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Mirror Chronicles #3
Sculpting Fables
Rhodopis is a kitchen slave who dreams of escaping to a life of freedom. Persecuted by her Roman master's conceited and beautiful daughters, Rho vows to ease other's burdens, never add to them. But when the gods finally hear her prayers, a mysterious woman appears to give Rho everything she ever wanted. But her gifts don't last forever, and Rhodopis will have to fight to keep what truly matters.
ebook
Published October 28, 2021
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About the author
Rachel Huffmire
7 books127 followersHi! I'm Rachel Huffmire, an award winning author who writes futuristic fairytale retellings with twisty plots and happily ever afters. I believe there is courage in compassion, and I tell stories about optimistic heroes who change the world.
I live with my husband, three children, and a library of books that is slowly overtaking our house. It’s not my fault. When I'm not writing, I enjoy baking apple pastries, taking long naps, and wearing warm cardigans.
If you love fairytale retellings too, you can sign up for my monthly newsletter at Rachelhuffmire.com for a community that loves folklore, fiction, and fantasy! You can also chat with me on Instagram @rachelhuffmire.
I live with my husband, three children, and a library of books that is slowly overtaking our house. It’s not my fault. When I'm not writing, I enjoy baking apple pastries, taking long naps, and wearing warm cardigans.
If you love fairytale retellings too, you can sign up for my monthly newsletter at Rachelhuffmire.com for a community that loves folklore, fiction, and fantasy! You can also chat with me on Instagram @rachelhuffmire.
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Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews
June 19, 2025
In a Nutshell: A YA SFF novella in the Mirror Chronicles series, narrating the story of Rhodopis with a time-travel twist. As clever as the other books in the series. Excellent as a Cinderella retelling. Technically a standalone work, but better if you have read at least Book One of the series to understand the intricacies. Recommended.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Plot Preview:
Goodreads has marked this book as the third in the Mirror Chronicles series, probably because it was published in that order. However, it is a standalone novella that can be read independent of the series. (This is especially important to know if you come here straight from Book Two: Spinning Briar, hoping for a resolution of that crazy cliffhanger. Not gonna happen! 😕) At the same time, this book assumes that you are already familiar with Keltson, his time-travel agency, and his modus operandi. So I suggest you read this at any point AFTER reading Book One: Shattered Snow because this novella doesn’t offer any explanations about the time-travel mechanism.
The story of Rhodopis is most known for being the original Cinderella tale. In that sense, this book also works as a Cinderella retelling. And an unusual one at that! I loved how this not just incorporated the Cinderella story but also dealt with its logical flaws. The twisty take on the glass slipper was my favourite.
Rhodopis is, as expected, the star of this show. I love how well her true personality shines through even under the façade of submissiveness she has to maintain as a slave. She wasn’t portrayed as too weak or too strong, but with just enough gumption to be convincing. Her thinking and her behaviour feels appropriate to her age.
At just about 150 pages long, this book isn't as overloaded with characters as its companion novels. Other than Keltson, no main character from the earlier books makes an appearance in this work. The focus of the plot is mainly on Rhodopis, though we have three more interesting characters other than Keltson, each from a different timepoint and each sketched well despite the limited page space. Oh, and there is a very special guest appearance from a person I absolutely didn’t expect to see in this plot. I loved the way his life story and his work was threaded into this narrative.
The plot is fairly straightforward, with even the time travel being relatively linear. There’s only one main timeline to follow, not as much back-and-forth as before. No needless digressions or fillers. As always, the dates are clearly marked to help us keep track of the timeline. It was amusing to see dates from the Gregorian calendar used for the BCE period, but I can definitely understand this creative licence and also appreciate how the imagined dates went in the right order (like, 19th Sept being before 13th Sept.)
This doesn’t mean that the magic is missing. This has exactly the same delightful mash-up as the earlier two books, with fairytale, science fiction, fantasy, romance, and historical fiction all working in harmony to create a memorable experience.
Despite the shorter length, the book manages to cover a few interesting themes such as the plight of the slaves, the classism, gender discrimination, predestined roles, and restrictions of the historical era. There are also some memorable thought-provoking quotes. The romance was clean, but a bit too insta for my liking. However, that’s a feature of the original fairytale as well, so I cannot hold it against this novella. And it was sweet enough to please even this Grinch.
