Castle of Refuge by Melanie Dickerson is a YA retelling of the Ugly Duckling written by Hans Christian Andersen. I'm not familiar with the fairy tale so I likely missed some plot points that align with the source material. It's book 2 in the Dericott Tale series; I haven't read the first but wasn't lost starting here because the main events of book 1 are restated numerous times throughout book 2. I commend the author for taking on a challenging fairy tale for her latest adaptation. The descriptions of physical landscapes immersed me in the late 14th century time period and rural British setting, and the Happily Ever After ending was sweet. However, I am not the reader for whom this novel was written.

The dialog was so simple and stilted (few contractions, odd word placement, etc) that I was challenged to keep reading. Perhaps this was intentional to reflect the Medieval setting, the nobility of the main characters, and/or writing for the young adult market, but it didn't work for me. Also, the characters were very two-dimensional, either completely good or completely evil with little or no growth over the course of the story.

Young readers and those young-at-heart who are seeking an escape to a completely different time and place, and those more familiar with the Ugly Duckling fairy tale, are likely to enjoy this second installment in this multi-book series.

Share/Like this Review?