Blog Tour// Andora's Folly

by - August 01, 2017

Here it is: the special post you were promised:

Andora's Follyblogtourheader.png


Lisa, I'm thinking you guessed right yesterday ;) Ladies and gents, give it up for Abigayle Clare Ellison, author of Andora's Folly, which released two days ago!

BUY IT HERE.

So... yeah.

I read Abi's book Martin Hospitality when it came out in March, and she is one talented author. When I found out that Abi was releasing a second book (and honestly, who cares that it's just a novella?) I jumped at the chance to beta read for her.

This book will always hold a special place in my heart as the first book I had a chance to beta read. It's incredibly well-written and contains a great plot in just a couple hundred pages. But y'all don't want to read my backstory on it; you want to hear about the book itself and see the review I wrote! So here you go.



SYNOPSIS

A Pandora's Box retelling

Andora is a beautiful young woman with insatiable curiosity. Raised in splendor, she is spoiled by her privileged life. When a love letter is slid under her door, her life takes a drastically unromantic turn. Nothing makes sense—her arranged marriage, the gifts her parents bestow on her wedding day, or her new husband’s temperament.

As Andora begins to unravel the mysteries around her, she ignites a chain of events that have the power to sabotage her entire village forever. Only her new-found wisdom as a desperate peasant's wife can save her from her folly.

It's so awesome.

Find it on Goodreads.

My Goodreads review reads as follows:

This was a short little book, but definitely worth the read. It's a retelling of the Greek myth Pandora's box, and does a great job smuggling that into the story without it ever being explicit. The story is retold in Europe, in probably around the fourteenth century, and revolves around a LOT of worldbuilding. I could almost smell the world at times. There was more wordbuilding in this little thing than there is in most full-length novels.

Now for the characters:
-Andora: I really didn't like her at first, but as she grew more desperate and humble, she got to be a character who I genuinely rooted for. Even when she did stupid things and made massive mistakes. I started out really not caring about her at all, but after a while... wow.
-Theus. I'll be honest with y'all and say that I really didn't like him at first, especially his attitude towards Andora. He had very dramatic mood swings and could be somewhat aggressive towards her from time to time (never in a physical way, though, more like an irritated yelling kind of way). But as you got to know more of his backstory and discover who he actually is, he got better. A lot better.
-Varos, Theus's older brother, was honestly my favorite character. He was a sweet guy with a heart of gold, and he was kind of stuck in the middle the whole time, but he was so patient about it all. I mean, I would have blown up at Theus and Andora long before he even started considering it XD
-The other characters were all really well-done (creepy, nerve-wracking, sweet, lovely, etc...) but talking more about them would be spoilery, so I won't go into that.

The plot moves quickly, and while some of the mysteries are easier to decipher than others, they are still incredibly well-done. Andora's personal story arc is a lot of the main plot, what drives it forward and keeps it going and develops all the rest of the characters, but most of the characters have similar arcs as they go from selfish jerks to wonderfully developed people.

Content: An arranged marriage that is initially kind of loveless, but that is a major part of the plot as the couple learns to love one another. Some kisses. A bit of violence during one scene. A character dies. A goat gives birth. No language.

I definitely recommend this book, and very much enjoyed it! Thank you so much to Abi for letting me beta-read it!


About the Author

authorheadshot.jpg


Abigayle has been a writer ever since her mother taught her how to hold a pencil. However, she devoted more time to reading words with her green eyes than writing them with her left hand. Inspired by a crazy dream at the age of seventeen, she set off on a journey to self-publish her first novel, Martin Hospitality. Since then, Abigayle has devoted herself to sharing what she has learned through the mediums of freelance editing, and her blog theleft-handedytpist.blogspot.com ... when period drama films are not calling more loudly. None of her successes would be possible without the support of her Savior, large family, and online community.
And of course, no blog tour would be complete without a hodge-podge of links! Abi is an amazing person, so you should definitely give her some follows at a few of the following platforms:





Thanks so much to Abi for the chance to beta-read Andora's Folly and to participate in this blog tour! I was so happy to be a part of this. Now to my followers: What are you waiting for? This novella costs something like three dollars. Go on and buy it! Link is at the top (in case you missed it the first time.) And if you've read this book, what did you think of it? Chat with me in the comments!

You May Also Like

17 comments

  1. FIRST!!!!!
    I think the book sounds a little out of my comfort zone, but maybe I'll look into it. I'm not sure how I feel about the whole arranged marriage idea. I mean, I don't like the idea, but in a book ... I don't know.

    However, your review was awesome! You did an awesome job. :D

    iviewrites.blogspot.com

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Oh, and that cover is beautiful. I love the cover of the book. Now that I'm thinking about it, the book is based in a different time period so the arranged marriage thing might be more common at that time.

      Delete
    2. It's because of the time period, and it's a little weird and not really depicted as a comfortable thing. But I think Abi did a great job with it.

      The cover is gorgeous, isn't it? Anika Joy at https://this-journeycalled-life.blogspot.com/ made it!

      Delete
  2. Wow, I'm really looking forward to this book! I can't believe she wrote it so fast, even if it is just a novella!! *dashes off to looking into the book* XD

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It's really good! You should definitely try it!

      Delete
  3. Yay I guessed right! I wasn't completely sure because it's ages since I glanced at the tour schedule. Good review (honestly tho Theus was my fave)! You know you were really clever to drop the hint yesterday that something special was up today because the little mystery will probably have everyone stalking you to find out!

    (*whispers* was my first beta reading too and it was amazing :D)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I liked Varos the most, I think. But yes, that was kind of the idea. XD

      (I know! It was a truly special experience!)

      Delete
    2. Yay! (They make me happy too.)

      Delete
  4. Seems like a book I would like. I will have to check it out!

    ReplyDelete
  5. I don't often see Pandora's Box re-tellings. Looks interesting! One slight note, though: Can you perhaps change the lettering in black to a lighter colour? My eyes aren't the strongest.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Sorry about that :/ I need to just preview my posts as a general rule. I love this blog template, but it just doesn't always work that well :P

      Delete
  6. I love your review SO much!! You were an awesome first-time beta reader <3 The interaction you have on this post alone proves how much good you're doing me and my story ... besides the fact that it was great to get to know you better :) So glad you enjoyed Andora's Folly.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Oh, my goodness, Abi. Thank YOU so much for making this an open call and inviting me to beta read for you. You're going to go far, girl, and I can't wait to see where God takes your writing journey next. :)

      Delete

Hello, friends! Do make yourselves comfortable and stay for a while--I'd love to chat with you! I simply ask that you keep it clean. :)