Mirrored by Alex Flinn

Violet was a strange child - on the inside and the outside - so she was an outsider to the other children at Coral Ridge Elementary which left her lonely and isolated.  The other children ignored her - except for Jennifer and Greg.  Jennifer and her friend Gennifer seemed to delight in teasing and excluding her, while Greg became a friend.  When the opportunity comes for Violet to make a change in her life she seizes it - after all who wouldn't want to smooth away the imperfections and make themselves practically perfect?  As the years go by Violet transforms herself into someone new and beautiful, supported by her new friend Kendra.  As the flaws fall away Violet expects things to change, but will they really?

Celine bears a different curse - she is a natural beauty with a kind soul and loving heart.  No one takes her seriously though, or if they do they wait for her to be a Queen Bee or a snob.  When her mother dies in a tragic accident it is just Celine and her father, until an old friend reappears and joins their lives.  As time passes Celine grows more beautful and more isolated, until she is forced into the spotlight.  As her home life becomes more miserable Celine trhows herself into her friendships and new passions - but will it be enough?  Celine is in danger, and she doesn't even know it.

Alex Flinn has written some amazing fractured fairytales over the years, taking stories we know really well and twisting them into something new and exciting - updating them and bringing them into a modern time and a modern world.  The common thread through these stories is Kendra, a "young" woman who has seen the ages pass and is not afraid to meddle in the lives of people who need it!  Mirrored was a relativley long story for Flinn, but it was also more complex than her other stories and was essentially three stories rolled into one rather enjoyable package.

Fractured fairytales can work really well when they are well handled, but they can also be very bad when the author handles it badly.  Flinn has a deft touch with her fractured fairytales, drawing on the source material to give you a familiar feeling when you read, but also bringing in enough new material to keep things interesting.  Mirrored is a great addition to the story of Kendra and the people she helps/punishes.

If you like this book then try:

• Beastly by Alex Flinn
• Cloaked by Alex Flinn
• Princess of the midnight ball by Jessica Day George
• Mechanica by Betsy Cornwell
• Snow by Tracy Lynn
• Beauty sleep by Cameron Dokey
• The crimson thread by Suzanne Weyn
• Ella enchanted by Gail Carson Levine
• Just Ella by Margaret Peterson Haddix

Reviewed by Brilla