Customer Reviews

Scarlet Moon (Once Upon a Time)

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(13)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

"Scarlet Moon" is the second book I have read in the "Once Upon a Time" series, the first being Nancy Holder's "Spirited." This time I was at least aware of what fairy tale was being retold, since I knew that scarlet is a type of red and the wolf attacking the young girl in the first chapter was a helpful clue. More importantly, I knew that these stories are not just simply retold fairy tales but romances for those readers still young enough to have an idealized notion of what it means to fall in love. This is important, because whereas Beauty and the Beast, Snow White, and Sleeping Beauty are all romances, the tale of Little Red Riding Hood is traditionally not. That is, however, the approach that Debbie Viguié takes in her turn at the story.

The story of "Rotkäppchen" (literally "red cap") by Wilhelm and Jakob Grimm published in "Kinder- und Hausmärchen" (1812) is the most familiar version of the tale. But that is based on Charles Perrault's "Le petit chaperon rouge" (1697), Ludwig Tiekc's 1800 play "Leben und Tod des kleinen Rotkäppchens: eine Tragödie" (which is where the hunter is added to the tale), and an oral version collected by Jeanette Hassenpflug. There are also oral tales from Northern Italy, the Tyrol and the Pyrennees the basic plot elements of which have been found in Oriental tales from China, Japan and Korea. The universality of the story is rooted in its fundamental themes of female pubescence and awakening sexuality, the contrasting notions of male and female heroism, the importance of family ties and obeying your parents, and the conflict between society and nature. But there are so many variations that it is possible to include a lot of different elements into the story (the Grimms had an alternative ending where the grandmother saves herself and her granddaughter from the wolf without any help from men).

"Scarlet Moon" is set during the time of the crusades (I assume in England, but it could be Normandy) when Ruth, our young heroine, is waiting for her brother and cousin to return from the Holy Land. Because the young men are away Ruth has been learning her father's trade of being a blacksmith and from time to time she visits her grandmother, who lives in the woods because she has been banished from the town because the simple folk believe the old lady is a witch. When she was a young girl Ruth was attacked by a wolf with green eyes and she now that she has become a young woman she still bears the wounds of that encounter and has never gotten over the fear of that attack.

It turns out that both parts of the title are worth paying attention, because the moon is an important part of Viguié's revision. If you want to turn Little Red Riding Hood into a romance using the original roster of characters your choices are the wolf or the huntsman. Viguié chooses the wolf and the fact that the book's title is "Scarlet Moon" should tell you what kind of wolf we are talking about. This certainly makes for an interesting twist on the tale and ultimately what is key here is that Viguié keeps the characters and the locations of the original without feeling compelled to follow the structure of the story.

This story has its predictable elements but given that it is a retold tale that is hardly a serious complaint. My only serious problem with the story is the dialogue and the relationship between Ruth and Lord William are pretty modern. Ruth is certainly a proto-feminist (I suspect all of the heroines in all of the books in this series are as well), and she definitely has no conception of the class structure that existed in that place and time. However, that language may well be what makes "Scarlet Moon" accessible to its young readers, so you can hardly fault Viguié for not using accurate language that predates Chaucer (although the thought of young readers struggling with Old English is certainly amusing).

When Ruth as a child she was attacked by a wolf. She was traveling through the woods with her brother, Stephen, on the way to her grandmother's house and a wolf savagely attacked her, marring her leg with it's teeth and it's claws, a wound no means would ever heal without scarring. But Ruth gets in a blow with her knife before the wolf escapes, and Stephen takes her to their grandmother's home. Her grandmother helps as best as she can, but none of her knowledge of herbal lore is suitable to revive the deep gashes of flesh and muscle that Ruth has lost in the encounter. Her brother helps too, trying his best to get her to walk before he has to depart to Jerusalem to aid in the holy wars there. When Ruth learns of this she is greatly saddened, and takes her sorrow out in her father's forge, knowing that the pain in her heart is greater than the pain in her leg.

