This was a powerful fairytale story about women's agency in a patriarchal kingdom. We follow Jane, the eldest of 5 enchanted princesses, and Reagan, the witch who cast the spell that enchanted them. They must work together to break the spell, but in the process there's a lot to unpack about the kingdom and the injustices that take place under the King's rule.

It was a really interesting story and had a really impactful meaning. I rooted for these girls as they worked to learn about themselves, their kingdom, and the magic of Ever.

It did unravel slowly, but I feel this story's strength lies in its meaning rather than a quick plot. It's something to tread slowly through and take it in, not one that keeps you flipping pages with a fast paced plot.

It was a shorter fantasy, and for that it's not full of world-building or detailed backstory. But like I said before, this doesn't feel like a fantasy that needs that, it feels like more an allegorical fairytale with purpose.

Although that being said, it feels like it's missing something to keep me from absolutely loving this. It was a great story, but I think it maybe packed in too much for this tale. I would've liked to know the sisters a bit more. With there being 5 of them, plus still having Raegan's side of the character and her family, there were a lot of characters. This could've been especially powerful to have a bit less characters and more focus could go to the main ones.

(This review will be published to goodreads shortly, and a polished version will be posted on my blog in the coming week.)

Thank you to NetGalley and Simon Pulse for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review!

The Good
– Clean, accessible writing style
– Tidily includes and covers a number of important issues
– Lots of secrets to uncover and truths to speak
– Beautiful, emotional, meaningful story
– Inclusive and LGBT+ friendly

The Bad
– Writing style can be repetitive
– The necessity of Abbott
– Won't appeal to everyone

Story—★★★★☆
Haydu has written about a great number of important issues and fit them all into a surprisingly compact story. Most impressive: she ties all of these issues together tidily and builds up the story so they all unravel neatly for the reader. From the beginning it is an emotional story, and that emotion builds to tidal proportions as the characters reach the end of their quest and near the moment when the curse will either break or become permanent. 

However, I don't think this is a story for everyone. Those who want a smart, warm, painful, wonderful story, yes. But those who prefer the loud, hot romances and fast, dramatic stories of those in the mainstream might find themselves wanting. 

Characters—★★★☆☆
Jane and Reagan are both likeable, flawed protagonists struggling to find the right answer and do the right thing in a situation they don't have all the information. They both challenge what they believe to be true and struggle to find the best way to fight for what they believe to be right.  I found Haydu characterized both Jane and Reagan—and the cast of characters in general—with an attentive hand. 

Writing Style—★★★☆☆
Ever Cursed is told in first person, present tense in alternate points of view between Jane, a cursed princess, and Reagan, the witch who cursed her. 

Haydu has a wonderfully clean, accesible writing style. Her prose, as promised, has a rhythmic, musical quality and her word choice is simple but powerful. In its pages, Ever Cursed contains so many beautiful, powerful lines and so many little pockets of truth and strength. My only gripes are that sometimes Jane's voice and Reagan's voice sounded a bit too similar, and there were points the prose pushed a little too far and became repetitive, but Ever Cursed is still by far an incredibly beautiful and readable book.

Themes and Representation—★★★★☆
Ever Cursed includes black and mixed race characters in the supporting cast; trans and lesbian characters in the supporting cast, along with nonbinary and poly relationships among background characters. 

Ever Cursed is about so many things: the duality of fear and bravery; believing voices of victims; victims supporting one another; how grief isn't always loud or obvious; how the supposed best, trusted men can be perpetraitors of heinous acts; the power of community; safety in stagnation vs fear of changing for the better.

I am torn mostly over the seeming importance of Abbott Shine. Ever Cursed needed a non-witch and non-royal voice—the voice of a regular subject of Ever—but what bothered me about Abbott was how Ever Cursed seemed to say the women and witches can't achieve things without men. Abbott is always correcting Reagan or setting her in the "right" direction, and there is a point where a crowd led by the women and witches isn't listened too until he, a guy, speaks up for them. It seemed to clash with the message of the necessity of vulnerable people making the change themselves instead of waiting for men and those in power to suddenly care about them. 

