What Once Was Mine tackles the what if’s of Rapunzel’s famous tale in Tangled. What if Rapunzel’s mother drank a potion from the wrong flower? Instead of the famous, golden Sundrop flower, the Queen’s potion is made from the Moondrop flower, causing baby Rapunzel to be born with long, silver hair. And instead of having healing powers, Rapunzel’s hair murders. Kind of cool, right?

In a roundabout way, Rapunzel still ends up trapped in a tower with Mother Gothel, still naïve to the world, and still longing to see the floating lanterns on her nineteenth birthday. (But the lanterns are for the dead princess in this tale, as opposed to the lost princess in the movie.) It’s familiar in the build-up to Rapunzel leaving her tower, but once she meets up with Flynn Rider and a new friend, Gina, the story really starts to go off in its own direction. The princess must discover the secret origin of her murderhair (as she calls it) and learn to control the power from the Moondrop flower, all in order to find out where she really belongs in life.

What I liked: There were good ideas here and there was a lot of opportunity to create a new-but-familiar story. Braswell did a good job exploring the theory of the Moondrop flower and how it all relates to the moon cycles. That was, by far, the most interesting element of the whole book. Also, as a huge Flynn Rider fan, I thought his characterization was great. I had Zachary Levi’s voice in my head every time Flynn had something to say. It was a nice balance of keeping his character true to the original while giving us new content. I also didn’t expect to like Gina as much as I did, but a new character allowed the story to be freshened up even more.

What I didn’t like (because of course there will always be things I didn’t like): Ohmygod it felt so long. And half the book was pre-Rapunzel leaving the tower, so the action didn’t pick up until after that. Also, Mother Gothel was a really flat character– her motives were not too far from her character’s in the movie and that felt like a letdown. (The real villain of the story was wild y’all.) And there was an extra storyline about a brother telling his sick sister Rapunzel’s tale, which made it a story within a story. It was really unnecessary and took me right out of the narrative each time it switched, though the author’s note at the end did explain the reasoning.

The problem with this book is that it limits itself to a very specific audience. Readers have to know Tangled and they have to be willing to give up what they know about it to be sold a new story. Fans of the Twisted Tales series will have a good time. Die-hard Disney fans may need some convincing. Me? I’m ready to go re-watch Tangled.

3/5 Stars.

**Thank You NetGalley and Publisher for giving me a free advanced reader’s copy of this ebook in exchange for an honest review.**

I loved, loved, loved this story!! It was well written and I feel very connected to the characters. I loved how it started out as a bed side story that grew into something more. Being brought out of the retelling and into the hospital wasn’t jarring at all, it felt natural. I highly recommend this book to anyone that loves Tangled and fairytales.

**Book provided by publisher via NetGalley, this in no way impacts my review**

If you aren't aware, Disney has released a series of "Twisted Tales" in which they take a classic storyline and ask what would happen if a specific element and/or plotline of the story was twisted - then they use the book to answer that question.

In What Once Was Mine we are following a Rapunzel (specifically Disney's version - Tangled) and asking what would happen if instead of the sunflower, Rapunzel's mother drank from a different flower.

This is answered by having her mother drink from the moonflower, causing our beloved blondie to be born with silver hair that seems to be dangerous "murderhair". Following the casualty of a handmaiden, Rapunzel is sent off with Gothel where she will remain until she learns to control her powers.

I really enjoyed the story behind the story in which a brother is telling his version of rapunzel to his sister with cancer. Their relationship throughout the book was very endearing. I also think Braswell did a great job of creating a "voice" for the brother - it was obvious at specific points that this story was being told by a young adult male.

The characters themselves were also (mostly) true to character from the tangled movie. I love the theming of learning to forgive yourself and discovering your dreams that Rapunzel goes through. Of course we also got out main theme that a person can be your dream as well.

I would say the only thing I didn't like about the book was the Flynn/Rapunzel realtionship felt a bit insta-love to me.

