This was a nostalgic read for me, as I read it way, way back in middle school (lol 10 years ago now). I love Twelve Dancing Princess retellings, and Entwined by Heather Dixon is such a wonderful take on the classic story.
For a quick recap, The Twelve Dancing Princess is a Grimm fairy tale where twelve sisters escape to a magical dancing pavilion every night. The king wants to discover where they are going, so he calls for suitors to have them figure it out in three days. When they fail, because the princesses give them a sleeping drink, the men die. One older soldier wants to be king, and he gets an invisibility cloak and some advice from an old woman. Using that cloak, and his wits, he follows the princesses to the magic pavilion, full of gold and diamond flowers, and brings a token back to show the king. The man marries the eldest daughter and takes the crown as king.
Ratings for Entwined
Story: 5/5
Entwined is a more faithful retelling, and it holds up just as stunning as I remember it. In the novel, we follow twelve sisters, all named alphabetically from oldest to youngest with flower names. Azalea, Bramble, Clover, Delphinium, Evening Primrose, etc. Even though there’s twelve girls, you come to know and love each of the sisters, as well as their quirks. There were many moments (especially with Bramble) that made me laugh out loud. The story moves quickly, but even in moments of waiting, the page are full of life. The relationship between the King and his daughters is the highlight of the entire book as they struggle to understand each other while being drowned in grief. The side characters are also a wonderful addition to the novel! And the way the girls talk and laugh amongst each other is so reminiscent of real siblings! Also, as a ballroom dancer myself, I love seeing the girls dance waltzes, polka, and more!
I won’t give a worldview rating since it is not Christian. However, the themes were absolutely amazing. Azalea struggles with feeling trapped under the weight of expectation for her entire future, as well as being responsible for all of her younger sisters. She sees her father, the King, as a cold, stern figure. But, in the midst of isolation and grief, the family starts to knit back together again.
The Magic of Entwined
I will note, however, that there is magic in this book. I’m going to spoil some aspects of the novel to talk about it. In Entwined, characters “swear on silver,” which is akin to making a promise that the silver binds you to keep. The characters are unable to break the oath they made if they used silver. There is also a “warm, flickery” magic that comes from the soul. Magic animates some inanimate objects, such as a tea set, curtains, rugs, candles, ornaments, etc. The antagonist of the novel, Keeper, has magic, but it’s different from all the rest. His magic is based on having done a blood oath (killed someone and drank their blood some hundreds of years ago) to fulfill his life’s mission. He does a lot of illusion tricks, such as making ornaments appear to come to life as garish masquerade dancers. At one point, he also pretends to be a deceased character (with their lips sewn shut) to manipulate Azalea. Azalea mistakenly thinks that Keeper is able to “keep souls trapped,” but that is all an illusion. At another point, some characters are put into mirrors.
Overall Thoughts
In any case, I think this book really held up over the years. The magic parts were creepy but I didn’t mind it too much. Even though the writing style of the book is more MG, I would say the tone is more YA, possibly 15+ depending on maturity.
If you’re looking for clean fairy-tale retellings, I really recommend Tested: A Princess and the Pea Retelling by Sarah Carlisle. It’s sweet and lighthearted and a great read!