Another thing that bugged me was the royal princess of the other kingdoms participating in sexual harassment. I know part of it is about privileged women being complicit in the crimes of their male peers, but the part about another princess leering and sizing the Ever Princesses up strikes me as out of place. I'm not saying it can't happen, but this small part was presented without necessary nuance. 

Overall—★★★★☆

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.

I was excited to be accepted for an arc of this book on NetGalley. I'll admit, it was the gorgeous cover that first drew me in. But, after reading the synopsis, I knew that this was going to be a book I would enjoy!

The Princesses of Ever are being punished for a crime that they didn't commit or know about. The curse means that they are all Without one essential thing, whether that be the ability to eat to the ability to sleep. Their mother is frozen in time inside an unbreakable glass box. In this book, the eldest Princess, Jane, leads the way to break the curse alongside her sisters and the very witch who cursed them.

There are two protagonists in this novel; Princess Jane and the witch that cursed them, Reagan.

Princess Jane has been confined to the palace walls all her life. She, nor any of her sisters, sees how their kingdom struggles because of this. They see the love that their kingdom has for them and assume that everything is fine. It isn't until they begin their journey into breaking the curse that they come to understand that their kingdom is suffering much more than they realise and everything is not as perfect as it seems. Jane's curse was probably one of the worst; she is unable to eat. She is slowly dying and believes that she doesn't have long to live. Despite this, she is determined to break the curse placed upon her family and will do whatever she can to break it. I really admired her strength and determination. She may be more physically weak than she is used to, but she finds strength into protecting those she loves and still tries to remain herself as much as she can.

The novel switches chapters between Jane and Reagan. Reagan is fuelled by hatred of the kingdom and the pain that the royal family inflicted on her own family. She cursed the Princess's and the Queen without a thought and has to live with the consequences of her actions. Once Reagan turns 18, the curse she placed on everyone will be permanent. She ends up helping the Princesses try to break the curse, but of course, not everything goes as planned. Most of the witches are disappointed in her after casting the curse, but her anger towards the royals was fairly justified, she had just thrown her anger at the wrong royals. I enjoyed Reagan’s willingness to try and right her wrongs even though she still believes she did it for the right reasons.

I liked that the magic used in this world had consequences. For each spell cast, a witch would gain a skirt around their waist that they would be unable to remove. I thought this was a pretty unique concept and the fact it would get heavier witch each spell cast made it only more interesting. The world was really fascinating and I loved that the witches were restricted to one area of the kingdom. I would have loved to have it more explained though. I personally think that the world-building and characters needed more development. The two main protagonists were strong female characters with a determination to protect those they love, but I would have liked to have more development on their personality.

I enjoyed the storyline and I thought it was unique and interesting. The stakes were from start to finish. The princess's suffering through the rage of a witch was really heartbreaking and at times hard to read. The twists and turns had me reading on and on until I was finished. The end felt a little too fast paced, but I couldn't put the book down. It's a fun and quick read that I loved and enjoyed.

I read this book in two days, in a total of four sittings. I don't often read books about witches and princesses but the cover definitely attracted me to this one and the angle was quite refreshing, which is why I could not put this book down.

Ever is a kingdom with 5 princesses, cursed by a witch. As each princess turns 13, the Spell of Without executes and the princess loses something. For Jane, it is her appetite; she cannot eat, has not eaten in five years. For her sisters, it is their memory, love, and sleep. On the day of the 13th birthday of the youngest sister, the witch that cursed them arrives to help them break the spell, give them one last chance to undo their suffering and change the royal ways.

Narrated from two point of views, those of Jane (the eldest princess) and Reagan, the witch that cursed, I loved how Ever Cursed elaborated on the concept of royalty, the stories that different groups of people tell themselves and the history which is the truth. I loved this story and look forward to reading the author again. I also appreciated the content note about sexual assault and past trauma.

Many thanks to the publisher for providing me a complimentary copy of the book in exchange for an honest review. Find the full review on my blog on publication day - July 28th!

With such a beautiful cover and interesting premise, I was expecting a lot more than what was delivered

The Pros: What worked for me

I’m a big fan of strongly themed books and this one delivers on that. It does not pack punches when speaking about sexual abuse and eating disorders.

