has made a movie of and that are therefore a bit everywhere at the cost of all the other stories. Nothing against those retellings either, it is just the trend that gets a bit monotonous at times.
Content Warnings as indicated by the author:
• acephobia/acemisia
• arophobia/aromisia
• sexual assault
• brief allusion to self-harm
• PTSD
• spousal death
• parental death
• unsupportive parents
The fairy tale being retold is "King Thrushbeard", the story about a princess who refuses to marry and keeps insulting her suitors until her father decides to marry her off to the first beggar who knocks on the palace doors. The princess in this version, Marian, is a sex repulsed lesbian ace, who is so rude because she is trying to protect herself. The beggar is in truth Edel, a single queen very obviously based on Snow White's evil stepmother, who is aro ace and decides to marry Marian in order to rescue her from a situation she knows is a torture for her.
The format of the book is very interesting, as it is told exclusively as a dialogue between Marian and Edel as they talk about how they first met. The author is really good with their voices, so that you get a good insight into who these women are and what their life is like together. They also bicker and go off toppic from time to time, to discuss among others their different experiences with asexuality.
Personally, I loved this story. It is a quick read, but well-written and loudly ABOUT US, and I also liked how it was based on a fairy tale other than those handful Disney has made a movie of and that are therefore a bit everywhere at the cost of all the other stories. Nothing against those retellings either, it is just the trend that gets a bit monotonous at times.
Content Warnings as indicated by the author:
• acephobia/acemisia
• arophobia/aromisia
• sexual assault
• brief allusion to self-harm
• PTSD
• spousal death
• parental death
• unsupportive parents
January 8, 2019
Marian and Edel have such different voices here, and they're both delightful. I appreciated the ways in which they fully understood each other and the ways in which they were still learning to. The QPR between them is strong and still growing, and it's wonderful to read that kind of relationship.
The book doesn't brush over the realities of Marian's behavior. She was spoiled. She was unused to work. She was unkind and often quite cruel. But some of that was real, and some of it was protection. It felt necessary to her, and even looking back, she regrets some of the impacts of what she said and did but still defends them.
I love the conversations about labels. How we use them, when we use them, how we introduce them. I appreciate the points that both Marian and Edel make here. Marian doesn't want to introduce the words outside of a context; she wants others to really be able to learn from her story and Edel's that they aren't broken if they feel the same way. Edel wants to normalize the labels, and she doesn't want to treat identity as a dramatic reveal. (I don't think Marian did, either, but I understand why Edel jumped to that initially.)
CW: sexual assault, mention of self-harm ideation, parental abuse?, parental and spousal death, anti-aro and anti-ace comments and actions (explored extensively)
The book doesn't brush over the realities of Marian's behavior. She was spoiled. She was unused to work. She was unkind and often quite cruel. But some of that was real, and some of it was protection. It felt necessary to her, and even looking back, she regrets some of the impacts of what she said and did but still defends them.
I love the conversations about labels. How we use them, when we use them, how we introduce them. I appreciate the points that both Marian and Edel make here. Marian doesn't want to introduce the words outside of a context; she wants others to really be able to learn from her story and Edel's that they aren't broken if they feel the same way. Edel wants to normalize the labels, and she doesn't want to treat identity as a dramatic reveal. (I don't think Marian did, either, but I understand why Edel jumped to that initially.)
CW: sexual assault, mention of self-harm ideation, parental abuse?, parental and spousal death, anti-aro and anti-ace comments and actions (explored extensively)
February 16, 2020
It was so powerful to see a story that included so many aspec characters and their differing and similar experiences, especially the way it unapologetically used the actual terms and went in depth on the nuances of the characters experiences and how they related on different topics of their identities.
April 2, 2019
Lovely!
This was so enjoyable for start to end. There was so much easy chemistry between Edel and Marian, and I especially loved their banter! It was also very informative in a seemingly effortless way and such a wonderful read.
This was so enjoyable for start to end. There was so much easy chemistry between Edel and Marian, and I especially loved their banter! It was also very informative in a seemingly effortless way and such a wonderful read.
February 10, 2021
Marian is asexual, and Edel is aromantic. This couple tells each other their stories--their lives before they met, how they came to be married, and everything that happened after.
It seems like this book ought to have been tailor-made for me, what with the fairy tales and the ace/aro representation, yet I like this book in theory more than I actually did in practice.
