An excellent and original fantasy novel, based on the Twelve Dancing Princesses and the Princess and the Frog with a little vampire lore thrown in. Set in medieval Transylvania , five sisters are able to pass through a portal on the night of the every full moon to the kingdom of the fey, where they dance the night away with a variety of magical beings. The eldest sister, the beauty of the family, falls in love with a creature who appears to belong to the Night World, the dark side of the fey.

The main character, Jenica is the second eldest sister, the practical one. She has a pet frog that she found years ago in the forest and keeps him with her always. Of course this frog is more than he seems. The sisters are left on their own one winter as their merchant father falls ill and leaves for a milder climate. Their cousin, Cezar wastes no time in taking over their lives and they come to realize they are under the thumb of a overbearing, power-hungry man.

With her cousin in control of her life and home, and her beautiful elder sister under the sway of a Night Creature, Jenica stuggles to find a way to free herself and her sisters and find the right balance between the two worlds.

Wildwood Dancing has adventure, romance and mystery. The author was able to make these fairy tales new and fresh. Like all good fairy tales there is definitely a moral involved, this one is about making the right choices in life.

Fantasy is a newer genre for me, but after reading this book I will be looking for more, expecially by this author. ( )

I really enjoyed this retelling of 12 dancing princesses. I loved the use of Romanian names and words throughout. The imagery was beautiful and though the foreshadowing was obvious in some places, it was less so in others. ( )

This is a retelling of the Twelve Dancing Princesses, where a group of sisters discover a passageway to another world that only opens once a month. ( )

Jena and her 4 sisters have a secret. Every full moon, they find a portal into the Other World and dance the night away. But things are changing. Their father must leave their home and spend the winter away for his health. He leaves the castle in the care of Jena and her older sister Tati, and reminds them to ask their uncle for any help they need. But after he leaves, their uncle is killed in a hunting accident and their cousin Cezar takes over. And wow, does he take over. Suddenly the girls have little control over anything, because Cezar knows best.

Add to this the twist that Tati falls in love with one of the other visitors to the Other World, one who hangs around with a suspicious crowd. Vampires, anyone? Jena's own companion, a frog, starts acting differently too. It seems like just when things can't get any worse for the family, they do.

I really enjoyed this book. It's a mix of vampire folklore (it's set in Romania), the 12 Dancing Princesses and The Frog Prince, but it works surprisingly well. I really liked Jena, despite her flaws, and I loved the ending. Then I found out there's a sequel, Cybele's Secret, which might not be out yet. This one was a lot of fun. ( )

I thought it would be fitting that my first review feature my favorite author. Words cannot justly express just how much I adore Juliet Marillier. I was first introduced to her when I found her Sevenwaters trilogy at a used bookstore. I fell in love. Never have I been so emotionally attached to characters in a novel. When I discovered she was to write a young adult novel I was beyond elated.

Wildwood Dancing has everything I love in a novel: strong characters, romance, magic, adventure, and is rich with detail. The world that Marillier creates is so richly woven that I became more lost within it with every page I turned. Her characters and plot are so completely engrossing that I stayed up well past midnight in order to find out what happened next, full of suspicions and making guesses, eager to see if I was right. This was a book that had my heart pounding in some places, and tears streaming in others.

In the end, I was happy with the story but sad to see the characters go. I wanted more. Finishing a Marillier novel is like parting with very dear friends, or leaving home.

Please read this novel! I would love to hear your thoughts and opinions. ( )

Not as utterly engrossing as the Sevenwaters Trilogy, and yet, I find myself sufficiently involved to keep on, rather than setting it aside. Kim Mai Guest does a lovely job as the reader. ( )

rather scary but all in all an awesome book ( )

It's been long enough since I read this that I don't remember the details - only that I liked it. I know that's not very helpful, but if the main thing that sticks in my mind is that its a good book, that must counts for alot (especially when you take into consideration that fact that I can't recall the titles of most of the books I read without looking at my book journal). ( )

Fantasy that begins with the story of the dancing princesses and moves off into a story of relationships, trust and coming of age. Well written, captured my interest right from the start and I couldn't put it down. ( )

This is a wonderful take on the "12 Princesses Dancing" fairy tale with a little "Frog Prince" thrown in for good measure. It is a great story with real people who are easy to like. ( )

Jenica and her four sisters live in Transylvania in a crumbling castle known as Piscul Dracului. Their father is a merchant, but must leave for the winter to a warmer climate to recuperate. As they have for years at every Full Moon, Jenica and her sisters pass through a portal to the Other Kingdom, an enchanted world where they dance all night. But with father gone, their first cousin Cezar starts to wield control of their finances and their lives. He fears the creatures of the Wildwood and threatens to chop down all the forests. It does not help that Tati has fallen in love with one of the Night Creatures, or is he, and becoming thinner and more withdrawn by the day. And then there's the frog, Gogu, Jenica's best friend and confidante. ( )

http://www.lonelymountain.net/books/m... ( )

The enchanting story of five young sisters (Tatiana, Jenica, Iulia, Paula and Stela) living in Transylvania. Jena tells the story of how after a game played as a child with drastic consequences, her and her sisters can access a portal into the wildwood in the Other Kingdom. The portal can only be opened by all five sisters (four before Stela was born who isnow five) using their hands to cast a shadow on a certain portion of the wall on the night of the Full Moon. Once on the other side they attend dances with the Queen and King of the Faeries. Jena always takes her best friend, frog Gogu who is more than a regular frog and can communicate mentally with her alone, on their adventures.

