Book title: The Bloody Chamber
Author: Angela Carter
My rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Book in a sentence: Um… what did I just read?
The back of the book says:
Discover Angela Carter’s classic feminist retelling of favourite fairy tales woven in seductive, luminous storytelling.
Beauty is turned into a Beast, Little Red Riding’s grandmother is stoned to death as a witch and, in the title story, a beautiful young pianist is swept into the world of a rich and sinister aristocrat, a man whose previous three wives have all died in mysterious circumstances.
From familiar fairy tales and legends – Red Riding Hood, Bluebeard, Puss in Boots, Beauty and the Beast, vampires and werewolves – Angela Carter has created an absorbing collection of dark, sensual, fantastic stories.
My thoughts: Well this was a ride of emotions, thoughts and feelings!!
Half the time I had no idea what was going on, the other half I was rooting for these fearless badass female characters and wanting better outcomes for some of them!
The book is a collection of short stories, and my feelings towards them were very mixed. I loved some, (the bloody chamber and the tiger’s bride) and absolutely hated others (the snow child I’m looking at you!) so I was left feeling pretty conflicted overall… I still don’t know if I liked it or not!
What I liked…
The characters and the setting: The strong women portrayed throughout several of Carter’s stories were a definite highlight. I also loved seeing the clear links to the original fairy tales, while still feeling like Carter had completely reclaimed them as her own.
What I didn’t like…
The writing style: I know it’s a classic, but at times the prose felt almost too descriptive, as if words were being used for the sake of using them. I really had to concentrate when reading, so it wasn’t something I could relax into.
I think you’d like this book if…
You enjoy reimagined fairy tales with a feminist edge and don’t mind complex, highly descriptive prose that requires effort and focus.
Cozy corner books 
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