Heather Dixon does a clever job of adapting Twelve Dancing Princesses into a setting with Victorian influences. The quickly mentioned death of the queen at the beginning of the tale becomes a huge point on contention that shapes the circumstances of Dixon's novel.
Azalea is Princess Royale of a kingdom at war. When her mother dies, and the king goes off to battle, Azalea and her 11 younger sisters are confined to the rules of mourning. All of their dresses are dyed black, the clocks are stopped, going outside is not allowed unless on royal business or Sundays for church--and dancing is forbidden.
When Azalea finds a passage to a world made of crystal trees and a pavilion full of dancers, the girls think they've found a way to beat the rules of mourning. There they meet Keeper, an enchanting but chilling man who tells stories of a king who drank the blood of the woman he loved, and creates a new set of music for the princesses to dance to every night.
Dixon does readers a favor by naming all of the princesses after plants, and in alphabetical order--Azalea, Bramble, Clover, etc. Dixon manages to give them snappy bits of dialogue, and actions that makes their personalities stand out; the sibling dynamics had me laughing out loud throughout the story. But there is also a cruel side to the story of Entwined. Dixon managed to make me feel pity for inanimate objects with only the suggestion of torture, and the fear and mistrust that follows.
Ultimately, this was a lovely story about a family learning to love each other despite pride and the generation gap, but disappointed me with its conformity to gender roles. Azalea is a strong character, one capable of wielding a sword, but after bucking tradition for the entire novel, she refuses to perform a certain royal duty because it does not seem romantic to her. This didn't ring true to her character, and made the final scene feel silly.
Azalea is Princess Royale of a kingdom at war. When her mother dies, and the king goes off to battle, Azalea and her 11 younger sisters are confined to the rules of mourning. All of their dresses are dyed black, the clocks are stopped, going outside is not allowed unless on royal business or Sundays for church--and dancing is forbidden.
When Azalea finds a passage to a world made of crystal trees and a pavilion full of dancers, the girls think they've found a way to beat the rules of mourning. There they meet Keeper, an enchanting but chilling man who tells stories of a king who drank the blood of the woman he loved, and creates a new set of music for the princesses to dance to every night.
Dixon does readers a favor by naming all of the princesses after plants, and in alphabetical order--Azalea, Bramble, Clover, etc. Dixon manages to give them snappy bits of dialogue, and actions that makes their personalities stand out; the sibling dynamics had me laughing out loud throughout the story. But there is also a cruel side to the story of Entwined. Dixon managed to make me feel pity for inanimate objects with only the suggestion of torture, and the fear and mistrust that follows.
Ultimately, this was a lovely story about a family learning to love each other despite pride and the generation gap, but disappointed me with its conformity to gender roles. Azalea is a strong character, one capable of wielding a sword, but after bucking tradition for the entire novel, she refuses to perform a certain royal duty because it does not seem romantic to her. This didn't ring true to her character, and made the final scene feel silly.
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