![The Brothers Grimm: Illuminated Fairy Tales, Vol. 1 [Kindle in Motion]](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/51Lp7w6iaQL._UX300_PJku-headphones-v2%2CTopRight%2C0%2C-50_.jpg)
Cruella de Vil has been my long-standing favorite villain from the Disney world. Yes, her actual motives and desires to make a fur coat out of puppies is unforgivably abhorrent, but her character design, flair, smooth animation by animator Marc Davis, and unparalleled voice by Betty Lou Gerson just make her too cool.
I have been buying most of Serena Valentino's novels in her Disney Villains series, and for the most part, my complaint has always been the same: I don't really care much for her original characters of the Odd Sisters, for even though they manipulate important events in the stories, they always really slowed things down for me. I want to read about the star villain and get a stronger feel for their thought and feelings, and really get down to what makes them tick. Note that I never bought the Ursula book "Poor Unfortunate Souls" (due to the reviews that Ursula was hardly featured) or the one titled "The Odd Sisters" (because why would I want to know more about the characters that I felt dragged things down?).
Enter: "Evil Thing." I have to admit that even if the novel were a letdown, I would still have bought the book for the art on the slip cover and the actual cover. As with the other villain-featured books, the slipcover has a portrait of the villain and the actual cover has an alternate version of said villain. Those never disappoint. In terms of the content, I was very pleased that it serves as a standalone novel that has zero appearances by the Odd Sisters and their lot. Unlike the more fairy tale type villains, Cruella is from a story set in the more mundane "real" world England: a world without magic or witches or meddling fairies. The premise is that our author (Serena Valentino) has visited with a defeated Cruella after the events of the 101 Dalmatians to get her story back from childhood and continuing on to her present predicament. I liked this approach very much, as it kept Cruella as the focus, but also allows us to get into the dizzying and conflicted thoughts in her head. We see her childhood upbringing with two very different parents. We see her experience a tragic loss. We see her struggles with obtaining love and approval. We see the rise and fall of her friendship with Anita. We even see Cruella find love! But then of course comes the fall, and everything collapses into the scheming, obsessed villain that many love to hate.
The story had a nice flow to it, which was great. I did not have to get taken out of the story by any interruptions of the Odd Sisters popping in as active characters. ***WARNING: PLOT SPOILERS MAY FOLLOW*** There were a few things, however, which left me a bit puzzled, including what was Perdita's actual age by the time of the main events of 101 Dalmatians; why was Cruella asked to sign a prenuptial agreement when she was coming into her marriage with her own vast inheritance (and why was she not included in her husband's will despite that); why is it never fully addressed that Roger and Anita essentially stole the 84 puppies that Cruella had legally procured; and why was she named Cruella in the first place? I also agree with some other reviews that have mentioned that the Cruella that we see through most of the book does not transform into the well-known villain from the 1961 animated film very smoothly.
Overall, I really enjoyed reading this novel. If Ms. Valentino continues with this new approach, I may enjoy her future books as well.
Download the free Kindle app and start reading Kindle books instantly on your smartphone, tablet, or computer - no Kindle device required.
Read instantly on your browser with Kindle for Web.
Using your mobile phone camera - scan the code below and download the Kindle app.
