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Hagenheim #7
The Silent Songbird
Evangeline is gifted with a heavenly voice, but she is trapped in a sinister betrothal until she embarks on a daring escape and meets brave Westley le Wyse. Can he help her discover the freedom to sing again?
Desperate to flee a political marriage to her cousin King Richard II's closest advisor, Lord Shiveley—a man twice her age with shadowy motives—Evangeline runs away and joins a small band of servants journeying back to Glynval, their home village.
Pretending to be mute, she gets to know Westley le Wyse, their handsome young leader, who is intrigued by the beautiful servant girl. But when the truth comes out, it may shatter any hope that love could grow between them.
More than Evangeline's future is at stake as she finds herself entangled in a web of intrigue that threatens England's monarchy. Should she give herself up to protect the only person who cares about her? If she does, who will save the king from a plot to steal his throne?
Desperate to flee a political marriage to her cousin King Richard II's closest advisor, Lord Shiveley—a man twice her age with shadowy motives—Evangeline runs away and joins a small band of servants journeying back to Glynval, their home village.
Pretending to be mute, she gets to know Westley le Wyse, their handsome young leader, who is intrigued by the beautiful servant girl. But when the truth comes out, it may shatter any hope that love could grow between them.
More than Evangeline's future is at stake as she finds herself entangled in a web of intrigue that threatens England's monarchy. Should she give herself up to protect the only person who cares about her? If she does, who will save the king from a plot to steal his throne?
296 pages, Hardcover
First published November 8, 2016
216 people are currently reading
6974 people want to read
About the author
Melanie Dickerson
40 books6,435 followersMelanie Dickerson is the New York Times bestselling author of happily-ever-after romance. She believes in love, laughter, afternoon tea, and the power of story.
With a million books sold and numerous awards, including two Christy Awards, two Golden Quills, a National Readers Choice Award, Christian Retailing’s Best, and Book Buyers’ Best Awards, her books have hit #1 in her category on the New York Times bestseller list.
When she’s not writing, Melanie can be found watching Pride and Prejudice for the hundredth time, cozying up to her handsome hero husband, or shaking her head at her slightly unhinged Jack Russell terrier. She lives in the beautiful foothills of the Appalachians near Huntsville, Alabama.
With a million books sold and numerous awards, including two Christy Awards, two Golden Quills, a National Readers Choice Award, Christian Retailing’s Best, and Book Buyers’ Best Awards, her books have hit #1 in her category on the New York Times bestseller list.
When she’s not writing, Melanie can be found watching Pride and Prejudice for the hundredth time, cozying up to her handsome hero husband, or shaking her head at her slightly unhinged Jack Russell terrier. She lives in the beautiful foothills of the Appalachians near Huntsville, Alabama.
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November 8, 2018
England, 1384—
Evangeline is the illegitimate first cousin of King Richard II. She has never wanted for food, clothing, or shelter. She can read and write in Latin and English (and presumably French, although that never comes up). She’s also been blessed with good looks, natural athleticism, and an angelic singing voice. But Evangeline lacks the one thing she yearns for: freedom. She envies the peasants, even though their life is mostly hard labor, because at least they can marry as they choose.
When Richard arranges for Evangeline to marry his ambitious, skeevy advisor, one Lord Shively, the girl makes a break for it, accompanied by her nervous maidservant/only friend, Muriel. They wear their shabbiest clothes and pass themselves off as servants, joining a group headed to the village of Glynval. There, Evangeline hopes to find a job and blend in until Shively gives her up for dead. At Muriel’s suggestion, our heroine is pretending to be mute lest her dulcet voice give her away.
The travelling band is led by Westley le Wyse, son of the Lord and Lady of Glynval. He is kind, handsome, and in every way the opposite of Shively. Lovestruck, Evangeline finds herself in a strange predicament: the young man thinks she’s too lowly for him to marry, but in reality she’s probably too high a rank to marry him. More to the point, would he even want to marry someone as inept, useless, selfish and dishonest as she believes herself to be?
When Evangeline’s cover is blown, can she rely on the le Wyse family and her other new allies? Or will Shively successfully force her to marry him, and use that unholy union to overthrow the King?
Content Advisory
Violence: Westley and Evangeline both get beat up a bit. He is clobbered over the head and thrown into water to drown, twice. She is forcibly seized several times, bound and gagged and struck once. She accidentally cuts someone the first time she uses a scythe. A violent mob gathers around a kitchen maid suspected of poisoning their soup. Shively makes a veiled rape threat.
Mentioned but not seen: a woman was beaten by her husband and died under mysterious circumstances. A woman is tortured in a dungeon until she breaks and reveals a secret.
Sex: Some kissing between Wes and Eva.
Language: Nothing.
Substance Abuse: Nothing in particular.
Nightmare Fuel: Young woman faces forced marriage to upper-middle-aged, likely domestic abuser with rotting teeth. ‘Nuff said.
Politics and Religion: As I’ve come to expect from this series, there’s a wimpy priest. He is ready to participate in a marriage ceremony where one party clearly doesn’t want to be there, which was frowned upon even back then. The priest is unfazed by Shively openly plotting against the king right in front of him, but freaks out when Westley kisses Evangeline in the chapel. Some medieval clergy were indeed uptight, but others could be downright randy, as one could deduce from The Canterbury Tales. It was really only after the advent of Puritanism—two hundred years after this story takes place—that people really started spazzing about stuff like that.
Dickerson also throws some subtle shade at the sacrament of Penance—Evangeline wants desperately to go to Confession and be absolved of her deception, but she’s kept too busy at the castle to make it…and eventually concludes that she doesn’t need it because Jesus forgives her anyway. NO ONE THOUGHT LIKE THIS IN 1384. Catholicism was to medieval Christians as water is to fish.
Conclusions
This story is ostensibly a historical, magic-free retelling of The Little Mermaid, but I would not have been sure of that without Dickerson’s notes at the back of the book.
It has almost nothing in common with the original Andersen tale, although I doubt anyone really expected or wanted it to. The only things carried over from the original are those that Disney kept—our heroine has a beautiful voice, which she either loses or chooses not to use, and she saves her beloved from drowning. The message of Andersen’s story was: don’t make deals with the Devil. You may get what you want, or close to it, but something will go horribly wrong. Obviously, the original story is as depressing as heck. I can’t blame Dickerson for not using it as a source.
Superficial traces remain of Disney’s happy revision. Evangeline’s ignorance of farm equipment and household tools parallels Ariel’s combing her hair with a dinner fork. Our heroine has another girl trying to undermine her; her guardian is a king unaware of a threat to his power; she has a sidekick who…er, flounders away from home. Finally, Westley has dark hair and blue eyes while Eva is a redhead.
There’s no character remotely comparable to the diabolical Sea Witch. Sabina is conniving against Evangeline and lustful toward Westley, but not really evil. Shively is, but as a male politician with no supernatural powers real or projected and standard villain motives, he’s just not that frightening compared to a female hell-creature who delights in fear and cruelty. It’s like the Chronicles of Narnia—after the White Witch, King Miraz is rather underwhelming. It doesn’t help that this is the fourth Hagenheim-Glynval chronicle to feature a forced marriage plot.
Perhaps the strangest of all, this novel has nothing to do with the ocean. The original story is one of the only famous fairytales not bound to a sylvan setting, which could really make this book stand out among the rest in its series. And the coast of Britain is such an evocative landscape…real missed opportunity here.
So while barely related to the tale it claims to retell, The Silent Songbird is a grandly entertaining adventure in its own right, full of daring escapes, betrayals, intrigues, disguises, and a sudden but genuine attraction between our two leads. There were points near the finale where I was actually worried about the characters. Dickerson built up the intensity well in those chapters.