Overall, such a fantastic retelling and I can't wait to read the rest of the twisted tales now!

This was an amazing read. I had such a hard time putting it down. I love how THIS version takes place. I love how everyone was incorporated into the story to match the movie. I do wish there was more of the goodwife in the later chapters but I understand why the author chose to write it the way they did. The emotions and smiles brought on by this book makes me want to read it again and just relive it all.

This book is the first Disney Twisted Tale I've read and I loved it. It brought to mind some of the darker parts of traditional fairy tales before Disney was a thing. Most fairy tales were a bit dark and dangerous. This tale brought some of that back.

As we read the tale, it is told by Brendan to his younger sister, Daniella, while she receives chemotherapy. He humors her love of Rapunzel by watching Tangled and reading the book to her many times, until one day he offers his version: What if Rapunzel's mother drank the wrong potion? Instead of drinking the Sundrop potion, she drinks the Moondrop potion. The Queen still lives, Rapunzel is still affected by the potion her mother drank, but with deadly consequences. Her hair kills. For the safety of the kingdom and her parents, Rapunzel is sent away with Mother Gothel until she can learn to control her power.

All of the main characters make their appearance: Rapunzel, Pascal, Mother Gothel, Flynn Rider, the Snuggly Duckling, and Maximus, even if in a slightly modified way. There are a few new characters to help Rapzunel along her journey as well. My favorite addition was Gina, the determined girl who longs for adventure, raised by a Goodwife or good witch in the woods. In a way, she could represent the life Rapunzel could have had.

When I started reading, I wasn't aware it was a story within a story. Even so, by the end, Brendan and Daniella were just as touching as the story he told his sister. I highly recommend this book to all lovers of fairy tales, from teens to adults.

I wasn’t sure what to expect with this story as I knew it would be a twist on the original but I was very surprised and happy with how it was done. Even though there was a couple new characters added, I was very glad to see all my favourites made it in and also I very much enjoyed where they ended up. The only thing I would have like to have seen a little more was the budding relationship between Rapunzel and Flynn.

Want to start off this review by saying thank you so much to Disney publishing for sending me an arc of this book! This is my first arc and I am so excited to review it for you guys! This book was absolutely incredible and completely surpassed my expectations. I am a huge fan of all things Disney, especially Tangled, so I was nervous that this book wouldn’t live up to the movie; I was so wrong! The way that the author chose to frame the story as if it were being told from a brother to his sister is truly ingenious and really emphasizes the found family trope which is consistent throughout the story! It is really great because the plot is different enough from the movie to keep it interesting but there are also many callbacks to the movies that fans can pick up on. My favorite part about this book is the way that it established Rapunzel’s character and individuality. The relationship between her and Flynn is told beautifully but there are also many moments when Rapunzel is able to decide things for herself, without Flynn’s input which I really enjoyed. Additionally, this book introduces a new character, Gina, who becomes close with both Rapunzel and Flynn. I really loved the addition of a female friendship for Rapunzel and how their dynamic is different and just as rewarding as Flynn and Rapunzel’s dynamic. Finally, the romance between Flynn and Rapunzel is told amazingly in this book, there were so many moments where I couldn’t help but smile and gush over how cute they are! If you are a fan of Tangled or Disney, you will absolutely love this twisted retelling!

I ended up having to DNF this book because I couldn't get through it right now. From what I was able to get through it's basically a mashup of Tangled the series and the movie. Which don't get me wrong I love the show and the movie but this story just didn't hold my attention the way they did. It felt really slow and somehow I didn't like Rapunzel and I can't exactly put my finger on why. I'm hoping I can come back to it another time because I love all things Disney, but this was too painful to get through right now

*** Thank you to Disney Book Group and Netgalley for an Advanced Reader Copy of this book! All thoughts are my own. ***

*4.5 stars

What if Rapunzel's mother drank a potion from the wrong flower?

