Unable to give feedback due to it being archived early.
If made available again please let me know.

Thank you NetGalley for my copy of Slumber! I love retellings of fairytales and this one did not disappoint! Magical quick read with characters you will love!

Not really a retelling of the story of Sleeping Beauty, maybe more of a different approach.

Prince Thomas just lost his father and in order to rule as King he has to marry. Unfortunately all the princesses he’s introduced to, don’t speak to him. When he’s sent on a quest to find the sleeping beauty Aurora, he’s running for his life and runs into tomboy Lucy (who hates the royal) and her best friend Jack.

Together they find Aurora, but a Prince Philip wants her too. They must let Aurora decide, but Prince Thomas needs help from Lucy to get onto Auroras good side.
Sparks fly, swords fly and rats. Lots of rats run behind the lot.
This was a fun read and even though there were a few mistakes, I would read another book by this author.

I received this ebook copy from the publisher and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Loved it. It's a charming, well written read and sure to win the hearts of readers of all kinds. 5/5 stars

Thank you to NetGalley and Becky Bird for providing an e-copy of Slumber for me to review.

Everyone knows that the market for fairy tale retellings is hot right now and, as such, is becoming saturated. However, Becky Bird comes at the story of Sleeping Beauty from a completely different angle: what if "true love's kiss" which breaks the spell isn't that between the Prince and Princess?

Slumber was a slow burner for me personally. Initially I agreed with previous reviews that the novel would be considered middle-grade rather than YA but my opinion did change about half way through the book. In my opinion, this was when the author 'settled in' to the novel and truly developed the characters into ones the reader could relate to and find themselves rooting for.

This was also the point where it became clear Becky Bird was challenging a number of stereotypes through her characters: the Cardinal is a man of God but this does not necessarily make him good; Lucy is an orphan but this does not make her weak; Jack is a boy but this does not make him brave and, finally, Thomas is a Prince but this does not make him charming! This humanised the characters for me and I found myself growing to really like them.

There are also a number of tongue-in-cheek references to fairy tales which I really appreciated. Phrases such as "bibbidi-bobbidi-boo" and Jack running for the trees every chance he got added an undercurrent of humour throughout the novel.

Unfortunately, there were moments where I got frustrated by the novel skipping between locations and characters- sometimes mid-event. Separating these by chapters or even page breaks would have made this an easier read. The start of the book especially also seemed to be a tad "over written" with references to a literal river of tears and a croissant described as a "creamy delight".

Overall Slumber was a quick and easy read with a really great concept and endearing characters. It possibly could have benefitted from some suspense as all the Cardinal's motives were revealed right at the start of the book but nevertheless it was an enjoyable read.

The story of a prince searching for his bride and them living happily ever after is always a great fairytale! However, Prince Thomas doesn't quite have the easy road to finding his true love. An orphan, Lucy, is a girl who is fearless, courageous, and doesn't allow her gender to get in the way of being who she is and having what she wants. The two characters are amazing and the author has written an amazing story! I hope to see more in the future because fairytale are my favorite!

Once in a while I browse through Netgalley to see what they have to offer. A lot of times I see books I already saw here on goodreads or on instagram, but sometimes a book catches my eye that I haven't seen anywhere. And when I saw this book, I just knew that I really wanted to read it. So, I requested it and crossed all my toes and fingers!

When I started the book yesterday evening, I quickly noticed the very easy writing style. I had absolutely no trouble flying through the book and I read a lot more pages in an hour that I had thought possible. I had to get used to the constant switching of perspective, but the moment I was used to it, I also realised that it really adds something to the story. I wouldn't want it in every book, but it worked great in this one.

It also helped to connect to the characters. This story is a fairytale retelling and it has a lot of true fairytale vibes. We're dealing with magic, true loves kisses, princes and peasants, a mean villain and there are some lessons to learn along the way. The characters aren't too complicated or layered, and yet, by giving them all a moment to show us their thoughts and trail of thinking, we see glimpses of their personalities, parts that set them apart and lessons they have to learn. And it were those glimpses that made me love them.