The Egyptian setting adds a further novelty as we rarely get to see this location in this genre. The author seems to have researched the time and place well even for such a small book. It was easy to visualise the locations and the people of the era. Of course, the teenagers and their frustrations felt relatable even today. I suppose teen angst is timeless! 😄
🎧 The Audiobook Experience:
The audiobook, clocking at 2 hrs 44 min, is narrated by the same talented narrator who read the earlier books of this series. Rachel White is one of the most talented narrators I have had the pleasure of listening to, and her performance enhances this already-great novella.
All in all, this was a clever little novella with a unique take on the Cinderella story. While I was a little disappointed to see that the book doesn’t *continue* the series and hence I still need to wait to discover what’s next after the cliffhanger of the second book, it was fun to read this sweet little retelling full of sci-fi magic and mayhem.
Much recommended to retelling fans. The book is written for the YA age group, but this story works well enough for older readers as well. As I said earlier, try to read the first book of the series before giving this novella a try.
4.25 stars.
I received a complimentary copy of this audiobook from the author via StoryOrigin. This review is voluntary and contains my honest opinion about the audio version.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Connect with me through:
My Blog || The StoryGraph || Instagram || Threads || X/Twitter || Facebook ||
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Plot Preview:
1324 BCE. Egypt. Rhodopis is tired of her life as a slave in a Roman aristocrat’s estate. Facing constant bullying from his two daughters, Rhodopis dreams of buying her way to freedom. Little does she know that her story has caught the attention of a young American lady from many centuries ahead, the year 2070 to be precise.
The story comes to us in the third-person perspective of the key characters.
Goodreads has marked this book as the third in the Mirror Chronicles series, probably because it was published in that order. However, it is a standalone novella that can be read independent of the series. (This is especially important to know if you come here straight from Book Two: Spinning Briar, hoping for a resolution of that crazy cliffhanger. Not gonna happen! 😕) At the same time, this book assumes that you are already familiar with Keltson, his time-travel agency, and his modus operandi. So I suggest you read this at any point AFTER reading Book One: Shattered Snow because this novella doesn’t offer any explanations about the time-travel mechanism.
The story of Rhodopis is most known for being the original Cinderella tale. In that sense, this book also works as a Cinderella retelling. And an unusual one at that! I loved how this not just incorporated the Cinderella story but also dealt with its logical flaws. The twisty take on the glass slipper was my favourite.
Rhodopis is, as expected, the star of this show. I love how well her true personality shines through even under the façade of submissiveness she has to maintain as a slave. She wasn’t portrayed as too weak or too strong, but with just enough gumption to be convincing. Her thinking and her behaviour feels appropriate to her age.
At just about 150 pages long, this book isn't as overloaded with characters as its companion novels. Other than Keltson, no main character from the earlier books makes an appearance in this work. The focus of the plot is mainly on Rhodopis, though we have three more interesting characters other than Keltson, each from a different timepoint and each sketched well despite the limited page space. Oh, and there is a very special guest appearance from a person I absolutely didn’t expect to see in this plot. I loved the way his life story and his work was threaded into this narrative.
The plot is fairly straightforward, with even the time travel being relatively linear. There’s only one main timeline to follow, not as much back-and-forth as before. No needless digressions or fillers. As always, the dates are clearly marked to help us keep track of the timeline. It was amusing to see dates from the Gregorian calendar used for the BCE period, but I can definitely understand this creative licence and also appreciate how the imagined dates went in the right order (like, 19th Sept being before 13th Sept.)
This doesn’t mean that the magic is missing. This has exactly the same delightful mash-up as the earlier two books, with fairytale, science fiction, fantasy, romance, and historical fiction all working in harmony to create a memorable experience.
Despite the shorter length, the book manages to cover a few interesting themes such as the plight of the slaves, the classism, gender discrimination, predestined roles, and restrictions of the historical era. There are also some memorable thought-provoking quotes. The romance was clean, but a bit too insta for my liking. However, that’s a feature of the original fairytale as well, so I cannot hold it against this novella. And it was sweet enough to please even this Grinch.
