logo
Wrong email address or username
Wrong email address or username
Incorrect verification code
back to top
Search tags: storming-the-castle
Load new posts () and activity
Like Reblog Comment
show activity (+)
review 2017-04-29 06:04
Quick Thoughts: Storming the Castle (novella)
Storming the Castle: An Original Short Story (Audio) - Eloisa James,Nicola Barber

Storming the Castle
by Eloisa James

audio book narrated by Nicola Barber

Fairy Tales #1.5 (novella)

 

 

What Miss Phillipa Damson needs is a good, old fashioned knight in shining armor.  What she has is a fiancé she never wanted and a compelling urge to run away.  But if she manages to escape, will she find her happily ever after?



This novella started strong, and truthfully, I had been thinking that I liked it more than I liked it's preceding book, A Kiss At Midnight.  Because, truthfully, A Kiss At Midnight was just riddled with romance plot clichés and over dramatic angst, even if the book itself was pretty enjoyable.

The conditions of which Phillipa leaves her family and her betrothal to pursue a life for herself was exciting.  In fact, it was the best part of the novella, because it helps establish Phillipa's character outside of just being a Romance Novel Heroine, where everything revolves around a man and her love life.  I loved that she has a self-revelation about not wanting to continue being told what she should feel, how she should think, what she should want with her life, or how lucky she was to have her future taken care of for her.

That she took the initiative to step out of that mold to find her own way in life drew me in, and made me intrigued at what was in store for her.

That she would find Jonas Berwick, majordomo extraordinaire, in her future was also a bonus for me since I absolutely loved him from the first book.

The insta-lust that took place as soon as she enters the castle to become a nursemaid was not surprising.  And I was actually looking forward to the potential love story between her and one of my favorite characters from A Kiss At Midnight, Prince Gabriel's half-brother, Jonas Berwick.  Since the first book, I had found Berwick's character to be much more attractive and interesting than the main male character and had secretly wanted Kate to fall for him instead.

I had hoped he'd get his own book.

But a novella will have to suffice, I suppose, though, to be honest, after finishing this novella, I feel like Berwick deserved a much better story.

The moment we get to the castle, the story kind of plateaus and stops being exciting.  The love story feels supremely lukewarm, and while I like that Phillipa and Berwick don't fall in love at first sight, I never felt the chemistry between them.  I felt more chemistry between Kate and Phillipa, or even the castle's French cook and Phillipa, than between our resident main couple.  Berwick was severely underused in this novella, and honestly, I repeat, he deserves a full length novel and a better story.

When we get to the concluding chapter and find out that Phillipa had, yet another reason for not wanting to marry her betrothed Rodney... I guess that was it for me.  Because simply wanting the freedom to make her own choices wasn't enough?  I couldn't fault her for that.  But she announces another, much more superficial reason to her father, barely even mentioning the fact that she was tired of being strung around like a puppet by the people in her life.  No, Phillipa's reasons for not wanting to marry Rodney had more to do with the fact that Rodney isn't exactly the most physically appealing person, despite the fact that he was never a bad person to begin with.

That conclusion severely set Phillipa's character development from the first couple chapters backwards, and I stopped feeling bad for her that her father kept trying to force her into a life she didn't want.

Anyway, I can't deny that despite everything I disliked about this novella, Eloisa's writing style for the Fairy Tales stories are written in a distinctly "Once Upon A Time" like whimsical way that I like.  It truly feels like I'm reading (or in this case listening to) a fairy tale being told.

***

Booklikes-opoly


Roll #4:  (A third double landed me in Jail.)
Read 138 pages to add onto my 300 page Jail sentence.

No increase in Bank.

See Also:  Fourth Roll Activities

 

 

 

 

Source: anicheungbookabyss.blogspot.com/2017/04/quick-thoughts-storming-castle-novella.html
Like Reblog Comment
review 2015-07-23 08:00
Review: The Hero's Guide to Storming the Castle
The Hero's Guide to Storming the Castle - Christopher Healy

THE HERO’S GUIDE TO STORMING THE CASTLE by Christopher Healy is the second book in the series. Things have gone downhill for our heroes (princes Liam, Frederic, Gustav, and Duncan) with the Bandit King getting his revenge, but the princes soon find themselves involved in another adventure.

 

After reading and loving THE HERO’S GUIDE TO SAVING YOUR KINGDOM, I was really looking forward to diving into this book. Unfortunately, THE HERO’S GUIDE TO STORMING THE CASTLE left me disappointed. For me it lacked the fun and play of the first book, and at times it felt more like the author was laughing at the characters, rather than with them.

 

When the book starts it takes a while to get into the main plot – which is a quest that the princes find themselves on. Before then we get to see a bit of the princes’ lives at home. Healy used this opportunity to reveal some things about the princes that served to explain their behaviour – and I also think, may be used in future books as plot points. Once the story reached the main plot, it was very reminiscent of the previous book – it was like (mostly) organised chaos.

 

I’m not really sure if this book adds anything to the series, or if I just feel that way because I found the book quite boring, as Healy added nothing new to the mix really. I can see it as a way of building a foundation for books later in the series – it certainly has the potential to do that, as there are a LOT of plot threads which Healy could take-up – but that does little to endear me to this particular book.

 

There were moments within the story that I enjoyed – moments which showed the spark of the previous book. I particularly enjoyed Prince Liam’s reaction to his sister suddenly making an appearance to help. In fact, I really quite liked Prince Liam’s sister – Lila was a really awesome, kick-ass character; she knows what she wants, and she’s not afraid to do what she needs to to reach her goal.

 

If you have read and enjoyed THE HERO’S GUIDE TO SAVING YOUR KINGDOM then you will probably enjoy your return to the world, especially if you are closer to the intended age range of this book than I am. Although I did not enjoy this book, I think Healy has a lot of potential to explore within this world and series.

 

Originally posted on The Flutterby Room.

Source: theflutterbyroom.com/2015/07/23/review-the-heros-guide-to-storming-the-castle-by-christopher-healy
Like Reblog Comment
show activity (+)
review 2014-06-01 01:23
Storming the Castle
Storming the Castle - Eloisa James

I was nice to read Wick's story (from A Kiss at Midnight), but I was a little disappointed.  Wick's "I'm not good enough for you!" got old real quick.  Phillipa came across as a bit vain because she didn't want to marry Rodney because he had a fat ass and slow.  But she still slept with him?  I didn't understand that at all.  However, overall I still liked it.

Like Reblog Comment
show activity (+)
review 2013-12-21 03:04
Just Finished Reactions: Storming the Castle by Eloisa James
Storming the Castle with Bonus Content (Happily Ever Afters #1.5) - Eloisa James

Cute story with Wick as the hero. A very good story for a short story. Very fleshed out.

 

Originally published on GR in Dec 2010

Like Reblog Comment
review 2013-08-11 00:00
The Hero's Guide to Storming the Castle - Christopher Healy rating: 3.5
More posts
Your Dashboard view:
Need help?