4 STARS FOR MERMAIDS, ADVENTURE, AND A STRONG FEMALE LEAD!
Hansel and Gretel Herrscher survived the witch in the woods, but the experience has made Hansel paranoid for the past ten years. He sees dark magic at every turn. When Gretel has a marriage arranged to a much older man, and Hansel discovers he's about to be sent halfway across the galaxy, he knows something sinister is afoot.
Wilhelmine Nordon has plenty of experience with Hansel's quirkier side. So when she catches him and Gretel running away in the middle of the night, she follows to keep them from getting killed. The siblings have never left the capital of Mish on their own, so they need a babysitter. Except when she's discovered, Hansel gives her his usual cold shoulder, and Gretel secretly begs her to take them back.
The problem is, Hansel's paranoia turns out to be well founded, and they're all being hunted.
*Generously received a copy from the author in exchange for an honest review*
Myths of Mish is a sequel to Princess of Tyrone, but it can be read as a standalone novel. I have written a review of Princess of Tyrone, if you have not read it then you can find it here. I would recommend reading Princess of Tyrone first though due to different places and people being referenced. Thus, you will have a more informed mind of how the whole world that Hamstead has created works.
When I received the email that I was being provided an ARC to review the next book in this series, I was completely excited and thrilled. I LOVE Princess of Tyrone. It is one of those book series that takes stories and concepts that everyone is familiar with, but brings a whole new twist. I don't want to rant and rave too much of how much I love the general concept and world. I could spend the whole review just speaking about that without even touching on this particular story.
Myth of Mish focuses on the story of Hansel and Gretel, but also on Wilhemine Nordon and is told in first-person point of view. Everyone knows the story of Hansel and Gretel, but Myths of Mish tells the story of what happens to Hansel and Gretel as they are becoming young adults and going off on an adventure with their friend Wilhemine. The book is filled with action, romance, a coming of age story, and is fast paced. I never felt like the story slowed down or had any moments that were lacking. I read through this book within two days and I didn't feel like I was purposely speed reading it.
Hansel is really a complex character. He was one of my favorite character to read from their perspective. Hansel as a character is written to be very complex and has deep problems that are very relatable. Due to the trauma that occurred during his and Gretel's childhood, he has deep mistrust of essentially everyone, but Gretel. For this reason alone, he is one of my favorite characters. I loved reading his perspective to see through his mind how he reacts, reasons, and makes decisions. I think many individuals can read Hansel's story and really empathize. He lost his mother growing up, gained a step-mother that was the direct person that caused the trauma in his life, feels like he lost his father to the one person that he truly hates, and has pretty much lost all of his friends and others due to this event and the toll that it has taken on him. I think Hansel is a real representation of children and how trauma effects them years down the line as they are becoming adults. As an adult, Hansel feels isolated, misunderstood, lost, and abandoned. This is where Hansel stands at the beginning of Myths of Mish.
Gretel as a character is very different from Hansel. Gretel is 17 years old and was very young when the incident occurred. Thus, her mind was not as self-aware of everything that occurred. Overall, as a character Gretel was not my favorite, but that was due to personal reasons. As I said before, Gretel is 17, so her mind is very naive, gullible, and is quick to make rash decisions. This leads her to making decisions in the book that leave me shaking my head and thinking "Man, this girl is dumb!" Gretel comes across in the book as a side character that is really in the middle of all the action. She was directly there with Hansel when they were trapped with the witch in the house and she is directly there with Wilhemine and Hansel on the adventure. So Gretel comes across as the glue that is connecting a lot of things in the story, but she doesn't have enough agency to really understand everything that is going and being truly involved. Also, when she does make decisions, it is for the wrong reasons and she is misinformed. All of this is true, but remember she is 17. I think that many 17 year old girls can say that they made some bad decisions growing up and that they were a little dumb.
Saving the best for last, WILHEMINE! Wilhemine is my favorite! She is strong, mature, self-aware, confident, brave, smart, and cares about others. She is a perfect role model for young woman. She has always cared about Hansel, but she has not given up who she is to try to win him over. She has stayed true to herself and if Hansel did not like her then so be it. I love that about her! Too many women try to change them self to win a guy, but Wilhemine does not do that. In the end, Hansel recognizes Wilhemine for who she is, but that is because her beauty shined from within. She stood up for herself and didn't let Hansel or any other person boss her around. She is a total Queen B! Queen Boss, guys! :D Also, like any modern Queen B, she has her own career and dreams. I completely love that everyone on the planet respected her, because she earned it. She has worked hard for everything that she has and nothing has been handed to her. She is not some sissy girl in a pretty dress with pretty hair. She is a strong, confident, and beautiful woman that knows her value and worth, but is also really kind. How can anyone hate her or not want to be her?! *Crying* SHE IS PERFECT!
Last but not least, I was really excited to see the fairies made an appearance! :D Here are my favorite fairies to end my review. Enjoy! That is a wrap for me! 4 STARS and a must read in my opinion! I love this book and can't wait for book #3!
4 Stars for Steampunk, Fairy Tales, and Female Ass-Kicking!
Apolline is happy hunting magical creatures on her pirate infested outer-perimeter planet. She is a fantastic shot, and doesn’t flinch at the blood and guts of her kills. Never once did she consider she could be the missing Princess of Tyrone.
