Sleeping Beauty and the Beast by Melissa Lemon — Combined Review

 Posted by  Book Reviews
Jul 232014
 

Sleeping Beauty & the Beast by Lemon_COVER ONLYSleeping Beauty and the Beast

Author: Melissa Lemon

Publisher: self

Published: June 20, 2014

ISBN13: 978-1499788808

Paperback/Kindle: 300 pages

FTC FYI: Received a PDF from the author in exchange for an honest review.

Reviewed by Mindy and Sheila

Summary

Trapped in a cursed sleep, the only experiences Princess Eglantine has are the ones in her dreams. There she meets Prince Henry of Fallund, a neighboring kingdom on the brink of war. Meanwhile, Prince Henry’s brother Duncan discovers a vicious beast imprisoned for murder. Captivated by her, he works to free her from both the prison bars she’s locked behind and the ones surrounding her heart and mind. Sleeping Beauty and the Beast reinvents and seamlessly intertwines the classic fairy tales Sleeping Beauty and Beauty and the Beast.
Mindy’s Review

I have been a fan of Melissa’s for a long time.  Her books are fabulous.  Her most recent retelling was Snow Whyte and the Queen of Mayhem, which I loved.  I loved this unique retelling combination of Sleeping Beauty and Beauty and the Beast.  Melissa did a fantastic job with this story.  The characters are intriguing and the story is very enjoyable.  I loved how beauty was only seen by Prince Henry and I really loved how the beast was tamed.  Henry was the only one that could see Eglantine, and that made for some funny and then some uncomfortable scenes for Henry, but the best part was, he didn’t care.  Many thought he was losing his mind, including his twin brother Duncan.  Duncan ended up being one of my favorite characters.  His willingness to see the beast in a different way, was very enduring.  

The story switched from Eglantine’s point of view while she “slept”, to the beast’s, which was mostly Duncan visiting her and trying to figure out how to help her.  The fact that the beast was a woman, was a very cool twist.  I especially enjoyed the ending and how it all wrapped up.  

4 out of 5 stars.  If you like fairytales and retellings, you will love this story.  The ending is so satisfying, it will leave you with smiling.  

Sheila’s Review
Sleeping Beauty and the Beast…two fairy tales woven into one. I absolutely love a well written twisted fairy tale and Melissa Lemon has always done a great job of doing this in the past. I loved Cinder and Ella and also Snow Whyte and the Queen of Mayhem. Sleeping Beauty and the Beast shows again why Melissa has this fairy tale “telling” down to a science. She takes old stories and makes them into a different story. Once familiar characters are now brand new. 
 
I loved how Sleeping Beauty was written. We hear her tell her own story, even though she’s asleep and she can move about in her dreams. This is how she meets Prince Henry. At first he is the only one that can see Princess Eglantine as she floats around in her ethereal form. They become close as they learn to talk, listen and support each other through their trials. 
 
The Beast part of this fairy tale is unique in that “The Beast” is a woman, not a man. Prince Henry’s brother, Duncan, becomes intrigued and obsessed with the wild woman accused of murder. Being different from his brother and how he views the royal life, Duncan goes out of his way to free this agonized woman both physically and mentally. This part of the story truly touched me as Duncan never gave up on this woman that others were so ready to put to death. 
 

Sleeping Beauty and the Beast will challenge the old telling of these tales. You will find yourself quickly enveloped in the lives of all four characters. The ending will leave you happy and fulfilled. This clean read is suitable for any tween, teen and adult reader who loves a fairy tale with a perfect ending.

Author/Book Links
Online BioBio: Melissa Lemon is the author of two other fairy tale retellings: Cinder and Ella and Snow Whyte and the Queen of Mayhem. She is also the author of a sweet romance called Blue Sky. Writing is just one of her passions. She also loves music, reading, baking and exercising. She is wife to a patient man, mother to three spunky girls, and warden to a tolerant cat named Matilda.

Snow Whyte and the Queen of Mayhem by Melissa Lemon

 Posted by  Book Reviews, Mindy's Reviews
May 112013
 

Snow Whyte and the Queen of MayhemSnow Whyte and the Queen of Mayhem

Author: Melissa Lemon

Publisher: Sweetwater Books/Cedar Fort

Published: December 11th, 2012

ISBN13: 9781462111459

Hardcover: 288 pages

FTC FYI: Received a PDF from the publisher in exchange for an honest review, then purchased my own copy.

Reviewed by Mindy

Inside Book Jacket

Katiyana Whyte’s world is only as big as the apple orchard she was raised on.  She can never leave the home where she grew up under the careful eye of her uncle Barney.  But when life at the orchard suddenly becomes dangerous and her childhood friend Jeremy begs her to flee, Kat finds refuge in the Fluttering Forest with seven dwarves.

Meanwhile, the queen of Mayhem, an evil sorceress, learns through her magic mirror that the daughter she believed to be dead, still lives.  Enraged, she sends a servant to kill Kat, the princess of Mayhem, but Kat finds protection in a spell that causes snowstorms whenever she is in danger, giving her the nickname Snow Whyte.