And even though the plot is not the most original plot I have ever seen, it's amusing from start to finish. From the very first page I was sucked into the fairytale world and the story and until the last I kept smiling, enjoying the journey of the characters, even though that journey was somehow predictable. And along the way there are some really clever things incorporated in the story, small details that add just a little extra.

Slumber is one of those perfect summer reads: Quick, light hearted and absolutely and totally feel good. If you're in the mood for a typical fairytale, this might be the perfect book to pick up!

I love fairy tale retelling and this one didn't disappoint, the characters were great and the changes to the plot were perfect.

Slumber is a cute novel that is a twist on the Sleeping Beauty fairy tale. the novel is mostly seen through the perspective of Lucy; an orphan commoner, who takes no BS from anyone.

I liked the novel, overall, I liked the characters and thought that the characters arcs were done well.
My only complaint about the novel would be that I had a hard time following the story at parts because of the format of the novel.

Slumber is a newly telling of sleeping beauty but with a twist. It is from the prince's point of view which makes this book all the more interesting.
I personally enjoyed this novel by Becky and would love to read more from her.

Slumber from author Becky Bird is one of many ‘twisted versions’ of a fairytale. In this case it’s the Sleeping Beauty fairytale. A story everybody knows about a princess being cursed as a baby, who punctures herfself on a spinning wheel, to sleep for the rest of her life. Her only chance is ‘true loves kiss’.

Bird managed to create a different view on this fairytale. Her accessible writing is very well detailed. It tells the story of prince Thomas, who after his father dies has to find ‘sleeping beauty’ and make her his wife, so he can follow in his fathers foodsteps. Unknown to Thomas are the real plans of the cardinal fort he prince and the kingdom. He wants to kill Thomas and mary the queen, so he can rule the kingdom.

The cardinal is determined, but Thomas is getting some unexpected help. Orphan-girl Lucy runs away and stumbles upon Thomas. She helps him. Together they follow the pad to free Aurora from her eternal sleep. When they are there, Lucy shows Thomas what a ‘true loves kiss’ should be like. Thomas awakes Aurora. The big question – whas it realy the kiss between Thomas and Aurora that broke the curse?

The story itself is well written, with beautiful characters and a nice storyline. But I have to admit, for people who love to read twisted fairytales and have read more than one the book will not be very surprising and original. The storylines are predictable, and so the story lacks the adventure you would expect when you start reading this story.

It’s safe to say Slumber is a wellwritten story, but does not contain the surprising elements you hope for when you are a lover of twisted fairytales.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

In Slumber van Becky Bird is voor de zoveelste keer een ‘twisted version’ van een sprookje neergezet. In dit geval van het verhaal van Doornroosje. Wie kent het nou niet? De prinses die als baby vervloekt wordt, zich prikt aan het spinnenwiel om eeuwig te slapen. Haar redding is ‘true loves kiss’.
Bird is er in geslaagd een andere kijk op dit sprookje neer te zetten. Met haar toegankelijke schrijfstijl en gedetailleerde beschrijvingen verteld ze het verhaal van prins Thomas, die na het overlijden van zijn vader genoodzaakt is ‘sleeping beauty’ voor zich te winnen als zijn vrouw, zodat hij kan trouwen en de rol van zijn vader over kan nemen. Wat Thomas niet weet is dat de kardinaal hele andere plannen heeft met Thomas en zijn toekomstige koninkrijk. Hij wil Thomas vermoorden en trouwen met de koningin, om zo zelf te gaan heersen.

