There was also this epilogue-style wrap up that did not do the story justice. I noticed it more at the start of the book, then less and less as the story progressed. Now while the story was great and I really enjoyed the characters, I will say that, at times, the dialogue was a bit confusing and messy.

I love when stories show that women/girls can be both strong and emotional, and this was very much one of those books. I really liked that she was so strong-willed, but also very soft and human too. But Sophia is smart, brave, and while she seems to come to trust easier than I’d expect, she isn’t a naive character.

It’s a horrifying world that is very realistic in some parts of the world today. Girls are basically sold to men once they reach 16, and if they’re not desirable, they disappear. Unlike an adaptation, this retelling is based 200 years after Cinderella’s story ends, though within this book, the reader learns more about the “true story of Cinderella.” The world is very different than that is which we know from traditional fairy tales (the sweet ones, not the old gory ones!). They were both flawed, but their attributes really complemented each other. I thought they were both so strong-willed, though at times hard-headed and stubborn. I thought the story was really great and I would love to revisit with Sophia and Constance and get to know them better. So the night of the ball, she escapes, where she meets Constance, the last living descendent of Cinderella, and together they band together to try and destroy the patriarchy that is Lille. She'd prefer to marry Erin, her childhood best friend, and leave Lille forever. She wants nothing to do with the men in Lille. And it's unknown to where those girls disappear.

Girls only have three chances to be claimed, and if they aren't, they become forfeits. At 16, all girls must attend the annual ball to be claimed by men. But the town of Lille and the surrounding Marseille still follow a set of rules set forth by Prince Charming. A retelling of Cinderella about queer girls trying to overthrow the patriarchy? Yes, please.Ĭinderella has been dead for 200 years. TW: Domestic abuse, systemic abuse, homophobia, animal death, violence, abduction, death, misogynyĪs soon as I heard about Cinderella is Dead, I knew I had to read it.

Other PS 2020 reading prompts this would satisfy: A book that's published in 2020, A bildungsroman, A book that passes the Bechdel test, A book you picked because the title caught your attention, A book by a WOC, A book with a three-world title PopSugar 2020 Reading Challenge Prompt: No prompt used

Cinderella is dead pages