All 8 available for you in this series
See full series
From the Publisher
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fairest of All | The Beast Within | Poor Unfortunate Soul | Mistress of All Evil | Mother Knows Best | The Odd Sisters | |
| Customer Reviews |
8,452
|
5,062
|
4,936
|
4,438
|
3,967
|
4,650
|
| Price | $11.44 | $10.64 | $10.95 | $12.04 | $9.88 | $10.72 |
| For fans of the Evil Queen | For fans of The Beast | For fans of Ursella | For fans of Maleficent | For fans of Mother Gothel | For fans of the Villains series |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Evil Thing | Cold Hearted | Never Never | Fire and Fate | Kill the Beast | |
| Customer Reviews |
4,657
|
3,118
|
1,695
|
903
|
— |
| For fans of Cruella De Vil | For fans of the Wicked Stepmother | For fans of Captain Hook | For fans of Hades | For fans of The Gaston |
|
|
|
|
|---|---|---|---|
| Evil Thing, A Villains Graphic Novel | Fairest of All, A Villains Graphic Novel | Disney Villains: How the Villains Ruined Christmas | |
| Customer Reviews |
123
|
63
|
237
|
| A Cruella De Vil graphic novel | An Evil Queen graphic novel | From Serena Valentino, author of the New York Times best-selling Disney Villains series, comes a new holiday picture book perfect for young Disney fans. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Straight On Till Morning | The Dark Ascension Series: The Wicked Ones | If The Shoe Fits: A Meant to Be Novel | Rebel Rose | City of Villains | Raising the Horseman | |
| Customer Reviews |
3,621
|
131
|
3,763
|
469
|
330
|
323
|
| Discover More Magical Adventures! | What if Wendy first traveled to Never Land . . . with Captain Hook? | Explore the complex sibling rivalry between the two wicked stepsisters from Cinderella that turned them into the characters we know today. | If the shoe doesn’t fit, maybe it’s time to design your own. Best-selling author Julie Murphy’s reimagining of a beloved fairy tale is an enchanting story of self-love and believing in the happy ending each and every one of us deserves. | Disney’s Princesses grow up—and learn to rule—guided by the magical Queen’s Council. In Rebel Rose, Belle faces a royal future in a time of turmoil. | This gritty fairy tale-inspired crime series follows a troubled teenage detective as she discovers the reimagined origins of Maleficent, Ursula, Captain Hook, and other infamous Disney Villains. | From the New York Times best-selling author of Disney’s Villains series comes a ghostly stand-alone novel that reimagines The Legend of Sleepy Hollow through the eyes of a modern teen. |
About the author
Follow authors to get new release updates, plus improved recommendations.
Reviews with images
Ravishing, Darling!
Cruella de Vil has been my long-standing favorite villain from the Disney world. Yes, her actual motives and desires to make a fur coat out of puppies is unforgivably abhorrent, but her character design, flair, smooth animation by animator Marc Davis, and unparalleled voice by Betty Lou Gerson just make her too cool.I have been buying most of Serena Valentino's novels in her Disney Villains series, and for the most part, my complaint has always been the same: I don't really care much for her original characters of the Odd Sisters, for even though they manipulate important events in the stories, they always really slowed things down for me. I want to read about the star villain and get a stronger feel for their thought and feelings, and really get down to what makes them tick. Note that I never bought the Ursula book "Poor Unfortunate Souls" (due to the reviews that Ursula was hardly featured) or the one titled "The Odd Sisters" (because why would I want to know more about the characters that I felt dragged things down?).Enter: "Evil Thing." I have to admit that even if the novel were a letdown, I would still have bought the book for the art on the slip cover and the actual cover. As with the other villain-featured books, the slipcover has a portrait of the villain and the actual cover has an alternate version of said villain. Those never disappoint. In terms of the content, I was very pleased that it serves as a standalone novel that has zero appearances by the Odd Sisters and their lot. Unlike the more fairy tale type villains, Cruella is from a story set in the more mundane "real" world England: a world without magic or witches or meddling fairies. The premise is that our author (Serena Valentino) has visited with a defeated Cruella after the events of the 101 Dalmatians to get her story back from childhood and continuing on to her present predicament. I liked this approach very much, as it kept Cruella as the focus, but also allows us to get into the dizzying and conflicted thoughts in her head. We see her childhood upbringing with two very different parents. We see her experience a tragic loss. We see her struggles with obtaining love and approval. We see the rise and fall of her friendship with Anita. We even see Cruella find love! But then of course comes the fall, and everything collapses into the scheming, obsessed villain that many love to hate.The story had a nice flow to it, which was great. I did not have to get taken out of the story by any interruptions of the Odd Sisters popping in as active characters. ***WARNING: PLOT SPOILERS MAY FOLLOW*** There were a few things, however, which left me a bit puzzled, including what was Perdita's actual age by the time of the main events of 101 Dalmatians; why was Cruella asked to sign a prenuptial agreement when she was coming into her marriage with her own vast inheritance (and why was she not included in her husband's will despite that); why is it never fully addressed that Roger and Anita essentially stole the 84 puppies that Cruella had legally procured; and why was she named Cruella in the first place? I also agree with some other reviews that have mentioned that the Cruella that we see through most of the book does not transform into the well-known villain from the 1961 animated film very smoothly.Overall, I really enjoyed reading this novel. If Ms. Valentino continues with this new approach, I may enjoy her future books as well.
Top reviews from the United States
There was a problem filtering reviews right now. Please try again later.
Reviewed in the United States on July 16, 2020
Cruella de Vil has been my long-standing favorite villain from the Disney world. Yes, her actual motives and desires to make a fur coat out of puppies is unforgivably abhorrent, but her character design, flair, smooth animation by animator Marc Davis, and unparalleled voice by Betty Lou Gerson just make her too cool.
