Publishers Weekly
06/26/2023
In this ambitious “Sleeping Beauty” retelling by Portes (This Is Not a Ghost Story), a princess falls into an enchanted sleep only to wake up in an alternate dimension. White-cued Princess Bitsy, 17, has perfected the art of creeping away from boring formal functions. After meeting her betrothed, whom she describes as a “well-tempered mushroom... a very large, nervous, sweaty one,” she escapes into the depths of the castle, where she discovers a spindle. Pricking her finger sends her into a deep slumber—until she awakens stranded in a dangerous new reality in which one’s looks determines their status (“Being ugly and poor... go hand in hand,” a resident confirms), and the realm’s impoverished citizens must mine a substance that enables its imbibers to remain artificially beautiful. Following a series of dreamlike events that force Bitsy to quickly adapt to the cutthroat world, she must challenge the realm’s mysterious, tyrannical ruler if she hopes to survive and return home. Portes undermines the overarching theme of a heroine who rescues herself with late revelations and reframes, and interrogations of valuing physical appearance prove intriguing but underexplored. Ages 13–up. Agent: Rosemary Stimola, Stimola Literary Studio. (Aug.)
From the Publisher
"Quick, light, and fun. Bitsy is a character readers will root for." — School Library Journal
Praise for Andrea Portes: “[Portes] tempers gruesome scenes with Daffodil’s likable and chatty personality, and creates a memorable novel reminiscent of John Bellairs stories.” — Publishers Weekly
“The chills here are on par with The Shining. Readers [will] know to be very, very afraid.” — Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books
“For all that the title claims, something spooky is happening in this house. This is a horror book that pokes fun at itself and the genre, managing to be both spooky and funny…[with] an interesting twist at the end.” — School Library Journal
Praise for ANATOMY OF A MISFIT: “It’s rare that a book can be as funny and absolutely delightful as it is moving and thought provoking, and Anatomy of a Misfit is both.” — Lauren Oliver, author of Before I Fall
"A self-deprecating and highly memorable heroine whose bawdy, laceratingly funny narration makes her instantly endearing while also revealing her flaws, uncertainties, and ethical quandaries." — Publishers Weekly (starred review)
"A romance filled with seriously funny dark humor and tragedy.” — Kirkus Reviews
"Anika’s droll voice shines, and her emotions are palpable. After a heartbreaking tragedy, Anika’s ending . . . will leave readers cheering." — School Library Journal
"Fifteen-year-old Anika Dragomir throws her arms around us and draws us in from the very beginning… Droll, intimate, often laugh-out-loud funny narration carries the reader through more than 300 pages... Anika’s winning voice may just be the star of Portes’s first young adult novel." — New York Times Book Review
"Anika Dragomir is the funniest, snarkiest, most insightful misfit a reader could ever hope to meet. I laughed my way through Anatomy of a Misfit right up until the very end, when the book broke my heart into a million pieces. This is a beautiful, brave and powerful novel." — Melissa Kantor, author of Maybe One Day and The Breakup Bible
“Portes writes with such cool grace we almost forget to be astonished by her narrative’s complexity.” — Matthew Specktor, American Dream Machine
"Portes’s short chapters and staccato narration make for a quick and compulsive read." — Publishers Weekly
"Andrea Portes writes with the tip of a knife, shape-shifting between characters and laying bare their darkest secrets." — Dylan Landis, Normal People Don't Live Like This
School Library Journal
11/17/2023
Gr 7 Up—Bitsy would rather read books by herself than live up to her duty as the princess of Roix. Her adoring parents are the one bright spot in the life she would do anything to escape. Then one day, she pricks her finger on a spindle and falls down into a fantastical world that has been "built out of spite." There she travels through many kingdoms and narrowly escapes multiple attempts on her life. As she eagerly searches for a way to return home to her parents, she discovers that standing up for what's right is more important than being beautiful and non-confrontational. This fantasy is quick, light, and fun. Bitsy is a character readers will root for, but her unexpected romantic feelings for an elderly man who sells her into slavery will leave readers perplexed, albeit surprised at the kiss they'll never see coming. Many aspects of Bitsy's dream world don't make sense, and no thought is given to the possibly dead friends she leaves behind when she wakes up. The ending features a plot twist that promises to lead to a sequel, but the unexpected turn casts a shadow on the relationship between Bitsy and her parents, which is one of the bright spots of this novel. Bitsy reads white. VERDICT A fun read on the surface, but closer examination leaves gaping plot holes and a disconcerting romance.—Candyce Pruitt-Goddard
Kirkus Reviews
2023-05-24
A princess pricks her finger on a spindle—and falls through an alternate world in this retelling of “Sleeping Beauty.”
Elizabeth “Bitsy” Roix is the plain princess of the Roix Kingdom whose fate, whether she wishes it or not, is to be married off to someone her family considers appropriate. That is, until the day she pricks her finger on a spindle, falls deeply asleep, and everything changes. As her parents desperately try to break her curse, Bitsy wakes up in a different world—one of oppression, freedom fighters, and magic—where she attempts to carve a place for herself through a journey of self-empowerment that will have repercussions across worlds. This subversive take on the fairy tale “Sleeping Beauty” starts off well with a story that aims to empower its princess into breaking her own curse. Bitsy’s first-person narration is funny and engaging, sometimes breaking the fourth wall and addressing readers directly. Excerpts from her father’s journal complement the narrative and show another side of events. But the more the novel progresses, the more haphazard it becomes. The treatment of certain worldbuilding elements, including social inequalities and prejudices and a romance that grows from a shaky foundation, is superficial and ill-defined and never forms a cohesive whole. Bitsy and her family are cued White.
A fairy-tale retelling that aims high—and falls flat. (Fantasy. 13-18)