The Egyptian setting adds a further novelty as we rarely get to see this location in this genre. The author seems to have researched the time and place well even for such a small book. It was easy to visualise the locations and the people of the era. Of course, the teenagers and their frustrations felt relatable even today. I suppose teen angst is timeless! 😄
🎧 The Audiobook Experience:
The audiobook, clocking at 2 hrs 44 min, is narrated by the same talented narrator who read the earlier books of this series. Rachel White is one of the most talented narrators I have had the pleasure of listening to, and her performance enhances this already-great novella.
All in all, this was a clever little novella with a unique take on the Cinderella story. While I was a little disappointed to see that the book doesn’t *continue* the series and hence I still need to wait to discover what’s next after the cliffhanger of the second book, it was fun to read this sweet little retelling full of sci-fi magic and mayhem.
Much recommended to retelling fans. The book is written for the YA age group, but this story works well enough for older readers as well. As I said earlier, try to read the first book of the series before giving this novella a try.
4.25 stars.
I received a complimentary copy of this audiobook from the author via StoryOrigin. This review is voluntary and contains my honest opinion about the audio version.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Connect with me through:
My Blog || The StoryGraph || Instagram || Threads || X/Twitter || Facebook ||
November 9, 2021
This installment in the series took me by surprise, not only because I wasn't expecting the next volume to be Cinderella (I had hoped for Beauty & Beast, and still do) but because of the choice of historical personage Rachel Huffmire made for Spinning Fables.
Rhodopis! The slave girl who married the Pharaoh of Egypt! As a Classical Antiquity history lover, I was already familiar with the legend registered in Greek and Roman sources about the beautiful slave who, whilst bathing in the Nile, had one of her delicate sandals picked up by an eagle that took it to the city and dropped it on the unsuspecting Pharaoh, who took it as a sign and embarked on a mission to find the owner and marry her. It's a lovely story that I've always enjoyed, but being so used to the Charles Perrault fairy tale all retellings I find are based on, I very rarely think of it when I crack open a Cinderella story.
The version of the legend Rachel Huffmire chose for Spinning Fables is the Greek one that comes to us from historian Herodotus, who wrote that Rhodopis was a slave in the same household as Aesop. Yes, that Aesop of animal fables fame, as the title hints at. So we have back our band of rogue time-travellers headed by The Mirror transporting themselves back centuries before the Christian era when one of the group's members spots Rhodopis, a slave in the home of rich merchant Laedmon, and decides to help her through becoming her Fairy Godmother figure. By meddling in affairs, the time-travellers make it possible for Rhodopis to meet the Pharaoh's son, Ahmos, and lead her to a better fate in a happier timeline.
I loved Aesop here, his sly humour, his compulsive telling of stories at the slightest opportunity, his level-headed attitude, his kindness, his folk wisdom. He was my favourite character in the book. I liked Huffmire's interpretation of the trademark Cinderella elements, too, such as the carriage, the ball with the Prince, and the glass slipper, which were more straightforwardly reinterpreted than other tale elements in the other retellings but still creatively twisted, like the version of the eagle stealing Rhodopis' sandal. The relationship that develops between Rhodopis and Ahmos is sedate but lovely, not overly passional but not devoid of chemistry. Quiet love, in sum. And it had the best possible ending there could be in their circumstances, too.
I've enjoyed all and every one of the retellings in the Mirror series, each brings in something fresh and creative, and this one is tied for my favourite so far with the Snow White episode. I'm now anxiously awaiting to see if my favourite fairy tale is retold next.
Many thanks to the author for the free copy in exchange for an honest review.
Rhodopis! The slave girl who married the Pharaoh of Egypt! As a Classical Antiquity history lover, I was already familiar with the legend registered in Greek and Roman sources about the beautiful slave who, whilst bathing in the Nile, had one of her delicate sandals picked up by an eagle that took it to the city and dropped it on the unsuspecting Pharaoh, who took it as a sign and embarked on a mission to find the owner and marry her. It's a lovely story that I've always enjoyed, but being so used to the Charles Perrault fairy tale all retellings I find are based on, I very rarely think of it when I crack open a Cinderella story.
