Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister by Gregory Maguire takes the story of Cinderella and tells it from one of the stepsister's point of view. Everyone knows the story of Cinderella so, in a sense, I already knew how the story would end but I found it entertaining to delve into the motivations of the characters. What made the evil stepmother evil? How ugly were the stepsisters? How did Cinderella end up in the ashes.
There's no fairy godmother in this story. No mice and birds to help the girl get to the ball. It's historical fiction, set in Holland, and trying to stay as close to the story as possible. I liked Iris, the ugly stepsister, and I wanted her to end up with her "happily ever after".
The only complaint I have is that it's written in present tense. Novels that do that always confuse me a little. It doesn't have the sense of immediacy that I expect it's supposed to have. In third person present form it doesn't flow very well for me.
I'm giving it a 4.
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