I think it's a valuable book, and I'm so glad it exists.
Though this is a mesh of fairy tale retellings, with varying flavors of everything from King Thrushbeard and Snow White to Mary Had a Little Lamb, that was not the focus. The focus was two women, happily married, discussing their sexualities in a world that has been cruel to them.
My disappointment is entirely my own fault, for hoping to see something that this book was not. Someday, I would like to see a loving relationship between an asexual and an aromantic that does not hinge so heavily on comfort from a world that forces sex where it is not wanted. Edel felt, for most of this book, more like she was a mother-figure to Marian than a wife, and while there were moments where they felt more balanced that had me smiling, Marian's damage permeates the story, and Edel seems to spend a great deal of time being in the role of therapist. I do not for a moment begrudge Marian this comfort and this safe space, but it did leave me yearning for a story about an asexual character in a loving relationship where their asexuality is neither a source of conflict nor damage. Where they feel whole before they find a partner able to validate them. However, that is all disappointment born of my own hopes and expectations--what this book was not, rather than what it was. Near the end, we see moments where Edel seeks comfort and protection from Marian as well (all for Snow-related reasons), which does a little to balance what had until then seemed a very imbalanced dynamic.
What it was, was a discussion of validation for asexuals, with many framing devices and conceptual tools that one might learn in therapy to better deal with difficult situations, in a fairy tale wrapping. And in that capacity, it was lovely.
Also, I laughed at the captain of the guard named Dennis. Why? I don't know. Marian, Edel, Geoff, Snow, Charlotte, Lord Swaensfald and....Dennis. It felt like one name out of time and place, I suppose, and made me laugh. I'm sure I'm forgetting other names, though. I did read this slowly over a long period of time.
It seems like this book ought to have been tailor-made for me, what with the fairy tales and the ace/aro representation, yet I like this book in theory more than I actually did in practice.
I think it's a valuable book, and I'm so glad it exists.
Though this is a mesh of fairy tale retellings, with varying flavors of everything from King Thrushbeard and Snow White to Mary Had a Little Lamb, that was not the focus. The focus was two women, happily married, discussing their sexualities in a world that has been cruel to them.
My disappointment is entirely my own fault, for hoping to see something that this book was not. Someday, I would like to see a loving relationship between an asexual and an aromantic that does not hinge so heavily on comfort from a world that forces sex where it is not wanted. Edel felt, for most of this book, more like she was a mother-figure to Marian than a wife, and while there were moments where they felt more balanced that had me smiling, Marian's damage permeates the story, and Edel seems to spend a great deal of time being in the role of therapist. I do not for a moment begrudge Marian this comfort and this safe space, but it did leave me yearning for a story about an asexual character in a loving relationship where their asexuality is neither a source of conflict nor damage. Where they feel whole before they find a partner able to validate them. However, that is all disappointment born of my own hopes and expectations--what this book was not, rather than what it was. Near the end, we see moments where Edel seeks comfort and protection from Marian as well (all for Snow-related reasons), which does a little to balance what had until then seemed a very imbalanced dynamic.
What it was, was a discussion of validation for asexuals, with many framing devices and conceptual tools that one might learn in therapy to better deal with difficult situations, in a fairy tale wrapping. And in that capacity, it was lovely.
Also, I laughed at the captain of the guard named Dennis. Why? I don't know. Marian, Edel, Geoff, Snow, Charlotte, Lord Swaensfald and....Dennis. It felt like one name out of time and place, I suppose, and made me laugh. I'm sure I'm forgetting other names, though. I did read this slowly over a long period of time.
October 23, 2025
I've been pretty curious about this book for a while, and I was so excited to finally get my hands on it! An adorable, thought-provoking, wildly unique take on the lesser known fairytale of Thrushbeard, with an intriguing sprinkling of other fairytales in there, in particular Snow White. (I loved the way Snow White was incorporated into this story btw.)
I loved how Edel and Marian's personalities bounced off each other and how they learned to live together, and Marian's character development in particular really stood out to me. I thought it was really interesting how she'd deliberately created a 'bratty mean girl' persona to try to survive, and Edel (and others) helped soften her edges after Edel gave her a safe space. I can't think of the last time I read a book, YA or otherwise, that was from the perspective of the 'rich mean girl.'