All her life, she has heard the story of the Princess, cursed to sleep for eternity, unless her betrothed, the Prince of Oran, gave her true love’s kiss. Although Apolline knows she is betrothed, she thinks her fairy guardians arranged it out of ignorance of human ways. The thought she could be a princess is inconceivable.
Then Allard appears. Handsome, charming—but he’s not hers to have. He’s betrothed, too. Her guardians warn her against her new found friendship, but she and Allard meet in secret anyway. Despite her rough exterior, he sees beyond her gun-slinging bravado, and their love blossoms.
But the deadline for the sleeping curse is approaching. If Apolline falls in love with the wrong person, she could end up sleeping forever.
A quirky, adventurous retelling of Sleeping Beauty, with a less than princess-ly princess!
*Generously received a copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review*
(Reviewer's Note: I am still currently reading The Forbidden Wish and I am hoping to finishing it soon, so I can post the review for everyone)
Who I would recommend this for:
I would recommend this to readers that enjoyed The Lunar Chronicles series by Marrisa Meyer,The Infernal Devices series by Cassandra Clare, and Shiver (The Wolves of Mercy Falls series) by Maggie Stiefvater.
As soon as I saw the cover of this book and read the description, I was hooked. I love re-tellings of fairy tales and steampunk stories, such as, Firefly and The Infernal Devices. And Princess of Tryone did not disappoint.
Hamstead's creation of a space universe with different plants and creatures is incredible. I absolutely loved the way that she stayed true to the Grimm's fairy tales, yet she made them her own. As a writer, Hamstead made each fairy tale identifiable, but with a twist. The focus was on the children of the well known characters, Cinderella, Prince Charming, Snow White, the Evil Queen, but Hamstead did not rely on the original name of the characters. She made them her own by naming them Cytheria, Byranna, and Apolline as Sleeping Beauty. This allowed for the characters to become someone and something else in a whole new story.
The main protagonist is Appoline, or Sleeping Beauty. She is a spunky, sassy, ass-kicking female that is completely independent and stays true to herself. I applaud Hamstead for keeping these traits in Appoline through the whole story. For many stories, the writer will create a heroine that is strong and independent, but as soon as they meet "the one" they completely lose all of the traits that made them strong and appealing. This was not the case for Appoline. Appoline stayed Appoline even after she met her parents and learned that her true identity is Elpida. This is such a strong message to send to women. Stay true to yourself and who you are.
Appoline feared that once she became a queen and would be in the public eye, that she would have to become a totally different person, but I loved that she was told that all of the basic traits of being a queen could be taught. It is who she is an individual that will make the people love her.
Appoline's love interest is Allard. Allard was a particularly fun character to read. I think that I actually enjoyed reading his parts of the story more than Appoline's. Allard is extremely loyal, respectful, and thoughtful. He is mature for his age. Instead of thinking about himself, he thinks about Cytheria and Hernan, his planet, his father, and Elpida. He does have instances where he wants to be selfish, but in the end, he realizes that he needs to think about what is best for the future.
Allard's love and interest in Appoline is pure. He loves her for who she is as a person and does not judge her for her social position. He does not believe that he is better than her, instead he actually believes that she is better than him. He is amazed by her knowledge of magic, the working class, and her ability to hunt. I find this to be really admirable.
I really appreciate that Hamstead wrote Appoline and Allard's love story as a friendship that grows into more. They did not automatically jump into a whirlwind romance. They kept each other at arms link, because they want to be respectful to their betrothed. They both understand the promises that they have and the responsibilities that come with it. This work shows a mature depiction of a friendship and romantic relationship. I stand-up and applaud Hamstead. Thank you, Hamstead! Thank you for writing a strong heroine, thank you for writing a great love story where people become friends and love each other for who they are, and thank you for creating such a great steampunk/fairy tale world!
I could keep writing about all of the different facets of this work that I love. I haven't even touched on the fairies, Bryanna (which is a great villian! She is just as interesting as the heroes!), the Whites, and the technology in the work. If you have not read this book, you need to! I am so happy that there will be a sequel and can't to see which direction Hamstead goes with it. Either way, I know that I will be in for a treat. Thank you, again, NetGalley for the copy! :)
Saving the best for last, WILHEMINE! Wilhemine is my favorite! She is strong, mature, self-aware, confident, brave, smart, and cares about others. She is a perfect role model for young woman. She has always cared about Hansel, but she has not given up who she is to try to win him over. She has stayed true to herself and if Hansel did not like her then so be it. I love that about her! Too many women try to change them self to win a guy, but Wilhemine does not do that. In the end, Hansel recognizes Wilhemine for who she is, but that is because her beauty shined from within. She stood up for herself and didn't let Hansel or any other person boss her around. She is a total Queen B! Queen Boss, guys! :D Also, like any modern Queen B, she has her own career and dreams. I completely love that everyone on the planet respected her, because she earned it. She has worked hard for everything that she has and nothing has been handed to her. She is not some sissy girl in a pretty dress with pretty hair. She is a strong, confident, and beautiful woman that knows her value and worth, but is also really kind. How can anyone hate her or not want to be her?! *Crying* SHE IS PERFECT! 
