Listen to a sample
Stepsister
- Author
- Jennifer Donnelly
- Narrator
- Helen Duff
- Publisher
- Hot Key Books
- Publish Date
- 15 May 2019
- Run Time
- 13 hours 6 minutes
- Format
- x-book®
- Genre
- Epic fantasy / high fantasy, Dark fantasy, Traditional or cultural fiction and true stories, tales and retellings, Narrative theme: coming of age, Children’s / Teenage fiction: Fantasy
- Rating
- 4.0 (2 reviews)
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What to expect
'In an ancient city by the sea, three sisters - a maiden, a mother, and a crone - are drawing maps by candlelight. Sombre, with piercing grey eyes, they are the three Fates, and every map is a human life . . .'
Stepsister takes up where Cinderella's tale ends. We meet Isabelle, the younger of Cinderella's two stepsisters. Ella is considered beautiful; stepsister Isabelle is not. Isabelle is fearless, brave, and strong-willed. She fences better than any boy, and takes her stallion over jumps that grown men fear to attempt. It doesn't matter, though; these qualities are not valued in a girl. Others have determined what is beautiful, and Isabelle does not fit their definition. Isabelle must face down the demons that drove her cruel treatment of Ella, challenge her own fate and maybe even redefine the very notion of beauty . . .
Cinderella is about a girl who was bullied; Stepsister is about the bully. We all root for the victims, we want to see them triumph. But what about the bullies? Is there hope for them? Can a mean girl change? Can she find her own happily ever after?
In Autumn 2020, Jennifer Donnelly will be giving another classic fairy tale, Snow White, a feminist makeover in her new book Poisoned.
User Reviews
Book 4.0
Narration 5.0
-
4.0 5.0
4⭐️ = Good.
Audio.
I was gripped by this from the onset…just so very different, seeing the fairytale of Cinderella from the aspect of one of the wicked step-sisters. A girl power novel that made me feel really sorry for the step-sister… I know, how strange!
The only thing that I disliked was the descriptions of the slaughter house. Being a vegan, this wasn’t particularly what I wanted to read about .Julie7 2024-10-09 -
4.0 5.0
Enjoyed this story and its twist on traditional tales. Sometimes a little heavy-handed, even preachy, but all in a good cause. Excellent delivery.
jo tait 2023-09-29
Details
- Author
- Jennifer Donnelly
- Narrator
- Helen Duff
- Duration
- 13 hours 6 minutes
- Release Date
- 15 May 2019
- ISBN
- 9781471408571
- Format
- x-book®
- Publisher
- Hot Key Books
- Genre
- Epic fantasy / high fantasy, Dark fantasy, Traditional or cultural fiction and true stories, tales and retellings, Narrative theme: coming of age, Children’s / Teenage fiction: Fantasy
- Rating
- 4.0(2 reviews)
- Narration
- 5.0(2 reviews)
Synopsis
A stunning and shocking retelling of the Cinderella fairytale from a Carnegie Medal novelist'In an ancient city by the sea, three sisters - a maiden, a mother, and a crone - are drawing maps by candlelight. Sombre, with piercing grey eyes, they are the three Fates, and every map is a human life . . .'Stepsister takes up where Cinderella's tale ends. We meet Isabelle, the younger of Cinderella's two stepsisters. Ella is considered beautiful; stepsister Isabelle is not. Isabelle is fearless, brave, and strong-willed. She fences better than any boy, and takes her stallion over jumps that grown men fear to attempt. It doesn't matter, though; these qualities are not valued in a girl. Others have determined what is beautiful, and Isabelle does not fit their definition. Isabelle must face down the demons that drove her cruel treatment of Ella, challenge her own fate and maybe even redefine the very notion of beauty . . .Cinderella is about a girl who was bullied; Stepsister is about the bully. We all root for the victims, we want to see them triumph. But what about the bullies? Is there hope for them? Can a mean girl change? Can she find her own happily ever after?In Autumn 2020, Jennifer Donnelly will be giving another classic fairy tale, Snow White, a feminist makeover in her new book Poisoned.
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