The version of the legend Rachel Huffmire chose for Spinning Fables is the Greek one that comes to us from historian Herodotus, who wrote that Rhodopis was a slave in the same household as Aesop. Yes, that Aesop of animal fables fame, as the title hints at. So we have back our band of rogue time-travellers headed by The Mirror transporting themselves back centuries before the Christian era when one of the group's members spots Rhodopis, a slave in the home of rich merchant Laedmon, and decides to help her through becoming her Fairy Godmother figure. By meddling in affairs, the time-travellers make it possible for Rhodopis to meet the Pharaoh's son, Ahmos, and lead her to a better fate in a happier timeline.
I loved Aesop here, his sly humour, his compulsive telling of stories at the slightest opportunity, his level-headed attitude, his kindness, his folk wisdom. He was my favourite character in the book. I liked Huffmire's interpretation of the trademark Cinderella elements, too, such as the carriage, the ball with the Prince, and the glass slipper, which were more straightforwardly reinterpreted than other tale elements in the other retellings but still creatively twisted, like the version of the eagle stealing Rhodopis' sandal. The relationship that develops between Rhodopis and Ahmos is sedate but lovely, not overly passional but not devoid of chemistry. Quiet love, in sum. And it had the best possible ending there could be in their circumstances, too.
I've enjoyed all and every one of the retellings in the Mirror series, each brings in something fresh and creative, and this one is tied for my favourite so far with the Snow White episode. I'm now anxiously awaiting to see if my favourite fairy tale is retold next.
Many thanks to the author for the free copy in exchange for an honest review.
Read
October 29, 2021I have always been such a fan of ancient Greece and Egypt, so finding an opportunity to blend both these settings together was a golden opportunity I couldn't pass up! Not to mention the fact that it's based on historical figures who are believed to be the inspiration behind Cinderella... Dreams really do come true! I hope you enjoy this story as much as I enjoyed writing it.
April 30, 2022
A lovely Cinderella retelling. You need to have read at least one of the author's other books to understand the time travel aspect and to be familiar with the character overlap.
.
I'll most definitely read this again.
.
I'll most definitely read this again.
February 1, 2022
4.5 stars
This was a very sweet novella about the original tale of Cinderella, the story of a girl name Rhodophis who is a slave in Ancient Egypt.
It was my first book by Rachel Huffmire and I was pleasantly impressed. I like her voice and the story was interesting and new, even though this tale is really as old as time.
The only reason I'm not handing it the five-star label is because I didn't like Bleue so much (I think I got this wrong but I can't remember haha).
To be honest, I'm not sure what I think about the time travel concept in this book. One the one hand, I feel like the story without it would have been more dreamy, you know, without the breaking of the romantic storyline, but I also find the idea genius and interesting.
I'll leave my review at that!
Content Warning: chaste kisses and that's it. Squeaky clean in my book!
I received this book for free through Rachel Huffmire's newsletter!
This was a very sweet novella about the original tale of Cinderella, the story of a girl name Rhodophis who is a slave in Ancient Egypt.
It was my first book by Rachel Huffmire and I was pleasantly impressed. I like her voice and the story was interesting and new, even though this tale is really as old as time.
The only reason I'm not handing it the five-star label is because I didn't like Bleue so much (I think I got this wrong but I can't remember haha).
To be honest, I'm not sure what I think about the time travel concept in this book. One the one hand, I feel like the story without it would have been more dreamy, you know, without the breaking of the romantic storyline, but I also find the idea genius and interesting.
I'll leave my review at that!
Content Warning: chaste kisses and that's it. Squeaky clean in my book!
I received this book for free through Rachel Huffmire's newsletter!
December 21, 2021
I was going to read the other books first but couldn't help myself and read this one instead. I really wanted a story set in ancient Egypt with romance (especially after that dnf I had) I love how well this was done. It was really interesting how the timeline worked too. a lil confusing but that's cuz I probably should've read shattered snow first
January 3, 2022
This was amazing.
Sculpting Fables is a clean Cinderella fairytale retelling, suitable for YA or adult readers. If you like the Cinderella trope, time travel, and greek & egyptian historical settings, then this is the (free!) novella for you.