The romance was not the most important part of the story, which was nice to see.

I liked Jane’s character. She was not weak even though she felt that way and I connected with her on a deep level.

The Cons: What I didn’t like

The worldbuilding was confusing. I knew what the author was trying to do by creating this elaborate setting but some of it just didn’t make any sense.

Reagan’s character was a major problem for me. I like characters that grow and develop as the story continues but she never did. Her complete fixation on her own problems, and her insistence on returning to her own version of things annoyed me. She never listened to other people and she was NOT always right.

There were elements of the story that were just too repetitive and I didn’t like that.

While I support strong feminist themes, I also want the books to be well-developed. That wasn’t the case here. I liked the themes but I didn’t like the execution of the story. Pretty cover, though.

“What are we protecting is so much bigger than your anger.”

The cover is breathtaking and makes you curious about what this novel has to offer. This book was fast-paced and easy to read through. The character developments are strong; I haven’t read progress from a YA in a while. I love how it showcases a good foundation on problems and it’s everyday society barriers:

“You need special care, don’t you?” the prince says, his tongue practically touching my ear. I tense. I shudder. He doesn’t care. “It’s a good thing. It’s a beautiful thing. You need. Don’t be so quick to let it go.”

The power that man think they have over women is just sad and under talked about, was he saying she should starve for the rest of her life? I love how the author wasn’t afraid to showcase this side of the world. The first 40% of the book did an amazing job at capturing my curiosity but there’s a point in the book that makes you stop right in your track. Just one plot after the other, while making you think of our world.

I always push on authors and publishers to put a warning sign at the beginning of a book when there’s going to be a traumatic situation happening. People that went through traumatic events have a right to brace themselves before they read about it. It took me way longer to read this book because I needed more time to digest scenes that were taking place and they weren’t even graphic!

Repeating a situation over and over again is a pet peeve for me and this book was no exception. The Lost princess disappeared a long time ago BOOOOHO we get the point already! It might have gotten mentioned at least 40 times or more. Okay, but hold up, this book ending though; I don’t get it, nope, not one bit… This book went from a 5 star to a 4 star just because of this ending. It just doesn’t make sense. Plain and simple, it was poorly executed.

Am I hitting a second book is in the process, by the way, Reagan’s talking at the end?

This book was so awkward for me, if I’m being honest. I thought the premise was interesting but I felt myself rolling my eyes at the obvious things that kept coming up.

The themes and fact that this book relied so heavily on sexual assault to make a point just seemed meh to me. I felt like the author was just trying to write a feminist book for the sake of it and not because they had anything new or unique to say.

I really enjoyed this book! It was this world of fairy tales, except the fairy tales were ones of their history, not ours. But that feel, and a lot of generalizations, brushed over stuff, details that I really wanted to know,so I enjoyed how that played out!

Going back and forth between Reagan and Jane-Reagan the witch who cursed the Royal family, and Jane, the eldest, one who the curse will kill when it becomes True. They both have a stake in this, because Reagan has to undo the curse, and Jane wants to live, and for her family to be free from the curse. I really enjoyed watching them interact!

Pretty much this entire book, my pulse was kept up, because there were a lot of unfair moments, and I anticipated some reveals that would've be taken well. And they weren't, and they were just entertaining to read. It was kinda intense!

That ending was so unexpected and thrilling and great! There were some pretty important reveals, that were central to the story, and came together so well! And I'm really pleased with how it turned out, it was really satisfying!

