Coverlicious: Entwined by Heather Dixon (Beautiful Cover Dresses)

Coverlicious is a semi-regular feature on my blog featuring anything to do with covers from covers I love to covers to lookalike covers! This post is part of a series called Beautiful Cover Dresses.

This post's feature:

Entwined by Heather Dixon

I ADORE this cover! I know I say I love a lot of covers but this ones up there with the very best and it was the cover that first attracted my attention when I saw it last September. Seriously, I would have bought it for the cover alone but thankfully, the story is great too because it's a retelling of the fairytale the Twelve Dancing Princesses. How could anyone resist such a pretty cover?

The ball gown

First off, the ball gown the girl (Azalea) screams 'Princess' with it's flowing white netting layers and the cute oversized bow. Though gorgeous, it looks really hard to walk in let alone dance and it has a slight greyish and tattered look, which could represent the financial struggles of the royal family of the story.

Lost and trapped

To me, the girl looks lost as she explores the palace gardens and the twelve sisters did get lost because the gardens were so big but I think it also represents how lost Azalea is emotionally.  The cover has a sort of eerie element too because it's quite dark and the silver leaves look like they are trapping the girl as they entwine around her. This is really clever because I think it's supposed to represent the silver forest the girls disappear in to dance.

Castle

Castles and palaces always remind people of fairy tales so I'm glad that there's one on here in the background. It looks grand with the tall spire but also magical, which it is in the book.

Original photo

I was browsing on the photo website We Heart It and I came across the photo below, which is clearly the image that has been used for the Entwined cover.

I love the way the elements in the photo are laid out and I wish more of the simplicity had been kept because despite it being beautiful, I do think the cover for Entwined is a touch busy with the swirly cover across the middle and all the silver leaves (which are embossed on the actual cover.)

Better in real life

I got this book as a birthday present and it was the last one I opened as it arrived on the day and it's even better in person. The back cover is also lovely because it features the palace image and even inside, each chapter page is decorated with the silver leaf patter.

What do you think of this cover? Does it make you want to read it? Do you think it's too busy?

Book Review: Entwined by Heather Dixon

Goodreads description:

Azalea is trapped. Just when she should feel that everything is before her . . . beautiful gowns, dashing suitors, balls filled with dancing . . . it's taken away. All of it.

The Keeper understands. He's trapped, too, held for centuries within the walls of the palace. And so he extends an invitation.

Every night, Azalea and her eleven sisters may step through the enchanted passage in their room to dance in his silver forest.

But there is a cost.

The Keeper likes to keep things.

Azalea may not realize how tangled she is in his web until it is too late.

Review

I love fairy tale retellings and I've been wanting to read Entwined ever since I first heard of it last September so I was happy to finally sink into it. The tale of the Twelve Dancing Princesses is familiar to me and I've read another retelling of it called Princess of the Midnight Ball so I was was hoping that I enjoyed this version of the story just as much.

Azalea and her eleven sisters have been plunged into mourning after the death of their mother when giving birth to her youngest daughter Lily. Forced to sport black dresses and banned from, balls, going into the palace gardens except on royal business, seeing suitors and worst of all, dancing, the girls find life dull. That is until they discover a magic staircase in their room leading to a beautiful underworld pavilion where they can dance all night under the watchful eye of the handsome Keeper and wear their dancing shoes to rags to the bewilderment of their servants. However, the Keeper has more to him than meets the eye and the girls realise too late that they have become entangled in something more than they bargained on and danger is hot on their heels.

Entwined is told in the third person through the eyes of Princess Azalea and through the narrative, a beautiful world is spun and the vivid imaginings of the palace and magic captivated me. Heather Dixon has bought a unique spin to the fairy tale and added a fresh and creative dimension that has really made it her own. I loved her descriptions of the kingdom from the grandeur of the palace gardens to the scary silvery shadows of the magic pavilion where the girls go to dance. Oh- and the dancing! I really can't dance myself but I could picture the graceful and elegant movements of the girls gliding and swirling across the ball room. There was also a good balance of old traditions, formal dancing at balls and modern behaviour without it seeming out of place.

