I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for a review here and on my blog Samwise Reviews. I really loved how original this story was, and I wish it had been longer. I felt the characters were a bit flat and I would have liked to get to know each of them on a deeper level to really understand how they felt and what they went through. The story started out a bit slow with a lot of things being hinted at but never explained, and while it picked up the pace better part way through it never felt like a wild ride to me. I was expecting intense drama and a race to the finish line and while things did come to a head, it meandered its way there. The conclusion did tie up most of the ends, but it just didn't feel completely satisfying. Overall it was good and clever, I just expected... more. ( )

What a beautiful cover! The story inside matches! I loved it so much! Is it too soon to have already read one of my favorite books of the year? I highly recommend this one! ( )

Eh. This story was a slog to get through. Languid pacing, unnecessarily long exposition, and short inserts of the actual action of the plot that moved the story forward. The climax wasn't climactic at all, and the second ah-ha big reveal was weighed down with repetitive narrative over and over again. The topic of sexual assault is just thrown in as a weak plot device for a severe subject matter that wasn't utilized in a way that made any sense to the story and wasn't substantial enough. There isn't a resolution to the trauma and issues that the OTHER kingdoms inflicted on the people of Ever. The story ended, and I guess I'm supposed to assume that the healing process has begun for everyone. Still, it's a feeble ending once again, just doing the bare minimum giving a superficial conclusion for survivors and victims of sexual assault. ( )

Fifty years ago, a princess of the kingdom of Ever was kidnapped, resulting in a war between all of the kingdoms - known in Ever as the War We Won - followed by peace, which is maintained by witches who live in the Home on the Hill, in an uneasy protection agreement with the royals. But five years ago, a young witch named Reagan learned something from her mother that made her furious at the king. Determined to punish him, she put a spell on his wife and their daughters: the queen was frozen in a glass box, and each of the daughters lost an essential ability: eating, sleeping, loving, remembering, hoping. These Spells of Without take effect on each princess's 13th birthday, and become permanent when Reagan turns eighteen - four days after Eden's 13th. The princesses will have those four days to try to break the spell.

Ever Cursed is narrated in alternating chapters by Reagan and the oldest princess, Jane. The two have entirely different understandings and experiences of Ever - and there's a third perspective as well, that of the common people of Ever, several of whom work as attendants or servants at the castle.

What does it mean to be a queen? What does it mean to be a witch? And what really happened fifty years ago, and why?

Despite some unique worldbuilding details (Slow Spells becoming True Spells, witches getting skirts for each spell they cast), the pacing felt slow until very near the end, and I was impatient with the main characters for failing to ask the right questions, or listen to the answers. In their own ways, Jane and Reagan have lived sheltered lives, and throughout the book their eyes are finally opened to others' realities - and their mistaken beliefs about their own. Classic fairy tale trappings house a modern (but also very old) story about power, violence, gaslighting, and abuse.

See also: Monstrous by MarcyKate, The Sisters of Straygarden Place by Hayley Chewins

Quotes

The weight of a spell is only worth it if the spell works. (21)

"Ever has always loved keeping people in their places. Witches on a hill. Princesses in a castle. And now a queen in a box." (28)

Everything we do or don't do eventually turns into a story spun from tiny threads of our actual lives. (39)

A rules is easier to break than a spell. (52)

"At least your burden is one you choose." (57)

"I want to be more than safe." (57)

But maybe none of us are truly grateful, none of us are safe from one another. (91)

"Hate doesn't make for good magic." (102)

It's a question so good we don't have an answer for it. (122)

It's impossible to know what a kingdom needs, what a kingdom is, if you've never stepped onto its soil. (167)

I look away. It's all I know how to do. It's all I've ever done. (189)

"Father" is another word like "princess," like "witch," like "attendant" or "girl" or "man" or "duke" or "king." It sounds like it means something specific, but it could mean anything at all. It means what we want it to mean, and then it fails. (203)

I want to know why we are all hurting, in this world run by my father. I want to know why he and the other kings aren't hurting. I want to know why we didn't see it, and why we didn't want to see it. (208)

"Maybe we don't really trust anyone. But peace is better than war. (227)

We both thought we were living one story, when really we were living another. (288) ( )

I really wanted to like Ever Cursed by Corey Ann Haydu. The trigger warnings intrigued me, plus I love a good story about magic and princesses. Unfortunately, it is nothing but a rehash of an oft-told story.

Men control women. Women silently suffer in an attempt to keep the peace. Something changes to make women aware of the control and lack of power. Women fight to protect their rights and wrest control from the men. The end. Throw in some magic, long-held family secrets, and misguided attempts at doing the right thing and you essentially have the plot to Ever Cursed.

As for the trigger warnings, I understand why the author includes them. That being said, the reasons for the warnings are not nearly as explicit as I expected. Because there are such warnings, I expected the danger scenes to involve details that would be difficult to read. They are not. In fact, they are very tame, in my opinion. They are in no way graphic. Personally, I think the warning about eating disorders is more appropriate because Ms. Haydu spent more time talking about Jane’s hunger and mealtimes than she does going into specifics about any violence.

Ms. Haydu does one thing right, however. She does a decent job of portraying the sense of betrayal the girls feel towards their father once his actions come to light. After all, the only father they know is a loving, attentive father who not only played with them but was also progressive about their upbringing. So, their disbelief at the information they learn about him feels authentic and is one of the highlights of the story.

Overall, there is nothing new about Ever Cursed. There are many novels about the power struggles between men and women across all genres and age levels. The addition of cursed princesses adds a little something extra to the story even as it does not change anything at its most basic level. It is the same with forcing the cursed to work with the cursing – a fun addition but it adds nothing. So, Ever Cursed is just another disappointment in a string of them. ( )