Grasp Court Of Swans (The Dericott Tales, #1) Conceived By Melanie Dickerson Depicted In Electronic Format
book a bit darker than Hagenheim,
Hagenheim was full of good people doing the right thing, This book is full of people doing the wrong thing, and the good people trying to survive in a society that stabs you in the back, It is fascinating because I think it speaks of today, where good people suffer and the bad seemingly get away with it, I almost feel like the philosophy of the author changed with this series, She went from having a hopeful attitude to a grim acceptance that God may not move, but that's okay because we have faith, I'm not really going to comment on whether that philosophy is right or wrong, That isn't my place. Instead, I'll tell you what I liked about this book,
Delia is a wonderful main character, Her love for her brothers, her stubborn determination to do what was within her power, and her bravery are admirable, She hates showing her emotions to others, but eventually realizes that showing emotion isn't weakness, I could relate to her extremely well, Even though she isn't the oldest, she acted like I do with my brother, and I would probably go to the same lengths as herself to save my brothers, That was why I liked her,
Sir Geoffrey, her love interest, was also interesting, A man of honor who had everything taken away from him, he chooses to stand up at the risk of his own life, His efforts to help Delia and her brothers resulted in great loss, But, he was willing to do the right thing, and that made him admirable as well,
That being said, I liked the plot because of the heartpounding twists and turns, Delia's brothers are arrested and put in the Tower of London, Only the king can release them, but politically motivated councilors stand in the way of Delia and her plight, The story kept me turning the pages, wondering what would happen, The end was wrapped up fairly quickly, but that is a minor complaint,
The setting was realistic, in my opinion, I will say I've not been to London, but you can tell this author researched it and understood it because of the references to various gates and towers which were in the place at the time.
Plus, there was no technology or anachronisms in the story, making it very consistent with the time period,
The Christian elements were better than her other books, I felt like the message God is with us, even if all things go wrong was prevalent, unlike some of her other books where a lesson about faith seemed to be swept into the background of the romance.
This is not to say that her books are unChristian, Just that the messages seemed muted in some books in the Hageheim books, but now they are more obvious,
Drawbacks:
I don't feel like Dickerson's books are very fairy tale like because there is absolutely no magic or fantastical elements, This is very much a Christian historical romance with brief references to the fairy tale they are based upon, So, if you're looking for a retelling, I'm honestly not sure if you will be satisfied, There is also a sexual assault that doesn't show anything, but could be disturbing for some people, The assault itself does not result in rape, but it still could be hard for some, Everything else was squeaky clean,
Overall, a great start to the series,
Thank you to NetGalley and Thomas Nelson Fiction for this ARC! / Gracias a NetGalley y a Thomas Nelson Fiction por este ARC!
English :
/stars
Court of Swans is a historical fiction novel about Delia and how her seven brothers are being accused of burning down the Kings Coroner house.
In this story, we follow Delia and Sir Geoffrey, the knight that arrested the seven brothers and is now doubting theyre even guilty, as they desperately try and save Delias brothers before
is too late.
The truth is, none of the things I said above are shown as clearly as they should have in the synopsis of this novel, Instead, this book is promoted as a retelling of the classic tale "The Wild Swans" and promises action and drama, which are vaguely found in this book, The truth is, this book is all about Delia finding her brothers it doesnt have subplots, magic, or anything that can show any indication of the retelling the synopsis promised.
Another thing that bothered me about this book, is how repetitive it is, It is said that Delia is someone that really cares about her brothers, but besides of crying at every chance she gets, praying to God to help her find them and following Sir Geoffreys orders, Delia doesnt do much to help them it is just a constant cycle of the three actions I said above over and over again.
Talking about the characters, I didnt really care for any of them, As I said before, they felt really repetitive and not with a mind of their own,
I do think this book deserves two because, even if its not what I was promised, it is good as an historical fiction, showing really well how Londons society and people used to affect everything around them.
I received a complimentary copy of this book, Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own,
Reseña en Español:
/estrellas
Court of Swans es una novela de ficción histórica sobre Delia y como sus siete hermanos están siendo acusados de quemar la casa del juez de instrucción del Rey.
En esta historia, seguimos a Delia y al señor Geoffrey, el caballero que arrestó a los siete hermanos y que ahora está dudando que son siquiera culpables, mientras los dos tratan desesperadamente de salvar a los hermanos de Delia antes de que sea demasiado tarde.
