Rapunzel Untangled by Cindy Bennett

* * 1/2


Rapunzel is not your average teenager. 

For one thing, she has a serious illness that keeps her inside the mysterious Gothel Mansion. And for another, her hair is 15 feet long. Not to mention that she’s also the key to ultimately saving the world from certain destruction. But then she meets a boy named Fane, who changes all she has ever known, and she decides to risk everything familiar to find out who she really is. 

Filled with romance, adventure, and mystery, Rapunzel Untangled is one story you won’t want to put down. Discover the true meaning of love and friendship in this modern twist to the classic fairytale.







Review:

I had read Cindy Bennett’s Geek Girl when it came out and I really enjoyed it.  So much so that is was in my Top Ten of 2011.  So when we received a request to read and review her new novel, Rapunzel Untangled, I jumped at the chance.

Fairytale retellings are hit or miss for me.  Even though I had read a book by this author before, Rapunzel Untangled is such a different type of story from Geek Girl that I wasn’t sure what to expect.

The story started out interestingly enough.  We read from Gothel’s point of view when she first sees Rapunzel and decides that the baby with the long beautiful hair must be hers.  It was creepy enough to me.  Probably because I am a mother and just the thought of someone taking my children makes me absolutely sick to my stomach.

After that, the story is told in Rapunzel’s point of view.  I felt like Rapunzel was not socially awkward enough for someone that has only had communication with one person and that has never seen the outside world.  Sure, there were moments where she was confused by phrases, words and ideas.  But I guess I expected more awkwardness to go along with that ignorance and innocence.  I think maybe I was a little spoiled by the book Room by Emma Donoghue.  Her depiction of someone growing up isolated was done with such intensity and thoroughness that my expectations are pretty high.

Then there was Fane.  He was likeable enough.  He was kind of a tool but nice.  And he had good intentions.  The problem I had was the romance.  Boy saves the girl scenarios don’t usually bother me too much.  They aren’t my favorite but at the same time I can separate the fantasy from the reality enough to enjoy it.  But the story of Rapunzel?  A girl locked in a tower who then falls in love with the first person she ever meets?    It just seems so predatory of the hero.  This isn’t Cindy Bennett’s fault.  This is a problem I have with the story of Rapunzel.  The romance is just as creepy as the girl being held hostage.   I think I would really like to read a retelling of Rapunzel where another girl saves the girl in the tower and they become life long friends.  

The middle of this book was great.  When Rapunzel and Fane started exploring the house things began to happen.  There was plenty of suspense and mystery.  It was pretty dark.  But then how could it not when a girl has been kidnapped and kept locked in a tower by a crazy person?  This was the strong part of the story and I really enjoyed it.  So much that I hated to put it down.  I felt that the ending played out a little too easy and was a little too romantic - see my above noted issues with the Rapunzel romance - but it fit well with the rest of the story.

All in all, if you enjoy the story of Rapunzel you will probably enjoy Rapunzel Untangled.

Thank you to Cindy Bennett and Sweetwater (imprint of Cedar Fort Publishing) for giving us the opportunity to read and review this story.

Nat

Geek Girl* by Cindy Bennett

* * * *

“Think I can turn that boy bad?”

High school junior Jen inadvertently turns her life upside down when, out of boredom, she makes a bet that she can turn school geek Trevor into someone bad, someone like her. His complete opposite in every way, the sarcastic goth-girl tries pulling him into her world of partying. Instead she finds herself sucked into Trevor’s world of sci-fi movies, charity work and even – ugh! – bowling.

If that weren’t bad enough, she desperately wants to become a permanent part of the foster family she currently lives with, even if it means having a cheerleader for a sister. What’s up with that?

But Jen must come to terms with her past, including her now-dead abusive father and her imprisoned mother. Jen’s journey will lead her to discover the true meaning of friendship. family, forgiveness, and above all, love.

Jennifer Jones is the stereotypical Goth girl. Funky dark hair, dark clothing adorned with leather and chains, and dark over the top makeup. Trevor Hoffman is a geek. A somewhat popular boy with buttoned to the top shirts and perfect posture and manners. Jen decides it will be fun to bring Trevor down to her level and makes a bet with her friends that she can do just that. And boy, are the stakes high - sense my sarcasm here? Can’t tell you what the bet is, you will find out in the first few pages of reading this (and you will read it because I loved it and I told you it’s a good idea) what she gets for bringing this good boy down and you will be disgusted and annoyed. But not everything works the way we think it will and Jen finds herself being sucked in by Trevor’s kindness. And *gasp* finds herself desiring the things that she never thought someone like her deserved.

Thanks to abuse she experienced as a child and the life she subsequently was forced into, Jen has extremely low self esteem. She has no idea of how much she has to offer and how much those around her love her. According to her, any attention given to her must come at a price. So, as you may have guessed, the boy saves the girl. Not necessarily a favorite theme by some people, but trust me, you will love it in this book. The boy doesn’t save the girl in the conventional Prince Charming way. The boy saves her simply by being kind. His attitude rubs off on her over an extended period of time (there is no falling in love after 5 seconds – it takes time with these two very different people). Making her realize that maybe there are people out there that do love her and maybe, just maybe, that love doesn’t come at a price.

Another refreshing message in this story is that being loved by a boy doesn’t solve all of life’s problems. I know, I know. I just said the boy saves the girl. And he does. But there are some things only we can do for ourselves and Jen has to learn to love herself and not depend on someone else’s feelings about her to determine her self-worth.

Now this book is really about Jen and then Jen and Trevor. And what do I have to say about Trevor Hoffman? All I can say is move over Peeta Mellark! If you know how much I LOVE Peeta, you will be thoroughly shocked to read this. Shel and Bel often laugh at me and my love of the “good” boy. Seriously, I am IN LOVE with “good” boys; or as I like to call them, “Forever” boys. You know. The boy you actually WANT to bring home to meet the parents. The boy that gives you the warm fuzzies when you think of him and forever in the same thought. Or better yet, the boy that you look at and think, “I will be okay if my daughter decides to bring him home.” Yep, that’s Trevor Hoffman. Love him, love him, love him. I enjoy it when authors aren’t afraid to create a “perfect” or “perfectly nice” love interest. Don’t get me wrong. I love the bad boys too. But bad boys are temporary and let’s face it…I’m not a temporary sort of girl.

And before I end this review I have to tell you all that I loved the “geek” aspect of this book as well because as you may be able to guess, I was and still am a geek at heart. AND I continue to explore my inner geek because as you should know….Geek is cool. At least this thirty-something likes to think so. The numerous Sci-Fi references in this book made me laugh. If anyone out there has seriously named their kid Adama, I want to shake their hand. And the Mork and Mindy reference? Totally embarrassing and awesome all at the same time. There are a ton of geek references to enjoy in this book but not so much that it will turn off the non-geek.

Read this book. It is a great story that I will be recommending it to my YA loving friends – both young and old.

~ Nat

* Geek Girl is a novel that was independently published. It has been picked up by, Sweetwater, an imprint of Cedar Fort Publishing and will be released December 8, 2011. I was able to snag the ARC of Geek Girl via Netgalley.