First Impression Friday: Entwined

Azalea is trapped. Just when she should feel that everything is before her . . . beautiful gowns, dashing suitors, balls filled with dancing . . . it's taken away. All of it.

The Keeper understands. He's trapped, too, held for centuries within the walls of the palace. And so he extends an invitation.

Every night, Azalea and her eleven sisters may step through the enchanted passage in their room to dance in his silver forest.

But there is a cost.

The Keeper likes to keep things.

Azalea may not realize how tangled she is in his web until it is too late.

Title: I’m not sure what I think of this title. I like one word titles, and Entwined is a pretty word which fits well with the cover, but it gives me no idea of what the book will be about.

Cover: This is such a gorgeous cover. Her dress is pretty, I love the castle in the background, and even the leaves that they added are gorgeous. This is one of my all time favourite covers. Unfortunately, the picture wasn’t taken specifically for the book, and my friend tells me that it doesn’t really fit the story.

Pitch: I like the pitch, how it makes it obvious that this is about the twelve dancing princesses, without saying it right out, but I find it’s a little vague. Apparently going out and dancing has a ‘cost,’ and this mysterious ‘keeper’ likes to keep things, but it doesn’t give me a good idea of what the story’s about.

First Sentence: An hour before Azalea’s first ball began, she paced the ballroom floor, tracing her toes in a waltz.

I like the feeling this sets up. While the sentence itself is a little awkwardly worded (commas!) it immediately gives us a good feel for Azalea’s character and the first scene coming up.

First Chapter: I liked this chapter but I didn’t love it. First off, the writing is just a little awkward. Also, I was having trouble placing the time period. There’s a random dancing tea set and a King and a ball, but then there’s mention of streetlamps and paved roads. It gives us a feel for the story, but it’s very introductory, rather than stepping right into the real story.

Overall: There’s a lot that I like about this book, but the only thing I absolutely love is the cover. The first sentence/chapter is just a bit rocky, so I’m worried about the rest of this book. The main thing that this book fails to do is really tell me what it’s going to be about. I’m still going to read it, but I’m a little unsure about it right now.