I love this author's books since I've read Guardians of Ga'Hoole, I also love Tangle in Time. Was very excited to see this one with such an amazing cover. A Cinderella story, I am always drawn to retellings of this one.

This prequel to the Cinderella story is done so well, with a fairytale mood, and respect for life, nature, and magic from druids. The book is divided into parts introducing Ella later. Bess first discovers that she is very different from her family and their greedy and evil perspective of the world. She learns their terrible secret and decides for the sake of the animals to seek refuge among them and be good like her grandmother was but they brand her as a witch.
Later, we also have Estrella appear. Their stories will cross awesomely with a focus on learning and knowledge as positive. The scenes and voices are easy to visualize.

I enjoyed the ending very much. It was a great balance between beauty and evilness.

Thank you, publisher and Netgalley for this e-arc.

This story was intriguing for 2 reasons - first, I love any fairy tale reimagining, and second, Lasky wrote the popular Guardians of Ga'hool which I read with my daughter many years ago. Not all of this story flowed well for me, but the plot itself was very interesting. In this prequel, Cinderella is the orphaned niece of a strange glassblowing family. But before we meet her, we meet the family's daughter, Bess. She does not fit in with her family who only want to create glass figurines and be considered the best. They have no love for the natural world. Bess, on the other hand, has a way with animals and gardening and feels like her family's glass creations are cold and lifeless. Bess is the only decent member of the family and becomes a fairy godmother of sorts. The book itself felt jumpy and perhaps could have been edited a bit better. I still enjoyed it and can see it being liked by those who like both fairy tales and fantasy.

My thoughts:
Such a unique way to reimagine the story of The Little Cinder Girl. Intelligent, kind main characters. Magic, and animals. Make this a fun read. There is human death, but nothing is described. Animals also are transformed by dark magic. How can good overcome if there is no bad to defeat it right? This is a children's book. Ages 8-12 is what is recommended by the publisher. I think that is a good age group as long as parents know what their kids are reading and can talk to them if they are scared. I enjoyed this read very much. There is just something about discovering new books for kids that are exciting to read. It makes me happy to think that new titles are being added every day to foster a love of reading for kids. Not only did I enjoy this read, I would recommend, and purchase it for gifts.



I received this book from NetGalley for this review. I was under no obligation to leave a review. All opinions are on my own. I am disclosing this per the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

The Wickhams are a family of glassblowers, providing glass trinkets to nobles and royals. Unlike the rest of her family, Bess prefers the living vibrancy of nature to the cold 'perfection' of glass, longing for a garden of real plants to the glass flowers that decorate the grounds. After her beloved Grannie's death, things change in the family and Bess makes her escape upon learning the cruel truth of her family's glass animal figurines. With a magical legacy her Grannie left behind for her, will Bess be able to right the wrongs of the family trade? Can she help the distant cousin her parents brought in to replace her?

I once took a. Glass blowing class. I loved this book so much because of that experience. Great premise. Fun characters. A delight.