De kardinaal is vastbesloten, maar Thomas krijgt hulp vanuit een onverwachte hoek. Weesmeisje Lucy – die is weggelopen – biedt hulp. Samen vervolgen ze de toch om Aurora vanuit haar slaap te bevrijden. Eenmaal daar laat Lucy aan Thomas zien hoe een echte ‘true love kiss’ hoort te zijn. Thomas slaagt erin Aurora wakker te kussen. De grote vraag is echter – wiens kus heeft er werkelijk de vloek verbroken?
Het verhaal op zich is een prima geschreven verhaal, met mooie personages en een leuke verhaallijn. Voor liefhebbers die regelmatig twisted fairytales lezen is het boek wellicht weinig verrassend en origineel. De verhaallijnen hebben een bepaalde voorspelbaarheid, waardoor het verhaal minder avontuurlijk is dan je in eerste instantie zou verwachten.

Gesteld mag worden dat Slumber een uitstekend geschreven verhaal is, maar voor fans en veel lezers van twisted fairytales weinig verrassend zal zijn.

I received this book for an honest review - thnx to Netgalley.com

Unfortunately not for me, far too light and frivolous, the characters are far too superficial that I just couldn’t enjoy this.


Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for a free copy for an honest opinion

This book had so much potential! I love a good fairytale retelling and the idea for this story is so intriguing. I also understand that the book is intended as a light-hearted tale, but I just couldn't stop picking things out that I didn't like enough to relax and simply read. In fact, I nearly DNF'd this a few times. I think because I received a free review copy, I wanted to finish so my review was honest according to the full story.

It's from the Prince's point of view in Sleeping Beauty. Except the Prince isn't likeable. At. All. He called the people in his kingdom commoners and genuinely thought he was better than everyone. This would have been great if from another character's point of view but half of the narrative is told from his perspective and it's honestly hard to take on anything her has to say when his wording is so derogatory about everyone and everything.

In fact, I had a problem with quite a few of the characters. The other half of the perspective is from Lucy, a run-away orphan girl who defies all stereotypes. Except there is nothing to her apart from her disliking everything people expect her to do (i.e., everything 'girly'). She is just as judgemental as the Prince, except her judgements are less superficial.

Then there is the cardinal, the evil guy who is trying to steal the kingdom, who's perspective randomly intercepts the other two. I'm serious: there will be a lone paragraph amidst a scene about Lucy that is from the Cardinal's perspective halfway across the kingdom (and it isn't signalled - it just randomly appears).

Yes, the characters do become more likeable, as can be predicted from the first page: two people judge each other wrongly and teach each other things, then fall in love. And yes this is cliche (to be expected from a fairy tale retelling). And usually I don't mind a good cliche, but when I'm getting annoyed over several other things in the book, the cliches start to annoy me too.

If I were to focus on the Sleeping Beauty part of the story, it was a decent spin. How true loves kiss didn't actually occur between Aurora and the Prince but in her presence, and how there wasn't just one prince. It challenges the simple 'true love's kiss' and happily ever after trope.

Overall, a good concept but too many annoying features for me to rate it any higher.

Cute and super fast read. The story is a twist on Sleeping beauty, but Aurora is almost a peripheral character. I enjoyed this light read. It was great to wind down with before bed. My only issue was the spacing of the sections. Maybe it was the editing on my kindle version, but the story constantly switched point of views with no breaks or warnings. Several times I had to stop and reread to figure out who was "speaking".

Fairytale re-telling’s or re-imaginings are totally my jam. I’m always looking for another really good one. Slumber is Sleeping Beauty re-imagined if two princes were sent to wake Aurora at the same time and then needed to figure out who really is her true love. The premise is super promising and a new take, so I was completely in.

Slumber is listed as YA but I think it is really more for Middle Grade. The characters aren’t as complex as I’d like them to be and often felt only one or two dimensional. There are some things that completely worked for me but then others that fell flat.

What is working in the story is Lucy an orphan and spirited young lady who doesn’t fit into the regular mold of what a girl is supposed to be. She ends up saving Prince Thomas, nice change up by the way and decides for the good of the kingdom she will help him find the prefect looking sleeping princess so he can marry and claim the throne. Lucy and her best friend, Jack, are the best characters in the story and I love the friendship between the two.