I adored Edel. Her POV was also really unique, unlike a lot of other narrators I've read before. She's such a selfless person, it's so endearing. I'm glad the ending hints at the fact that she'll try to rekindle her relationship with her daughter, and I hope she was successful at it. I would be really interested in reading Snow's POV of events, I won't lie.
The discussion of aromanticism, asexuality, and queerplatonic relationships was also really interesting too, it was very thought-provoking for me as an alloromantic, allosexual person.
All in all, I really enjoyed this!
I loved how Edel and Marian's personalities bounced off each other and how they learned to live together, and Marian's character development in particular really stood out to me. I thought it was really interesting how she'd deliberately created a 'bratty mean girl' persona to try to survive, and Edel (and others) helped soften her edges after Edel gave her a safe space. I can't think of the last time I read a book, YA or otherwise, that was from the perspective of the 'rich mean girl.'
I adored Edel. Her POV was also really unique, unlike a lot of other narrators I've read before. She's such a selfless person, it's so endearing. I'm glad the ending hints at the fact that she'll try to rekindle her relationship with her daughter, and I hope she was successful at it. I would be really interested in reading Snow's POV of events, I won't lie.
The discussion of aromanticism, asexuality, and queerplatonic relationships was also really interesting too, it was very thought-provoking for me as an alloromantic, allosexual person.
All in all, I really enjoyed this!
December 3, 2018
Overall, I enjoyed The Ice Princess's Fair Illusion. It was written as a dialogue between the two characters, which took a bit of getting used to but worked well. I liked that the relationship between Marian and Edel was queerplatonic instead of romantic, and I liked that the characters were unapologetic in their orientations. However, that being said, there were a few things I wasn't as fond of. First, the book is theoretically a verse novel, but I found that the free verse style was basically prose, and I think it would have been a bit more readable if written as prose. However, that might partially be because I'm not particularly fond of verse novels in general. And second, there were some parts of the story that I think would have been better with more detail. For example, Edel seems to be a twist on the role of the wicked stepmother from Snow White, but there wasn't much to that subplot except a stepdaughter named Snow and a few throwaway references to Edel being called a witch, which were never expanded upon. I also wish there was more detail at the end of the story; it seemed a little abrupt to me. Overall, though, I did enjoy the story, and I liked Marian and Edel a lot.
Disclaimer: I received a free ebook version of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Disclaimer: I received a free ebook version of this book in exchange for an honest review.
November 7, 2018
I started this book knowing it was a fairytale retelling centered on a QPR between a princess and a queen and...that was about it. I didn't know it was a verse novel, and while this unusual format (especially as a recorded dialogue between the protagonists) may have impacted my immersion, I'm also very intrigued by it. Like in Walking on Water by Matthew Metzger, the fairytale politics were very hazy but in the same way, it wasn't the focus of the book which is firmly on the characters and their journeys of discovery. Still, I would have liked to have more worldbuilding (but I see how the chosen format didn't lend itself to it). There's really good work done on storytelling and sharing and voice (even though some elements of Edel and Marian's banter got repetitive) and the whole bit about not using someone's sexual/romantic identity as a dramatic reveal is very astute and not something I encountered before. In short, this is very meta and tickles my academic brain, even though my reader heart was often not fully immersed. Regardless, it's a good #ownvoices book and definitely deserves a read.
Read
April 26, 2020I so badly wanted to like this book. An aroace queen and an ace princess in a queerplatonic relationship - what could be better? But while the idea of the story is great, and the form makes sense, the execution of both story and form is lacking. The characters get very didactic about aroace terms and concepts way too much - once or twice would have been fine, but it's constant. Good writing would weave that into the story, not make numerous pit stops for encyclopedia-entry-style explanations. (I also really didn't like the way the princess is made out to be such a child; I never fully understood why the two characters were telling their story to each other and why they each were ignorant of some major plot points in their own stories; and the verse, while a great idea in theory, was not actually verse, just prose on half-lines. Having each character's words on a different side of the page works wonderfully, but the line breaks often made things confusing, with sentences' meanings being changed based on a random break.)
April 9, 2020
This Ace approves!
While verse isn't my favorite format (the story is as if it is being told to you around a fire, in this case by two people who interrupt each other a lot), I don't think it's fair to complain about that since it says in its own description that it is in verse.
