Title: The Charmed Wife
Author: Olga Grushin
Page Count: 288
Published: 21st January 2021
Genre: Fiction, Fantasy

I got this as a preview copy from the nice people at Netgalley. I will always be honest about a book no matter if I paid for it or not. There are also affiliate links in here, too 💜

This is a book that some people will absolutely love and others will sit on the fence. I’m very much that person perched on a railing wobbling from side-to-side.

And here we go. TL;DR:
✨ 13 years after those wee glass loving, pumpkin riding scamps say ‘I do’
✨ Cinders but make it extra depressing
✨ An alternative world where Prince Charming is a proper asshole
✨ A ~murder~ plot

Normally I wouldn’t feel the need to introduce the two main characters in a very well known Disney film but, you know, consistency and all that.

Ya’ll know Cinderella. Escaped her previous life and living it up in her castle surrounded by those mice (I’ll come onto those later) with two wee kiddy winks in tow. HOWEVER [insert dramatic noise here] – all is not as it seems and things very quickly fall apart.

Enter Prince Charming. The one who was supposed to be her true love except he’s a massive gaslighting asshole who’s probably had sex with the entire household staff. Poor Cinders never stood a chance.

Let’s start on the bits I was a massive fan of:

• Cinderella. I grew up with Disney films so this grabbed me instantly. It’s actually kinda refreshing to see the story from a different side. The side where they didn’t live happily ever after.
• The concept. This book’s twist is excellent and I didn’t see it coming or I just wasn’t paying attention. Yet it tackles depression and the impact that divorce has on someone’s mental wellbeing head-on.
• The banter between the Fairy Godmother and the Witch was perfect. Those little moments were a bloody delight.

And now the bits that just weren’t for me:

• It was hard to keep up with. I found myself rereading bits and literally losing the plot.
• With that in mind I just, uh, lost interest in the middle. I tried – I really did – but I just got a little bored.
• I just didn’t love the characters. Cinderella’s portrayal was the only one I could really connect with whilst the rest of them just sat on the sidelines for me. And then there are the bloody mice. These little cretins just seemed to be there for the sake of it and I most definitely struggled to take in their story. I get it – they’re a main character in the fairytale but they ain’t no Gus Gus now are they?

The book isn’t for me, but it has some wonderful poignant parts that’ll stick with me and some will absolutely fall in love with 💕

The Charmed Wife comes out on 21st January 2021 and you can grab a copy here.