This is my first Twisted Tale book I have read. None of the books are connected, so you can start with whichever book you would like. I rewatched Tangled before starting this book, since I watched it when I was a kid and didn't remember much of the story. I wanted to see how this book altered the original story. I really enjoyed how the story was told (gave me some Princess Bride vibes.) I liked the addition of new characters and how some of the characters were seen in a new light. I don't think I could have imagined the story going in a different direction, it just felt like it meant to be told in this way. If you are a fan of Tangled, I think you will be satisfied with this unique take on the story. I was very entertained overall and entranced with this book. What Once Was Mine is available now!

Thank you NetGalley and Disney-Hyperion for the e-Arc of this book in exchange for an honest review!

Just a recap, we follow a different storyline for you original story of Tangled! This storyline follows if the Queen drank from a different flower and instead of Rapunzel having the ability to heal with the use of her hair, we follow if her hair was used for harm and to kill!

I will be giving this story 3 stars. It was a good story but with not enough significant change between the two stories for me to give it a higher rating.
I didn't see a lot of difference between the original movie (story) Tangled v. this storyline which made it a little difficult for me to read the book because I felt like I could almost predict the little changes in the story to figure out what happened. Granted, I did enjoy the movie so I did love the small twists but I do wish there was more change to the storyline to see the difference. After you get through the first 100 pages, the story does pick up. The use of a big brother telling his sick sister the story was sweet but I felt it did not fit with the story and sometimes took away from how the story could have progressed and been better.

Flynn was one of my favorites because regardless of the story, Flynn makes me swoon but I did feel like the relationship was a love at first sight with no building.

The Twisted Tales series is amazing and I will still continue to read the tales as they come out because HELLO it's Disney and I loved some of the other retellings.

I really enjoyed this book!
It is a retelling of Rapunzel, and I was not disappointed! I thought this storyline was so good, and I loved how it was told. The characters were great, and I was a big fan of Flynn. The humor was there, and I loved the twist on the original version of Rapunzel. I recommend this book to anyone interested in it! It was good!

I got this from Netgalley to read and leave an honest review, and I was originally very excited about this installment because it was going to be something my sister and I could read together and enjoy as Rapunzel is her favorite and I was excited to see how the story would change with the Moondrop flower in place of the Sundrop.

I didn't hate this one, didn't love it. I appreciated that the story was told like the Princess Bride, a story within a story. There were a lot of references to other media and the original content that were fun to see, the little jabs between the siblings telling the story and how Gina was represented as a sister figure to Flynn.

I didn't enjoy the addition of historical fogures in a fairy tale retelling it threw me off quite a bit and I don't think it really added much to the book. The entire end half of the book was drawn out and was not necessary to the rest of it for me. It felt clustered but I guess in the sense of it being a story inside of a story it worked.

It was trying to as original as it could be while a licensed work for an installment of what is an established series. It would have worked better if it was standalone.

In this twisted tale we have Rapunzel and here instead of her mother drinking the Sundrop flower she had the Moondrop flower. For this same reason, the powers that Rapunzel had were deadly instead of healing or so they thought. In this story she was sent away with Mother Gothel thinking she would help her control her powers. When Rapunzel escapes to see the floating lights she meets Gina, a little known thug that helps her find Flynn and have her take Rapunzel to see the lights however on their way there they found themselves in harm's way as they find that there are dangerous people after Rapunzel and her magic. But, how did they know about her magic if she has been locked in a tower for 19 years? This adventure shows her the true magic that's within her and the meaning of true love and friendship.

Along with As Old as Time and So This is Love, this has been one of my favorites. Braswell uses a brother retelling the story to his sister who is going through chemotherapy sessions. I honestly did not care for it, I felt that it took me out of the story, however as I read the author's note I understood why she did it and how this was drawn from her own experience. Mother Gothel was exquisite, she was a full on narcissist that liked to get her way but if she could watch the world burn as she did her thing she did, she had a different kind of power and I thought that was great, I only wish there was more of her, I felt like there should've been a high point to her villainess, was she just scared of Rapunzel when she found her true magic and that's it?