I really enjoyed the multiple different types of asexuality and aromanticism portrayed in this story. It is definitely heavy-handed in places (telling rather than showing in a bad way) but I can easily look past that for the very sweet story about various types of love. I also enjoy the strangeness of learning more about the character's love for each other through how they speak to each other in the present as they tell the story rather than from the actual story they tell.
Incomplete list of rep we get:
Aro-Ace in multiple types of queerplatonic relationships (at different times)
Ace Lesbian in a queerplatonic relationship
Gray or Demi-sexual/romantic
Super casually normalized lesbian marriage
While verse isn't my favorite format (the story is as if it is being told to you around a fire, in this case by two people who interrupt each other a lot), I don't think it's fair to complain about that since it says in its own description that it is in verse.
I really enjoyed the multiple different types of asexuality and aromanticism portrayed in this story. It is definitely heavy-handed in places (telling rather than showing in a bad way) but I can easily look past that for the very sweet story about various types of love. I also enjoy the strangeness of learning more about the character's love for each other through how they speak to each other in the present as they tell the story rather than from the actual story they tell.
Incomplete list of rep we get:
Aro-Ace in multiple types of queerplatonic relationships (at different times)
Ace Lesbian in a queerplatonic relationship
Gray or Demi-sexual/romantic
Super casually normalized lesbian marriage
April 23, 2020
I had to struggle past the first quarter - it wasn't just the style of a book written in prose but also that I wasn't so interested in the conversation between the two women. I just wanted the story, not discussions on labels and semantics which I felt disrupted my reading the narrative. Especially early on.
I settled into it however, and by the end did enjoy the tale. I hadn't been familar with the story of King Thrushbeard, which is probably for the best as this story doesn't start to bring those elements in until later.
Read this for my ace book club, and I think we'll all enjoy the rep in here. It's varied, because we have two examples which is nice. I did like Marian's way of describing her distaste of things and her means to avoid them, just as much as I liked Edel's very factual, no-nonsense views of how broad love can be. Aces in fiction always make me happy.
I settled into it however, and by the end did enjoy the tale. I hadn't been familar with the story of King Thrushbeard, which is probably for the best as this story doesn't start to bring those elements in until later.
Read this for my ace book club, and I think we'll all enjoy the rep in here. It's varied, because we have two examples which is nice. I did like Marian's way of describing her distaste of things and her means to avoid them, just as much as I liked Edel's very factual, no-nonsense views of how broad love can be. Aces in fiction always make me happy.
October 26, 2018
I received this arc from the author in exchange for an honest review.
The book is a queerplatonic retelling of the fairytale King Trushbeard told in verse.
It took me a bit to get into the story,because I'm not used to reading verse novels, but once I got used to it, it was a fun ride. A lot of the narration focuses on the labels the characters use for themselves, and how others react to them, and it was really interesting to read, even if a bit repetitive after a while. The twists on the original fairy tale were enjoyable, and I liked how the story got connected to another fairy tale.
Overall it's an interesting take and feminist reclaiming of an old fairytale.
A full review is going to come on my blog soon!
The book is a queerplatonic retelling of the fairytale King Trushbeard told in verse.
It took me a bit to get into the story,because I'm not used to reading verse novels, but once I got used to it, it was a fun ride. A lot of the narration focuses on the labels the characters use for themselves, and how others react to them, and it was really interesting to read, even if a bit repetitive after a while. The twists on the original fairy tale were enjoyable, and I liked how the story got connected to another fairy tale.
Overall it's an interesting take and feminist reclaiming of an old fairytale.
A full review is going to come on my blog soon!
April 18, 2019
*I won this book in a giveaway. This does not affect my view of the book*
Real Rating: 3.5/5 stars
Read my full review here!
Real Rating: 3.5/5 stars
Read my full review here!
January 1, 2020
i enjoyed the story but the dialogue was a little off and i didn’t really like some of the characters.
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February 12, 2020
October 26, 2021
I love these two characters and their banter and support for each other! Their dynamic is lovely and so fun to read. I enjoyed the main storyline and all the little digressions equally. Also, the amount of ace and aro positivity is just so wonderful. <3
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December 23, 2018Somehow I didn't notice this was poetry until after I bought it and started reading it... Poetry is not my favorite, and I'm going to have to pass on this one. 😅
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