3.5 stars


"Bring me to their cherished Rose
And bring this chapter to a close.
By smoke, by fire, and by night,
Touch the spindle I shall ignite.
Sleep will come to their fair Rose,
Forever trapped in her repose."
~ [b:Mistress of All Evil: A Tale of the Dark Fairy|34220302|Mistress of All Evil A Tale of the Dark Fairy (Villains #4)|Serena Valentino|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1495803202l/34220302._SX50_.jpg|55271944]





While reading the other books in the Villains series I occasionally felt empathy for the villains. All of their backstories are tragic, especially Ursula's. However, I related to Maleficient the most. Her backstory reads like a feminist parable. Maleficient's only crime (initially) is that she's not fulfilling society's beauty standards. I credit Serena Valentino's writing because I wanted to pick a fight with the three Good Fairies by the end of this book. Honestly, they were the true villains of this story! I have no hard feelings toward Maleficient. All her *evil* deeds had a solid reason behind them. If anything, this novel has endeared me towards her as a character.





I was desperately hoping that Aurora would get a chance to use her powers! It was a disappointment when that storyline was scrapped. I understand that Aurora needed to be protected from herself, but by erasing her powers that she never got a chance to experience, it read like a part of her soul was being stolen from her. I don't have any critiques except that I wish the novel was longer and I thought Maleficent and Aurora deserved a confrontation. So many new characters, worldbuilding, and plot points were introduced in this book. I spent all my reading time trying to untangle the knotted web. I wish the novel were longer so that I could make sense of all the characters.