Tuesday, February 23, 2016

The Golden Braid (Fairy Tale Romance #6) by Melanie Dickerson

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Book Information
Genre: Christian fantasy
Series: Fairy Tale Romance
  • Hardcover: 320 pages
  • Publisher: Thomas Nelson (November 17, 2015)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0718026268
  • ISBN-13: 978-0718026264

Synopsis: The one who needs rescuing isn’t always the one in the tower.

Rapunzel can throw a knife better than any man around. And her skills as an artist rival those of any artist she’s met. But for a woman in medieval times, the one skill she most desires is the hardest one to obtain: the ability to read.

After yet another young man asks for Rapunzel’s hand in marriage, Mother decides they need to move once again, but this time to a larger city. Rapunzel’s heart soars—surely there she can fulfill her dream. But Mother won’t let her close to a man. She claims that no man can be trusted.

After being rescued by a knight on the road to the city, and in turn rescuing him farther down the road, Rapunzel’s opportunity arrives at last. This knight, Sir Gerek, agrees to educate Rapunzel in order to pay back his debt. She just has to put up with his arrogant nature and single-minded focus on riches and prestige.

But this Rapunzel story is unlike any other and the mystery that she uncovers will change everything—except her happily ever after.
 


Review: I was intrigued by the synopsis of this story, and looked forward to a new look at the story of Rapunzel.  There wasn't much of a "fairy tale" to this story, however. It was more the story of a fiercely overprotective woman and a naive isolated young girl.

It took me much longer to read this story than most books of this length, as I just never felt invested in it. It didn't help that several points didn't seem to make much sense to me--Sir Gerek seemed to be annoyed at Rapunzel's mere existence one moment, and then the next that emotion was seemingly gone forever; her mother had zero interest in the man who had hurt her in the past--until she suddenly wanted him back again. 

There was no magic to this tale, and it just seemed to meander slowly and wordily from one scene to the next. I was sorely disappointed in it.

**I received a copy of this book from The Fiction Guild in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are entirely my own.**

Rating: Three stars

About the author
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Melanie Dickerson is a two-time Christy Award finalist, two-time Maggie Award winner, Carol Award winner, two-time winner of the Christian Retailing's Best award, and her book, The Healer's Apprentice, won the National Readers Choice Award for Best First Book. She is a member of American Christian Fiction Writers (ACFW) and Romance Writers of America (RWA). Melanie earned a bachelors degree in special education of the hearing impaired from The University of Alabama and has worked as a teacher in Georgia, Tennessee, and Ukraine. She lives with her husband and two children in Huntsville, Alabama.

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