This is the first book of the series to feature a real historical figure as a character: King Richard II of England. Unfortunately, you could replace him with pretty much any king from the pre-War of the Roses period and have the same effect; very little of his personality comes through. Last year I had to read Shakespeare’s Richard II for school, which was a fascinating commentary on the very concept of kingship. It’s too bad that Wes and Eva couldn’t have warned Richard about the Bolingbroke conspiracy.
This is definitely one of the better Hagenheim-Glynval tales, in spite of its flaws. Not quite as good as The Merchant’s Daughter or The Golden Braid, but still wholesome, summery fun.
Evangeline is the illegitimate first cousin of King Richard II. She has never wanted for food, clothing, or shelter. She can read and write in Latin and English (and presumably French, although that never comes up). She’s also been blessed with good looks, natural athleticism, and an angelic singing voice. But Evangeline lacks the one thing she yearns for: freedom. She envies the peasants, even though their life is mostly hard labor, because at least they can marry as they choose.
When Richard arranges for Evangeline to marry his ambitious, skeevy advisor, one Lord Shively, the girl makes a break for it, accompanied by her nervous maidservant/only friend, Muriel. They wear their shabbiest clothes and pass themselves off as servants, joining a group headed to the village of Glynval. There, Evangeline hopes to find a job and blend in until Shively gives her up for dead. At Muriel’s suggestion, our heroine is pretending to be mute lest her dulcet voice give her away.
The travelling band is led by Westley le Wyse, son of the Lord and Lady of Glynval. He is kind, handsome, and in every way the opposite of Shively. Lovestruck, Evangeline finds herself in a strange predicament: the young man thinks she’s too lowly for him to marry, but in reality she’s probably too high a rank to marry him. More to the point, would he even want to marry someone as inept, useless, selfish and dishonest as she believes herself to be?
When Evangeline’s cover is blown, can she rely on the le Wyse family and her other new allies? Or will Shively successfully force her to marry him, and use that unholy union to overthrow the King?
Content Advisory
Violence: Westley and Evangeline both get beat up a bit. He is clobbered over the head and thrown into water to drown, twice. She is forcibly seized several times, bound and gagged and struck once. She accidentally cuts someone the first time she uses a scythe. A violent mob gathers around a kitchen maid suspected of poisoning their soup. Shively makes a veiled rape threat.
Mentioned but not seen: a woman was beaten by her husband and died under mysterious circumstances. A woman is tortured in a dungeon until she breaks and reveals a secret.
Sex: Some kissing between Wes and Eva.
Language: Nothing.
Substance Abuse: Nothing in particular.
Nightmare Fuel: Young woman faces forced marriage to upper-middle-aged, likely domestic abuser with rotting teeth. ‘Nuff said.
Politics and Religion: As I’ve come to expect from this series, there’s a wimpy priest. He is ready to participate in a marriage ceremony where one party clearly doesn’t want to be there, which was frowned upon even back then. The priest is unfazed by Shively openly plotting against the king right in front of him, but freaks out when Westley kisses Evangeline in the chapel. Some medieval clergy were indeed uptight, but others could be downright randy, as one could deduce from The Canterbury Tales. It was really only after the advent of Puritanism—two hundred years after this story takes place—that people really started spazzing about stuff like that.
Dickerson also throws some subtle shade at the sacrament of Penance—Evangeline wants desperately to go to Confession and be absolved of her deception, but she’s kept too busy at the castle to make it…and eventually concludes that she doesn’t need it because Jesus forgives her anyway. NO ONE THOUGHT LIKE THIS IN 1384. Catholicism was to medieval Christians as water is to fish.
Conclusions
This story is ostensibly a historical, magic-free retelling of The Little Mermaid, but I would not have been sure of that without Dickerson’s notes at the back of the book.
It has almost nothing in common with the original Andersen tale, although I doubt anyone really expected or wanted it to. The only things carried over from the original are those that Disney kept—our heroine has a beautiful voice, which she either loses or chooses not to use, and she saves her beloved from drowning. The message of Andersen’s story was: don’t make deals with the Devil. You may get what you want, or close to it, but something will go horribly wrong. Obviously, the original story is as depressing as heck. I can’t blame Dickerson for not using it as a source.
Superficial traces remain of Disney’s happy revision. Evangeline’s ignorance of farm equipment and household tools parallels Ariel’s combing her hair with a dinner fork. Our heroine has another girl trying to undermine her; her guardian is a king unaware of a threat to his power; she has a sidekick who…er, flounders away from home. Finally, Westley has dark hair and blue eyes while Eva is a redhead.
There’s no character remotely comparable to the diabolical Sea Witch. Sabina is conniving against Evangeline and lustful toward Westley, but not really evil. Shively is, but as a male politician with no supernatural powers real or projected and standard villain motives, he’s just not that frightening compared to a female hell-creature who delights in fear and cruelty. It’s like the Chronicles of Narnia—after the White Witch, King Miraz is rather underwhelming. It doesn’t help that this is the fourth Hagenheim-Glynval chronicle to feature a forced marriage plot.
Perhaps the strangest of all, this novel has nothing to do with the ocean. The original story is one of the only famous fairytales not bound to a sylvan setting, which could really make this book stand out among the rest in its series. And the coast of Britain is such an evocative landscape…real missed opportunity here.
So while barely related to the tale it claims to retell, The Silent Songbird is a grandly entertaining adventure in its own right, full of daring escapes, betrayals, intrigues, disguises, and a sudden but genuine attraction between our two leads. There were points near the finale where I was actually worried about the characters. Dickerson built up the intensity well in those chapters.
This is the first book of the series to feature a real historical figure as a character: King Richard II of England. Unfortunately, you could replace him with pretty much any king from the pre-War of the Roses period and have the same effect; very little of his personality comes through. Last year I had to read Shakespeare’s Richard II for school, which was a fascinating commentary on the very concept of kingship. It’s too bad that Wes and Eva couldn’t have warned Richard about the Bolingbroke conspiracy.
This is definitely one of the better Hagenheim-Glynval tales, in spite of its flaws. Not quite as good as The Merchant’s Daughter or The Golden Braid, but still wholesome, summery fun.
November 14, 2016
GIF review & reactions:
I've been so excited about this novel because I get to see the le Wyse family again:
I was basically freaking out the entire time I was reading this novel:
{Actual footage of me freaking out:}
So, in the opening chapter poor Evangeline learns she’s supposed to marry a repulsive jerk:
And she wants to leave and Muriel's all like:
And then later when Eva says to Westley, "Are you all right? Please don't die. You are the most beautiful person I've ever met." I just got tickled:
There were a few parts that reminded me of The Princess Bride:
But it was all so lovely and worth the wait:
Actual Review:
About this book:
“Evangeline longs to be free, to live in the world outside the castle walls. But freedom comes at a cost.
Evangeline is the ward and cousin of King Richard II, and yet she dreams of a life outside of Berkhamsted Castle, where she might be free to marry for love and not politics. But the young king betroths her to his closest advisor, Lord Shiveley, a man twice as old as Evangeline. Desperate to escape a life married to a man she finds revolting, Evangeline runs away from the king and joins a small band of servants on their way back to their home village.
To keep her identity a secret, Evangeline pretends to be mute. Evangeline soon regrets the charade as she gets to know Wesley, the handsome young leader of the servants, whom she later discovers is the son of a wealthy lord. But she cannot reveal her true identity for fear she will be forced to return to King Richard and her arranged marriage.
Wesley le Wyse is intrigued by the beautiful new servant girl. When he learns that she lost her voice from a beating by a cruel former master, he is outraged. But his anger is soon redirected when he learns she has been lying to him. Not only is she not mute, but she isn't even a servant.
Weighed down by remorse for deceiving Wesley, Evangeline fears no one will ever love her. But her future is not the only thing at stake, as she finds herself embroiled in a tangled web that threatens England's monarchy. Should she give herself up to save the only person who cares about her? If she does, who will save the king from a plot to steal his throne?”
