Fortune’s Folly, by Deva Fagan
Title: Fortune’s Folly
Author: Deva Fagan
Genre: Fantasy
Publisher: Henry Holt and Co.
Pages: 786 (396 + 390)
Copy Origin: ARC won in contest held by author
Get Your Own Copy From: Amazon.com, The Book Depository
Ever since her mother died and her father lost his shoemaking skills, Fortunata has survived by telling fake fortunes. But when she’s tricked into telling a grand fortune for a prince, she is faced with the impossible task of fulfilling her wild prophecy-or her father will be put to death.
Now Fortunata has to help Prince Leonato secure a magic sword, vanquish a wicked witch, discover a long-lost golden shoe, and rescue the princess who fits it. If only she hadn’t fallen in love with the prince herself !
The first thing that came to mind about describing this novel is that Fortune’s Folly is “absolutely darling”. The characters are wonderful and vibrant, and the world is the same. The prose is suitable for the age to which is it is targeted (middle-grade) but does not talk down to them and is just as interesting for an older reader like myself.
Fortune’s Folly is well aware of its status as a fairy tale story and is filled with all sorts of little references that I loved spotting. Some of these are bigger than others in the scheme of things, and some of these have even been flipped on their heads to add new twists on things. Fortune’s Folly is part of the new generation of fairy tales and fables, and it shows how well it can be done. What makes Fortune’s Folly different (or dare I say it without being trampled on by fellow fairy tale geeks), even better than fairy tales is because of the depth of the characters and the strength of the characterization.
The world of Fortune’s Folly is not a world where the princes are always handsome and kind and perfect, nor are the heroines beautiful and downtrodden and utterly pure in thought and deed. While doing so could be considered true to the classical fairy tales, it would cause Fortune’s Folly to lack the charm that it does. Fortune’s Folly has flawed heroines, flawed princes. It is about people who go out there and make the wish come true, rather than simply wait on their behind for the appropriate fairy godmother to cast a spell or prince to ride up on a horse and slay the dragon.
And that makes for a very wonderful, very modern (yet not!) fairy tale and good role model for younger girls. Absolutely darling.
Five stars.
Mirrored from On The Nightstand.