Aaaaaand the novellas in this series continue to be superior to the novels

tbh its pretty impressive that wilde managed to write a character whose every (and i mean every) opinion is wrong

EDIT 11/20: okay, okay. this book stuck with me in a way i wouldn't have expected so here we are for another read and i have some different opinions. yes, nick was obnoxious, yes i originally thought this book was doing something wrong in having his issues be more cruel than naomi's but upon reflection i feel like that's actually something really interesting about this book. i'm absolutely not defending it, but naomi was making him unhappy which made him act shittily, and that feels real in a way that makes the payoff of this book that much better.

I initially picked this up from the library because I'd been told over and over how funny it was.

I got to reading and about 50 pages in I just Could Not understand the hype, but then finally, very abruptly the tone shifted, and I started loving the story. Naomi and Nick were just so funny and adorable and this was so close to being a five star read except except except.

Naomi's crimes, according to Nick, were that she didn't love him anymore and that she was distancing herself from him. Nick, on the other hand, was a certified asshole who made numerous sexist comments and clearly expected Naomi to be a good housewife. He was holding a grudge for passing up a job opportunity because Naomi didn't want to leave her job (as if the "sides" here aren't exactly the same) and he was an unforgivable dick to Naomi's friends.

It irked me that this was seen as a relationship that was failing equally because of both of them and that Nick's assholeness was never really addressed at all, although he did change by the end.

I just keep coming back to Talia Hibbert for whatever reason and I am not mad about it

EDIT 11/20: wow I’m proud of early me being “bored with tamlin” because rereading this was genuinely kind of painful JFC

Yeah uh...I devoured this. It was, for me, a ton better than TOG (although probably not surprising since Maas has obviously grown as an author since her debut). I was never bored, and although I’m kind of bored with Tamlin, I really enjoyed the book overall.

Y'all this book is the feminist dystopia I've wanted for ages.

There's a hole in my heart, a [b:The Grace Year|43263520|The Grace Year|Kim Liggett|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1548518877l/43263520._SY75_.jpg|53547141] shaped hole, that stems from wanting a YA dystopian novel about a girl who dismantles a deeply misogynist society with heroics and swordfighting, and failing so abysmally to find it thus far. People of the internet, that hole has been filled.

Cinderella is Dead follows Sophia, a girl born into a post-Cinderella nightmare, in which Prince Charming transformed the country into a misogynist's fantasy. She is forced to attend the annual ball, where a man may claim her as his bride. If a girl is not engaged after three years, her life is forfeit. Rather than allow herself to be claimed by an abusive bully, Sophia flees the ball and encounters Constance, a descendent of one of Cinderella's step-sisters, and the last remaining guardian of the true Cinderella story. Together, the two seek out the truth about Cinderella and their country, and fight for the freedom of all who live there.

It is admittedly true that the book industry is slowly diversifying, but that doesn't mean that this story of a black lesbian saving the world from an entitled white man isn't 100% necessary and 100% appreciated by this reviewer.

I'm a sucker for retellings, so I loved that Bayron managed to write a truly unique retelling that provides commentary on modern issues while still retaining the magic of the original story. Yes, Sophia gets a magical gown that disappears at midnight, and yes, she kicks ass in it. The action was exciting, and Sophia was such a fun, strong, lovable heroine.

I really only have one complaint about this book, and that is the romance. Sophia and Constance spend very little time getting to know each other, and while they are both really fun characters, I honestly didn't feel like there was much development for their relationship. That would have been fine -- there were about a million other things going on -- but it was very instalovey and honestly I kind of wished Bayron had focused on the main plot, and left the romance at its beginning, as a step towards a hopeful future.

Nonetheless, I could not recommend this book more. And was Bayron teasing us with the hint of other stories in the same world? Because I feel like I caught a whiff of a Snow White retelling coming next, but who knows.

ARC provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.