When their father becomes ill and has to leave to look for a cure, Tati and Jena are left in charge of the household finances and business. Their cousin Cezar has other ideas when he sudden/ly becomes head of his household. He is of the opinion that woman are second to men and stops Paula from continuing with her studies and takes responsibility away from Jena. His mission is to destroy the wildwood after his older brother Costi was drowned there as a child by the witch Draguta. To make matters even worse for the sisters, the Night People are visiting the faerie folk and one of them is bewitching Tati, changing her and causing her to fall ill.

A lovely tale, the first in a new trilogy (book two is out, Cybele's Secret but book three looks a way off yet) by this writer who says her books are "historical fantasy". I didn't enjoy it quite as much as Daughter of the Forest which is my favourite of her novels so far, but I definitely recomend it. My only issue with it was Jena's need to constantly control everything. She needed to let go a little and let her friends and family live their own lives. I really admired the way she tried to stand up to her cousin however which made up for her slight faults. ( )

I don't really like Marillier, but my friend recommended Wildwood Dancing to me, and when I heard that it was a retelling of my absolute favorite fairy tale, The Twelve Dancing Princesses, I knew that I had to give her a second chance. And actually, I’m pretty glad that I did. I don’t want to spoil the experience, but suffice it to say that the primary romance featured characters interesting and realistic enough to sustain the narrative. I also really enjoyed the specific setting of Romania (as opposed to generic fantasy-land)– it fit very well with the mythological elements of the story she created and rooted the characters in an actual culture that constrained (and compelled) their actions.

Unfortunately, this book also confirmed what was on more egregious display in that earlier trilogy: Marillier is far from a subtle stylist. In fact, her narratives have all the emotional (and plot-functional) subtlety of the ending of Titanic. In illustration: at one point the main character gets a minor injury from a bramble bush. Her romantic lead kisses the cut, and asks “Does that make the hurt all better?”

Entirely sans irony.

And the secondary romance is a lite version of the unbearable star-crossed lovers thing I so hated in the trilogy. But if you like simple fairy tale retellings, and especially if you like The Twelve Dancing Princesses, this is worth reading. It won’t take up too much of your time ,and it left a smile on my face. ( )

I've always been a sucker for a book inspired by fairy tales and folklore, and this particular book packed a heavy punch. The main fairy tales that can be seen are "The Twelve Dancing Princesses" and "The Frog Prince," although neither is so obvious as to be boring and predictable. The book also covers all kinds of mythology, including fairies, dwarves, elves, and vampires. The book follows Jenica, one of the teenaged daughters of a Romanian merchant, who along with her sisters has been visiting the "other side" at every full moon for years. She is clever and independent, and her best friend Gogu is a frog who goes with her everywhere. When her father, whose health is too frail to stand the frigid winters, goes away to the coast for the winter he leaves Jenica in charge of the household and business. Jena not only has to keep her sisters safe in the other world, where a troop of Night People are visiting, but increasingly must defend her independence from her interfering cousin Cezar. I found the story to be beautifully written and completely absorbing, and I never wanted it to end. Wildwood Dancing was the first book I'd read by Juliet Marrillier, but I'm very excited to read more as soon as possible. I'd give this my highest recommendation to fantasy fans everywhere. ( )

A wonderful and complex retelling of The Twelve Dancing Princesses, Marillier has kept the feel of Transylvanian folklore and written an excellent addition to the genre.

see the full review here: http://www.theedgeoftheforest.com/arc... ( )

Set in what may be Transylvania and with characters whose names include Draguta and Vlad, this book obviously has to be about vampires (although the word vampire is never used). The fact that it both is about vampires and that I am surprised, speaks to why this book needs to be added to high school libraries (and make the BBYA list). The story, however, is more than vampires. It is about princesses dancing at midnight after traveling through a portal to another world. It is about frogs and transforming ourselves. It is about overcoming evil family members like Cezar who would crush our dreams. This sophisticated and interesting story is told through the voice of Jenica and Gogu, her pet frog. Jenica is the oldest of the five dancing princesses. Wildwood Dancing has myth and lore in a way that is never condescending or unbelievable. Especially enjoyable is the way that things like kissing a frog and watching that frog change into a prince seems so fresh and so enjoyable. The book is bursting with fairytale threads that weave throughout the story in a seamless, wonderful tapestry. While this book is probably more likely to appeal to high school girl readers, give this one to intelligent boys who love unexpected surprises.

Wildwood Dancing - Juliet Marillier
Fantasy. This is a loose retelling of The Twelve Dancing Princesses about five sisters and I think I just wasn't in the mood. I still think it sounds very interesting and will give it another go some time.

A wonderfully suspenseful adaptation of several familiar fairy tales with a few vampires thrown in for interest.

With their father taken ill and sent south for his health, five daughters of a wealthy merchant are left to their own devices for the winter. Second-eldest, 16 year old Jenica and her pet frog Gogu are capably managing the finances, and all the girls from eldest to youngest (17-6) are enjoying a monthly frolic in the Wildwood, reached through a secret door in their bedchamber. At first all goes well, but soon thanks to the girls power-hungry cousin Cezar's manipulations, events take a dark turn. Can Jena save her sisters and the land from Cezar's machinations?

Marillier masterfully combines a number of familiar tales here -- the frog prince, the twelve dancing princesses, Transylvanian "night people", the lady of the lake, etc. -- with domestic and cultural elements typical of the time-period. In the best Grimm tradition, the evil are punished, but even wise choices are not without peril. ( )

Jena and her sisters having been escaping through a secret passageway to the Wildwood for years to visit their wonderful creature friends. But when her father gets sick and is forced to leave Piscul Draculi, Jena finds they are being carefully watched by unwanted eyes. Things are fine until her sister falls in love with a dangerous creature from the Other Kingdom. I enjoyed this read!! ( )

http://welfycatreads.blogspot.com/200... ( )

Fairytale retelling and awesome.