Ginny grabbed the nearest thing to hand and brandished it. “Not a
step closer, sir!” she demanded.
The man stared at her weapon and blinked. “And what is that, miss?”
Ginny glanced down at what she held, then lifted her chin. “The
Holy Scriptures, sir.”
He
quirked an eyebrow, a faint half-grin flitting across his face. “You’re
threatening me with the Holy Scriptures, miss?”
Oh,
they’re so cute together…
In But
One Life Wyn Estelle Owens does something that I think is very brave: she
writes a version of Snow White that includes no magic whatsoever. Despite that, it’s pretty magical. The protagonists are funny and true-hearted, and
there’s just enough historical detail to give the story a unique feel.
Daughter
of a revolutionary captain and an Oneida mother, Ginny Phillips wants only to
serve her country. After the death of
her father leaves her in her Tory stepmother’s care, a chance encounter with a
wounded revolutionary leads to her employment as a spy in the Culper Ring. But when her stepmother finds out about
Ginny’s political leanings she decides to get rid of her. Lost in the woods and declared dead by her
money-hungry stepmother, can Ginny save herself, save George Washington, and
find her way back to the man she cares about?
High
Points
Ginny
and Ethan’s relationship is wonderful.
They are so much fun to read about.
The scrap of a scene that I quote above is just one of their many funny
exchanges. The seven orphans that Ginny
finds in the woods are also charming—give them more scenes, please!
The
historical setting for this story is very well done—not too much, not too
little. I appreciated the ways that the
elements of the Snow White story were woven into the history of the
Revolution—the spy messages hidden in apples were an especially nice
touch. I liked the fact that Wyn’s added
plot points drove a large part of the story rather than just being basted on
for flavor. (Possibly being hanged as a
spy is a lot more exciting than needing a magic kiss to get out of an
apple-coma, despite the fact that you end up just as dead both ways.)
Caveats
I think
sometimes the Snow White plot points did drive the story more than they should
have. Ginny’s stepmother tells the old
servant to take Ginny into the woods and abandon her (yes, not kill,
abandon). He warns Ginny about it; she
then runs away into these selfsame woods.
… Why? Apparently her stepmother isn’t trying to
kill her (yet, anyway); certainly she’s not going to attack her in person. Why not just tell somebody? Doesn’t Ginny have any friends? Maybe a pastor? And what good did the stepmother think
abandoning Ginny in the woods was going to do?
Couldn’t she just sneakily follow Isaac back out?
I would
have loved some more scenes showing Ginny spying. We are told that she is a spy, and we learn
some of the things that she found out and reported, but we don’t know how she
finds them out. I think expanding that
part of the story would have made the climax (where she is threatened with
hanging) more convincing. And maybe it
would also have allowed for a less ex machina way for her stepmother to
discover what she was doing. Her
stepmother just happens to be in the shop next door when the wind blows the curtain
back to reveal Ginny handing over a message?
Um. I guess it could
happen…
Bottom
Line
I really
enjoyed this story, especially the central romance and the spying. If you enjoyed the retellings by Melanie
Dickerson, you’ll like this one too.
Wyn’s Bio
Wyn Estelle Owens is the penname of a young woman who’s still figuring out what this whole ‘adult’ thing is all about. She lives in a big, old house in Maryland by a Hundred Acre Wood (dubbed Neldoreth) with her parents, three occasionally obnoxious brothers, her dog Jackie, and her rabbit Joker. She is fond of reading, writing, drawing, speaking in dead or imaginary languages, playing videogames, quoting classic or obscure literature, being randomly dramatic, and generally making things out of yarn. Her dream is to write stories that inspire people to chase after the wonderful world of storytelling. Her favorite all-time authors are Anne Elisabeth Stengl, Christa Kinde, and above all, J.R.R. Tolkien, who first inspired her to pursuing novel writing when she read the Hobbit at the age of seven. Find her online at: Goodreads || Facebook
Links
Find But One Life here.
Add it on Goodreads here.
Magic
Mirrors
Wyn’s story is part of the Magic Mirrors co-release—a group
of seven Snow White stories by six different authors, all becoming available
the last week of October. Watch this
space for more Magic Mirrors reviews! Or
go here to enter the Rafflecopter giveaway!
Find the rest of Wyn's blog tour here!
Knitted By God's Plan: 7 Reasons to ReadLight and Shadows: 5 Reasons to Read
The Language of Writing: Review
Ink Calamities: Review
I'm Charles Baker Harris (And I Can Read): Review
The Labyrinth: Guest Post
Resting Life: Guest Post
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