I think most know the classic Brothers Grimm fairy tale of Rapunzel.
The child sold to a witch for a handful of bitter greens who grows up to be the beautiful girl in the world with long golden hair.
Destine to live in a tower forever, a prince rides by and hears a voice and is enchanted by her.
He learns how to get to her by climbing up her hair and ultimately rescues her for the witch and the tower and they live happily ever after.
Sound familiar? But what of the original fairy tale by Charlotte-Rose de Caumont de La Force that was published in 1698?
In Kate Forsyth’s book Bitter Greens, Charlotte-Rose de Caumont de La Force is one of the main characters and we see how her story could have potentially come together.
This book has been on my radar for the better part of a year when I saw its release in Australia. Rapunzel is one of my favorite fairy tales and princesses so as you can imagine, I was super excited to read this retelling of her tale.
Forsyth’s book follows the story of Charlotte-Rose as well as the other characters in the fairy tale, Rapunzel and the witch, so essentially there are three different stories happening in the book.
The first POV in the book (Charlotte-Rose’s story), was a little slow to begin with, but it was obviously necessary to set the stage for this wonderfully charming book!
Charlotte-Rose was banished from the court of King Louis XIV and sent to a convent to live out her days as a nun while retaining her stipend, rather than live exiled and poor in England. She quickly decided that living broke in a foreign country would be infinitely better than living at the convent!
Soon she befriends a a nun who works in the gardens and as they work, the nun tells her the story of a young girl who was sold by her parents for a handful of bitter greens to a witch in Venice.
The witch baths in the blood of young virgins to maintain her youth and beauty, and though we shouldn’t care about her story, Forsyth weaves it in to the narrative with the story of Margherita, the girl who would become the witch Selena.
This story was magical! I loved how Forsyth sprinkled magic and witchcraft throughout the story. It wasn’t the focal point of the story though which I loved. It added to the novel and the characters, rather than stealing the spotlight on its own.
The characters were complex and imaginative and their stories were richly developed and intriguing. Each time the story switched back to another main character I was equally excited and disappointed because I wanted to know what happened next.
I was absolutely in love with Margherita/Selena…..even though she was the villain, I admired her story and her strength in the face of absolute adversity. She never gave up and was relentless….she did what she had to do to survive and I couldn’t help but love her for it.
While the focus was mainly on the women in the novel, there were wonderfully sensual love stories and love scenes that made the reader fall in love right along with the heroines!
This book was a total treat for me to read. It was colorful, bewitching, magical, sensual, and engaging! I actually didn’t read it as fast as I anticipated mostly because I wanted to savor every page! It surpassed my expectations in every way: the characters, the story, the romance, the magic…..all if it!
I haven’t read any of Forsyth’s other books or series, but I tell you what….after reading Bitter Greens I went out and bought the first book in her The Witches of Eileanan series because I was so in love with her narrative style.
Wonderful fairy tale re-telling that will take your breath away!
I reviewed this book as part of the BITTER GREENS virtual book tour hosted by Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours. Be sure to visit the other blog stops on the tour for interviews and giveaways!
Challenge/Book Summary:
Book: Bitter Greens by Kate Forsyth
-
Hardcover, 496 pagesExpected publication: September 23rd 2014 by Thomas Dunne Books
- Review copy provided by: Publisher as part of the HFVBT book tour in exchange for an honest review
This book counts toward: NA
- Hosted by: NA
- Books for Challenge Completed: NA
Recommendation: 5 out of 5
Genre: Fantasy, historic fiction, romance, witch lit, fairy tale re-tellings
Memorable lines/quotes:
Time heals what reason cannot.
Tears undermine your strength the way the sea washed away a sand castle.
Bitter Greens Blog Tour Schedule
Monday, September 15
Guest Post & Giveaway at Passages to the Past
Tuesday, September 16
Review at Kinx’s Book Nook
Review & Giveaway at Bookish
Wednesday, September 17
Review & Giveaway at Literary, etc
Review & Giveaway at Book Drunkard
Thursday, September 18
Review & Giveaway at The Eclectic Reader
Friday, September 19
Review at The Maiden’s Court
Review & Giveaway at Icey Books
Monday, September 22
Review & Giveaway at Luxury Reading
Review, Excerpt, & Giveaway at A Dream Within a Dream
Spotlight at Flashlight Commentary
Tuesday, September 23
Review at Book Dilettante
Review & Giveaway at Build a Bookshelf
Review, Excerpt, & Giveaway at SurLaLune
Wednesday, September 24
Review at Caroline Wilson Writes
Review, Interview, and Giveaway at Ink Gypsy
Review, Interview, and Giveaway at The Lit Bitch
Thursday, September 25
Review & Giveaway at No BS Book Reviews
Interview & Giveaway at Just One More Chapter
Friday, September 26
Review at The Gilmore Guide to Books
Review at Must Read Faster
Monday, September 29
Review at Book Lovers Paradise
Review & Giveaway at Bookworm Blues
Tuesday, September 30
Review at The Life & Times of a Book Addict
Review & Excerpt at Books-n-Kisses
Review & Giveaway at Broken Teepee
Wednesday, October 1
Review at One Book at a Time
Review at Book-alicious Mama
Review & Giveaway at Mina’s Bookshelf
Review & Giveaway at Let Them Read Books
Thursday, October 2
Interview at Layered Pages
Review & Giveaway at Oh Magic Hour
Friday, October 3
Review at Bibliophilia, Please
Review & Giveaway at Gone Pecan
Review & Giveaway at Words and Peace
Sunday, October 5
Review at Carole’s Ramblings
Monday, October 6
Review at Book Babe
Review at A Bibliotaph’s Reviews
Interview, Excerpt, & Giveaway at Harlequin Junkie
Tuesday, October 7
Review at A Chick Who Reads
Review & Giveaway at The Pretty Good Gatsby
Wednesday, October 8
Review at So Many Books, So Little Time
Review & Giveaway at My Friends Are Fiction
Thursday, October 9
Review at Jorie Loves a Story
Friday, October 10
Review at Mel’s Shelves
Review & Giveaway at No More Grumpy Bookseller
Interview at Jorie Loves a Story
Monday, October 13
Review at 100 Pages a Day – Stephanie’s Book Reviews
Review & Giveaway at Layers of Thought
Tuesday, October 14
Review & Giveaway at Beth’s Book Reviews
Wednesday, October 15
Review at Crossroad Review
Review at My Tangled Skeins Book Reviews
Thursday, October 16
Review at Cheryl’s Book Nook
Review at CelticLady’s Reviews
Friday, October 17
Review at Mary Gramlich
Review at She Reads Novels
Monday, October 20
Interview & Giveaway at The Reading Frenzy
The Lit Bitch 
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