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Description
You think you know Cinderella’s story: the ball, the magical shoes, the handsome prince.
You’re halfway right, and all-the-way wrong.
Ella is a haunting. Murdered at sixteen, her furious ghost is trapped in her father’s house, invisible to everyone except her stepmother and stepsisters.
Even when she discovers how to untether herself from her prison, there are limits. She cannot be seen or heard by the living people who surround her. Her family must never learn she is able to leave. And at the stroke of every midnight, she finds herself back on the staircase where she died.
Until she forges a wary friendship with a fairy charm-seller, and makes a bargain for three nights of almost-living freedom. Freedom that means she can finally be seen. Danced with. Touched.
Summary
I recently read Australian author Freya Marske’s adult fantasy fairytale retelling Cinder House.
Review
Marske creates an immersive setting in Cinder House. The atmosphere of this novella is its greatest strength, with the slowly decaying estate proving to be both setting and character. Marske’s vivid descriptions create an uneasy balance between tension and harmony and the loss of person-hood in the haunting and character of Ella who is slowly disappearing into the house where she was murdered.
This is a fairy tale reimagining of Cinderella of course and retains a gothic atmosphere from the ghost story aspect blended with magic and whimsy. Ella, the protagonist, is as much about confronting her own fears and grief as she is about uncovering supernatural truths and her desire to be human again.
Marske handles magical elements by weaving them deftly into the worldbuilding. The general themes of agency, obsession and hidden knowledge are explored throughout in both the ghostly haunting and the Royal characters of the Prince and his fiancée, a sorceress which sees Ella entangled in their relationship.
The pacing is often quick and then measured but leads to favouring rapid action with quite sudden leaps from Ella’s introspection to the necessary ball and dancing with the prince and the climax of the narrative that may leave some readers wanting more and a more measured pace throughout. Although Marske crafts a beautiful fantasy world and strong characters, it is sometimes difficult to determine who’s story is being told in this novella – is it Ella self-discovery and supernatural knowledge and agency or is it the prince and his lack of agency and unravelling his curse, or again, the sorceress fiancée who is tied to Ella via the prince.
However, the it is a fascinating read with the mysteries and emotional threads of Cinder House pulled together a way that may feel rushed but is ultimately a satisfying conclusion.
Conclusion
A recommended read for fans of Markse. For new readers, this is a compact reimagining of Cinderella with a queer component and fresh take on the classic fairytale while also being part ghost story. An enjoyable read.
** This is my personal opinion and does not reflect any judging decisions **
Leanbh Pearson 