Nine years pass and still the crusades rage on. Ruth has become a strong young woman, accustomed to hard work thanks to the hours she puts in as a blacksmith to her father's secret shame. She visits her grandmother, Giselle, whenever she can, knowing that the studious old woman is not welcome in the village thanks to her "Witchcraft" like interests, even though she has a few other visitors coming to learn what she knows. One day, Ruth's cousin Peter returns from Jerusalem, thin and wretched and with a haunted look that alarms Ruth, especially after he delivers the news that Stephen was killed in battle. Ruth is greatly disturbed by this and retreats into her work to dull the pain.

A chance encounter at the smith proves to be Ruth's undoing. After an altercation with Simon, the local tanner, ends in angry blows exchanged a handsome young noble man named William steps in to right the situation. He forces Simon to pay for the work that he claims is shoddy and the tanner leaves in annoyed disgrace. Ruth is weary of William and at the same time attracted to the man who interfered, especially after he proves to be such a charming man, but he seems as if he has some sort of secret he can't convey to her, even after he begins to spend more time with her. Besides that a wolf is skulking around the village woods again, even though the villagers had hunted down the one who attacked Ruth nine years prior. Why is it that the wolves can't seem to let Ruth, or her family, alone?

Part "Little Red Riding Hood", part "Peter and the Wolf", part feminist allegory, part werewolf fetishism, this story seems to span all sorts of genres. The basic elements of "Red riding hood" are there of course, Ruth does spend much time tripping through the forest to grandmother's house, carrying a basket of food and wearing a cape, but beyond being set upon occasionally by wolves that is about where the similarities end. Much of the story is set about her own self-consciousness of her boyish-like physique and attitude, and her growing relationship with William, which she is unsure of because of her own self-doubt more than his own mysterious nature...then there's a lot about this that seems to degenerate into a lycanthropic lust story as one of the characters arrousal arises from his desire to devour. It makes it an interesting twist on the fairy tale combined with a take on a bodice ripping romance novel, only cleverly done so you can't quite tell it's a bodice ripper until most of the way through. It is not surprising to me though, having read other work by Debbie Viguie, that she manages to pull this feat off. I was greatly impressed by the twist and turns in "Midnight Pearls" (another book in the "Once Upon a Time" series) as well as by the character development. I am starting to notice a pattern, however...the cursed main character (s), the inadequate feelings from that of the main female protagonist, the magical elements that are there, but subtlety so... this is what I have come to expect from her work and I was not disappointed by this. I will say that some of the romantic protestations had me rolling my eyes, and for that I might have to deduct a little off of my enjoyment just because it was annoying at times, but overall this is a good read...worthy of four and a half stars, though I have to award 4, because I can't do halves on Amazon. Fans of dark tales will enjoy this as well.

"Slash, claw, bite, kill. Angry trees shouting above; ignore them, ignore them.Trees don't touch me, can't hurt me. The woman tasted sweeter than the man, but the man had more meat on him. Destroy, devour, the wolf will have it's fill.

Blame the wolf, always the wolf. Never me, just the wolf. Watch him kill, blood will spill. Growling, snarling, clawing, biting.

All are dead.

All are dead."

When Ruth was a little girl, she was attacked in the forest by a wolf with green eyes. Her older brother Stephen saved her life and drove off the wolf -- but even nine years later, she is haunted by the memories of that day, and still lives with the scars of the wolf's attack. Shortly after the attack, Stephen and their cousin, Peter, left to join the Crusades, and Ruth took solace in taking Stephen's place in their father's blacksmith shop. Now Peter has returned from the Holy Land with the news that Stephen died in Jerusalem. With her beloved brother dead, Ruth feels her fear of the wolf becoming worse -- especially when she is walking through the woods to visit her grandmother, a healer who was banished from the village after being accused of witchcraft. One day while working in the forge, Ruth meets William the young earl of Lauton. Ruth and William fall in love -- but a dark shadow hangs over a William, an evil magic that has cursed the men of his family for generations. Will their love be strong enough to conquer that evil?

I highly recommend this wonderful blend of fairy tale, history, romance, and magic to teen readers. This enchanting, romantic love story is my favorite book from the "Once Upon a Time" series. I love the setting, characters, and the very romantic love story.