Now the better parts of the book that I was pleased with, the subtle twists in the story, how Pascal and Maximus came to be and I appreciated that the personalities of the original characters were not changed from the movie. Flynn was funny and sarcastic, really made me giggle throughout the book. Also the taunting between Gina and Flynn was just hilarious. Gina was an addition and I have mixed feelings with her, she was already a fully developed character, I didn't feel her grow with Rapunzel and Flynn, but she also added her connection to the witch from the woods (that showed Rapunzel about her true powers) and although she didn't quite say, she might have been an older gal that came as role model to Rapunzel of what she can accomplish as a girl. I thought this had a little of everything, there was romance, magic, funny moments, a little action and even some darkness there, overall a great twist and interesting approach to it. Recommended if you like a fast read and simple plot to get you out of a funk.

Trigger Warning: the main character is telling the story to his sister, who is undergoing chemo treatments

I loved this take on Rapunzel! As with any Disney die-hard, I'm obsessed with all things Disney so have seen all the "classics", including Rapunzel. While it kept the key components of the story, it had new characters as well as some unexpected twists to it. This was my first in the 12 book series, even though I own 6 others in the series lol. It can be read as a stand-alone.

Thank you NetGalley and Disney Hyperion for the advanced copy!

Best Twisted Tale that I've read so far. I got so sucked into this book that I read it in one weekend. Brendan accompanies his Tangled-obsessed sister to her chemotherapy sessions. After watching the movie and reading the book numerous times, Brendan decides to tell her his own version of the story in which Rapunzel's mother drinks a potion from the wrong flower and the ramifications of that. Great story (that may even be better than Tangled!) and I love the new characters that were introduced!

I received an advanced reader copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. All opinions expressed in this review are my own.

This is a really cool series overall and the set up for this What if scenario is one of my favorites. The author's note at the end of the book makes it even more thoughtful, All around its a well executed premise, I enjoyed the way the difference is Rapunzel's powers changed her character while still leaving the most important aspects of her personality unchanged, The other characters similarly had some changes and overall it made the story so interesting and I loved the twists created by their change in personality as well as the new character introduced. It's really fun to read a story where you know how it has to end but can't predict how its gets there. Overall this is a cool book and I highly recommend it to fans of Rapunzel and fairy tale retellings..

I think this might be better than the movie…maybe. I loved this and it was different enough from the movie that I didn’t find it boring or overly predictable. There are new characters, honestly I love Gina. And a few of the new characters are very evil people, possibly worse than mother Gothel. I feel like this is a more mature Tangled and touches on topics of privilege, rich vs poor, the treatment of orphans, and the judgement of women.

The set up of the story is in modern day a brother and sister are in the hospital while the sister goes through chemo. The brother is providing entertainment for her but when the sister asks him to read Rapunzel (again) he decides to tell her his own version of the story. Then he goes on to say that instead of healing hair from the sunflower Rapunzel gets “murder hair” from the moon drop flower and goes from there.

We still have the classic characters of pascal. Maximums, Flynn, Rapunzel, Mother Gothel, and the thieves from the snuggly duckling. We still have a tall tower, magic hair, and the discovery of the world for the first time. But there is so much else added to it. I loved this twisted tale and it is easily one of my new favorites.

What Once was Mine is the 12th book in the Disney Twisted Tales series. This particular book is written by Liz Braswell, who has written many of the previous books in the series.

In this book, the twisted tale is, “What if Rapunzel’s mother drank a potion from the wrong flower?” Much like the tale we know, the Queen is ill and the only way to save her and her unborn daughter is to drink a magic potion from the Sundrop flower. Everyone in the kingdom searches for the glowing flower and it is found. But it’s not the Sundrop flower, but rather the Moondrop flower. The potion still saves the queen and the baby princess, but rather than healing powers, Rapunzel is cursed with what she calls “murderhair.”