Weaving a good short story can be really hard, but man, this one played all the right strings for a perfect melody. It's possible I loved this even more than Rachel Huffmire's previous, full length novel, stories.
Multiple third person POV
Favourites:
- Strong MC: we have a strong female 'heroine' in a horrible, but in those historical times mundane, situation who nonetheless struggles her way to showing backbone without losing her kind eye for others' suffering.
- Escape from slavery: which is a theme close to my heart
- Pacing: perfect
What I missed:
- Nothing. Go read this story. Seriously! It's a page turner, it has some beautiful hidden messages I think, and it's available for free.
Sexual content: none
Coarse language: none
Violence and gore: mild
Other: slavery & abuse
Conclusion:
I kind of already said it all, but again, if you like clean, historical-fiction/sci-fi esque retellings, it's time to check this one out. You'll read it in a day, and you won't regret it!
Sculpting Fables is a clean Cinderella fairytale retelling, suitable for YA or adult readers. If you like the Cinderella trope, time travel, and greek & egyptian historical settings, then this is the (free!) novella for you.
Weaving a good short story can be really hard, but man, this one played all the right strings for a perfect melody. It's possible I loved this even more than Rachel Huffmire's previous, full length novel, stories.
Multiple third person POV
Favourites:
- Strong MC: we have a strong female 'heroine' in a horrible, but in those historical times mundane, situation who nonetheless struggles her way to showing backbone without losing her kind eye for others' suffering.
- Escape from slavery: which is a theme close to my heart
- Pacing: perfect
What I missed:
- Nothing. Go read this story. Seriously! It's a page turner, it has some beautiful hidden messages I think, and it's available for free.
Sexual content: none
Coarse language: none
Violence and gore: mild
Other: slavery & abuse
Conclusion:
I kind of already said it all, but again, if you like clean, historical-fiction/sci-fi esque retellings, it's time to check this one out. You'll read it in a day, and you won't regret it!
December 15, 2021
I've read a lot of Cinderella retellings, but this was quite possibly the most unique I've come across, even giving Cinder by Marisa Meyer a run for its money. I haven't read any of the other Mirror Chronicle books (yet), but the work is written in such a way that I could understand the rules of the futuristic - time traveling universe easily.
It's really more of a novella in terms of length, but even that's enough to give the characters real depth and keep you eager to reach the ending. I read the whole thing in about 3 hours, I couldn't stop. There were a handful of typos, and I was a little bit confused by the date and location of the epilogue, but other than that it was an excellent read.
I received this ARC in exchange for an honest review. It is 100% my true opinion.
It's really more of a novella in terms of length, but even that's enough to give the characters real depth and keep you eager to reach the ending. I read the whole thing in about 3 hours, I couldn't stop. There were a handful of typos, and I was a little bit confused by the date and location of the epilogue, but other than that it was an excellent read.
I received this ARC in exchange for an honest review. It is 100% my true opinion.
January 7, 2022
Love!!!
Such a fun retelling. Couldn't put it down.
Should I be sleeping yes. Is tomorrow going to be a long day also yes. Was this story totally worth the late night, absolutely.
Such a fun retelling. Couldn't put it down.
Should I be sleeping yes. Is tomorrow going to be a long day also yes. Was this story totally worth the late night, absolutely.
June 18, 2025
This book, y'all 😍
I have loved all of Rachel Huffmire's books, and Sculpting Fables was no different. This sweet novella is so good!!
I think what I love most about Rachel's books is how unique their take on fairytales is. She manages to take the classic stories we love so much and put a totally new spin on them. Sculpting Fables is a twist to the Cinderella story, and I love how she made it work for this book! I loved seeing all the nods to the original story in this book, from the terrible stepsisters to the ball to the glass slippers.
I also loved the characters in this one - Rho is one of those characters you can't help but just love. I was cheering for her from the start and I was so happy when things worked out for her. Also seeing Keltson, Bleue, and Volker again was awesome. There were some other great side characters as well, like Aesop! (Yes, *that* Aesop, as in Aesop's fables). That was a fun addition to the story!