When she was a young girl, Ruth was attacked by a wolf with green eyes. She was saved from death by her brother, but she still carries the scars from the wolf's claws. Years later, Ruth is working as a blacksmith after her brother went off to fight in the Crusades and died in the Holy Land. Ruth still goes through the woods to visit her grandmother, since the old woman had been banished from the village for being a witch (when really she is only an herbalist and amateur astronomer). One day, Ruth meets the handsome but troubled young lord, William, who seems not at all perturbed that a woman is working as a blacksmith. She finds herself attracted to him, but she doesn't know that he is connected to the wolf that attacked her all those years ago.

Viguie's interpretation of the Little Red Riding Hood story is good: she provides a reason why Grandma is only accessible by walking a dangerous path through the woods and the idea that the wolf is really a werewolf is rather clever and allows the wolf to be an actual character (as someone else pointed out, regular wolves don't really talk, so couldn't really do much besides be dangerous).

The book itself, despite its interesting concept, is rather boring. The biggest problem is the utter lack of chemistry between the two leads. Despite the fact that they are constantly stating how in love (lust?) they are with each other (particularly William), they are pretty dull when together. Furthermore, William blaming his bloodlust on his attraction to Ruth (and telling her this) is not very heroic. There is also little explanation about WHY William doesn't simply lock himself in a dungeon cell during a full moon instead of running off into the woods. He doesn't seem very proactive in stopping himself from killing innocent people. The way to break the curse also turned out to be pretty lame (and kind of random).

I can't recommend this book, even for fans of the Once Upon a Time series. Viguie simply wasted a good idea. Younger readers or those who don't mind giant holes in the plot might enjoy reading this book, but there are far better fairy tale retellings and werewolf stories out there that are more worth your time.

I hate to write a review that slams every aspect of a book... but I'm going to do it anyway. Scarlet Moon by Debbie Viguie is not worth your time or your money. The characters are uninteresting, the setting and storyline unconvincing, and the writing itself just poorly done.

To give the book its due, it does have a very interesting premise. I applaud the author's idea of retelling "Little Red Riding Hood" as a werewolf romance. Unfortunately, that's almost the only positive thing I can say about it. Having set up interesting possibilities for character-driven conflict, the author goes out of her way to avoid it. She prevents herself from having to deal with the ramifications of the werewolf curse by making another character the villain at the last minute and giving him the role of the "wolf," thus neatly removing any obstacles to a happy ending for the main characters. I felt cheated when she took this easy way out. And (SPOILERS) what about the very end, where the grandmother gets rid of the curse by magic, after she has said she has no magic? Doesn't that kind of justify Peter's anger at her, since it means she actually was withholding something from him? That bothered me. (END SPOILERS) In any case, Scarlet Moon in its conception had the potential to be really good, but failed to live up to its potential.

The romance, which seems to be the focus of the book, is completely unbelievable. Not only does it happen ridiculously fast, but the dialogue between the two lovers involves every cliched thing that lovers have ever said to one another, and almost nothing else. I was constantly rolling my eyes when I read their interaction. But sadly, this is only a symptom of a larger problem: the characters are one-dimensional, unrealistic, and, I have to say, boring. *sigh* So much potential for compelling characterization here, and all gone to waste...

Scarlet Moon purports to take place in medieval times, during one of the later crusades, but historical inaccuracies abound. One of the crusaders has the crescent moon (the symbol of Islam) as his mark? William owns 132 horses? Please, I'm no expert on history, but even I can tell the author hasn't done enough research. But, worse than getting the facts wrong, the author imposes modern attitudes and ideals on her characters: Ruth, the protagonist, works as a blacksmith, traditionally a man's job (we couldn't possibly have a heroine who conforms to traditional gender roles, now could we), scorns the villagers for believing in witchcraft (because naturally she's so much more enlightened than everyone else), and treats a nobleman whom she happens to meet by chance as an equal (and, unfortunately, he encourages this, apparently having no more idea than she of how the class systems of the time worked)... Ugh, I just hate it when an author takes modern characters with modern views and places them in (what's supposed to be) an historical setting... One of my pet peeves, and Debbie Viguie is a prime offender.