This was a book about magic, about patriarchy, about the boxes people are put into, and defying the standard. I enjoyed it so much!

t/w: rape, & eating disorders

1.5-2 (closer to 1.5)

i'm so disappointed i don't even know where to begin.
first off, i think the curse placed upon the princesses of ever was very cruel, i didn't see the need to create characters who were unable to eat or sleep for 5 years. personally i think it would've been better to stick to loss of hope, loss of love, etc. mostly because jane (the princess who couldn't eat for 5 years) was put down throughout the story. like olive would say things along the lines of 'well everyone of ever is starving we're all starving' (not a direct quote) & there was a moment where reagan thought/acted like she was much stronger than jane someone who literally hasn't eaten for 5 years & is fighting to overcome it.

reagan is the worst character i've ever read about. she cast the spell upon the princesses & was sent to andnot for 5 years & all she did was stay angry & want to see the king break down & didn't even think about how she chose to put the princesses through misery. what the king did to her mother was disgusting, & i get that it fuelled her anger, but taking it out on other people is fucked up too. i don't believe she had any growth throughout the story if anything i only saw elements that continued to support that she's a narcissist. everyone tried to explain that what she did was wrong MULTIPLE times, even abbott he would try to explain the situation of everyone else in the village, but she kept victimizing herself & trying to justify her actions. it was infuriating because at the end of the book she never really learned anything. everything centered around herself when jane & olive were discussing who the saddest person in the villiage was, reagan shut them down & was like no the saddest person is MY mom. she started to realize that more than one goddamn person can be sad & more than one person can be strong & you don't have to put your struggles above everyone else's to be mindful of that, but she never understood anything other than her own self. even when she kissed abbott i felt like it was what she wanted, & there was no indication that he felt the same, if anything he was fed up with her shit.

the king was messed up i think he needed a lot of therapy to fix himself because at the end of the day i don't think he'll ever be sorry or admit to being sorry without knowing the depth of his actions. & honestly i think reagan should be frozen forever too because it's like she thinks he's scummy, but she'll never truly see the depth of her actions either if she never faces any consequences.

the only elements i could appreciate were parts of the setting & parts of the writing style. i liked reading about a kingdom, i liked that it had a surrounding moat, but i never felt like the setting fully drew me in because it always remained on a surface level. if anything, all i could picture in ever were boxes because the word 'boxes' was repeated over & over again. the setting was not fully established for me to visualize the living conditions of the people of ever, & i couldn't visualize how extravagant the kingdom was. the writing style was okay the descriptions of jane's thought process was good, but sometimes the story would linger on a single thought for a very long time to the point where it became repetitive.

i feel like the way reagan was written prevented her from learning anything at all, i thought the fact that jane & olive magically escaped from the tower & how everyone was a witch & how the lost princess wasn't really lost didn't shock me as much as i know it should have. i knew they were supposed to be revelations, but i felt like it just complicated the story even more.

i really do think the idea of the story is strong i think a curse on princesses set by a witch & turns into an adventure is great, but when that witch is a narcissistic brat it's hard to take the concept seriously. i felt like pages of the story were wasted trying to convince reagan she needs to realize what she's doing, but she never does. & when a princess is dying from starvation & not being able to eat that is something that should be taken a little more seriously. i didn't feel connected to the story or the characters, & it makes me sad because i was SO excited about this book!!

I am truly at a loss of words with this book, which is saying a lot because I rarely shut up. Every piece of Ever Cursed feels wholly its own. The way the magic works feels so simple and poignant that it blows my mind I haven't read anything similar to it before. The entire nature of the curse is so unique and interesting but that's not really what the stories about. I love the flipped view of what an expected hero and expected villain looks like and just... this book. It's perfect. I love it. And that's without even talking about the message it's used to tell because oh my god is this book powerful.

I feel like the main complaint will probably come from how predictable the story is, but I don't think it was ever supposed to be a mystery. Ever Cursed is basically the #metoo movement with magic and curses and kingdoms and the issues #metoo and this novel highlight were never plot twists or surprises. This book is predictable not because its poorly written, but because its a story that's existed in a thousand different ways for hundreds of years that is finally being told.

This book made me feel like I was reading a Disney story, Harry Potter, and an adult novel with very real and touchy topics all in one. I thank the author for including a trigger warning at the beginning of the book because boy was it needed. If you are even slightly triggered by sexual assault I do not recommend this book as it is referred to over a dozen times. The premise of this book was interesting, but something was lacking. I found myself being confused at times and wished that it was more fleshed out. I found that the majority of the story line was extremely predictable and that I wish so much more out of the ending. Although I was a little disappointed I was impressed at the diversity and representation in this book! It talked about people in the kingdom of all sorts of skin colour, sexuality and genders. As someone who is quite new to fantasy it was interesting to see a storyline and characters that I would generally associate with a fairy tale talk about topics such as sexual assault. Overall, I did want a little more out of the story and think that it would have benefited from being a little longer as the ending felt a little rushed.

