G867 Book Review of The mourning ring by Sarah Parke
Author: Sarah Parke
ISBN: 9781539635734
Publisher: Self published
Type of book: 1832, England, Bronte siblings, fantasy, Angria, Glass Town, kingdom, fairies, secrets, stories, creativity, group effort
Year it was published: 2016
Summary:
Sixteen-year-old Charlotte Bronte lives to tell stories. She longs to improve her fortunes through her writing. Charlotte’s father expects her to leave behind her childish fantasies in order to set an example for her three younger siblings.
But the Bronte children hold a secret in their veins—a smidgeon of fairy blood that can bring their words to life.
When Charlotte discovers that the characters from their childish stories exist in an alternate world called Glass Town, she jumps at the opportunity to be the heroine of her own tale.
The city of Angria teeters on the brink of civil war and Charlotte and her siblings must use their magic and their wits to save its people from a tyrant with magic abilities. But entering the fictional world means forfeiting control of their own creations. If they fail, the characters they have come to know and love will be destroyed.
Charlotte is determined to save the city and characters she loves, but when the line between creator and character becomes blurred, will she choose her fantasy or her family?
Characters:
Main characters include Charlotte, the eldest sibling of the quartet who feels responsible for her younger siblings and she seems to hesitate on letting them grow up a bit, at least in beginning. She feels responsible for everything and wants to fix things herself without any help. Emily, I believe is the second oldest sister who secretly enjoys dressing masculine clothes (Charlotte thinks its because Emily doesn't have feminine clothes that fit her) and she tends to sleep-walk. If I'm not mistaken she and Branwell often butt heads over various things. Branwell is the only boy in the family and I believe he feels like he is the odd one out. He doesn't feel appreciated by his siblings and often seems to be more selfish than anything. Anne is the youngest sister who is very curious and who also tends to be malleable, or so Branwell hopes. She is also observant.
Theme:
Stories are powerful
Plot:
The story is in third person narrative from the four Bronte siblings' point of view; that is Charlotte, Emily, Anne and Branwell tell the tale of their journey to the fantasy world. My favorite parts of the story include the beginning, seeing how connected the siblings are to one another through their stories as well as when Charlotte learns a secret about her ancestry because due to what I knew about the siblings, the beginning, I feel, is extremely beautiful to their sad lives. The rest of the story for me, moves in a slow motion and asks the reader to be involved with the characters and their decisions for better or worse.
Author Information:
(From the book)
Sarah Parke writes fantasy and historical fiction (sometimes at the same time) for young adult readers.
When she's not researching her next project or writing, Sarah likes tor ead, scrapbook, and watch Netflix with her husband and their cats.
For more informationa bout Sarah, visit her website at www.saraparke.com or follow her on Twitter @SParkeAuthor.
Opinion:
My only experience with the Bronte siblings is Emily's book, Wuthering Heights which is a tortured love story about Heathcliff and Catherine. I haven't read books by Charlotte Bronte nor Anne Bronte (Branwell never published a story of his own) I recall reading some facts about the Bronte siblings, namely how close they were to one another, how they were stuck in their own worlds, and how in terms of tragedy they were similar to Edgar Allan Poe (my own comparison because they went through a lot of death just like he has done.) I did read briefly that they created their own fantasy worlds but that is all. When I read the book, I wondered how much of the siblings' books is incorporated into the story? That is, are there some forces in their fantasy world that inspired them to come up with Jane Eyre, Wuthering Heights as well as Villette? While I cannot speak for Jane Eyre nor Villette, I can speak a little bit for Wutheirng Heights, and if there were forces that Emily used from the world to incorporate into her novel, these forces aren't visible. Other than that, a fun and creative what-if novel of how possibly the Bronte siblings' fantasy world is like.
This is for HFVBT
4 out of 5
(0: Stay away unless a masochist 1: Good for insomnia 2: Horrible but readable; 3: Readable and quickly forgettable, 4: Good, enjoyable 5: Buy it, keep it and never let it go.)
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