Cinderella Is Dead

3.5 stars

This is a pretty dark read, one I wasn't entirely expecting.
tw: abuse, sexual harrassment & violence.

So, in this world women must listen to their husbands – not having a husband is not an option. How does one get a husband? Oh, well you have to be picked by a man at the yearly ball and you only have 3 chances and if one of the men (who could be older than your own parents) doesn't pick you... you're never seen again. No one knows what happens to them.

Sophia wants to marry her friend Erin. She doesn't want to follow the law. She is lesbian! Through a sequence of events she ends up diving into the magic of the world, going on an journey that may lead to saving her kingdom.

This book is pretty doom and gloom in the beginning, as it should be, but at times it was hard to read. I am tempted to label this one as a thriller or light horror because of all the fear and the life they live in. I ended up not loving this one and thought some things were repetitive while not much happened. I just wasn't hooked – but that might be more on me than anything.
I thought the romance was a wee bit fast, but it is still believable to me as younger people tend to fall in and out of love faster.

In the end, I gotta say that the concept is absolutely fantastic, the writing made me feel the fear, revulsion, and hopelessness, and the end I found quite believable and realistic. The meaning to this story is an important one as well.
All in all, this is a book I will (and have ) recommend to others.