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 enlarge | Author: John Connolly
Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton Ltd
Category: Book
List Price: £12.99
Buy Used: £0.01
You Save: £12.98 (100%)
New (19) Used (23) Collectible (2) from £0.01
Avg. Customer Rating:  73 reviews
Sales Rank: 21313
Media: Hardcover
Pages: 320
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.2
Dimensions (in): 8.6 x 5.5 x 1.3
ISBN: 0340899468
EAN: 9780340899465
ASIN: 0340899468
Publication Date: September 7, 2006
Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days
Shipping: International shipping available
Condition: UNREAD but may have a crease or mark or minor imperfections. In stock - Sent fast from British booksellers.
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| Customer Reviews:
 Book of pretty good August 7, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
I bought this on a whim when i was desperate to read something and the cover and blurb sold me. It does have a stunning cover, kudos due to the designers.
I was pretty happy with my impulse purchase. Though not bitingly original, skewed versions of fairy tales have long been a staple of student writing and drama, this was a well written enjoyable read.
Dealing as it does with themes of bereveament and the onset of puberty as well as drawing paralells with fairy tales and fantastical worlds, this book can be considered a reasonable success. However it scratches surfaces too often when deeper exploration was desired. It feels, at times, that the author was overly cautious and dipped his toe rather than dived in.
Some elements, such as the Snow White segment are merely re-jigs of well explored variants of the tale.
That said, the book moves along at a brisk pace and is an enjoyable read. I got through it comfortably in a few days of evening reading and, whilst it would be untrue to say that i was terribly sorry it had ended, i was left satisfied and entertained. Very often that is all you want from a book after all. So, for a diverting,disposable read i would suggest that you could find much, much worse.
Could be a good one for Book clubs. Also, it had a number of authors essays at the end, along with a selection of original fairy tales. A very nice touch and much appreciated by this reader.
 Enjoyed very much August 7, 2008
1 out of 2 found this review helpful
Not a huge fan of Connolly's Charlie Parker novels etc but I really enjoyed this. It had me lost in it's world for the duration. I found it different and refreshing. Fantasy, fairy tale, mild horror themes. Yes excellent, yes reccomended. I loved the way fairy tales and characters were interwoven into an adventure for a young boy who'd suffered early in the story.
Now I wish Charlie Parker would get lost so Connolly would write more like this. For me Charlie Parker is the Dirk Pitt of the Private Investigator world. Done to Death.
 Awful Book (SPOILERS contained in review) August 6, 2008
3 out of 12 found this review helpful
***This review contains SPOILERS***
Oh dear! I did want to like this book after hearing good things and I persevered so hard with it but by page 143 I decided that I had had more than enough and have slammed it shut in disgust.
Little Red Riding Hood "lays down" with wolves and Snow White is fat, ugly and fowl tempered? NO, NO, NO!!!!!! It's ruining all my childhood memories. Call me old-fashioned but Snow White is pretty and sweet and Little Red Riding Hood is a dutiful Granddaughter who doesn't strip off her knickers in the forest for a wolf!
I wondered whether I may have a problem suspending disbelief but I actually think that what bothered me more than anything was the writing which was plodding, simple to the point of being partonising and the characters were one-dimensional. I just didn't get it at all.
 A fairytale from the dark side July 17, 2008
2 out of 3 found this review helpful
An interesting concept of a boy who is confused and sad after his mothers death. When his father remarries and produces a new sibling for him he becomes overcome with jealousy and resentment which leads him to a hidden world of gruesome fairytales.
I thought the beginning chapters were really good, a very realistic insight into a child's mind. However once we leave reality the book failed to grab me and it took me longer than normal to read purely because I wasn't compelled to keep picking it up. I didn't particularly like the book but did like the concept of David having to use his wits and his memory of childhood tales to overcome some pretty gruesome dangers and adult themes. And, like all traditional stories...it has a moral.
If you like your fantasy tinged with horror then you should enjoy this.
Simply marvellous! June 23, 2008
In short, a higly recommended read! I must admit that it took the first few chapters to get into the book but soon I was indulged and struggling to put it down. A wonderfully creepy and action packed fantasy-adventure with many exciting twists and turns. Read this book and enjoy it before its over.
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