Book Review: Saving Vengeance (The Forest Tales Series - prequel)
Saving Vengeance (The Forest Tales Series prequel) by Cece Louise
5 stars
Category: Adult
Note: Novella-length. I obtained a free copy via the author’s newsletter.
Summary: Laurel’s sister is convinced that the evil king who had just used her potion skills to poison the previous king is in love with her. And while she is enthralled with the new ballgowns he sent, inviting her to his upcoming masquerade ball, royal soldiers arrive to execute her on the grounds of witchcraft. Laurel manages to escape with the help of one of the soldiers, and vows vengeance against the king. She dresses up in the ballgown intended for her sister, and attends the ball with a dagger strapped to her thigh.
Comments: I loved this novella-size short story. It has action, betrayal, and romance with a dash of Cinderella fairy tale. Laurel is the level-headed sensible sister, while her sister is the naïve romantic blinded by her feelings for most obviously wrong person. Though, at no point is the sister seen negatively even though she helped poison the previous king, which bugged me. And I loved the idea of Cinderella as an assassin (granted I’ve seen it in other versions as well, each time it’s done, it’s a sexy empowerment and a question of if she will actually go bad herself. Just the thought that Cinderella was there for something other than just to dance is always a fun spin on the story). I loved the budding relationship between Laurel and Gavin, and I’m dying to see their story continued, which is the whole point of a prequel to tempt me to want to read the first book of the series. The only criticism I had with my copy was that it ends at the 50% mark and the rest of the book is filled with 5 chapters of book one (which makes me feel like I was gipped 50%).
5 stars
Category: Adult
Note: Novella-length. I obtained a free copy via the author’s newsletter.
Summary: Laurel’s sister is convinced that the evil king who had just used her potion skills to poison the previous king is in love with her. And while she is enthralled with the new ballgowns he sent, inviting her to his upcoming masquerade ball, royal soldiers arrive to execute her on the grounds of witchcraft. Laurel manages to escape with the help of one of the soldiers, and vows vengeance against the king. She dresses up in the ballgown intended for her sister, and attends the ball with a dagger strapped to her thigh.
Comments: I loved this novella-size short story. It has action, betrayal, and romance with a dash of Cinderella fairy tale. Laurel is the level-headed sensible sister, while her sister is the naïve romantic blinded by her feelings for most obviously wrong person. Though, at no point is the sister seen negatively even though she helped poison the previous king, which bugged me. And I loved the idea of Cinderella as an assassin (granted I’ve seen it in other versions as well, each time it’s done, it’s a sexy empowerment and a question of if she will actually go bad herself. Just the thought that Cinderella was there for something other than just to dance is always a fun spin on the story). I loved the budding relationship between Laurel and Gavin, and I’m dying to see their story continued, which is the whole point of a prequel to tempt me to want to read the first book of the series. The only criticism I had with my copy was that it ends at the 50% mark and the rest of the book is filled with 5 chapters of book one (which makes me feel like I was gipped 50%).