To protect the kingdom, the King and Queen send Rapunzel off with Mother Gother, who promises to raise the child as her own. Little do the King and Queen know that Mother Gother is actually holding Rapunzel captive in a tower and all the gifts they send to her are never given to her. One day, Rapunzel sees a man, Flynn Rider, hide something in a tree down below her tower. She decides to leave the tower to investigate. After a day or so, she decides Flynn Rider is just the man she needs to take her to see the floating lights.

But Mother Gothel had other plans for Rapunzel. She was going to auction the girl off to the highest bidder. She had proved Rapunzel was dangerous and could be a very powerful weapon if the price was right. Since Rapunzel escaped, all the bidders sent men (and hounds) to search for Rapunzel. Rapunzel has the help of Flynn Rider and a new friend Gina, to help her get to her rightful parents.

I was so excited when I saw this book was coming out. I have read a handful of the twisted tales before, so I was looking forward to seeing how this one played out.

Having read some of the tales before, a couple of them written by Braswell, I was a little taken aback by the “present day” part of the story with Brendan and Daniella. Brendan promised her sister a different version of her favorite fairy tale, so throughout the story there were bits of conversation between the siblings about various characters and where the story was going. At first, I wasn’t really a fan of this, but I did grow to like it. Like Daniella, I wanted to know what Brendan had in store for our favorite characters.

I’ll admit there were times it was quite slow, but overall it wasn’t bad. Rapunzel had to learn how to use her magical hair, because despite being told her entire life she was dangerous, her hair did other things besides kill. Each day of the lunar cycle was something different, so each day was described. I like the idea of each day of the lunar cycle being something different, but maybe just stick with the main phases of the moon rather than a new daily occurrence.

Even though it was a bit slow at times and I wasn’t a fan of the “present day” parts at first, I’d still give this one five stars. Braswell was able to tell a completely different story than what we’re used to. Instead of having a somewhat confident Rapunzel, who knew she could heal if she or someone else were hurt, we got a very scared Rapunzel who was afraid of getting too close to someone and killing them.
Thank you to Netgalley and Disney Publishing Worldwide for the advanced digital copy in exchange for my honest review.

This is the 12th book of the twisted tale series but the first that I have read. If you are a fan of tangles you will love this!

Mother Gothel locked Rapunzel away in a tower because her parent believed that she was cursed. Rapunzel was born with silver hair instead of golden with power to hurt instead of heal! This was because the queen drank from the moon drop flower instead of the sun drop flower.

Knowing that her hair can hurt people Rapunzel doesn’t mind living in the tower for the most part. She has always wanted to see the floating lights. Well on the night that Mother Gothel intends to auction Rapunzel, Rapunzel leaves ( without Mother Gothel) to go see them.

Along her way to the floating lights Rapunzel meets Flynn and Gina. During their adventure Rapunzel learns evil and death are not the only things that come from her hair. But what she learns isn’t necessarily good either. Rapunzel is left with her glowing hair and her own truths along the way to find her true family again, she just doesn’t know it will cost her.

This books just reminded me that Disney is just as much for adults as it is for kids. This twist to this tale came with humor too! I highly recommend!

Thank you NetGalley for my ARC. This book is available on September 7th.

Another Twisted Tale that didn't disappoint! These are always so good.
In this story Mother Gothel convinces the King and Queen to let her lock Rapunzel away in the tower after the Queen drinks from the wrong flower. They tell the towns people that the princess has passed. She lives alone all her childhood minus regular visits from Mother Gothel and her trusty sidekick Pascal, until her 18th birthday. On her birthday she sees a mysterious man and decides she wants him to take her to see the Floating lights.
From there she runaways and finds herself on a crazy adventure.
This story was a great read. My only negative thought was how much rapunzel seemed to know for a girl who grew up in a tower with only 35ish books to teach her about the world.
Can't wait to see what the next story will be!