The Quick Cut:
A princess hiding her magical talents finds life gets complicated when her stepmother finds out and curses her. Struggles ensue as she tries to undo the magic done to her and her six siblings. A Real Review: Thank you to Knopf Books for providing the ARC for an honest review. Could you imagine what it would be like if the words you spoke hurt those you care about in a deadly way? It's a tragic thought, especially when you consider how much words can make a difference in our lives. How would you adjust to that reality? Would you find a new way to communicate that couldn't harm those in your life? Or would you instead try at all costs to undo the damage done to you? This is the struggle for Shiori - the princess of Kiata. Shiori very much does not want to get married to the boy her father has betrothed her to. As the only girl of seven siblings though, it isn't much her choice. However, when her betrothal ceremony comes, her usually well hidden magic chooses to make itself well known and attracts the attention of her stepmother - someone with dark magic of her own. Her stepmother turns around and curses Shiori - along with her seven brothers. She turns all seven brothers into cranes and tells Shiori that she must remain silent - or for each word she speaks, one of her brothers will die. How will she adapt to her new reality and can she undo what's been done to her family? This book has such strong worldbuilding that it's hard not to get wrapped up in the scenery that the author created. I could really imagine each moment and with the storyline being what it is - the entire book has a very strong folklore vibe to it. The plotline itself keeps making me want to compare it to Cinderella. They have similar setups and it's hard not to see this as a more diverse version of the Disney movie many of us have seen. It's difficult not to root for Shiori. She gets separated from her family, has to track down her transformed siblings, and do what she can to stay silent in order to keep them safe. All while knowing that her father is still side by side with the stepmother that did this to her. How could anyone not feel at least a little bit heartbroken by that?!?! I wanted to see her succeed in the end and get back the family she had in the beginning. She also does go through quite the transformation personal growth wise. The more she goes through, the more that she matures as a character and learns what it's like to do the hard work to have what you want. The only downside to this book is the other characters. There are so many characters in this story and outside of Shiori - it's hard to really define any of the other characters. This is especially true for the seven brothers. They play such an important role to Shiori and yet by the end I still had a hard time telling them apart. I feel like the author either should have cut a few characters or spent more time defining them. Even if they aren't the main character, they should still feel like well rounded players in the story. A cute tale with a need for more character definition. My rating: 4 out of 5