Alyssa F. (rainstormdragon) reviewed on 10/2/2009 + 7 more book reviews

I enjoyed Wicked and Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister, but I didn't enjoy this one at all. Though the Borgias were fascinating historical figures, Maguire's portrayal of them disappointed me. Instead of highlighting the humanity of the 'villains' as he usually did, he went with the classic stereotypes of them- Lucrezia Borgia, an incredibly powerful and intelligent woman in history, was turned into the beauty-obsessed stepmother and the image of the incestuous murderer that her family's political opponents painted her as was faithfully adhered to. Bianca's father was also two-dimensional, the typical good father come on hard times and/or betrayed, and Bianca was scarcely memorable, ridiculously naive but without the appeal as a character to make it endearing. She seemed more creepy and stupid than anything.

His concept of the dwarves- dark, ancient, inhuman spirits of the earth- intrigued me, but they had very peripheral roles and stayed pretty enigmatic throughout. The characters who were the most alive and appealing to me were the servants at the keep. I'd say that this book is worth reading in the bookstore or borrowing from a friend, but not worth actually buying.

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