Book Review - Ella - Jessilyn Stewart Peaslee

I have a weakness for a few things.  String cheese (with a dairy allergy on top). Chocolate. Cupcakes. Yarn. Books.

Books.

More books.

My particular guilty pleasures are romance novels and retold fairy tales.  How many different ways can Beauty and the Beast be retold? How many endings does the original Sleeping Beauty have? (I've found 4!) Does Cinderella ever get her Prince?

Ella by Jessilyn (love the name, btw) Stewart Peaslee caught my attention with its stunning cover and enticing blurb. 

Dare I let it jump ahead of my book review reading list?

I'm only posting them on Tuesdays so... I can probably write more than one a week and get a back log going. 

So, while suffering from a sinus infection brought on by West Tennessee tree pollen - pesky Bradford Pear Trees - and too many string cheese sticks I'm going to pick comfort over adventure. 

Let's see how it goes.

 ______
 

The Prologue nearly brought me to tears. I only say nearly because I took a few pauses while reading it.  (Crying would only exacerbate my headache.)

But the opening lines of Chapter One hooked me.  "Once upon a time, I lived.  Now, I survived."  

In every Cinderella retelling you can expect a few things.  

The traditional Cinderella Tropes - A glass slipper and a pretty dress, a Step-mother, Step-siblings (normally step-sisters), and the orphaned Cinderella who has a variety of names (Ella, Eleanor, Elle, etc). 

Then the variations - Does she end up with the Prince or somebody else?  Is there a nice person among the Steps?  How does Cinderella get the dress and shoes?  Who is the kindly fairy godparent-esque character?  

A few of those variation questions are answered in the prologue.  The dress and shoes are a present from her father and originally belonged to her mother.  I have no problem revealing that information because it's at the beginning of the book.  Anybody who has read my previous reviews gets that I try to be as spoiler-free as possible.  

The thing about Ella is that yes, there are many cliches that are used in the story, but those are also necessary for the story.  

I get the feeling that this story is more about learning to love yourself despite your circumstances.  Ella doesn't see herself clearly despite everybody else being capable of it.  Her best friend becomes jealous because she knows that Ella is beautiful behind the dirt and grim.  Will, her closest friend, eventually insists on her going to the ball because he thinks she deserves more than she currently has.  Her Step-mother and sisters are jealous and force her into servitude to weaken her.  

How does this Ella remain strong?  A death bed promise to take care of the Step-mother and sisters from her father.  She also loves her house and the history behind it.  She might not have much in way of food and clothes, but she has her house.  

This reminded me of Danielle in Ever After honestly.  Once Ella lost the last thing belonging to her father, all she had left was the carefully hidden dress, glass slippers, and the house. 

 Does Ella get it all back?  Does she get the best Happily Ever After she can possibly have when she had to choose between the Prince and Will? What happens to the Steps?  

Watch carefully for the way Peaslee describes things including the house and the way everybody interacts with each other.  The scene in church was the best description of how one Princely Announcement can change people.