All in all this was a great story and I'm so glad I finally read it! If you haven't read this series yet it is definitely worth the space on your TBR lists! I have spoken.
I have loved all of Rachel Huffmire's books, and Sculpting Fables was no different. This sweet novella is so good!!
I think what I love most about Rachel's books is how unique their take on fairytales is. She manages to take the classic stories we love so much and put a totally new spin on them. Sculpting Fables is a twist to the Cinderella story, and I love how she made it work for this book! I loved seeing all the nods to the original story in this book, from the terrible stepsisters to the ball to the glass slippers.
I also loved the characters in this one - Rho is one of those characters you can't help but just love. I was cheering for her from the start and I was so happy when things worked out for her. Also seeing Keltson, Bleue, and Volker again was awesome. There were some other great side characters as well, like Aesop! (Yes, *that* Aesop, as in Aesop's fables). That was a fun addition to the story!
All in all this was a great story and I'm so glad I finally read it! If you haven't read this series yet it is definitely worth the space on your TBR lists! I have spoken.
June 14, 2023
Aesop meets Cinderella in Egypt
An interesting premise: travelling back in time to save individuals ‘from the more terrible pages of history’.
Just imagine if this tool were used to change a key event that tipped evil-doers over the edge (e.g. Hitler became a famous artist and was therefore fulfilled in life).
“…whoever saves one life saves the world entire.”
—paraphrased from the Talmud
I could go on and on about the tales told in this story, but I promise I won’t. Read this and find out for yourself how well these are woven in.
Some sage advice from the author:
Never insist that you are undeserving
Slavery is a state of mind, not an identity.
‘Be proud of the work of your own hands’
See value even in discarded objects (or people).
‘What good was anger when there was no way to resolve it?’
Fave quote:
‘Fear doesn’t disappear on its own.’
Next in series are ‘Shattered Snow’ and ‘Spinning Briar’, with ‘Saving Winter’ releasing 24 June (starting tomorrow).
An interesting premise: travelling back in time to save individuals ‘from the more terrible pages of history’.
Just imagine if this tool were used to change a key event that tipped evil-doers over the edge (e.g. Hitler became a famous artist and was therefore fulfilled in life).
“…whoever saves one life saves the world entire.”
—paraphrased from the Talmud
I could go on and on about the tales told in this story, but I promise I won’t. Read this and find out for yourself how well these are woven in.
Some sage advice from the author:
Never insist that you are undeserving
Slavery is a state of mind, not an identity.
‘Be proud of the work of your own hands’
See value even in discarded objects (or people).
‘What good was anger when there was no way to resolve it?’
Fave quote:
‘Fear doesn’t disappear on its own.’
Next in series are ‘Shattered Snow’ and ‘Spinning Briar’, with ‘Saving Winter’ releasing 24 June (starting tomorrow).
July 13, 2025
Ahh Rachel this was the best! Cinderella is my all time favorite story so I was looking forward to getting to this one and it did not disappoint. This was a joy to read! Stayed true to Cinderella (humble and kind) and melded so well with the time travel stories already happening. Once again Rachel did amazing research and based this on historical figures who are believed to be the inspiration behind the Cinderella story (Rhodopis, the slave girl that married the prince of Egypt). Then she mixed it with the Greek inspiration involving Aesop! Beautiful and fun blending. I love a good fairytale :)
Highly recommend! Though you should to read the others first so you understand the time travel part.
Highly recommend! Though you should to read the others first so you understand the time travel part.
September 23, 2023
I've love Shattered Mirror and Spinning Briar of the series but this one didn't hit the same. This is probably just because im not the most.... attracted to romance anymore?? It's just that the complexities that come with time travel, and like- everything related to that kept me at the edge of my seat. This book had a lot more of a romantic approach however, and while it wasn't bad, for me it wasn't the best.
But it was still a really good book, i didn't like it cause of personal preference but that doesn't mean others don't
But it was still a really good book, i didn't like it cause of personal preference but that doesn't mean others don't
October 7, 2025
....all right, so I actually thought I was going to be reading the next book in the series when I started this one which it turns out is sort of a...side quest. But how could I be disappointed in a time-travel retelling of Cinderella set in ancient Egypt where she is a slave, the prince is the son of a Pharaoh, she insists on buying her own freedom, she rescues him just as much as he rescues her, and she is friends with Aesop (yes that one)? Excellent audio narration as well.
