A coven of witches plots to overthrow a kingdom. One brave woman stands in their way.At her mother’s death-bed, Elisabeth learns her mother’s illness is no accident and that her own life is in danger. Evil witches are plotting to take over the kingdom of Vendale. All alone, naive, and untrained, Elisabeth’s determination is all she has to confront her mother’s murderers as she discovers love at … discovers love at the same time. While Richard’s behaviour sends distracting mixed messages, Elisabeth finds herself stuck in limbo: she is treated like a child but is forced to make adult decisions. Meanwhile, the witches’ plot spins a fateful web around her.
Can Elisabeth succeed in the face of insurmountable odds?
This is the first part of a two-part story.
Becoming, Part 2 of the Siblings’ Tale
will be available in August 2019.
more
A young woman must discover her magic destiny while negotiating the dangers of her family, romance and politics. Highly recommend.
A sweet coming of age fantasy
This was an interesting read, full of action, drama and a touch of romance amongst a fantasy setting. It had a touch of historical romance to it which was sweet and left you wanting more. The ending is most certainly not the end of the story and intrigues and hooks you to read the next book. Fantasy and historical romance lovers will enjoy this book and the strong world building and magical elements throughout.
I wish this book would have been around when I was about 14. As it is, I wish I knew a 14 year old girl who loves to read so I could buy this for her. One thing I like to do with books is going into them completely blind with little to no idea what it is about. I often don’t even read the back of the book. Some of the time this approach to novels works out really well for me because I have no preconceived notions of what the book “should” be about, and so I am able to focus on the merits of the book free of any bias. I found this book enticing, wonderful and lovely. If you are a fan of magic, princes, witches and romance, then this is the book for you. The characters are well developed and the story is full twists and turns. I did find there were some of the story plot that was rushed and could have been explored, but that is just me wanting to know everything. Well done on a great story Astrid.
*I am review book 1 and 2 together
Astrid did great in weaving the feeling of classic fairytales into her story for the modern reader. Elizabeth is a fun character who is relatable for anyone who has fallen in love, but then has to deal with her new powers and is given more responsibility than she ever thought possible. It definitely weaves in a few different class fairy tales from different areas of Europe, and I really liked that about it. Astrid writes very well and has a beautiful pose, although if you are looking for an action-packed story, this one might not be for you. This one is more lyrical and beautiful, versus other books in the genre.
The second book is great as it follows more of of the siblings’ tale. I really liked Edvard and his devotion to his sister, but felt we didn’t get enough of him in the last half of the book. Although the evil step-mother troupe is used a lot, it’s definitely a classic and is relatable to some people *cough-cough*. She was quite evil, but I found her believable as I have seen some pretty messed up families in my life because of step-parents.
All in all, if you are looking for a beautiful prose that is based on fairy tales, I recommend these two books!
A great fairytale retelling of Brother and Sister. Written in a beautiful lyrical style, it is easy to get caught up in Elisabeth’s story from the grief of loosing her mother, to the joy and confusion of falling in love.
4.5 Stars for this imaginative retelling!
I’ll start off by saying that this author’s writing style is lovely, the prose flowing well with no hang ups. The story setting was nicely described and the world well developed. The beginning was a little slow for me and I do wish we had actually seen how Elisabeth grew into her magical skills being that she was pretty much self taught when it came to her unique powers. It would have been nice to make that journey with her. The romance between the prince and Elisabeth was sweet though. I loved their history together! And the dramatic cliff hanger at the end has me anxious to learn what happens next in this two book series.
Aspiring: Part 1 of the Siblings’ Tale (Elisabeth and Edvard’s World) is a fairytale retelling of a Brother and Sister.
It starts with an amazing setting. (The story is found in the archives of a kingdom.)
The classic fairy tale stars two siblings who navigate personal trials while caring for one another. This story has everything from a cruel merchant father to a wicked witch stepmother. One with magic and a thirst for power.
I don’t want to give too much away as this is a great read with multiple twists and turns.
I would recommend this book for lovers of romance, magic and fairytales.
Siblings clash in the beautiful fairy tale where a young girl, Elisabeth, discovers hidden magical powers and must use them to save her kingdom. It has all the key elements of many enchanting tales – a wicked stepmother, an evil father, magic in the forest, and unattainable love.
I chose this rating because of the way the story was written and the way it pulled me in. I loved how the author laid each part-out, and it helped you imagine like you were there. The way that she described things in such detail connected with me because I was able to use my imagination more to picture each part of the story. I felt that the characters she created were perfect for this story too. I would recommend it to my family and friends to read.
This story is an amazing journey. I love that the main character, Elisabeth, is not the cookie cutter heroine. She suffers many of the same issues that every woman does coming into her own—knowing and owning her power, accepting physical differences, learning about the complexities of relationships. This story will suck you in from the first page and not let you go until you’re hungry for the sequel.