Series: Book #7 in the “Hagenheim” series. {Reviews of #1 Here, #2 Here, #3 Here, #4 Here, #5 Here! and #6 Here!} {You do not have to read this series in order to understand it, but I highly recommend that you do read them in order.}
Spiritual Content- Many Prayers; Scriptures are mentioned, quoted, read & remembered; Bible reading; Church going & sermons; Many talks about God, His plan, servants of God, & Bibles; Talks about & Mentions of those in the Bible; ‘H’s are capital when referring to God; Evangeline imagines God as the father she never knew; Many mentions of God, Jesus & peace; Many mentions of Bibles, Bible reading, & books of the Bible; Many mentions of churches, chapels, priests, confessions, sins & miracles; Mentions of prayers; Mentions of thanking & praising God; Mentions of forgiving; Mentions of others not liking talks about God; A few mentions of blessings; A few mentions of Christians;
*Note: Someone accuses another of being the devil’s servant, trying to poison them with Satan’s cap mushrooms; A mention of satanic dreams; Mentions of evil & the devil.
Negative Content- Minor cussing including: a ‘stupid’, two ‘dumb’s, & two forms of ‘shut up’; a couple mentions of curses (said, not written); A bit of Sarcasm; Pain & Blood (up to semi-detailed); Fighting, being held at knife point, being slapped, shooting arrows at others & where they land (up to semi-detailed); A mob, injuries/wounds & bruises (up to semi-detailed); A couple threats of suicide & dying; A few mean, jealous girls & their unkindness; Many mentions of deaths, killing, murders, almost killing/murders, fighting & knives (up to semi-detailed); Many mentions of beatings & men beating their wives (up to semi-detailed); Many mentions of lies, lying & deception; Mentions of pain, injuries/wounds, blades & blood (up to semi-detailed); Mentions of being hit & almost drowning (up to semi-detailed); Mentions of plagues/illness & deaths; Mentions of threats of harm, killing & breaking a neck; Mentions of torture, abuse, bruises & pain; Mentions of punishments, pillories, thievery, flogging & mobs; Mentions of hunting & meat (up to semi-detailed); Mentions of drunks, drinking, the devil drink & strong ale; Mentions of hating & hatred; Mentions of treachery; Mentions of gossip; A few mentions of kidnapping & ransom; A couple mentions of slitting throats; A couple mentions of hangings & robbing; A couple mentions of throwing up; A mention of a massacre; A mention of beheading.
Sexual Content- a hand kiss, three cheek kisses, seven forehead kisses, three not-detailed kisses, two barley-above-not-detailed kisses, and three semi-detailed kisses; Remembering a kiss (barley-above-not-detailed); Wanting to, Longing to be, & thinking about being kiss(ed) (up to semi-detailed); Talks about & mentions of kissing & kisses; Touches, Shivers/Tingles, Embraces, Smelling & Nearness (up to semi-detailed); Noticing; Evangeline was born out of wedlock; Evangeline is supposed to marry a repulsive man who’s much older than her; Mentions of men leering at (one stares at her chest) and touching Evangeline without her permission & their lewd comments; Mentions of wondering about kissing & touching, but also not taking advantage of someone else; Mentions of kissing; Mentions of reputations & Ruth laying at Boaz’s feet; A few mentions of men expecting a plaything for a wife & planning to make her submit to him; A few mentions of flirting; Mentions of illegitimate children; Mentions of married couple’s romantic bond; Mentions of love & falling in love; A few mentions of a girl who went to the woods with a guy alone and ended up with child (no details); A few mentions of attacks; A few mentions of staring at someone’s lips; A couple mentions of men’s lusts; A couple mentions of what to expect on a wedding night (it’s cut off, no hints); A couple mentions of unwanted attention from men; A mention of a man asking Evangeline to go home with him; A mention of a married couple kissing (barley-above-not-detailed); Love, falling in love & the emotions;
*Note: A few mentions of striking an attacker in-between his legs/groin.
-Evangeline, age 17
-Westley le Wyse, age 21
P.O.V. switches between them
Set in 1384 {Medieval}
283 pages
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Pre Teens- One Star
New Teens- Two Stars
Early High School Teens- Three Stars
Older High School Teens- Four Stars
My personal Rating- Four Stars (and a half)
{Add half a star for those who have already read the previous books in the series.}
Ahh. That was so worth the wait! “The Merchant’s Daughter” has always been my favorite in this series because of Ranulf le Wyse and the whole plot. And let me just tell y’all, his son is just as wonderful. Add in another heroine who wants to read the Bible for herself and I’m so happy. *tears up*
Really, though, all fangirl emotions aside, Miss Melanie Dickerson hit it out of the park with “The Silent Songbird” and I truly just adore the le Wyse family. I would love to see a spin-off series featuring all of Westley’s siblings. Pleeeeease???
Link to (a less GIFs) review:
https://booksforchristiangirls.blogsp...
*BFCG may (Read the review to see) recommend this book by this author. It does not mean I recommend all the books by this author.
*I received this book for free from the Publisher (Thomas Nelson) for this honest review.
November 11, 2016
It is always a pleasure to read another book by Melanie Dickerson! This latest release, The Silent Songbird is a historical retelling of The Little Mermaid. Though it's a non-magical retelling, set in the medieval era, I did see nods to the original fairy tale, which was fun.
This book follows Evangeline, young ward of the king ... a woman destined to an arranged marriage and stifled life. Until one evening, she takes a chance for freedom. With its medieval setting, wandering among servants and lords, attending festivals, and fighting villains, this imaginative romance story is sure to enchant those who love a happily-ever-after.
I enjoyed the twists and turns; the little mysteries and wondering which characters you could trust. I loved Evangeline's little journey of faith. -How open, honest, and vulnerable she was. No, she wan't perfect; but her heart was true. Seeing characters from The Merchant's Daughter was delightful! *smiles* The love story was sweet, as always. ^_^
Overall, I quite loved it! The book itself is absolutely gorgeous, and I enjoyed returning to its pages. I am, of course, looking forward to Melanie Dickerson's next two coming releases - another fairy tale retelling (from the THORNBECK series), and a regency romance!
I received a copy of The Silent Songbird from Booklookbloggers
This book follows Evangeline, young ward of the king ... a woman destined to an arranged marriage and stifled life. Until one evening, she takes a chance for freedom. With its medieval setting, wandering among servants and lords, attending festivals, and fighting villains, this imaginative romance story is sure to enchant those who love a happily-ever-after.
I enjoyed the twists and turns; the little mysteries and wondering which characters you could trust. I loved Evangeline's little journey of faith. -How open, honest, and vulnerable she was. No, she wan't perfect; but her heart was true. Seeing characters from The Merchant's Daughter was delightful! *smiles* The love story was sweet, as always. ^_^
Overall, I quite loved it! The book itself is absolutely gorgeous, and I enjoyed returning to its pages. I am, of course, looking forward to Melanie Dickerson's next two coming releases - another fairy tale retelling (from the THORNBECK series), and a regency romance!
I received a copy of The Silent Songbird from Booklookbloggers
November 10, 2016
This is a reimagined fairy tale, loosely based on The Little Mermaid.
Evangeline is the King's ward and illegitimate cousin and has lived a very sheltered and nonexistent life inside the castle walls. She dreams of being amongst the peasants she watches from her window, longing for the freedom they have to choose. When King Richard tries to force her into a terrible marriage, she runs away and meets up with Westley. Westley is the son and heir of the Lord of Glynval. Evangeline pretends to be mute so no one can her her voice or realize her ignorance. But do you need words to fall in love?
This was a fast and easy read. I liked how it took parts of The Little Mermaid, but didn't try to stick to close to the story. All of the good guys were likable and all of the villains were horrid. The only one I questioned was the king. I wasn't sure on which side of the fence he would fall. Overall, this was a sweet, clean, romantic historical novel. Perfect for an easy reading type of day.