The close bond between the sisters was adorable to see and was a joy to read about when so many YA book families are dysfunctional. They comforted each other after the death of their mother and were always looking out for one another. You might think that with twelve girls to contend with, characteristics wouldn't be a strong point but I'm happy to say that each of the girls had a distinct personality and I knew who each one was even though they didn't get equal page time. There was cheeky and fiery. Bramble who's always cracking a joke, responsible and kind Azalea. However the family were not without their problems and Azalea had many worries to deal with from the burden looking after her sisters to the government choosing a suitable husband for her.  The girl's relationship with the King evolved really well throughout the story with him developing a lot as a father and it was lovely to see the family overcome their problems together. One addition I especially loved was that the girl's flower names were arranged in order of their age  so Azalea's name was A as she is the eldest and I was referring to the alphabet constantly to see how old one of the girls were. I would have been lost without that...

Now a fairytale wouldn't be complete without a smidgen of romance, right? There were several romantic interests in Entwined for the eldest of the sisters and each one romantic in their own sweet way! It took nearly the whole book for the relationships to develop but this was part of the beauty of it because there was no love at first sight and made for some very humorous scenes!

One thing to note is that the plot is quite slow moving and although this allowed for the excellent character and relationship development, it did affect my enjoyment slightly.

Verdict: Entwined has everything the perfect fairytale needs- a gorgeous setting, endearing characters, an evil villain, cute romance, humour and a happily-ever-after! It was an enchanting and heart warming break from reality that made me lose myself in the world of princesses, dancing, magic and family love. Not only did I love the story but also Heather Dixon's writing and I'm looking forward to seeing what she writes next. I'd especially recommend Entwined to fairytale and fantasy lovers and wish it would be made into a movie.

Rating: 4.5 stars

In My Mailbox- The Birthday Edition!

In My Mailbox is a meme held by the lovely Kristi at The Story Siren, which encourages bloggers to share what books have made it into their house each week.

This week was the best book week EVER... because it was my birthday yesterday and I got some awesome bookish presents! Note: I won't be including descriptions this week because my Internet is being really slow at the moment.

What I got:

                                              A Kindle!

I had been toying up getting a Kindle for a while because I always thought that I'd be completely loyal to print books and never buy an e-reader but curiosity, the good things I've been hearing about Kindle and the lure of sites like Net Galley got the better of me. I'm so glad that they did! I've spent all afternoon reading on it and downloading all the free classics and I'm starting to love it. Though, it's just an accompaniment to my reading because my Kindle could *never* replace my physical books... it's a totally different reading experience! I'm planning to do a post with my thoughts on it soon :)

Books (thank you you to my parents):

Entwined by Heather Dixon

Daughter Of Xanadu by Dori Jones Yang

Waterfall by Lisa T Bergen

Jane Austen Stole My Boyfriend by Cora Harrison

These were all on my birthday wishlist so I'm really happy and can't wait to read them! You can have a look at why I want to read these books on my wishlist post. The cover of Entwined is even more beautiful in person :)

Kindle books I downloaded:

Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte

Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen

Little Women by Louise May Alcott

For review: 

 

Jane Austen- A Life Revealed by Catherine Reef (thanks to Net Galley)

The Betrayal Of Maggie Blair by Elizabeth Laird (thanks to Net Galley)

What did you get in your mailbox?

My Birthday Wishlist!

It's my birthday on Saturday so I thought I'd share some of the books that are on my wishlist for then  (descriptions from Goodreads):

Entwined by Heather Dixon

Azalea is trapped. Just when she should feel that everything is before her . . . beautiful gowns, dashing suitors, balls filled with dancing . . . it's taken away. All of it. The Keeper understands. He's trapped, too, held for centuries within the walls of the palace. And so he extends an invitation. Every night, Azalea and her eleven sisters may step through the enchanted passage in their room to dance in his silver forest. But there is a cost. The Keeper likes to keep things. Azalea may not realize how tangled she is in his web until it is too late.

I featured this one on a Waiting on Wednesday post last year so I've been looking forward to reading it for a long time. I love fairy tale retellings and I just read another retelling of the same fairytale as Entwined called The Princess Of The Midnight Ball by Jessica Day George. And that cover is gorgeous- it would look so pretty on my bookshelf!

Daughter Of Xanadu by Dori Jones Yang

Athletiand strong willed, Princess Emmajin's determined to do what no woman has done before: become a warrior in the army of her grandfather, the Great Khan Khubilai. In the Mongol world the only way to achieve respect is to show bravery and win glory on the battlefield. The last thing she wants is the distraction of the foreigner Marco Polo, who challenges her beliefs in the gardens of Xanadu. Marco has no skills in the "manly arts" of the Mongols: horse racing, archery, and wrestling. Still, he charms the Khan with his wit and story-telling. Emmajin sees a different Marco as they travel across 13th-century China, hunting 'dragons' and fighting elephant-back warriors. Now she faces a different battle as she struggles with her attraction towards Marco and her incredible goal of winning fame as a soldier.

