Review of "Glass and Feathers" by Lissa Sloan
Lissa Sloan’s Glass and Feathers is a serialized novel free to subscribers of The Fairytale Magazine.
The novel is released in small sections and the reader must wait until the next segment is sent to learn more. Glass and Feathers is a Cinderella story that reaches beyond the happily ever after. It begins after the wedding when the glass slippers’ magic begin to dwindle.
This Cinderella tale explores trauma, self-doubt, and even self-loathing, as well as the journey to find and decide what one’s place in the world will be. With each snippet of chapters, we are led further and further into folklore and further within our own healing and traumas. The Princess’s doubts feed into the collective pain of rejection and the sense of not belonging. The story has progressed into its second section, but this review will have few to no spoilers. There are glass slippers in this tale, and the princess feels betrayed by them and cannot understand how the Prince would love her for any reason other than magic.
Sloan weaves several folktales and fairytales into the journey. Each woven folktale gives a mystique that many Cinderella tales or retellings fail to have. The evil stepmother so far is the princess’s own self-talk. She feels as if she shouldn’t be fresh from her life of cleaning cinders and still be proud when she meets gawking guests. Further, her wishes, or her own sort of magic, wither in the beginning and with each installment, I wait to see them reemerge as she grows stronger and finds value in what she wants to find value in—not what she is told should be fashionable or proper.
This is not a Cinderella protagonist that can do nothing wrong and is born able to do backflips with swords and still serve tea. This Cinderella has nuanced growth as she begins to master her thoughts and feels authentic and relatable.
It feels like a journey that the reader can follow. With each installment the Princess finds more of herself, and we too are allowed to explore our beliefs and depths. Magic shifts in Sloan’s world. It exists, but it does not allow for happy endings without work. There is a price for happiness and the princess is learning she matters and has a place in the world. There is an intriguing cast of characters guiding the Princess, and with each installment their stories are also unfolding.
Self-love is heavily explored at the time of this publication, but romantic love has already begun to be examined or perhaps, cross examined. Will the Prince stay in love with the Princess? Will the Princess still love the Prince after a separation and her growth? She has gone into the woods and away from the castle, but I doubt she stays lost.
This novel is well worth reading. I am waiting for the next installment to see if the feathers mentioned in the title hold the answers that the princess is looking for. A beautiful tale is unfolding I cannot wait to read more.
For more information or to subscribe to The Fairytale Magazine and catch up on the story
click on the Issues & Subscriptions link. The $16 subscription includes the entire novel. If you are just signing up, you will be sent all the prior installments. There is an option to become a Fairy Godparent and this option includes Sloan's novel, the regular subscription, along with additional bonuses.
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