Book Review: The Captive Maiden

Title: The Captive Maiden

Author: Melanie Dickerson

Rating: 5/5
Age Recommendation: 12+

Plot: Gisela Mueller has dreamed of the duke's son, Valten, since she first met him 9 years ago. But things have changed since then. She now works as a servant to her stepmother, with her father dead. Valten is struggling to find God's purpose for his life. All he's ever known is tournaments, and they hold nothing for him anymore. When they meet again, they both immediately have feelings for each other. But Valten's long-time nemesis, Ruexner, will do everything it takes to ensure Valten's misery; which currently means keeping them apart.

This book was a re-telling of Cinderella, and we LOVED everything about it! It was wonderfully written, the romance wasn't over-the-top, and the excitement kept us reading! This book will always be a favorite!

Characters: The characters were perfectly written to reflect the Cinderella story-line, yet they were each unique in their own way. We fell in love with Valten, and felt like he was the perfect Knight in Shining Armor. We also loved getting to hear about characters from previous books that we had come to love as well.

Emotion: This book was very sweet as far as romance goes, touching when it came to finding God's plan for each person's life, and thrilling with excitement!

Elinor's Thoughts: I adored this book (just like all of Melanie Dickerson's books!), and it fulfilled all of my expectations (which had to be hard, because I've been stalking it online most of the year). Thank you so much Mrs. Dickerson for another beautifully crafted adventure!

Favorite Quote:

'What had his life meant? All his success, all the tournaments he'd won... they were like dust and ashes. Meaningless. Without Gisela, his life was meaningless.'

Marianne's Thoughts: My sister and I have read all of Melanie Dickerson's books and loved them all! She is one of my all time favorite authors and "The Captive Maiden" was my favorite of her novels! I loved that I got to "meet" many characters from previous novels and seeing how their stories turned out was awesome. I LOVED Valten and enjoyed watching his and Gisela's relationship take place. I greatly hope that Melanie Dickerson continues to write novels, for my sister and I will read every single one! 

Favorite Quote:

"I don't need prestige or wealth," he said softly. "I need you, and I want you with me forever."