MY RATING: 5 stars
Rapunzel has moved from village to village all her life, never feeling like she belongs. Her mother treats her as though she weren't a young woman of 19, old enough to make her own decisions, and fills her with suspicion and distrust of men. But after being saved by Sir Gerek on the way to Hagenhiem, and coming to their new home, everything in Rapunzel's life begins to turn.
Overcoming unfounded fears, learning to trust, dangers, and unbelievable secrets revealed.
Oh my, I loved this The Golden Braid! :D It was very much Rapunzel, but unique as well. The only copy my library had was large print... but that was alright. :)
Rapunzel. She was a great, relatable character- her insecurities around others, wanting friends, her fears that her mother instilled in her. And then learning to break free from that, and from her mother's stifling. Not to mention her hardheadedness and those plain things she said to Sir Gerek. *grins* So funny! I loved the- what would you call it?- grumpiness and sort of teasing that went on when Gerek was teaching Rapunzel to read. :) And the blanket part! That was funny too! They're both so stubborn. :D
Sir Gerek. Yea, I already started talking about him. I love him! :) His nature... he's kind of grumpy and all at first, but he's also so kind and loving. <3 LOVE. I love that kind of guy. I love Sir Gerek! :D
Gothel. She was a lot like in Tangled. Seemingly not-so-bad. But then she turns ugly and hateful. She was a crazy woman, and horrible. I couldn't imagine being locked in a tower, with out a way to get down! Yikes. I'd probably do something dangerous out of panic. :P
It was nice to "see" some of the characters from The Captive Maiden, and get to know them better. :) Lady Rose is such a wonderful lady! Her talk to Rapunzel about how a man can't love you perfectly, but God can- that was amazing! Melanie Dickerson does such a good job of putting important lessons into her books. :)
The romance was great! The couple didn't fall in love at first sight. It took a while, at least for them to realize they loved the other person. I LOVE THAT. It's more real or something. When they start out not liking each other very much... then they're friends.... then... :) This romance was very sweet and adorable. <3 Sir Gerek comforting Rapunzel, all of it. They're the cutest.
There was plenty of adventure. The usual knight-in-shining-armor comes to the rescue. Rapunzel rescues him once too, but Gerek gets most of the rescuing. ;) Sleeping in caves, castle take-overs, creepy smiling criminals-eek!-, and mad stifling mothers. The story was very interesting, and it didn't seem to go on with the same stuff like in The Captive Maiden. There seemed to be more of a variety of happenings in The Golden Braid. :)
Mystery was also in this book. Yes, yes. And there's this big secret that I suddenly "realized" (right before it was revealed, I think) that was like, woa! ;) Secrets and twists are great. :) And mysteries that you're wondering about throughout the book.
So yes, I LOVED THIS BOOK! :) GO READ IT!
quote: "You're beard is coming in nicely. It doesn't look as terrible as most men's beards."
"Terrible? What kind of flattery is that?"
She shrugged. "It makes you look old and... lazy."
"That's the gratitude I get for teaching a maiden to read."
I don't know, but this was just hilarious to me. ;P That's what I'm talking about with the "grumpiness and sort of teasing" that went on between Rapunzel and Sir Gerek. :D I just love Rapunzel's personality. So funny. ;)
I reccomend The Golden Braid to ages 15+
(when I copy and paste my reviews from Goodreads, they get highlighted. *frowns* And I didn't feel like writing the whole review up on here, so it's just gonna be highlighted. ;P)
HAVE YOU READ ANY OF MELANIE DICKERSON'S BOOKS? HAVE YOU READ THIS ONE?! ISN'T IT GREAT?!!! ;)