*I voluntarily read an Advance Reader Copy of this book and have given an honest review *
Evangeline is the King's ward and illegitimate cousin and has lived a very sheltered and nonexistent life inside the castle walls. She dreams of being amongst the peasants she watches from her window, longing for the freedom they have to choose. When King Richard tries to force her into a terrible marriage, she runs away and meets up with Westley. Westley is the son and heir of the Lord of Glynval. Evangeline pretends to be mute so no one can her her voice or realize her ignorance. But do you need words to fall in love?
This was a fast and easy read. I liked how it took parts of The Little Mermaid, but didn't try to stick to close to the story. All of the good guys were likable and all of the villains were horrid. The only one I questioned was the king. I wasn't sure on which side of the fence he would fall. Overall, this was a sweet, clean, romantic historical novel. Perfect for an easy reading type of day.
*I voluntarily read an Advance Reader Copy of this book and have given an honest review *
June 14, 2017
In this charming retelling of the Little Mermaid, Melanie Dickerson weaves together a beautiful take on the classic tale.
Evangeline is a beautiful maiden who is gifted with a gorgeous melodic voice. She is King Richard's cousin and is cared for in Berkhamsted Castle because she is orphaned. But, there is one thing that she longs for, and that is freedom.
So when her cousin King Richard promises her in marriage to one of his advisors who is a vile and cruel man, her longing of freedom becomes even stronger. So Evangeline and her handmaiden Muriel escape Berkhamsted castle. They are met on their way by Westley de Wyse and his men who are on their way to Glynval. Eva pretends to be a mute servant to cover her identity. Furthermore, when she begins working as a servant and falls in love with Westley, eventually the truth is revealed about her not being mute and about her true identity. Furthermore, the plot becomes even more intriguing. Can Westley love her despite her deception?
It is all for the reader to find out in The Silent Songbird.
One can definitely judge this wonderful book by its cover.
Evangeline is a beautiful maiden who is gifted with a gorgeous melodic voice. She is King Richard's cousin and is cared for in Berkhamsted Castle because she is orphaned. But, there is one thing that she longs for, and that is freedom.
So when her cousin King Richard promises her in marriage to one of his advisors who is a vile and cruel man, her longing of freedom becomes even stronger. So Evangeline and her handmaiden Muriel escape Berkhamsted castle. They are met on their way by Westley de Wyse and his men who are on their way to Glynval. Eva pretends to be a mute servant to cover her identity. Furthermore, when she begins working as a servant and falls in love with Westley, eventually the truth is revealed about her not being mute and about her true identity. Furthermore, the plot becomes even more intriguing. Can Westley love her despite her deception?
It is all for the reader to find out in The Silent Songbird.
One can definitely judge this wonderful book by its cover.
June 15, 2020
Well, that was fun! Due to some real life stresses, I needed a fluffy read with a guaranteed happy ending and this was just the thing. While it had to be a challenge to write a non-magical Little Mermaid retelling, I thought Dickerson did a good job incorporating elements of the fairytale into Medieval England. Eva's singing for example, and then pretending to be mute. At the beginning, I had a moment where I imagined her singing "Part of Your World" out the window of her tower because she was longing to be with/like the peasants. XD
Though it may have been a departure from the fairytale (I don't know the original that well and don't remember this being in the Disney version), I liked the way a plot against the king was woven into the story. That added some extra drama, as well as motivation for the villain beyond *just* being a slimy creep, and I found it exciting.
Eva and Wesley were great as individuals and a couple, and I liked that Eva experienced realistic consequences for her lying, yet also received forgiveness eventually.
It was nice to see the le Wyse family again after so long!
And, random observation: The design of the hardcover is absolutely stunning. I love the teal with the sandy yellows. It's just gorgeous to look at and feels very Little Mermaid!
This wasn't didn't quite become a new favorite Dickerson book, so I'm going with 4 out of 5 stars, but I did enjoy it a lot and it was what I needed when I needed it. 🙂
To save myself a little time on the content advisory, I'm linking to the review by Lindsey from the blog "Books for Christian Girls" because she's always so incredibly thorough and has read and done content reviews on literally all of Dickerson's books! https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Though it may have been a departure from the fairytale (I don't know the original that well and don't remember this being in the Disney version), I liked the way a plot against the king was woven into the story. That added some extra drama, as well as motivation for the villain beyond *just* being a slimy creep, and I found it exciting.
Eva and Wesley were great as individuals and a couple, and I liked that Eva experienced realistic consequences for her lying, yet also received forgiveness eventually.
It was nice to see the le Wyse family again after so long!
And, random observation: The design of the hardcover is absolutely stunning. I love the teal with the sandy yellows. It's just gorgeous to look at and feels very Little Mermaid!
This wasn't didn't quite become a new favorite Dickerson book, so I'm going with 4 out of 5 stars, but I did enjoy it a lot and it was what I needed when I needed it. 🙂
To save myself a little time on the content advisory, I'm linking to the review by Lindsey from the blog "Books for Christian Girls" because she's always so incredibly thorough and has read and done content reviews on literally all of Dickerson's books! https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
June 9, 2021
Although this is the seventh book in a series, it’s a series of connected standalones so this one can be read on its own. It was presented to me as a little mermaid retelling, with a focus on the romance and set in historical England. I was very excited to read it, but unfortunately it took many attempts at starting before I was able to finish the whole book. I was left quite disappointed, and here’s why…
Nothing convinced me in this book. It was so hard to find it believable. I didn’t really like our main character. She seemed too unrealistic. She found it difficult to pretend to be a maid and couldn’t do the simplest tasks, but then they handed her a bow and arrow and within a day she was able to shoot with near perfect aim. Yeah, I couldn’t buy that at all >.> So basically, there wasn’t enough of an attempt to make things realistic to satisfy me.
I also did not ship this romance at all, which is an important part of any romance book. I felt like it all happened far too quickly, and that the two main characters didn’t have any chemistry between them. Again, because they fell so hard and so quickly, it felt like their relationship wasn’t realistic.
One of the good things about this book was always something happening. It was a surprisingly more action-y book than I expected it to be! Which was pleasant. But at the same time, the issues they faced or the ‘villain’ characters they had to deal with seemed a bit ridiculous. The way jealousy was written about made it seem like these characters were teenagers having squabbles and arguments. Not like actual adults with adult problems! It was so childish that if you lowered the characters ages and called it YA, I would’ve found it to be more believable. I wouldn’t expect this from an adult book.
The writing style was mediocre at best. Nothing excited me from the descriptions and the way it was written. But it also wasn’t written badly, so there’s that. This was also supposedly a little mermaid retelling, but I feel like it stuck to that at the beginning, but then deviated from the fairytale pretty quickly. So, I was a bit disappointed on that count.
I didn’t quite agree with some of the things said about the role of men and women. Although this is historical fiction and I therefore give the book some leeway, I do think these ideas could’ve been challenged a bit more?
The secondary characters felt very 2D and flat, and I generally didn’t care about anything even though I tried. It just wasn’t the book for me.
Nothing convinced me in this book. It was so hard to find it believable. I didn’t really like our main character. She seemed too unrealistic. She found it difficult to pretend to be a maid and couldn’t do the simplest tasks, but then they handed her a bow and arrow and within a day she was able to shoot with near perfect aim. Yeah, I couldn’t buy that at all >.> So basically, there wasn’t enough of an attempt to make things realistic to satisfy me.
I also did not ship this romance at all, which is an important part of any romance book. I felt like it all happened far too quickly, and that the two main characters didn’t have any chemistry between them. Again, because they fell so hard and so quickly, it felt like their relationship wasn’t realistic.
One of the good things about this book was always something happening. It was a surprisingly more action-y book than I expected it to be! Which was pleasant. But at the same time, the issues they faced or the ‘villain’ characters they had to deal with seemed a bit ridiculous. The way jealousy was written about made it seem like these characters were teenagers having squabbles and arguments. Not like actual adults with adult problems! It was so childish that if you lowered the characters ages and called it YA, I would’ve found it to be more believable. I wouldn’t expect this from an adult book.
