Sent to Tsjara as her Unknown V Day Smile surprise.

CONTROLLED RELEASE NOTES:

Enjoy!

A mysterious package arrived from BetterWorldBooks... And it contained not one but two wishlist books! :D (the other one was Ouran High School Host Club vol. 4) Thank you so much goofbunny for the wonderful surprise!! I'm really looking forward to read this one, I love fairy tale retellings ^_^ (Oh and it's a hard cover too (: )

Amazon Editorial Review:

When Dashti, a maid, and Lady Saren, her mistress, are shut in a tower for seven years for Saren’s refusal to marry a man she despises, the two prepare for a very long and dark imprisonment.
As food runs low and the days go from broiling hot to freezing cold, it is all Dashti can do to keep them fed and comfortable. But the arrival outside the tower of Saren’s two suitors—one welcome, and the other decidedly less so—brings both hope and great danger, and Dashti must make the desperate choices of a girl whose life is worth more than she knows.
With Shannon Hale’s lyrical language, this forgotten but classic fairy tale from the Brothers Grimm is reimagined and reset on the central Asian steppes; it is a completely unique retelling filled with adventure and romance, drama and disguise.

I enjoyed this fairy tale retelling very much (though I don't think I have heard of this fairy tale before - will have to check it out). The story is told in the form of a diary, written by Dashti the mucker maid. And sometimes she adds lovely little drawings to her writings too.
The setting is great, the fictional Eight Realms is inspired by medieval Mongolia, and gives atmosphere to the story. Dashti is a very likeable character and Khan Tegus as well. Lady Saren grew on me after a while, though sometimes I wanted to smack her too. :p The story is well written, with a couple of twists and turns, and it definitely kept me reading.

Thanks so much goofbunny for giving me the chance to read this!
The book will travel onwards to azuki soon. :)

The book is now on its way to Azuki. Hope you´ll enjoy it! ^_^

I come back from my vacation and this book is waiting for me!
Thank you so much for sending this book to me. I enjoy Hale's books, from her adult fiction Austenland to the children's book The Goose Girl. Look forward to this one!
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While I didn't enjoy this as much as her other titles, it's a good story nonetheless, I like the characters a lot.

Got this book from Azuki at the 2019 Convention in Mainz. I like Shannon Hale's books a lot. Thank you so much!

I had never heard of that particular fairy tale. It's such a well-written story, I enjoyed it a lot. Dashti is a lovely character.