La verdad, ninguna de las cosas que mencioné anteriormente son enseñadas con la claridad que deberían en la sinopsis de esta novela, En cambio, este libro es promocionado como un retelling del cuento clásico "Los cisnes salvajes" y promete acción y drama, los cuales son vagamente encontrados en este libro.
La verdad es, este libro es todo sobre Delia encontrando a sus hermanos no tiene tramas secundarias, magia, o nada que enseñe alguna indicación del retelling que la sinopsis prometió.
Otra cosa que también me molestó de este libro, es lo repetitivo que es, En el libro se menciona que Delia es alguien a quien de verdad le importan sus hermanos, pero además de llorar a cada oportunidad que tiene, rezarle a Dios por ayuda para encontrarlos y seguir todas las órdenes del señor Geoffrey, Delia no hace mucho para ayudarles solo es un ciclo constante de las tres acciones que mencioné anteriormente una y otra vez.
Hablando de personajes, la verdad no me importaron mucho, Como dije anteriormente, se sintieron muy repetitivos y no con una mente de ellos mismos,
Si creo que este libro merece dos estrellas porque, incluso si no fue lo que se prometió, si es bueno como ficción histórica, enseñando muy bien como la sociedad y gente de Londres solían afectar todo a su alrededor.
Thank you Thomas Nelson Publishing, NetGalley, and Melanie Dickerson for the opportunity to read this book!
I have a weakness for retellings, I really enjoyed Melanie Dickersons previous fairytale series, Hagenheim, Court of Swans by Melanie Dickerson is the first book in the Dericott Tales and is a retelling of the Wild Swans fairytale, Delia is the daughter of an earl who dies and leaves her in the mercy of her wicked stepmother, However, when all her brothers are arrested for treason, she must find a way to save them, The new king is only fourteen years old and is counseled by those who have their own selfish interests at heart, With the help of a knight named Sir Geoffrey, they will need to find evidence to save her brothers from execution,
My favorites of Melanie Dickersons has to be The Healers Apprentice, The Merchants Daughter, and The Captive Maiden, In each of these tales, the characters capture the readers attention and have something more to give to the story, Deliais completely bland. She does nothing except question why these bad things happen to her family, I actually enjoyed all the other characters, I cant wait to see what happens to the eldest brother, Edwin, I hope he will get his own story!
The pacing did leave something to be desired, The brothers are imprisoned most of the book and not much really happens with the investigation until over halfway through the book, Although, the historical detail is phenomenal, Having been to London, I believe Melanie Dickerson captured London of thes quite perfectly!
While this book did quite capture me, I have high hopes for the second novel in this series! I rate itout ofstars! A very young adult story that was convoluted and could have been much better with more time and attention to detail.
It often felt as if the author couldnt decide if it was a tale foryear old girls oryear old girls often very immature while trying to cover mature topics.
The beginning of the book was so rushed that I was never given a chance to connect to the characters let alone care what happened to them,
I was provided with an ARC of this book by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review,stars
You can read all of my reviews at sitelinkNerd Girl Loves Books,
I could not get into this YA Historical Fiction, I didn't like the writing style, It was too basic and didn't flow well, I was disappointed because the description of the book really interested me, This is just my opinion, however, and others may enjoy the book,
This is a classic story, this time set in the lateth century in England, Delia is the daughter of an earl and hasbrothers, Her father marries a woman who dislikes the children, The new young wife acts as if she's afraid of them and twists their father's relationship with them, Delia's father and new wife have a son, Three years later the father is killed in a riding accident and shortly after allbrothers are accused of treason and locked in the Tower of London,
Delia gets a job in the palace as a ladyinwaiting to be near her brothers and try to figure out a way to clear their names, She runs into the man who arrested her brothers, and although she hates him he is nice to her and tries to help her efforts regarding her brothers,
As I said, I couldn't get into this book, but you may have a different opinion so give it a try, I was given a complimentary copy of this book from NetGalley and Thomas Nelson, Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own,.
Delias life was good and happy until the day her father remarried then everything went dowhill from there,
Soon after her evil stepmother took control of Delias father, he was murdered and hissons were accused,
They were brought to the London Tower and sentenced to be executed if the king believed them guilty Delia had to do everything in her power to convince the King otherwise.
