Genre: Fantasy/fairytale retelling
Length: 300+ pages
General Setup: Aza is a girl with a beautiful voice, but a not so beautiful face in a kingdom where both are highly valued. She grows up as an innkeeper's daughter, but life soon changes when, through a chance happening she attends the King's wedding and is blackmailed into becoming the new queen's lady in waiting.
Characters: The book is told through Aza's limited perspective. The characters are well fleshed out, but some intrigue is kept - sometimes I wonder what other characters are thinking. I liked (and also hated) the main antagonist. The author does a good job of making you hate them, but also feel sorry for them because they have to live with themselves.
Plot: The book is based loosely on the tale of Snow White, although the world and culture are entirely the author's. I say based loosely, because while all the main characters of the story are present (a girl with raven hair and red lips, a queen, a magic mirror, a prince, a huntsman, and dwarves, or in our case gnomes) the story of the book less follows the plot of Snow White and more incorporates it's elements while adding other devices and structures to tell a unique story. One of the elements the book relies on to set itself apart are the songs written in the book (no music, just lyrics). These add to the world building and help the reader to imagine the setting the author is working to create. One of the main themes of Fairest is how it touches upon body image and beauty standards.
Ending: The ending of Fairest ties the book up pretty well. I appreciated the small, but adequate glimpse into the future the epilogue gives the reader. Not everything is divulged, be we get enough to get a picture of what will happen. The falling action of the book itself had a few sudden events that I was not expecting, but I have nothing to complain about.
Other Media: Gail Carson Levine has written many other fairytale-esque books (even a book on how to write books!). All of them are worth checking out, especially "Ella Enchanted," a companion book to "Fairest."
Similar Books: If you are interested in fairytale retellings where the heroine defies society's standards, check out "Golden" by Cameron Dokey. It is a retelling of Rapunzel, expect Rapunzel has alopecia and no hair!
