By K. M. Shea
Elise is no hero. She would rather balance the castle’s
expense accounts than become her country’s champion. But she doesn’t have a
choice since her step-mother, a wicked withc, cursed the seven princes of
Arcainia, Elise’s foster-brothers, and transformed them into swans. To free her
foster-brothers Elise agrees to knit seven shirts made of stinging nettles. She
must complete the shirts without uttering a word.
For the sake of safety and secrecy, Elise fless Arcainia and
struggles to survive in the wild. Even though she is mute, trails seven wild
swans, and knits like a mad-woman, Elise catches the eye of a foreign prince,
who drags her back to his family’s castle where she is tormented by the
prince’s evil father. With her step-mother hunting her foster-brothers and the
foreign king threatening to kill her, Elise’s dedication to her task is sorely
tested. But if Elise does not finish the shirts, Arcainia and her foster-brothers
will be lost. Can a mathematician be the hero needed to save the day?
I have really enjoyed reading K. M. Shea’s books, and this
is the book that goes between Beauty and the Beast and Cinderella and the
Colonel. I was excited, but wondered why this book got lower ratings than the
other two. After reading it I can understand why because having loved the two
aforementioned books, this pales in comparison. I liked Elise, but the love
story part of the book left something lacking for me. It was almost creepy.
Elise has no romantic interest in her suitors because she grew up with them,
knowing them as brothers. The story itself was good and I liked the
self-sacrifice parts of the book. The brothers were well characterized, if a
bit silly at times. My main (and very large) problem with the book was the
ending. What a cop-out. After going through the novel and wondering with
excitement who Elise will choose, we get to the end only to find ourselves in a
choose-your-favorite-love-interest? WHAT? I was ticked. That authorial choice
was poor in my opinion. It really lowered the book and the journey you took to
figure out who Elise chooses. I hated that. I would’ve liked the book much more
if the author had simply let Elise choose, or even told us in a round-about way
in a later book. In my opinion, just skip this book and read the other two.
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