The writing style was mediocre at best. Nothing excited me from the descriptions and the way it was written. But it also wasn’t written badly, so there’s that. This was also supposedly a little mermaid retelling, but I feel like it stuck to that at the beginning, but then deviated from the fairytale pretty quickly. So, I was a bit disappointed on that count.
I didn’t quite agree with some of the things said about the role of men and women. Although this is historical fiction and I therefore give the book some leeway, I do think these ideas could’ve been challenged a bit more?
The secondary characters felt very 2D and flat, and I generally didn’t care about anything even though I tried. It just wasn’t the book for me.
March 19, 2023
4⭐️
Evangeline, a beautiful singer and cousin of the king, is obligated to marry whomever the king appoints, but when he betrothed her to a nasty man, she runs away with her lady’s maid to escape.
Evangeline, now ‘Eva’ and claiming to be mute and her lady’s maid run into a group of friendly, noble travellers who take the two women in as friends.
Their ruse doesn’t last too long, however, when Eva saves the life of one of the men and accidentally lets out her secret.
What will the friendly people of their new hometown do, when they discover the women have been lying to them? What will happen when Evangeline’s betrothed pursues her with evil intentions?
Evangeline, a beautiful singer and cousin of the king, is obligated to marry whomever the king appoints, but when he betrothed her to a nasty man, she runs away with her lady’s maid to escape.
Evangeline, now ‘Eva’ and claiming to be mute and her lady’s maid run into a group of friendly, noble travellers who take the two women in as friends.
Their ruse doesn’t last too long, however, when Eva saves the life of one of the men and accidentally lets out her secret.
What will the friendly people of their new hometown do, when they discover the women have been lying to them? What will happen when Evangeline’s betrothed pursues her with evil intentions?
December 31, 2016
While you’re reading The Silent Songbird by Melanie Dickerson, you may find yourself humming the song “Part of Your World” from Disney’s The Little Mermaid movie. And a time or two, you may break into a reggae beat, imploring Westley to “Kiss the Girl” (woo woo). If a lobster/crab/whateverSebastianwas shows up to sing along, you might want to become concerned. Otherwise just embrace it. Because Melanie does a fabulous job of retelling The Little Mermaid (the Andersen version) and reshaping it to become Evangeline’s story. With her hilariously disastrous attempts to fit in as a servant, Evangeline truly was a “mermaid out of water”.
(You may also find yourself wanting to call out “Have fun storming the castle!” because while The Little Mermaid is clearly the dominant fairy tale here, there are shades of The Princess Bride as well if you look closely enough.)
Enter Westley.
But before I talk about Westley, I need to gush about Westley’s father first. Lord le Wyse. Or as I like to call him, “yummy Lord Ranulf”. When I heard that The Silent Songbird would take us back to England, back to the universe of The Merchant’s Daughter (still my very favorite Dickerson book), I may have fangirl squealed in giddy excitement. (Ok… totally did.) And i must confess that my book-boyfriend-collecting heart did go pitterpatter when Ranulf first showed up in Songbird. Oh yeah, and it was nice to see Annabel too. lol.
Ahem. Anyway… back to Evangeline and Westley.
The Silent Songbird is a sweet story of falling in love (lots of tender and swoony moments!, finding your footing in your faith and finding your place in the world. (And now I’m singing Michael W. Smith’s song… clearly I need professional help.) Along the way, mixed throughout the tender and the swoony and the profound, are moments which will pull a giggle out of the grumpiest Grinch. Perhaps more than any of Melanie Dickerson’s other books, The Silent Songbird shows her great sense of humor. With lines like, “At least if she worked inside, she couldn’t nearly decapitate someone” and “Are you kissing in the Lord God’s chapel? There is no kissing in the chapel!” you are sure to smile nearly as often as you sigh blissfully. And sigh blissfully, you shall.
Bottom Line: The Silent Songbird is warm and funny and sweet, with a dash of suspense and a cartload of adventure. Melanie Dickerson is in top form with this return to Glynval, but even if you’ve never read The Merchant’s Daughter you will feel right at home. Expertly taking a couple of the world’s most familiar and beloved tales and weaving them into a story of even truer love and gentle faith, Melanie Dickerson proves once again why she’s the queen of fairy tale retellings!
(I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book.)
See my full review at Reading Is My SuperPower
(You may also find yourself wanting to call out “Have fun storming the castle!” because while The Little Mermaid is clearly the dominant fairy tale here, there are shades of The Princess Bride as well if you look closely enough.)
Enter Westley.
But before I talk about Westley, I need to gush about Westley’s father first. Lord le Wyse. Or as I like to call him, “yummy Lord Ranulf”. When I heard that The Silent Songbird would take us back to England, back to the universe of The Merchant’s Daughter (still my very favorite Dickerson book), I may have fangirl squealed in giddy excitement. (Ok… totally did.) And i must confess that my book-boyfriend-collecting heart did go pitterpatter when Ranulf first showed up in Songbird. Oh yeah, and it was nice to see Annabel too. lol.
Ahem. Anyway… back to Evangeline and Westley.
The Silent Songbird is a sweet story of falling in love (lots of tender and swoony moments!, finding your footing in your faith and finding your place in the world. (And now I’m singing Michael W. Smith’s song… clearly I need professional help.) Along the way, mixed throughout the tender and the swoony and the profound, are moments which will pull a giggle out of the grumpiest Grinch. Perhaps more than any of Melanie Dickerson’s other books, The Silent Songbird shows her great sense of humor. With lines like, “At least if she worked inside, she couldn’t nearly decapitate someone” and “Are you kissing in the Lord God’s chapel? There is no kissing in the chapel!” you are sure to smile nearly as often as you sigh blissfully. And sigh blissfully, you shall.
Bottom Line: The Silent Songbird is warm and funny and sweet, with a dash of suspense and a cartload of adventure. Melanie Dickerson is in top form with this return to Glynval, but even if you’ve never read The Merchant’s Daughter you will feel right at home. Expertly taking a couple of the world’s most familiar and beloved tales and weaving them into a story of even truer love and gentle faith, Melanie Dickerson proves once again why she’s the queen of fairy tale retellings!
(I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book.)
See my full review at Reading Is My SuperPower
January 4, 2017
What the book is about:
Evangeline longs to be free, to live in the world outside the castle walls. But freedom comes at a cost.
Evangeline is the ward and cousin of King Richard II, and yet she dreams of a life outside of Berkhamsted Castle, where she might be free to marry for love and not politics. But the young king betroths her to his closest advisor, Lord Shiveley, a man twice as old as Evangeline. Desperate to escape a life married to a man she finds revolting, Evangeline runs away from the king and joins a small band of servants on their way back to their home village.
To keep her identity a secret, Evangeline pretends to be mute. Evangeline soon regrets the charade as she gets to know Westley, the handsome young leader of the servants, whom she later discovers is the son of a wealthy lord. But she cannot reveal her true identity for fear she will be forced to return to King Richard and her arranged marriage.
Westley le Wyse is intrigued by the beautiful new servant girl. When he learns that she lost her voice from a beating by a cruel former master, he is outraged. But his anger is soon redirected when he learns she has been lying to him. Not only is she not mute, but she isn't even a servant.
Weighed down by remorse for deceiving Westley, Evangeline fears no one will ever love her. But her future is not the only thing at stake, as she finds herself embroiled in a tangled web that threatens England's monarchy. Should she give herself up to save the only person who cares about her? If she does, who will save the king from a plot to steal his throne?
My Review:
Melanie Dickerson is one of my favorite authors, I know that whenever I pick up a book by her I'm going to love it, and I really loved this one :-D
The Silent Songbird is a retelling of The Little Mermaid, and it was beautiful <3 I loved seeing how there were similarities between the two, but it's still really unique :)
I feel like I could kind of relate to Evangeline, and Westley was amazing<3 I just loved all of the characters so much :)
If you love medieval, fairytale, retellings, I would definitely recommend this series! :)
Now onto the spoiler section, so read on at your own risk ;)
Shalom
and
byeeeeee
I received a free book from Thomas Nelson/Zondervan Fiction Guild in return for a honest review.