Thank you to NetGalley for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.

This is a slow read. Nothing of note happens until about 30% in, and during that first 30%, you don’t really get to know the characters or the world. The subject matter is very heavy, and even though not much detail is presented until later in the book, you know exactly what kind of abuse is going on. It was depressing, and I never really connected with any of the characters. The sisters have some personality, but not much, and it’s hard to tell them apart other than their individual curses.

You won’t get an exciting, driven quest to save a kingdom. It’s more of a ponderous drag to escape horrible abuse. I would say this is definitely for older teens, although the writing style is simple enough for younger teens. The subject matter is just too dark.

Don’t pick this up if you’re looking for a fast paced, compelling story

I didn’t know I needed this book until I read it. A young witch curses the four princess of the kingdom of Ever that takes effect on their thirteenth birthdays. A curse of without. Once the last princesses curse takes effect the witch is to return to tell them how to break the curse. This is a story of discovery, of lies, of being willfully ignorant, but also a story of hope, of change, of standing up for what is right. Reading this as an older female, I have experienced many of the things held within this story, as have most women. This has very feminist leanings and there are some trigger warnings for rape and sexual assault. It is tastefully done and offers hope and redemption. A very powerful read and I suggest everyone read it. I had shivers at the end and my hair stood up on end. Amazing.

Ever Cursed
I received an advanced copy of this book. I loved the idea of the cursed princesses and each having a different curse. I also like the reasoning behind why they were cursed. But overall it was poorly executed. The characters had little depth, the world building was shallow, and the twist was weird. It was also weird that magic was this thing to be protected but yet the witches were basically punished for doing either good or bad magic, it didn’t matter which one their was the same punishment. It was only mainly focused on the one sister so it seemed redundant to have all five have different curses. I wanted to like this more than I did, I would give it 2.5 stars.

Such a powerful story! I loved this so much, the fantasy crossed with social issues was so unexpected and so well done. I felt so hopeful while reading this story, we could all achieve so much if we could see and hear other people and their struggles and take back our power as women.

An ARC of this novel was sent to me by NetGalley for reviewing purposes. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This book is amazing- it is based off a fairy tale, but the author (who is extremely talented!) makes it into something new. I didn't know how much I needed this book until I read it. Everything about this book is amazing and captivating and it is worth reading.

<I> Thank you to Simon & Schuster Canada for providing me with an eARC of this novel via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. This book is currently set to be published in July 2020.</I>

I do not think words can describe how much I needed this fairy tale without realizing how much I needed this fairy tale. WOW.

The story mainly focuses on two characters: Princess Jane, a royal in the Kingdomn of Ever who lives within the confines of a stone castle with her father and four sisters, and Regan, a young witch who rashly cast a spell five years ago to punish the royal family. Reagan's spell caused the Queen of Ever to be ensconced in a glass case, while cursing the five princesses with "Without", a spell which slowly takes away a piece of each girl. Once Reagan turns 18, the spell becomes permanent, but the only way to break it is for the princesses and Reagan to work together. This book is feminist and egalitarian, but it is also the best representation of WOMAN POWER that I have ever read in a fantasy novel. It delivers a heavy message, but it is a necessary one.

<U>Ever Cursed</u> is A LOT to emotionally unpack. Haydu buries the reader under an avalanche of bold claims and astute observations about society, particularly expectations on female roles, and unashamedly takes an opinionated stance in the process. YAS & GOD BLESS. I wanted to scream and cheer because it finally, FINALLY feels like someone sees me, sees the way that I (and millions of other women) unquestioningly live my (our) live(s) everyday. I want every young girl on the planet to read it, but I also want to support Haydu with their warning: there are many, many triggers for readers who have suffered from body dysmorphia and/or sexual assaults, so please consider your mental health before picking this up!