In the wonderfully imagined Snow Whyte and the Queen of Mayhem, nobody is quite who they seem.  Full of romance and adventure, this is the magical tale of Snow White as you’ve never read it.

My Review

4 of out 5 stars.  I was instantly taken with this story.  I loved the narrator (I won’t say who he is for spoiler reasons, but you find out early on).  I really enjoyed seeing each character through his eyes.  The Queen was awesomely evil.  She truly was a wicked queen, and written very well.  Queen Radiance (as she made her subjects call her) stole the show.  There are so many twists in this great story, and lots of fun surprises.  Kat is a sweetheart.  I enjoyed how her little dwarf friends loved her , and how she loved them.  Jeremy was an unexpected surprise, and his story is so cool!  Again, many twists that are very enjoyable.

Author Links

Goodreads / Facebook / Twitter

Purchase Links

Amazon / Barnes and Noble / Seagull Book / Deseret Book

 

 

Cinder and Ella by Melissa Lemon – Countdown to Christmas 2011

 Posted by  Countdown to Christmas, Special Features
Dec 052011
 

20 days until Christmas

 Remember – all entries go into one big “bowl” for the drawing, so more entries improves your chance of winning!

Melissa has had many imaginary friends (and enemies) since she was a child. Her vivid imagination had her writing stories and jotting down book ideas for years until she finally sat down and finished a novel. She is married to an awesome man and the proud mother of three fun, sassy, lovely daughters. Melissa is a graduate of the University of Utah and currently resides in the Salt Lake area.

Connect with Melissa: BLOG | WEBSITE | Twitter | Facebook

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LDSWBR: What Christmas-related activity would you like to do this year that you have never done before?

MELISSA: I would love to go on a vacation for Christmas rather than give presents. Especially if that vacation involves a warm beach in Mexico or a cozy cabin in the Swiss Alps. So much of Christmas is meaningless; being somewhere isolated with nothing but the people I love most sounds like a real Christmas celebration.

LDSWBR: If you could find one book under the tree this year, what would it be?

MELISSA: I’d love a first edition collection of Charles Dickens’ books. It’d be even cooler if they were delivered by Charles Dickens’ ghost, or maybe Scrooge’s. If I had to choose just one, it would be a first edition of A Tale of Two Cities.

LDSWBR: What is your favorite childhood Christmas memory?

MELISSA: We had a horse pasture and every so often we actually had a horse in it. I remember my dad taking me out for a ride one Christmas morning and that was far better than presents. When my siblings and I were older we would always camp out in somebody’s bedroom on Christmas Eve and that brought a lot of fun memories as well as a tight bond before we all started moving out of the house. We went sledding at night when the moon reflecting on the snow created a place between night and day. My most memorable Christmases have come when my focus was on giving to others of my time and especially if they were people in great need.

LDSWBR: Thank you, Melissa. Have a wonderful Christmas!

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Buy Cinder and Ella by Melissa Lemon

CEDAR FORT | DESERET BOOK | AMAZON | BARNES & NOBLE

 

 How have you and your family helped others during the Holiday season?

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To enter the Countdown to Christmas 2011 contest, complete the following and then tell us what you did:

  • **Required entry (+1) – Leave a thoughtful comment on this post. (More than just “Great contest!” please.) You must leave a comment on this post for your other entries to count. If you are reading this post through email or an RSS reader, please click through to leave a comment.
  • Bonus entry (+1) – Tell us in your comment what your favorite fairytale was in your childhood. Is it still your favorite?
  • Additional entries (one time +1 entry each) – 1) Subscribe to LDSWBR through email 2)Follow @LDSWBR on Twitter 3) Like LDS Women’s Book Review on Facebook (all found at the the top of the right sidebar on the LDSWBR blog). NOTE: If you already subscribe through email, follow us on Twitter, or Like us on Facebook you must tell us in a comment for the extra entries to count.
  • By leaving a comment and entering the Countdown to Christmas 2011, you agree to the contest information found here.

 

***If you haven’t read the contest rules and info, read them here.***

 

Book prizes donated by their authors:

  • Not My Type by Melanie Jacobson
  • Cinder & Ella by Melissa Lemon (ebook)
  • Pride & Popularity by Jenni James
  • The Kissing Tree by Prudence Bice
  • Rearview Mirror by Stephanie Black (paperback or Kindle)
  • The Next Door Boys by Jolene B. Perry
  • Winner’s choice of one of the books in the Sadie Hoffmiller Culinary Mystery Series by Josi S. Kilpack (including Banana Split which will be released in February 2012)
  • Seeking Persephone by Sarah M. Eden
  • Obsession by Traci Hunter Abramson
  • Circle of Secrets by Kimberley Griffiths Little
  • Indelible by Lani Woodland and a swag bag!
  • Identity by Betsy Love
  • The Hainan Incident by D.M. Coffman (autographed copy)
  • Count Down to Love by Julie N. Ford
  • Geek Girl by Cindy C. Bennett
  • The Breakup Artist by Shannen Crane Camp
  • Seers by Heather Frost
Don’t forget to comment! Merry Christmas and happy reading!