Overall, I don't know what the point of this book is; there isn't anything in it that made it worth reading. I feel like I wasted my time, and I very rarely think that about anything I read, even if I don't like it. So I advise you to avoid this book. If you want to read a good teen werewolf romance, read Blood and Chocolate by Annette Curtis Klause. If you want to read good fairytale retellings, I recommend the works of Robin McKinley (Beauty, Spindle's End, The Door In the Hedge), Gail Carson Levine (Ella Enchanted), and Donna Jo Napoli (The Magic Circle).

This is the second book I read in the Once Upon a Time series (the other was "Spirited"). I was really excited to read it because I had enjoyed "Spirited" so much, and it sounded interesting because of the new take on a fairytale I have never read an adaptation of. Little Red Riding Hood is not just a little girl going to granny's house anymore; now, she is grown and in danger from a werewolf who is actually the man she loves.

When Ruth was little, she was attacked by a wolf with green eyes. Now, she has grown into a woman, but she still bears the scar from that attack; both mentally and physically. Her life was turned upside down when her brother and adopted brother went off on the crusades, but things get even worse when only one of them returns. As if she was not emotionally distraught enough, she now begins to fall in love with the young earl William. But unknown to Ruth, he holds a secret that is only revealed in the light of the full moon...

Unfortunately, the book is not as exciting as it sounds. It moves way too quickly and the romance is not believable. At all. It really seems to be more of a "lust at first sight" as Ruth and William are already making out on their second meeting.

The book is very predictable (even the surprises were predictable) and the ending is abrupt. Personally, I don't like it when everyone's problems are suddenly fixed on the very last page. Especially when they're solved through "magic" by someone the author made clear didn't have any.

Oh well. The book was somewhat enjoyable, and kudos to Debbie Viguie for coming up with such a clever idea for re-telling the story. I only wish she had developed it a little bit better. 3 1/2 stars at most.

Attacked by a wolf at a young age, Ruth learns what it means to fear. Her whole life, she is constantly distressed by paranoia and panic of her surroundings. So when her brother, Stephen, and cousin, Peter, leave for battle during the Crusades, she must pick up where they left off: preparing to be a blacksmith alongside her father, in the place of a son. Ruth's outcasted grandmother, Giselle, is a great healer, and has always helped replace the past loss of Ruth's mother. So when distraught Peter returns from the Crusades after nine years without Stephen, it is Giselle whom Peter turns to, and Giselle whom he comes to loathe.

When the Earl of Lauton's horse throws a shoe outside the blacksmith shop, Ruth is immediately attached to the nobleman William, and he to her. But all that prevents their young love is a secret. A secret that has plagued William's family for generations and one that is the cause of Ruth's fear. But can he be trusted that she need not fear any longer? Does he remember all of his cursed actions?

I feel like defending this book. So everyone who complains that it was "lust" not "love"...yeah. It was lust. They even pointed it out ("And when I am near you, all I feel is passion...). But can lust not be love? It's not like all they did was ogle over each other and make out. They cared for each other, simply in a way no one else could.

Also, it doesn't have to be like the real "Little Red Riding Hood". It's a retelling based "loosely" off the story. Why would we want to read about a little girl getting eaten by a wolf? I prefer not to see the heroine die a most horrible death along with her sweet-natured grandmama. It's just not..right.

And finally (but not lastly), the werewolf does work. You couldn't communicate with a wolf. They eat things. They're carnivores. A werewolf (mythically) has feeling, thoughts, hopes, dreams, and...a man body. Don't get me wrong, you could create a character like that for a wolf, but then Ruth would fall in love with a complete animal? No.

So I suppose it's just how you look at it. I personally enjoyed it. It's not expected to be a long novel with exactly the same features as were written hundreds of years ago. That kind of story just doesn't pertain to what us "modern" folk want in a "modern" retelling of a classic fairy-tale. It just doesn't.