Prince Thomas is a spoiled brat who has never had to work for anything in his life. He is arrogant, pompous and rude. The only value he places on women is how they look. He is extremely hard to like in the story and yes eventually he gets better but it is frustrating.

There is also an evil wizard with a plan to kill Prince Thomas and take over the kingdom. In some chapters I loved hating him and in others I thought that even he was really just a one-dimensional bad guy as well.

What I really wanted to work for me, but didn’t was the combo or Aurora, Prince Phillip and Prince Thomas. I really was looking for more in this fight to prove who was her one true love. But Aurora herself is very difficult to like and is only interested in looking pretty and twirling. Honestly, she was so vapid and boring with no other ‘skill’ than being beautiful that I didn’t understand why either Prince would want her after a five-minute conversation.

Also, the way the story is written the reader jumps in and out of the thought of the various characters. There isn’t a lot of rhyme or reason as to when the jumps are going to happen, no obvious clues that we are switching from seeing Lucy’s thoughts and moving into Prince Thomas’s. I think this book could have really used an editor’s eye to smooth out the layout of the story.

Still there is Lucy, and she is the bright and shining star of this book. She was the best fleshed out character and made all of the story for me.

Slumber has one of many reason I dislike YA books because they are cheesy and might make readers feel like they are being talked down too.

While the story is fairy tale of Sleeping Beauty with characters from the fairy tale it lacks heart and soul of what makes fairy tales last for hundreds of years being retold many times over.

Prince Thomas character changes to quickly with a lack of build up. Lucy however is the redeeming character of the book. This book might be more perfect for girls between the ages of 8-13 years old.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the advance copy of Becky Bird Slumber

This was an interesting twist on a classic tale.  I really liked where the author took this story.  It was unlike any retelling I'd read before and that really made it stand out.  I think the author did well with this being her debut book.  The storyline could have been developed better, it was too rushed, and short for my liking.  I was really falling for these characters and I needed more of them.  I also wasn't a huge fan of how and when she would change character perspectives.  I really enjoyed getting to hear from everyone, but it would switch in the middle of the page and that would throw me off sometimes.

Lucy was by far my favorite character in this book.  She was bold and brash.  She knew who she was and never apologized for it.  She could hold her own in a man's world better than most of the men could.  Her character showed growth throughout the book.  I loved her from start to finish.

Prince Thomas's character showed the most development throughout this book.  I liked seeing the progression from arrogant and spoiled to the man he was when the book ended.  He wasn't a character I liked in the beginning, but he grew on me by the end.

I enjoyed this book and am looking forward to more books from this author.  I can't wait to see what she does next.

In a strong YA field with lots of novels based on fairy tales, I do not believe that Slumber stacks up against the rest. Tweens will see right through the superficial characters which will cause them to quickly lose interest in the plot.

2.5/5 Rounded up to 3 Stars.

I love fairytale retellings, there are some great ones out there and so I went in with the mindset that I was going to love this. And don't get me wrong, I did love some parts of it but overall it just wasn't for me. It was a cute premise but poorly executed in a lot of ways. It felt cartoonish and over the top when it came to the characters of the personality and I think this would fair much better as a TV series or movie rather than a novel. I will say that it did mature in its style a bit and I did enjoy it a good bit after the 50% mark. The ending was also adorable but like others, I just felt that Aurora was too shallow, not just vain, but as if she might not have much going on under the hood if you catch my drift and despite my misgivings, I actually thought Prince Phillip was better written than her. Unfortunately, though I appreciated Lucy, I just couldn't get over how 'over the top' she was.

Again a fairytale retelling just means I have to snap it up.
Loved it! Sleeping beauty retellings are my least favourite type of tale but I liked the twist in this one. Spoilt prince needs the help of a sassy orphan in order to get the girl but in actuality ends up falling for her instead.
Enjoyed it :)
Bring on more retellings :p