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The Night of the Hunter (1955)
The Night of the Hunter (1955)
1955 | Drama, Mystery
9.0 (5 Ratings)
Movie Favorite

"Again, another adult fairytale, and like Eyes Without a Face, a one-off. It is a loss to cinema that Charles Laughton never got another chance to direct a film. The Night of the Hunter shows such a willingness to do things in his own highly stylized and theatrical manner, I can’t imagine where he could have gone from there. Still, if you’re going to make one film, it might as well be as unforgettable as this."

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The Sisters Grimm
The Sisters Grimm
Menna van Praag | 2020 | Science Fiction/Fantasy, Young Adult (YA)
10
8.5 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
The Sisters Grimm sounds like it’s going to be a fairytale, doesn’t it? But it isn’t in the childish sense of the word. If you’ve ever read any of the original Grimm’s fairytales, they’re rather more macabre - and people don’t always get their happy endings.

Sisters Grimm don’t actually know that that’s what they are. They may have vague memories (pre-puberty - and this is important) of playing in a fairytale wood, where they can do magical, amazing things, but they put it down to dreams later. That is until they approach their 18th birthdays, and some of these dream-like abilities start to manifest themselves.

This story is based around four girls who first met at 8 years old in the fairytale dream-world, Everwhere, forget one another after their 13th birthdays, and begin to remember closer to their impending 18th birthdays. They all have a different mother, but the same father who they will meet in Everwhere on the evening of their birthday. And it’s really important that they find one another again prior to this confrontation - where they will discover the truth about themselves.

I really enjoyed this. It says on Goodreads that it’s a Young Adult novel, and whilst it’s immaterial whether I agree with this or not, I do agree that it’s about reaching an age where you are finding out more about yourself and your impending independence, and that can’t be a bad thing for young people to read about.

I liked the darkness in this book - it’s no twee fairytale. There’s death, murder in fact, as a pretty major theme. And people aren’t necessarily nice. They lie, they’re selfish and they keep secrets that are best known.

The only negative I can think of, is that I really thought that this was going to be set up for the first part of a series. The end seemed quite rushed to me, and I’d love to know more about what happens afterwards. Well, that’s not really a negative, is it? That’ll be why I gave it top marks, to be honest - it’s a great book!

Many thanks to The Pigeonhole for serialising this book - another great choice!
  
It Only Happens in the Movies
It Only Happens in the Movies
Holly Bourne | 2017 | Young Adult (YA)
10
9.0 (5 Ratings)
Book Rating
Yes, yes, yes, yes and a million times, YES!!!

I never knew I needed this book so much. I love YA romances because of how they almost always have a happy ending and are a fairytale romance. Even though I love them though, I can still see that it is not a realistic idea.

It Only Happens In The Movies follows Audrey Winters. She chooses to study how unrealistic romance films are for her Media project, whilst at the same time meeting the bad-boy-turned-good stereotype and falling into her own romance movies.

I loved that nothing was sugar-coated. I wanted Audrey and Harry to last while at the same time I chewed Audrey on every time she stood up for what she believed in.

Out of the whole book, the last chapter was the best, but I can’t say anything about that without giving out spoilers.

I love that the whole book just points out that fairytale romances don’t happen in real life, and it shows that love changes over time.
  
The Shape of Water  (2017)
The Shape of Water (2017)
2017 | Drama, Fantasy
Beautiful Imagery (2 more)
Gorgeous Storyline
Adorable Characters
A Different Kind of Love Story
Just like Pan's Labrynth this is a gorgeous fairytale with a whole new twist. I enjoyed the magical layers and depth that went into this film. Although I know many found it slow in comparison to Pan's Labrynth, however this film was not meant to be an extension of his previous masterpiece, rather it's meant to be a masterpiece all on its own. Personally, I believe it's accomplished just this.
  
Geekerella (Once Upon a Con #1)
Geekerella (Once Upon a Con #1)
Ashley Poston | 2017 | Contemporary, Romance, Young Adult (YA)
10
7.8 (11 Ratings)
Book Rating
When I heard of this book, I screamed: fairytale retellings, fandom culture, and cute romances, all in one??? Sign me the FUCK up. This book was incredible, and so, so, so sweet. It's a cute slowburn, a bit of anger, a lot of humor. A lovely, well-written story that I truly really love. The characters are sweet and relatable, and you tend to understand some of their struggles. I loved this book so, so much, and honestly? You guys should too.
  
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EmersonRose (320 KP) rated Entwined in Books

Nov 20, 2019  
Entwined
Entwined
8
8.0 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
I was very pleasantly surprised by this book. When I started it I was afraid that it was going to be like every fairytale about a princess. Dead mother, absent father, unwanted suitor, magic, the clearly right boy choice. But As I read I found myself enraptured by the main character and her relationship with her sisters. The story was fun and had some unique twists. I found this to be a great, light read that just made me happy.
  
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Ashleigh (4 KP) rated Jane Eyre in Books

Oct 8, 2018  
Jane Eyre
Jane Eyre
Charlotte Brontë, Stevie Davies | 2006 | Fiction & Poetry
9
8.2 (58 Ratings)
Book Rating
Two very strong leads (0 more)
Too wordy and tends to drag (0 more)
A beautiful masterpiece
Jane Eyre is a masterpiece because of its Gothic fairytale feel in the atmosphere of Thornfield and its strong, complex characters including the quiet, independent Jane and Rochester who was dark and moody yet longing for companionship. Even though I give it A+ it tends to be wordy and drag at the end espically the scenes with St. John Rivers. Despite all that Jane Eyre is a beautiful complex story worth reading.