Scarlet Moon is a cleverly adapted retelling of the Little Red Riding hood tale. The plot was well thought out and the descriptions of the forest were enchanting. There were even some very interesting surprises that happened at the end. The love between Ruth (Red Riding Hood) and William is dangerous and exciting! I liked how even though they had difficult circumstances they fought to follow their hearts. Scarlet Moon was so good that I couldn't put it down and I would recommend it to anyone.

Ruth was just a child when she was savagely attacked by a wolf with piercing green eyes. However, she survived the ordeal, and has gone on living her life, but her memories and scars of the attack always stay with her, as does the fact that her beloved brother, Stephen, went away to the Crusades around the same time as the attack. Now, nine years later, Ruth still walks in the woods, as it is the only way for her to get to her beloved grandmother's home (her grandmother was banished to the woods when the towsfolk began believing that she practiced evil). When Ruth is not with her grandmother, however, she is a blacksmith. Something that is entirely unheard of for a girl, and very much looked down upon. It is while performing her blacksmithing duties that Ruth meets a strange new man named William, a noble, whom she begins falling in love with, and who shares the same feelings for her. However, this man has a strange secret. A curse that was placed on every male member of his family years ago, that has caused him, and every male before him to have a strange blood running through their veins.

I have been a huge fan of every novel in the ONCE UPON A TIME... series since they were released. However, I must confess that this has become one of my absolute favorites. Debbie Viguie has such a talent for crafting a wonderful story, filled with many odd twists and turns that keep the reader anxiously anticipating what will happen next. SCARLET MOON is one of Viguie's best literary efforts to date, and will hold a special place in the hearts of all of her fans, especially those who enjoyed her last addition to the ONCE UPON A TIME... series, entitled MIDNIGHT PEARLS. Do not miss this book!

Erika Sorocco

First of all, allow me to say that teen novels are not my usual fare, so I apologize if it seems that I'm holding this book to an unfair standard. That said, I'd like to break this review down into two simple sections.

What works: The plot is original. I've never read a re-telling of Little Red Riding Hood before, and turning it into a werewolf romance was certainly an interesting twist. The pacing was also decent, as a fair amount of action was interspersed along the story, and while I have issues with the climax of the story, I was pleased to see that it resulted in an "exciting" decisive battle rather than merely fizzling out as many other books do.

What didn't work: The characters are flat. I found it nearly impossible to dredge up any feeling for any of them, because they were only as intriguing as one could expect cardboard cut-outs of fairy tale rehash archetypes to be, which is to say not at all. Ruth is your typical plucky, pariah heroine for whom romantic prospects are initially non-existence and William is the charming, formality-hating nobleman who is a-okay with Ruth's manly clothes and occupation despite the medieval setting. These characters are unrealistic for the time period, and I've seen them several times before. The rest of the characters are pretty much just background decoration or plot fodder. Grandma is wise (yet consistently unhelpful), father likes to work, and cousin Peter is skulking about with PTS. There, now you know most of what there is to know about the cast.

But of course, where would this story be without the romance? William meets Ruth and the two engage in harmless flirting, which despite the trite dialogue, is all fine and good. Then the Spontaneous Romance Fairy (who is the illegitimate lovechild of the popular Plot Wizard) shows up, waves its wand, and poof! By Convenient Plot Twist Magic, William and Ruth are desperately in love! Or, as we in the real world prefer to call it, desperate teenage lust. William, in actuality, is the Big Bad Wolf that's been haunting the forest three nights a month and has attacked Ruth in the past. Ruth has surprisingly little trouble digesting this and deciding she's okay with it. When her lust haze does hiccup long enough for logic to crowd in, however, William decides to blame her for his murderous wolf-rages, then talks about having her father force her to marry William. And that, somehow, clears up all of Ruth's misgivings about William. I'm weeping at the beauty of their romance. No wait, that's abject horror causing these tears.

The narrative is pretty bare and frequently visits the cliché, so you'll find no saving grace there. Plot twists are visible from a mile away, at night, through thick fog, while wearing sunglasses. The "happily ever after" solution is hastily tacked on at the last second and will leave you smacking your forehead.

There are a lot of morals you could potentially glean from this tale, and none of them are good. Save your money. Maybe try a Robin McKinnley book.