Sweetly (Fairy Tale Retelling)

by Jackson Pearce

As a child, Gretchen's twin sister was taken by a witch-like monster in the woods. Ever since, Gretchen and her brother, Ansel, have felt the long branches of the witch's forest threatening to make them disappear, too. When their stepmother casts Gretchen and Ansel out as teens, they stumble upon a sleepy Southern town and are invited to stay with Sophia Kelly at her sweet shop. Sophia moulds candied magic: coveted treats that inspire confidence, bravery, and passion. Life seems idyllic and Gretchen and Ansel finally start to forget their haunted past - until Gretchen meets handsome local outcast Samuel, who gives Gretchen a reason to fear Sophia: girls have been vanishing at Sophia's annual chocolate festival, taken by the insatiable 'witch' of Gretchen's nightmares. Can Gretchen save herself, the girls of Live Oak, and Sophia? Of one thing, Gretchen is certain: a monster is coming, and it will never go away hungry.

• ISBN10: 1444900617
• ISBN13: 9781444900613
• Publish Date: 3 May 2012 (first published 1 January 2011)
• Publish Status: Out of Print
• Out of Print: 29 March 2021
• Publish Country: GB
• Publisher: Hachette Children's Group
• Imprint: Hodder Children's Books
• Format: Paperback (B-Format (198x129 mm))
• Pages: 336
• Language: English

Reviews

[Artemis]

Reviews at The Artemis Reader

Sweetly is definitely my favorite of the series. A retelling of Hansel and Gretel, with a Pearce twist. Gretchen and her brother Ansel have left home, after Gretchen's twin is taken in the woods by a "witch". When their car breaks down they meet Sophia Kelly, a young chocolatier, who offers them a place to stay and work. They quickly discover that young girls are disappearing from the town.

What I liked most about this second installment in the Fairytale Retelling series was the pacing of this story. Pearce really mastered a slow mystery, and kept me guessing as to what was happening. The Fenris are definitely a theme in this series and it was interesting to see their role in this book. The story was enough to look the typical young-adult romance aspect.

[celinenyx]

Sweetly is the second book in Jackson Pearce's Fairytale Retellings. These books are perfectly readable in any sequence you prefer, and yet she still managed to bind these books together through certain recurring themes instead of recurring characters.

One day, Gretchen's twin sister gets caught by a witch, never to be found again. From that moment she feels like she's missing a part of her. Her parent's can't deal with it either and wither away. Ten years later she finds herself in the middle of nowhere with her brother and a broken down car. They are invited to stay with Sophia Kelly, a beautiful candy maker that owns a shop just out of town. But things aren't what they seem in Live Oak, and girls keep disappearing every year.

This is the second book I've read by Ms Pearce (Sisters Red being the first) and from these books I get the very strong impressing that family is a big source of inspiration for her. In Sweetly there is a heavy emphasis on family ties, brothers and sisters, and twins in particular. In Sisters Red I had a very hard time relating to the main characters because of their fixations with siblings. I was glad I didn't have the same issue with Sweetly. Gretchen and her brother Ansel have a very natural relationship, and I had no problem at all understanding their bond.

Pearce's writing is so effortless and quick, I very much enjoyed reading it. In the first half nothing really happens, it's mainly just about introducing the characters, setting the scene, getting engaged with the mystery. I didn't mind the slow start, for me the pages just flew by. It was just what I needed to get out of a slump.

The best thing about this book is the chances Ms Pearce takes with it. There is sex, love, death. It's all in there, yet it's still appropriate for a younger audience. She has a great way of dealing with taboo subjects, I especially thought she handled the sex issue very well. The characters aren't standard either - a certain person you will both hate and love by the end of the book.

Sweetly is a great book that I enjoyed reading. It has werewolves, witches, and a boy that knows his way around a gun. I definitely recommend it, as long as you keep some chocolates handy in case you get hungry.

[Kelsenator]

Originally posted on my blog Kelsey's Cluttered Bookshelf

The characters were pretty interesting. Gretchen is terrified of forests and dark areas, ever since her twin sister never made it out of one when they were kids. She blames it on herself and even though she tries to move on she always remembers that incident. Her bother Ansel is very supportive of her and will do anything to protect her. When they both get kicked out of the house by their stepmother, they go on a road trip and end up in Live Oak. It’s a small place but there’s much more going on there than you’d think.

Sophia, the candy maker, lives in a small place in the woods, away from most other people. They end up staying with her and doing small chores at first until they decide to stay. After a while Gretchen can tell something is up. Many girls have gone missing in the years past and it’s getting close to the time when Sophia hold her party yet again, and it doesn’t help that people in town blame Sophia for their daughters leaving town.

I liked how Gretchen got stronger and willing to face her fears as this book went on too. She became strong because she didn’t want to be that scared little girl anymore and so she could protect everyone, especially so no more girls would go missing in a town that’s already falling apart.

I was actually expecting this book to be a little different than it was. Let’s just say the witches aren’t what they seem and there’s links to the first book Sisters Red. I was kind of disappointed in that aspect of it, I was hoping it would be completely separate and a lot darker like the first book was. Don’t get me wrong, I really liked this book, I think my expectations were just high and I thought it was going to be different, closer to the original Hansel & Grethel fairytale. I did like where the author took it, but it wasn’t what I assumed.

Recommended for those that like fairytale retellings!