Dori came on the blog to do a guest post a few months ago so really want to finally be able to read her book! I love the sound of the setting of Daughter Of Xandu because it's unusual and different from many Tudor and Victorian set YA historicals.

Waterfall by Lisa T.Bergen

I've been wanting to read this ever since I read a glowing review over at Small Review because I've been meaning to read more time travels and this one sounds fantastic!

Lisa Tawn Bergren's new YA series, River of Time, is romantic, historical fiction in which the plucky heroine doesn't have to fear a vampire's bite but must still fight for her life.

In Waterfall, American teenager Gabi Betarrini accidently finds herself in fourteenth-century Italy . . . Knights. Swords. Horses. Armor. And Italian hotties. Most American teens want an Italian vacation, but the Betarrini sisters have spent every summer of their lives there with their archaeologist parents. Stuck on yet another hot, dusty dig, they are bored out of their minds... until they place their hands atop handprints in an ancient tomb and find themselves catapulted into the fourteenth-century—and in the middle of a fierce battle between knights bent on killing one another.
 

Emily And The Scot by Kathryn Smith

Jamie MacLaughlin knows his place in the world and he's happy there. His dreams are simple and obtainable. But when he crosses paths with an impertinent English lass, his reaction to her is anything but simple. Emily Fitzgerald left England to avoid scandal. All she wants is a little peace and perhaps a little adventure in Scotland. She never imagined she'd meet a man who makes her want to go against everything she's ever been taught.

Thia regency romance for teens is a sequel to Anna And The The Duke, which I read last year and really enjoyed.

Princess Of Glass by Jessica Day George

Hoping to escape the troubles in her kingdom, Princess Poppy reluctantly agrees to take part in a royal exchange program, whereby young princes and princesses travel to each other's countries in the name of better political alliances—and potential marriages. It's got the makings of a fairy tale—until a hapless servant named Eleanor is tricked by a vengeful fairy godmother into competing with Poppy for the eligible prince. Ballgowns, cinders, and enchanted glass slippers fly in this romantic and action-packed happily-ever-after quest from an author with a flair for embroidering tales in her own delightful way.

This is the sequel to Princess Of The Midnight Ball by Jessica Day George that I read last week and carries on the story of one of the characters from there. I really liked the first book so I'm looking forward to continuing the story of one of the Princesses sometime soon.

I'll be sharing the books I got for my birthday in this Sunday's In My Mailbox!



Waiting on Wednesday; Entiwined by Heathor Dixon

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly meme held by Jill at Breaking The Spine where participants share upcoming books that they can't wait to get their hands on!

My pick this week is Enchanted by Heathor Dixon:

Goodreads description

Azalea is trapped. Just when she should feel that everything is before her . . . beautiful gowns, dashing suitors, balls filled with dancing . . . it's taken away. All of it.

The Keeper understands. He's trapped, too, held for centuries within the walls of the palace. And so he extends an invitation.

Every night, Azalea and her eleven sisters may step through the enchanted passage in their room to dance in his silver forest.

But there is a cost.

The Keeper likes to keep things.

Azalea may not realize how tangled she is in his web until it is too late.

Product description

Azalea and her younger sisters dance in the mysterious silver forest every night, escaping from the sadness of the palace and their father’s grief. What they don’t understand—although as time passes they begin to get an inkling of the danger they are in—is that the mysterious and dashing Keeper is tightening his snare with deadly purpose. Luckily, Azalea is brave and steadfast. Luckily, a handsome young army captain also has his eye on Azalea. . . .Lush, romantic, and compelling, this debut novel by Heather Dixon will thrill fans of Shannon Hale, Robin McKinley, and Edith Pattou

 I thought that the product description have a more detailed idea of the storyline so I included both of the summaries that I found.  I also love how Shannon Hale is mentioned in it as she is a brilliant author from the 2 books I've read of hers. I've seen it described as a retelling of the fairy tale of The Twelve Princesses, which I have heard of but don't know much but it sounds very magical. The cover is absolutely gorgeous, it's truly enough to make anyone want to pick it up.

It is scheduled to be released on the 29th March 2011, which seems such a long time away!

What are you waiting on this week?