Evangeline longs to be free, to live in the world outside the castle walls. But freedom comes at a cost.
Evangeline is the ward and cousin of King Richard II, and yet she dreams of a life outside of Berkhamsted Castle, where she might be free to marry for love and not politics. But the young king betroths her to his closest advisor, Lord Shiveley, a man twice as old as Evangeline. Desperate to escape a life married to a man she finds revolting, Evangeline runs away from the king and joins a small band of servants on their way back to their home village.
To keep her identity a secret, Evangeline pretends to be mute. Evangeline soon regrets the charade as she gets to know Westley, the handsome young leader of the servants, whom she later discovers is the son of a wealthy lord. But she cannot reveal her true identity for fear she will be forced to return to King Richard and her arranged marriage.
Westley le Wyse is intrigued by the beautiful new servant girl. When he learns that she lost her voice from a beating by a cruel former master, he is outraged. But his anger is soon redirected when he learns she has been lying to him. Not only is she not mute, but she isn't even a servant.
Weighed down by remorse for deceiving Westley, Evangeline fears no one will ever love her. But her future is not the only thing at stake, as she finds herself embroiled in a tangled web that threatens England's monarchy. Should she give herself up to save the only person who cares about her? If she does, who will save the king from a plot to steal his throne?
My Review:
Melanie Dickerson is one of my favorite authors, I know that whenever I pick up a book by her I'm going to love it, and I really loved this one :-D
The Silent Songbird is a retelling of The Little Mermaid, and it was beautiful <3 I loved seeing how there were similarities between the two, but it's still really unique :)
I feel like I could kind of relate to Evangeline, and Westley was amazing<3 I just loved all of the characters so much :)
If you love medieval, fairytale, retellings, I would definitely recommend this series! :)
Now onto the spoiler section, so read on at your own risk ;)
Shalom
and
byeeeeee
I received a free book from Thomas Nelson/Zondervan Fiction Guild in return for a honest review.
June 30, 2017
The Silent Songbird was just what I was hoping. A light, fun read with romance and danger. It was easy to read and wasn't too deep, so I could easily fly through the pages. I liked the characters and the storyline was interesting. The villain was CREEPY and vile. I really did not like him at all.
I loved the ending and how everything happened the way it did. So seamless and just a perfect way to go.
All in all, a great read and one of Melanie Dickerson's books that I recommend.
*I received a complimentary eBook copy of this book for my honest review. As always, all thoughts and opinions expressed are my own.*
I loved the ending and how everything happened the way it did. So seamless and just a perfect way to go.
All in all, a great read and one of Melanie Dickerson's books that I recommend.
*I received a complimentary eBook copy of this book for my honest review. As always, all thoughts and opinions expressed are my own.*
February 19, 2023
“I want to be a human person with feelings, someone who can inspire love in another.”
—Melanie Dickerson, The Silent Songbird
Rating: ★★★★★
Cleanness: ★★★★*
AHH! This is the sweetest book! I love love The Silent Songbird! This is definitely my favorite Little Mermaid retelling!
Evangeline!!! Sweet Eva! I love her character so much! She really feels like Ariel! I love how full of joy, love, and life she is. She has such a beautiful outlook on life and is pleased with simple things. I love how important the Bible was to her and how much she wanted to read God’s Word. That made my heart so happy!
I also love how much she wants to protect and defend Westley! She isn’t afraid to fight for what is right and to protect those she loves. I love that about her! <3
Westley!!! He is so wonderful! I love how sweet, kind, and protective he is. He has such a wonderful heart and I loved all his interactions with his parents! I love how much he cares about Eva.
“We are both safe as long as we have each other.”
I also loved seeing Annabel and Ranulf, from The Merchant's Daughter, all grown up and with a family! Annabel is such a wonderful mother and I’m so glad Ranulf was able to be redeemed and have children after the events in his story! They are such good parents and I want more good and godly parents in fiction.
Muriel was the perfect “Sebastian” character. A bit grumpy but still she cares for Eva and wants what is best for her.
Nicola is such a good friend to Eva! I’m so glad Eva was able to have a good friend who cared about her and was there with her through everything.
I also want to say that this is one of the best “insta love” books I have ever read! Most “love at first sight” books annoy me because it doesn’t feel like actual love. I loved that in this book, they were attracted to each other at first sight, but they took time to get to know each other and each other’s character before they fell in love. I also love that part of how they fell in love was by reading the Bible together! That made me so happy and I want more books where the characters fall in love—real love—by reading the Bible and getting to know each other!!!
I feel like I can fangirl over this book all day! It's so good! I've read this at least six times, it is just so good and wholesome and sweet and…ah!!! Just read this book please! If you love sweet, clean, Christian, fairytale retellings that warms your heart…read this book (and then come back and fangirl with me, XD)!
*Cleanness: this is a wonderful and clean book! There is nothing beyond a few sweet kisses.
There are some violence and fight scenes. One character gets tortured and hurt. It is said a woman was killed by her husband from abuse. One character gets kidnapped and another is almost killed multiple times. Eva is being forced to marry an older evil man who threatens to hurt her (and who does on one occasion). There is a drowning scene *because it's The Little Mermaid*. And there is an attack scene when a woman was about to be beaten. Eva also suffers from blistered and bleeding hands a lot of the book.
These are some of the things to look for when reading (I think I noted everything), but otherwise this is a clean book and I highly recommend reading!
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To read more bookish content make sure to check my blog https://fablerosemc.blogspot.com & my instagram @fablerosemc !!
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I also started a Bible Study going through the women of the Bible if you are interested in checking that out. We are currently going through Esther! https://beholdpeace.wordpress.com
Read
February 10, 2017Good! Review to come.
...... But this is definitely a love letter to Princess Bride! His name is Westley and at least twice, someone says "as you wish"
This is possibly my favorite Dickerson novel yet ❤️❤️❤️
...... But this is definitely a love letter to Princess Bride! His name is Westley and at least twice, someone says "as you wish"
This is possibly my favorite Dickerson novel yet ❤️❤️❤️
Want to read
August 20, 2016Ok, I'm not the biggest fan of Melanie Dickerson books, but this is based off of The Merchant's Daughter, and that was in my opinion the best Dickerson book written and one of my favorites. So imma go ahead and do some serious fangirling right now. So so so so so so so excited.
February 22, 2019
This was enjoyable. Not my favorite in the series but still very lovely. I was confused when they went back and forth with Mildred/Muriel's name. I wasn't sure what was going on. But later in the story, the mystery was solved. This was a super sweet read. Easy reading.
November 4, 2016
Full review to come!
July 15, 2019
Lovely.
Another fluffy Dickerson.
There were a few elements that made me upset, but other then that it was a good book.
Another fluffy Dickerson.
There were a few elements that made me upset, but other then that it was a good book.
February 6, 2017
Ah, this was such a sweet story!
As usual, Melanie Dickerson didn't fail to deliver a lovely fairytale retelling. She always writes the kinds of books that are made for cozy winter evenings...the ones I can bring with me to snuggle up under the blankets with. They aren't usually incredibly deep (though I loved the themes in this one!), but they're always such a pleasure to delve into. ^_^
I was wavering between giving it 4 or 5 stars, but since I loved Westley so much, I guess 5 stars it shall be. ;)
As usual, Melanie Dickerson didn't fail to deliver a lovely fairytale retelling. She always writes the kinds of books that are made for cozy winter evenings...the ones I can bring with me to snuggle up under the blankets with. They aren't usually incredibly deep (though I loved the themes in this one!), but they're always such a pleasure to delve into. ^_^
I was wavering between giving it 4 or 5 stars, but since I loved Westley so much, I guess 5 stars it shall be. ;)
December 4, 2016
oh crap. This is the first Melanie Dickerson book I've ever tried, and I really don't like the writing (a very simplistic, super basic style of writing). And I'm realizing that I have tons and TONS of her books on my kindle that I've bought over the years. . .shit.
