Cinder & Glass

Gr 6-9–This retelling of the classic fairy-tale reimagines the Cinderella love story set in Versailles during the reign of the Sun King, Louis XIV. Cendrillon de Louvois, a girl with wavy golden-brown hair, leads a happy life in the French countryside. Her father is the king’s favorite advisor, and she passes the time playing with her two friends, round-cheeked Eloise and towheaded Marius—servants, but friends. Everything changes when Cendrillon loses both of her parents and finds herself at the mercy of Lady Catherine and her spoiled, silver-haired daughters. In a near-magical turn of events, Cendrillon gains entry in the contest to win the affections of Prince Louis and becomes drawn to another dark-haired prince. Readers will appreciate the tweaks this book offers to the Cinderella story as it calls into question the simple prince-and-princess love story. De la Cruz adds further interest by mixing in historical details and by amping up the competitive intrigue in a plot twist reminiscent of Kiera Cass’s “The Selection” series. The love story between Eloise and Alexandre, one of the evil stepdaughters, adds a humanizing touch to characters that remained peripheral to the original tale.