Book Review: Entwined

Title: Entwined

Author: Heather Dixon

Publisher: Greenwillow Books

Year: 2011

Pages: 472

Genre: Young Adult Fantasy

Rating: 3.5 stars

One sentence summary: In this Twelve Dancing Princesses retelling, Azalea and her eleven sisters dance in the Keeper’s enchanted silver forest every night, slowly becoming entangled in a sinister plan that may keep them trapped forever.

A full synopsis of this book can be found on Goodreads.

Spoiler Level: None

First off, let’s get this out of the way: this cover is absolutely gorgeous – at least to me. The girl in the beautiful dress, the font, and the shimmery flowers and leaves creeping over the cover were just calling to me in the library.

I was not familiar with the original tale, The Twelve Dancing Princesses, but the idea of “beautiful gowns, dashing suitors [and] balls filled with dancing” with a dark undertone and a man called The Keeper had me hooked.

Writing

Sometimes the writing was a little bit silly, but ultimately I didn’t mind it because it contributed to the fairy tale atmosphere. For instance, the names of the sisters all began with a different letter of the alphabet (Azalea, Bramble, Clover, etc. all the way till the youngest sibling), and there is a character named Mr. Pudding, which I found strange and hilarious.

Sometimes the writing wasn’t that great. For instance, at one point Azalea says “No words could describe those warm summer nights,” and then goes on to say “Euphoric, delightful, brilliant, all would fit.” Umm, I thought there were no words for it, and you just came up with three. Also, there’s a bit of repetition; if you read this book you’ll see the King “sucking in his cheeks” a lot, and hear a lot about “baby ointment and white cake.”

However, at times the writing is quite lovely. Dixon’s descriptions of the snow and gowns and the Christmas tree create a beautiful setting and an enchanting mood that I really enjoyed. Overall, there’s a great balance between the whimsical and creepy.

Characters

I grew to really enjoy some of the characters in this book, and especially appreciated the dynamic between them. Though twelve plus characters is a lot to manage, Dixon manages to give life and depth to quite a few of the sisters. Even though Azalea is often impulsive, you can really see her love for her sisters and the sacrifices she is willing to make for them. Bramble is feisty and protective and Clover is sweet and endearing. I enjoyed watching the sisters’ relationships with each other and with their father grow over the course of the book.

When I first saw the Keeper, I thought he as going to turn into the creepy, good-looking, older undead man that becomes the love interest. I am happy to say that did not happen. Unfortunately, I did find the true love interests in the story to be rather bland and there was definitely insta-love, but I enjoyed the relationships for what they were anyway.

Plot

The plot is quite simple and had to be stretched a long way. It could have been tightened up in places, specifically the beginning and the end. I liked the fairy tale elements that came into play throughout the story, like Azalea’s mother’s handkerchief (which can be seen the Grimm fairy tale The Goose Girl), and the enchanted tea set, which reminded me of Beauty and the Beast. Overall, I liked the story arc and how things came to a conclusion, but I wish Azalea had been able to problem solve for herself a little more instead of relying on the men around her to save the day.

Final Thoughts

This book sits at a 3.5 stars for me because I was on the verge of “really liking” it, but it didn’t wow me. I would recommend it for “young” young adult readers, meaning closer to age 15 than age 18, because it lacked some of the complexity you might find in more mature novels. A cute story with an emphasis on family.

“What happened?" said Clover, wetting a cloth in the basin, and dabbing Azalea's face. "She had a sort of fit," said the King. "I think her underthings may be laced too tightly." All the girls, including Azalea, blushed brilliantly. "Sir," said Eve. "You're not suppose to know about the U word!" "Am I not? Forgive me.”