DNF @ 13%
DNF @ 13%
May 25, 2022
4 Stars ✨!
Melanie Dickerson is my Fluff dealer!! Anytime I need a sweet simple read, I know I can count on her. Her stories are always clean, whimsical, full of fluff with a fairytale feel and end in a Happily Ever After. 💞
Melanie Dickerson is my Fluff dealer!! Anytime I need a sweet simple read, I know I can count on her. Her stories are always clean, whimsical, full of fluff with a fairytale feel and end in a Happily Ever After. 💞
March 2, 2021
3.5 stars
I enjoyed this one. It is loosely based, and I do mean loosely based, on The Little Mermaid. I listened to the audio, which I have discovered helps me to enjoy these YA stories a tad more than when I actually read them. I’d give it 3 stars for adults and four stars for the intended age.
I enjoyed this one. It is loosely based, and I do mean loosely based, on The Little Mermaid. I listened to the audio, which I have discovered helps me to enjoy these YA stories a tad more than when I actually read them. I’d give it 3 stars for adults and four stars for the intended age.
October 11, 2017
The Silent Songbird (#7 Hagenheim) by Melanie Dickerson
In this delightful medieval “fairy tale” we travel back-in-time to the Berkhamsted Castle of 1384 Hertfordshire, England and then on to the quaint village of Glynval. Young, beautiful Evangeline, cousin and ward to King Richard II has just learned that she will be betrothed to his closest advisor, Lord Shiveley, a man twice her age. However, she longs to marry for love, so she does what any desperate ward of the king would do...runs away, of course. But she must keep her true identity a secret so as not to be found out. What better disguise than that of a servant...a mute servant? She joins a small band of servants on their way back to their home village of Glynval, lead by the handsome young Wesley le Wyse. Evangeline soon discovers that life outside the castle walls is far beyond anything she could have imagined, especially traveling as a servant.
What a journey and challenges Evangeline...and Wesley for that matter...finds herself on in this charming medieval “fairy tale”. Evangeline turns out to be a feisty heroine and Wesley is a charming hero. The plot is intriguing and the descriptions are amazing giving the reader images that are so real I felt I was walking among the characters. There are humorous scenes that had me chuckling, tender moments that had me sighing, danger, intrigue and suspense had me turning the pages to see what was coming next, evil plots, deception—which made me think of the saying...”Oh! What a tangled web we weave when first we practice to deceive”...and consequences of those actions, forgiveness, love and faith—I enjoyed the spiritual elements woven within the story-line. A delightful story.
~I received a copy of this book from the author via the Fiction Guild (no monetary gain were exchanged), this is my honest review~
In this delightful medieval “fairy tale” we travel back-in-time to the Berkhamsted Castle of 1384 Hertfordshire, England and then on to the quaint village of Glynval. Young, beautiful Evangeline, cousin and ward to King Richard II has just learned that she will be betrothed to his closest advisor, Lord Shiveley, a man twice her age. However, she longs to marry for love, so she does what any desperate ward of the king would do...runs away, of course. But she must keep her true identity a secret so as not to be found out. What better disguise than that of a servant...a mute servant? She joins a small band of servants on their way back to their home village of Glynval, lead by the handsome young Wesley le Wyse. Evangeline soon discovers that life outside the castle walls is far beyond anything she could have imagined, especially traveling as a servant.
What a journey and challenges Evangeline...and Wesley for that matter...finds herself on in this charming medieval “fairy tale”. Evangeline turns out to be a feisty heroine and Wesley is a charming hero. The plot is intriguing and the descriptions are amazing giving the reader images that are so real I felt I was walking among the characters. There are humorous scenes that had me chuckling, tender moments that had me sighing, danger, intrigue and suspense had me turning the pages to see what was coming next, evil plots, deception—which made me think of the saying...”Oh! What a tangled web we weave when first we practice to deceive”...and consequences of those actions, forgiveness, love and faith—I enjoyed the spiritual elements woven within the story-line. A delightful story.
~I received a copy of this book from the author via the Fiction Guild (no monetary gain were exchanged), this is my honest review~
June 9, 2022
To be honest, I kinda found this book a little boring even though I read the whole thing. Nothing much really happened despite the sort of high stakes, and I never connected with either Evangeline or Westley who felt rather generic and flat at times with very little to no character development.
The dialogue was rather choppy and stiff at times and oddly names and occupations of characters were repeated over and over as if the author didn’t trust her readers to keep them straight. In fact a LOT of stuff ending up in the “repetitive information” category which I don’t like as it makes me feel stupid. A few reminders of things sprinkled throughout a story is great (especially if a book is huge), but not to the point of “we’ve been over this a hundred times already, can we please MOVE ON” which is a trap I felt this book fell into.
There were a couple scenes I genuinely liked, but not enough for me to give this book a higher rating or to read it again, which is genuinely disappointing as I used to really like this author’s works. Her older works from The Healer’s Apprentice to The Golden Braid I would recommend. Her newer works? Sadly, no, I don’t feel as if they’re up to her previous standards which is a shame. Sadly I won’t be reading this book again despite its pretty cover. 😔
Content: a teenage girl is nearly forced to marry an old man; mentions of past and present physical abuse; a man is caught beating his wife (not detailed); a man is drunk; a man is accidentally cut with a scythe; a girl gets bloodied, blistered hands; kissing (not detailed); a man is attacked and thrown in a river to drown (he’s saved); lying and deceit (both for bad and to protect one’s self from harm); violence and fighting (not detailed); characters are captured and tied up; a character is accused of nearly poisoning people
The dialogue was rather choppy and stiff at times and oddly names and occupations of characters were repeated over and over as if the author didn’t trust her readers to keep them straight. In fact a LOT of stuff ending up in the “repetitive information” category which I don’t like as it makes me feel stupid. A few reminders of things sprinkled throughout a story is great (especially if a book is huge), but not to the point of “we’ve been over this a hundred times already, can we please MOVE ON” which is a trap I felt this book fell into.
There were a couple scenes I genuinely liked, but not enough for me to give this book a higher rating or to read it again, which is genuinely disappointing as I used to really like this author’s works. Her older works from The Healer’s Apprentice to The Golden Braid I would recommend. Her newer works? Sadly, no, I don’t feel as if they’re up to her previous standards which is a shame. Sadly I won’t be reading this book again despite its pretty cover. 😔
Content: a teenage girl is nearly forced to marry an old man; mentions of past and present physical abuse; a man is caught beating his wife (not detailed); a man is drunk; a man is accidentally cut with a scythe; a girl gets bloodied, blistered hands; kissing (not detailed); a man is attacked and thrown in a river to drown (he’s saved); lying and deceit (both for bad and to protect one’s self from harm); violence and fighting (not detailed); characters are captured and tied up; a character is accused of nearly poisoning people
April 27, 2017
Wow, I was so excited to review this book. I couldn’t wait to get it early! And I was not disappointed. Sure, there are some downfalls, but overall it is pretty good.
The biggest thing that I didn’t like was the fact that Eva wanted to learn archery, swordsmanship, and knife-throwing. One thing that I do know is that in the medieval days the ladies did not learn that stuff. Nope, it was the men who protected the ladies. The ladies did not want to learn about those things. There is nothing wrong with learning those things. Self-defense is a great thing to know. But, seriously! Back then, no man would want to teach a woman self-defense and stuff like that in that era. Absolutely
not! (Yeah, I ranted, but whatever).
As for the rest of the book, besides the fighting part, I really enjoyed it. Westley was a great character. And I am so glad that Melanie tied in The Merchant’s Daughter, the Beauty and the Beast story! The sad part was that it made the characters from The Merchant’s Daughter seem old. But, it wasn’t that bad.