The title of this handsome fantasy, Aspiring, resonates in my mind with a similar word, Ascending. The story the author presents concerns the aspirations of a young woman to come into her own by acquiring a certain socially-mandated age and by surviving numerous adverse circumstances. But, as I pointed out in my first sentence, this is not merely a question of her aspirations; ascension, too, plays a dominant role as the plot unfolds, for, beyond her aspirations, she must ascend to a level of worthiness befitting a possible future as consort to the Crown Prince. She must ascend in the world of magic to become a powerful practitioner of these arcane arts for the forces of good. In summation, it is a given that her real challenge, beyond surviving, beyond learning, beyond winning the love of her chosen one, is to save her world from the forces of evil that are gathering strength around the main characters. Elisabeth’s real journey is to go far beyond what she originally aspired to attain and to take on the task of ascending to a station she never imagined as a younger person.
The storytelling challenge, as I see it (and as it must be by necessity in fantasy tales), is to create a polished, finished world that is unique but simple, both beautiful and ugly, but always believable. One of the tropes here is that the female characters appear to possess supernatural abilities, while the men are, for the most part, garden variety movers-and- shakers. They run the gamut from the Prince (sweet, loyal, just) to Elisabeth’s father (self-centered, mean-spirited, evil and stupid). Between those extremes stands her even-tempered, playful brother, Edvard, who I believe is destined to play a large role in the next two volumes. I believe the author rose to the challenge of world-building admirably.
When you are no longer in the category of “Young Adult,” which I am not (happily or sadly, I can’t decide), the greatest enjoyment to be derived from a book like this, is observing how artfully the author can carry something like this off, and—when it is done as well as this—marveling at the skill brought to the writing desk. Thankfully, all my admiration for what the author does here distracted me from feeling old.
It’s not really meant for review, but I have to mention (consider this a postscript) that Astrid V. J. acknowledges, on the last pages of her book, all of the persons who helped her and made this book possible. This is a breathtaking list. I don’t believe I’ve ever known that many people in my life, which I suppose is why I write—just to invent more people to fill space up. I love that she has not forgotten those who helped her in her journey and made such an enjoyable book a fantasy reality. As a first time novelist, Astrid V.J. has—until recently—been what is called an “aspiring writer.” It’s clear to me that her “aspiring” phase is now behind her. As a full-fledged writer, she has spread her wings, “ascended,” and “arrived.”
Obviously: recommended!
As a long time fan of fairy tales, I truly enjoy reading an author’s spin on a lesser known tale. Elisabeth and Edvard entrances you from the beginning, I loved how the author segue’s into the tale through a historian’s perspective. It has a lovely lilt of Old English without affecting the readability. The relationship between Elisabeth, Edvard and Richard was well done, you fall in love with each character for their strengths and their weaknesses. Elisabeth in particular I found refreshing. It is often difficult when writing about a time period when feminism was dealt with severely to have a strong female character that still feels realistic. Elisabeth’s acceptance of her station in life lent credibility while her character’s strength and will were more internal and written very effectively. The ‘big-bad’ is written with an ominous, overwhelming tone that really makes you wonder how she can be overcome, I loved how the author brought the villain to that uncomfortable place where you really don’t like them. Add in the magical component and you have a fairytale worth reading. I’ve already downloaded the second book!
Aspiring is a deeply enjoyable fantasy retelling of the Grimm Fairytale of Elisabeth and Edvard/Brother and Sister/Sibling’s Tale. I am not familiar with this particular Grimm story, but I love many of their other tales. I feel as though fans of both Ella Enchanted and Jane Austen would enjoy this tale. The book opens with a brief look into the future, but then returns to Queen Elisabeth’s retelling of her own story as a young woman who returns from school to face the tragedy of her mother being terminally ill. The story is somewhat reminiscent of Ella Enchanted and Cinderella, but is still absolutely unique in it’s own right. Her mother reveals a desperately protected secret which launches Elisabeth on a journey of self-discovery of magic and coming into herself. There is also the romance that blossoms between Elisabeth and the crown prince which is looked down upon and forbidden since she is not of age yet to be courted and he is the best friend of her older brother. I love the dynamic of Elisabeth and Edvard’s relationship as the story progresses and that Elisabeth is a strong, loving and determined heroine. Aspiring and the subsequent novels of this story have all the hallmarks of an epic fantasy waiting to happen. I think the intended audience of this novel is young women and teenage girls, but this story can easily be enjoyed by adults who love fantasy as well. I look forward to the next part of Elisabeth and Edvard’s journey. My only critique is that I found the first few chapters to be somewhat slow paced, but still enjoyable. I devoured the last five chapters within a short period of time as the plot thickened.