Rachel's Reviews > East

This was a retelling of East of the Sun, West of the Moon, a story I'd never heard before, although it had some inklings of Beauty and the Beast mixed in, with a maiden required to break the curse of a prince transformed into a bear.

This had the welcome feel of a classic fantasy story, built upon magic, legend, and superstition. Rose was born a North born child, meant to wander, with a prophesy over her head that she will die, buried in snow and ice in the frozen North. As such, her mother does her best to keep her close, which proves to be impossible.

When Rose's sister, Sarah, becomes ill, a white bear comes to their door, and says he will heal Sarah and make the family wealthy, if Rose will go away with him. She agrees, and he takes her to a magical palace in the mountain where her days are spent weaving and telling stories to the bear and her nights are spent in a magical darkness with a strange visitor sleeping beside her.

What I liked best about this story, I think, was the slow build and extensive character development. Piece by piece this story comes together, and everything Rose learns along her journey is put to good use in the climax. While it did slow down a bit in the journey portion of the story, my attachment to Rose kept me well-immersed until the last page.