Wildwood Dancing

It took a bit to get into this book, which was extremely well-written with beautiful imagery. But once I got into it, I really got into it and finished over half the book in one night. Marillier takes on the tale of the Twelve Dancing Princesses, setting it in Transylvania, throwing in a little Frog Prince, and some vampires for good measure. Oddly enough, it all worked extremely well. My only issue was that some of the characters were just too -- Cezar was too arrogant, domineering, and a PITA; Tati was too flighty; and Jena was too capable. It took a while for me to get over wanting to reach into the story and start slapping people, but I'm glad I did.

And the vampires... subtle, and very well worked into the world as the Night People, show more who exist side-by-side but yet separate from the world of fairy rings, dancing, and enchanted glades. show less

A really cool re-telling of the 12 Dancing Princesses! This has the kind of worldbuilding that I dream about books having. Juliet Marillier wisely narrows it down to 5 sisters instead of the original 12 so it doesn't overwhelm readers. I had two particular qualms that kept it from being a 5 star read for me. First, it suffered a bit from pacing issues, tending to move too slowly in certain sections of the book. Second, I felt frustrated that the girls are sometimes written as passive, rather than having an active role in the defeat of their antagonist. But overall, I really enjoyed Wildwood Dancing. It stays true to the spirit of the original fairytale while also integrating some additional feminist ideas, which I was happy to see. show more Also, Marillier wrote one of the most loathe-able antagonists of all time (he had me clenching my fists with rage every time I encountered him on the page). A strong 4 star that is very worth the read! show less

Oh, the genius of wrapping Transylvanian history and folklore around a well-loved fairytale! In this story, it is the re-telling of the Twelve Dancing Princesses (here re-visioned as 5 sisters) in one of the wealthy households in a region of Transylvania. And there's also a bit of the Princess and the Frog!

The next eldest daughter, Jena, is the narrator of this story. The other sisters are Paula, who loves her lessons with the village priest; sister Iulia whose figure is approaching that of a well-formed woman; and little Stela who is only 5 and loves playing with the smallest members of the Otherworld. The eldest is Tatiana, or Tati, whose choices play a central role in this book.

The story starts when the five sisters are left alone show more one winter when their father must go off to warmer climates to regain his health with his faithful servant. And for many years these five sisters have kept a secret even from the household servants: they can open the door to the Otherworld at every Full Moon where they go dancing all night at the court of Ileana, Queen of the Otherworld.

This time, as the book opens, Tatiana, the eldest sister, has become infatuated with a guest of the Night People. His name is Sorrow. The Night People were invited (?!) by the Otherworld to take part in the moonlight revels, despite being aloof and having possible ill designs on Ileana's realm.

Weave into this tale Jena's work with her father's business accounts before he goes off for healing, a neighboring estate with her father's closest friend, and the death of that estate's eldest son, Costi. And there is also Jena's strange friendship with the frog, Goku, who is Jena's best friend.

Jenna recounts the events leading up to Costi's drowning with the Crone of the story who asks Costi, Jenna, and Cesar, Costi's younger brother, what their deepest wishes are. Jenna and Cezar survive the expedition on the water, yet as Cezar grows older he becomes more and more a belligerent and controlling young man. Cezar is sure of himself and his place in the world but also more abusive and denigrating of Jenna's role in her household even though he seeks to marry her; one wonders if he loves her or wants to control her.

I will say that I read ahead to try to find out what was going on with Cezar before going back to the story. His misogyny was alarming and I knew it had to have a resolution; I just didn't know what that resolution was going to be. And while it was not a happily ever after story, it was good and realistic and I loved how all the threads were woven together. show less

A re-telling of The Twelve Dancing Princesses story, and a thumpin' good one. Set in the Carpathian Mountains, it has dancing young ladies, fairy folk, Night People, good guys in disguise, bad guys who think they're the good guys, suspense, a healthy dose of romance (of course), and a helpful and adorable sidekick frog. It felt a bit slow to get going, but once it did, I loved it.

More than anything, Wildwood Dancing left me feeling trapped. Not trapped-in-a-good-way, when awful things are happening and the heroine is struggling against adversity and I'm right there, feeling anxious and afraid but fighting alongside her. No, instead I felt trapped by my inability to jump into the book and make the characters behave sensibly. Or, at the least, admirably. And since there were just enough positive elements---Gogu, Drăguţa, the dancing partners---I couldn't quite make myself stop reading.

Which, as it turns out, is a shame. Because even those interesting characters failed to shine brighter than at their first, twinkling appearances, and at the end of the book, all I had for my pains was a predictable slog through a show more mess of flat characters, illogical and contradictory decision-making, lackluster relationships, uninspired magic, and a whole lot of chatter about love that never managed to illuminate its power and wonder at all. show less

Twelve Dancing Princesses mixed with the Frog Prince and vampires!

Jena’s father is departing for warmer climes for the winter to recover from his illness, leaving Jena and her four sisters to look after their Transylvanian castle, Piscul Dracului, on their own. Luckily, due to their father’s unorthodox methods of raising them, the girls are more than capable of taking care of business matters as well as housekeeping and running the estate. And although they will miss their father terribly, his absence will make it a lot easier for them to hide their secret trips to the Other Kingdom to dance the night away with the Fair Folk.

But their neighbour and cousin, Cezar, sees things differently: as an excuse to seize control of Piscul show more Dracului and an opportunity to destroy the Other World in revenge for the death of his older brother ten years ago. And with the arrival of the mysterious Night People at the monthly revelries, Jena has her hands full trying to prevent both her worlds from collapsing.

There is so much to love in this book! The fairytale magic woven into Transylvanian folklore made for such an interesting and intricate world filled with a wide variety of characters (perhaps bordering on too many?) that laid the foundation for a rich, fantastical, gripping story. I will say, though, that I wish we had gotten a lot more closure at the end, because it felt like some of the storylines dropped off or tied up rather abruptly after so much build-up. Still, I would definitely recommend this one! show less

Wildwood Dancing may be, externally, a fairytale retelling, but on a deeper level, it is a commentary on feminism and the role of women. Jena, the main character, is strong and perceptive, but trapped and stifled by her role as a young girl, forced into dependence by the men around her. My feelings about the book are as mixed and torn as Jena is between her roles of subservience and strength.
The antagonist of the story, Cezar, is actually pretty standard fare for fairytales and romance stories: domineering, controlling, passionate, and angry. Yet although Cezar mouths all of the proper Heathcliffe remarks, despite his "passion" or "love", Jena continues to note how he is driven to stifle and control Jena. Marillier does an absolutely show more stellar job in capturing the myriad ways in which he seeks to dominate her, including noting each time he physically invades her space--taking her arm, brushing her shoulder, even leaning into her so that their legs touch; for example, "I could feel the imprint of his hand on my waist, like a brand of ownership."

But this is still a fairytale, so we still have the ridiculously young heroines (ages 15 and 16, no less) seeking and finding their "true loves." We still have women obsessing over dressing and dances and parties and planning to effectively sell themselves as property. We still have "true love" as so important and significant that it makes one girl become detached and withdrawn and starve herself--and apparently that's OK, because it's the prerogative of one in the throes of True Love. I felt, when reading it, like a bemused Elinor watching the starstruck Marianne in Jane Austen's Sense and Sensibility.
Overall, I found the story enjoyable, and I loved Jena's strength and sense. The story is a fantastic YA novel, a beautiful blend of fairy tales with themes that are both relevant and articulately delivered. show less