June 28, 2022
This is a delightful retelling of the classic Cinderella fairytale but set in ancient Egypt! I love the fact that this story of Rhodopis could actually be the Cinderella origin story, it makes me love the classic fairytale even more. I love the attention to detail that went into the historical setting and the sneaky appearance of another famous character (won't name names here...!).
June 15, 2025
I love these time traveling retellings! They are so unique. The worlds are built so well you can feel yourself there. The characters are so well woven together and immersed into these worlds, present and past. I can't wait to dig into the next one!
I listened to this as an audiobook which helps with the story coming to life even more.
I listened to this as an audiobook which helps with the story coming to life even more.
September 23, 2022
I loved this book! Such a clever and inventive Cinderella retelling using the ancient story of Rhodopis.
Read
November 28, 2023A short addition to the series. Once again, I really liked how the time travel was worked into the weirdness of the fairy tale.
January 20, 2024
I didn’t enjoy this one as much. It didn’t really even deal with the crazy cliffhanger from book two. And didn’t have much conflict like the rest.
January 24, 2026
This a a great time travel fairytale retelling of Cinderella. I enjoyed this read. The characters are great and the story is entertaining.
January 13, 2026
"If you wanted freedom too, I would gladly choose a destiny with you."
Sculpting Fables by Rachel Huffmire
I think this one might be my new favorite in the series! I loved the unique twist on Cinderella, set in Ancient Egypt.
There is Rhodopis who is a kitchen slave, Aesop who is another slave, and a prince who wants to break free from his destiny. Blue (not sure on the spelling since I listened to it) wants to save Rhodopis from a lifetime of slavery and abuse at the hands of her masters.
I loved how everything ended up. The author kept me guessing at how everything would resolve. Such clever plot twists and I loved how she weaved in Aesop and his fables into the story.
This one, along with the whole series is perfect and appropriate for teens and adults, especially those who are fans of the Lunar Chronicles by Marissa Meyer. I am eager to read book 4!
I love Rachel White's narration for this series. She does a perfect job!
Content Guide:
Language: none
Sexual Content: Brief kissing, feelings of attraction
Violence/gore: none
Substance Use: none
Prejudices: Against slaves
Religious Content: Mythology
Other: Slavery, emotional abuse
Book Info:
Series: Mirror Chronicles bk 3
Genre: YA/Teen Sci-fi Historical Fairy-tale retelling
Romance Level: Kissing only
Release Date: Available now
Publisher: Inscription Publishing
POV: Multiple
Narrator: Rachel V. White
Thank you to the Author for the audio review copy. All thoughts are my own.
Sculpting Fables by Rachel Huffmire
I think this one might be my new favorite in the series! I loved the unique twist on Cinderella, set in Ancient Egypt.
There is Rhodopis who is a kitchen slave, Aesop who is another slave, and a prince who wants to break free from his destiny. Blue (not sure on the spelling since I listened to it) wants to save Rhodopis from a lifetime of slavery and abuse at the hands of her masters.
I loved how everything ended up. The author kept me guessing at how everything would resolve. Such clever plot twists and I loved how she weaved in Aesop and his fables into the story.
This one, along with the whole series is perfect and appropriate for teens and adults, especially those who are fans of the Lunar Chronicles by Marissa Meyer. I am eager to read book 4!
I love Rachel White's narration for this series. She does a perfect job!
Content Guide:
Language: none
Sexual Content: Brief kissing, feelings of attraction
Violence/gore: none
Substance Use: none
Prejudices: Against slaves
Religious Content: Mythology
Other: Slavery, emotional abuse
Book Info:
Series: Mirror Chronicles bk 3
Genre: YA/Teen Sci-fi Historical Fairy-tale retelling
Romance Level: Kissing only
Release Date: Available now
Publisher: Inscription Publishing
POV: Multiple
Narrator: Rachel V. White
Thank you to the Author for the audio review copy. All thoughts are my own.
May 3, 2023
Loved the ending!
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