I still really enjoyed reading this book. I mean, I just got this book like…four days ago and have already finished it!
The cover deserves 4 stars! I really liked the girl’s dress-very pretty.
As for the story…once again 4 stars. I would definitely recommend this book. Due to the downfall I stated above, I had to dock it one star.
Title: The Silent Songbird
Author: Melanie Dickerson
Author’s Website:http://www.melaniedickerson.com/
I received this book free from the publisher through the BookLook Bloggers book review bloggers program.
This review is written in my own opinions and words.
The biggest thing that I didn’t like was the fact that Eva wanted to learn archery, swordsmanship, and knife-throwing. One thing that I do know is that in the medieval days the ladies did not learn that stuff. Nope, it was the men who protected the ladies. The ladies did not want to learn about those things. There is nothing wrong with learning those things. Self-defense is a great thing to know. But, seriously! Back then, no man would want to teach a woman self-defense and stuff like that in that era. Absolutely
not! (Yeah, I ranted, but whatever).
As for the rest of the book, besides the fighting part, I really enjoyed it. Westley was a great character. And I am so glad that Melanie tied in The Merchant’s Daughter, the Beauty and the Beast story! The sad part was that it made the characters from The Merchant’s Daughter seem old. But, it wasn’t that bad.
I still really enjoyed reading this book. I mean, I just got this book like…four days ago and have already finished it!
The cover deserves 4 stars! I really liked the girl’s dress-very pretty.
As for the story…once again 4 stars. I would definitely recommend this book. Due to the downfall I stated above, I had to dock it one star.
Title: The Silent Songbird
Author: Melanie Dickerson
Author’s Website:http://www.melaniedickerson.com/
I received this book free from the publisher through the BookLook Bloggers book review bloggers program.
This review is written in my own opinions and words.
May 23, 2024
« ❝𝙰𝚕𝚕 𝚊𝚛𝚘𝚞𝚗𝚍 𝚑𝚎𝚛 𝚠𝚊𝚜 𝚏𝚛𝚎𝚜𝚑 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚌𝚕𝚎𝚊𝚗 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚐𝚛𝚎𝚎𝚗 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑 𝚕𝚒𝚏𝚎. 𝙱𝚒𝚛𝚍𝚜 𝚜𝚊𝚗𝚐 𝚒𝚗𝚝𝚘 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚜𝚝𝚒𝚕𝚕𝚗𝚎𝚜𝚜 𝚕𝚒𝚔𝚎 𝚖𝚒𝚗𝚜𝚝𝚛𝚎𝚕𝚜 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑 𝚗𝚘 𝚝𝚑𝚘𝚞𝚐𝚑𝚝 𝚏𝚘𝚛 𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚒𝚛 𝚊𝚞𝚍𝚒𝚎𝚗𝚌𝚎, 𝚜𝚒𝚗𝚐𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚏𝚘𝚛 𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚒𝚛 𝚘𝚠𝚗 𝚓𝚘𝚢.❞ »
This book was so stinkin' cute, and had me giggling wayy too much 😅
Also, I'm exhausted so this is my mini-ish review hehe.
𝕎𝕙𝕒𝕥 𝕀 𝕝𝕚𝕜𝕖𝕕:
💚 Watching Eva fail at chores (I'm sorry)
💚 The pigs (as someone who's family works with pigs, this moment was just too relatable haha)
💚 When Westley literally tripped bc of Eva
💚 Reeve <3
💚 How protective Westley was of Eva, and how the author showed how it's okay for guys to not know everything
𝕎𝕙𝕒𝕥 𝕀 𝕕𝕚𝕕𝕟'𝕥 𝕝𝕠𝕧𝕖:
💚 This is just my personal likings, but at one point it literally feels like a character kisses another character all over her face like every time he speaks and it was just weird imo
I saw a lot of reviews saying they had no idea this was a Little Mermaid retelling, and besides maybe two scenes I can see that. However, with a non-magical, land-locked, setting I think it represents pretty decently but I honestly kept forgetting that it was.
Overall, it was a really cute book, and I couldn't put it down 😊
Content: Mentions, and descriptions of men physically absusing their wives (always shown in a negative light, and this book is almost centered around changing the ways men treat their wives)
This book was so stinkin' cute, and had me giggling wayy too much 😅
Also, I'm exhausted so this is my mini-ish review hehe.
𝕎𝕙𝕒𝕥 𝕀 𝕝𝕚𝕜𝕖𝕕:
💚 Watching Eva fail at chores (I'm sorry)
💚 The pigs (as someone who's family works with pigs, this moment was just too relatable haha)
💚 When Westley literally tripped bc of Eva
💚 Reeve <3
💚 How protective Westley was of Eva, and how the author showed how it's okay for guys to not know everything
𝕎𝕙𝕒𝕥 𝕀 𝕕𝕚𝕕𝕟'𝕥 𝕝𝕠𝕧𝕖:
💚 This is just my personal likings, but at one point it literally feels like a character kisses another character all over her face like every time he speaks and it was just weird imo
I saw a lot of reviews saying they had no idea this was a Little Mermaid retelling, and besides maybe two scenes I can see that. However, with a non-magical, land-locked, setting I think it represents pretty decently but I honestly kept forgetting that it was.
Overall, it was a really cute book, and I couldn't put it down 😊
Content: Mentions, and descriptions of men physically absusing their wives (always shown in a negative light, and this book is almost centered around changing the ways men treat their wives)
September 3, 2016
This a sweet YA by Melanie Dickerson one of my favorite Christian Authors. Evangeline is forced to marry Lord Shivley by the King ( her cousin). King Richard think Lord Shively a good man since he is one of his "faithful" advisors, but Evangeline knows he is a evil and cruel man. Evangeline runs away to become a peasant so that she can marry for love. She and her maid Muriel leave with a group of men to Glynval. One of the men is Westley who is the son of the Lord of Glynval. She and her maid lie and say she is mute to help her diguise but as always the truth comes out and Eva and Westley have to rebuild their budding relationship. Of course there are jealousies from another girl and the evil Lord Shively is still looking for her. Plenty of adventure and action. Eva also comes to know God better. Good clean book, no sex and no foul language. I received this ebook early Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
December 15, 2016
Another fascinating fairy tale romp from Mrs. Dickerson. Teenage girls (and their mothers and sisters and grandmas) will love the protagonists Evangeline and Westley. Evangeline, the ward of King Richard, longs for a life of freedom in an era when wealthy women served as pawns in political machinations. She takes matters into her own hands when her ward insists that she marry an older man whom she doesn't trust. She disguises herself and runs away. Her maid, Muriel ends up coming along with her.
Although Evangeline values honesty, she accepts a lie told by Muriel to keep the two of them safe when the king sends out search parties. Evangeline longs for what each of us long for--acceptance by our Heavenly Father and acceptance by those around us. Dickerson artfully weaves history and story together to show the universality of our need to be accepted and the search to be authentic in a world that doesn't seem to reward authenticity.
December 7, 2017
I mostly enjoyed this part. Part of the problem, I think, is that I am a bit older than the target audience for this book. So some of its simplicity and character motivations stated right out there instead of done more subtly are all done for its younger target audience than an adult reader.
Still, this look had more action than the early Hagenheim books and I loved seeing Ranulf and other characters from book 2 reappear in this book (though it has been so long since I read that book that I can't remember Lady le Wyse's name. It started with A, I think?)
Anyway, this was still a good book and the audiobook version is decent.
Still, this look had more action than the early Hagenheim books and I loved seeing Ranulf and other characters from book 2 reappear in this book (though it has been so long since I read that book that I can't remember Lady le Wyse's name. It started with A, I think?)
Anyway, this was still a good book and the audiobook version is decent.
September 17, 2016
Melanie has done it again with another exciting and romantic fairy tale retelling! Two thumbs up!
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