![]() In making Azalea the heroine, it seemed like the author required an "epic" battle for her to overcome. Readers should be aware that it takes some time to get going, mostly because the author spends more than a few chapters setting the scene and introducing us to the many characters.Ī second more serious complaint I have is the length of the climax of the book - taking up 4 chapters and a total of 60 pages of a rapid succession of events that becomes tiring for the reader to slog through. For example, Hollyhock and Jessamine have only a few lines throughout the entire book.ĭespite the fact that I enjoyed this book there are several things I didn't like about it. There are twelve princesses although we only really interact with about five of them on a regular basis. The central characters, Azalea and the Keeper were well developed, although the Keeper was the more interesting of the two. This was a delicious touch that I wish Dixon had employed with greater frequency because they added a touch of humour to the novel. These were items that behaved in a human way because they had "charms" placed on them. Entwined explores themes of love, loss and loyalty.Īnother aspect I really enjoyed was the magicked items in the palace. This gory theme formed an undercurrent throughout the book. ![]() What I found intriguing was the contrast in the book between the happy innocence of the princesses and the dark and cruel history of the D'Eathe kingdom. Entwined is a mix of romance, fairytale, mystery and horror. It's a difficult task to come up with an original retelling of a fairytale that can hold the reader's interest, but Dixon succeeds. Unable to tell anyone about the dancing because of the oath, and Azalea and her sisters are trapped between leaving forever or harming those they love and all they hold dear.Įntwined is a superb and imaginative retelling of the Twelve Dancing Princesses that mostly works. The King upon his return has learned that his daughters are dancing each night and he posts a notice that any man who can attempt to solve the riddle of where his daughters dance will have a chance to meet the Princess Royale for three days. When Azalea is unable to locate the object and tries to leave off coming to see the Keeper, she begins to suspect just how evil he is. When Azalea confronts the Keeper he asks Azalea to find the object in the palace that holds a special power over him rendering him captive below. Night after night Azalea and her sisters return to dance at the Pavilion. But Azalea soon discovers that the Keeper, although handsome and magicked, has a frightening dark side to him. Her and her sisters are so enchanted by the magical silver forest that on their second night of dancing they swear an oath to come each night to dance and not to tell anyone, especially the King. He is a wonderful dancer and has a voice as smooth as chocolate. Trapped there forever, he keeps things.Īzalea is enchanted at first by the Keeper. When Harold the First led the rebellion against King D'Eathe, the Keeper joined in and was banished to the forest by the King. There they meet the Keeper, who tells them he was once a Lord in the King D'Eathe's court. This passage opened by the silver handkerchief her mother gave her, leads her and her sisters to an enchanting silver forest with a dancing pavilion in the middle of a silver pond. One night Azalea discovers a portal to one of the magic passages in the princess's bedroom. His father and the King use to play in magic passages that can be located by the D'Eathe mark. In what is a time of great need, they see their father as abandoning them.Īzalea, the Princess Royale, learns from the handsome Lord Bradford before he leaves with the King, that there are still pockets of magic in the palace. They are angry at their father, whom they see as distant and cold. The twelve princesses are left alone in the palace, still shrouded in black for their mourning period. All fun is postponed, especially dancing. The windows are draped in black and the twelve princesses wear black gowns. ![]() Their mother dies and the palace is plunged into mourning. Shortly after the birth of the twelfth princess, Lily, drastic change comes to the palace. Bits of magic still exist like the silver handkerchief Azalea's mother gives her. He was eventually killed and his palace unmagicked by Harold the First, Azalea's ninth great-grandfather. Many centuries ago, the High King, D'Eathe, was an evil man who tortured and killed anyone who strayed into his magic palace. They live in the Kingdom of Eathesbury which we learn, has a very dark past. Twelve daughters of the King Harold, the eleventh, who love to dance more than anything else. Azalea, Bramble, Clover, Delphinium, Evening Primrose, Flora, Goldenrod, Hollyhock, Ivy, Jessamine, Kale and Ivy.
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