So Delia served as a lowly servant to stay close to her brothers,
But keeping her true identity a secret proved harder than she first thought when two guards, Elliot and Geoffery befriend her but both do not have pure intentions,
I flew through this! I forgot how easy and gripping Dickerson writes and I cant wait for the next book! From New York Times bestselling author Melanie Dickerson comes a reimagining of the Wild Swansthe first book in a new series of fairytale retellings set in medieval England!
Delia lives a quiet life as the daughter of an earl in latethcentury England, but that peace is shattered when her seven brothers are betrayed by their father and falsely arrested.
Meanwhile, with the Peasants Revolt threatening the peace of the kingdom, the king is executing anyone who had anything to do with the uprising, Delia is terrified her brothers will be next, the youngest of whom is only ten years old,
Delia infiltrates the palace as a ladyinwaiting for the new queen so she can be near her brothers in the Tower of London and help them escape, When she runs into Sir Henry, the guard captain who arrested her brothers, she hates himuntil she discovers he has been secretly carrying food to her brothers in their prison cell.
Trapped into obeying the orders of his king, Sir Geoffrey is the oldest son of an earl whose estate has been seized by the king and his treacherous advisers.
His first mission as captain was to arrest seven brothers for treason, but he had no idea that the brothers were so young or that their sister would be so feisty and beautiful.
In a court where everyone is eager to backstab anyone else to get what they want, how will Geoffrey right this wrong and help Delia and her brothersespecially when Delia hates him And how will he keep them both from losing their heads to this executionprone king
This is the story of Delia, who's the middle sister of seven brothers.
After her father dies, her stepmother wants all the power for herself and her own child, and the brothers are accused of treason and taken as prisoners,
After her brothers are taken to London, she follows them and takes a position as a servant, in order to be close to them and to help them escape when they're sentenced to death.
Geoffrey is the captain of the guard who comes to arrest the brothers and he soon realizes that they are innocent and eventually helps them and Delia,
Despite its length, I think this book is intended for a MG/YA audience, I found the writing lacking a certain depth that I usually appreciate in historical novels, Nonetheless, it kept my interest until the end,
I received a copy from the publisher via NetGalley and this is my honest opinion, Just two weeks after Delias father, the Earl of Dericott, dies under questionable circumstances, her seven brothers are falsely accused of treason against the king and taken away to The Tower of London.
Their only hope to live is that Delia will be able to prove her brothers innocence before they are executed, . . but in order to do that, she may need the help of the captain who arrested her brothers in the first place, But can she trust him
I knew nothing about the fairytale this book is based on, “The Wild Swans”, so I went into this story not knowing what to expect.
. . except for the expectation of liking it because its Melanie Dickerson, And Im so happy to say, I did!
The story gets to the action at the very beginning which I really liked, I was drawn in only a few pages in and had a hard time putting it down after that,
There were a lot of characters in here as you can imagine since there are seven brothers, Ill start off by saying, I loved the brothers and I cannot wait to get their stories!! I get excited just thinking about it, Since this story is about Delia, their sister, there wasnt a whole lot of characterization given to them so that makes me even more excited to get to know them in the coming books!
Delia was a great main character.
She was seriously determined and didnt give up, Her love for her brothers and their love for her was so sweet, I loved it!
Geoffrey was a pretty great character too, Hes conflicted by what his duty as a knight of the king is and what he is knows in his heart is right, His desire to do right and do as God would have him do was really admirable and thats what made him a great hero,
Besides our main characters, the bad guys were definitely easy to dislike, I was so cautious of everyone Delia came in contact with that I was giving her serious talks in my head not to trust anyone,
The plot was fastpaced and kept my interest the entire time, Since everything seemed impossibly doomed, I had no idea how things were ever going to make it out alive, Needless to say, the suspense in here was great and kept me turning the pages,
The faith content in here was something I loved a lot, I love how Delia and Geoffrey pray and put their trust in God, even when they cant understand why things are happening as they are,
The romance was completely sweet and clean, nothing but a kiss, I appreciate that so much!
In the end, I really enjoyed this book, It had a lot of suspense, a sweet romance, and a plenty of action, Im beyond excited for the rest of this series, especially Edwins story in the next book!,