I have been buying most of Serena Valentino's novels in her Disney Villains series, and for the most part, my complaint has always been the same: I don't really care much for her original characters of the Odd Sisters, for even though they manipulate important events in the stories, they always really slowed things down for me. I want to read about the star villain and get a stronger feel for their thought and feelings, and really get down to what makes them tick. Note that I never bought the Ursula book "Poor Unfortunate Souls" (due to the reviews that Ursula was hardly featured) or the one titled "The Odd Sisters" (because why would I want to know more about the characters that I felt dragged things down?).
Enter: "Evil Thing." I have to admit that even if the novel were a letdown, I would still have bought the book for the art on the slip cover and the actual cover. As with the other villain-featured books, the slipcover has a portrait of the villain and the actual cover has an alternate version of said villain. Those never disappoint. In terms of the content, I was very pleased that it serves as a standalone novel that has zero appearances by the Odd Sisters and their lot. Unlike the more fairy tale type villains, Cruella is from a story set in the more mundane "real" world England: a world without magic or witches or meddling fairies. The premise is that our author (Serena Valentino) has visited with a defeated Cruella after the events of the 101 Dalmatians to get her story back from childhood and continuing on to her present predicament. I liked this approach very much, as it kept Cruella as the focus, but also allows us to get into the dizzying and conflicted thoughts in her head. We see her childhood upbringing with two very different parents. We see her experience a tragic loss. We see her struggles with obtaining love and approval. We see the rise and fall of her friendship with Anita. We even see Cruella find love! But then of course comes the fall, and everything collapses into the scheming, obsessed villain that many love to hate.
The story had a nice flow to it, which was great. I did not have to get taken out of the story by any interruptions of the Odd Sisters popping in as active characters. ***WARNING: PLOT SPOILERS MAY FOLLOW*** There were a few things, however, which left me a bit puzzled, including what was Perdita's actual age by the time of the main events of 101 Dalmatians; why was Cruella asked to sign a prenuptial agreement when she was coming into her marriage with her own vast inheritance (and why was she not included in her husband's will despite that); why is it never fully addressed that Roger and Anita essentially stole the 84 puppies that Cruella had legally procured; and why was she named Cruella in the first place? I also agree with some other reviews that have mentioned that the Cruella that we see through most of the book does not transform into the well-known villain from the 1961 animated film very smoothly.
Overall, I really enjoyed reading this novel. If Ms. Valentino continues with this new approach, I may enjoy her future books as well.
I have been buying most of Serena Valentino's novels in her Disney Villains series, and for the most part, my complaint has always been the same: I don't really care much for her original characters of the Odd Sisters, for even though they manipulate important events in the stories, they always really slowed things down for me. I want to read about the star villain and get a stronger feel for their thought and feelings, and really get down to what makes them tick. Note that I never bought the Ursula book "Poor Unfortunate Souls" (due to the reviews that Ursula was hardly featured) or the one titled "The Odd Sisters" (because why would I want to know more about the characters that I felt dragged things down?).
Enter: "Evil Thing." I have to admit that even if the novel were a letdown, I would still have bought the book for the art on the slip cover and the actual cover. As with the other villain-featured books, the slipcover has a portrait of the villain and the actual cover has an alternate version of said villain. Those never disappoint. In terms of the content, I was very pleased that it serves as a standalone novel that has zero appearances by the Odd Sisters and their lot. Unlike the more fairy tale type villains, Cruella is from a story set in the more mundane "real" world England: a world without magic or witches or meddling fairies. The premise is that our author (Serena Valentino) has visited with a defeated Cruella after the events of the 101 Dalmatians to get her story back from childhood and continuing on to her present predicament. I liked this approach very much, as it kept Cruella as the focus, but also allows us to get into the dizzying and conflicted thoughts in her head. We see her childhood upbringing with two very different parents. We see her experience a tragic loss. We see her struggles with obtaining love and approval. We see the rise and fall of her friendship with Anita. We even see Cruella find love! But then of course comes the fall, and everything collapses into the scheming, obsessed villain that many love to hate.
The story had a nice flow to it, which was great. I did not have to get taken out of the story by any interruptions of the Odd Sisters popping in as active characters. ***WARNING: PLOT SPOILERS MAY FOLLOW*** There were a few things, however, which left me a bit puzzled, including what was Perdita's actual age by the time of the main events of 101 Dalmatians; why was Cruella asked to sign a prenuptial agreement when she was coming into her marriage with her own vast inheritance (and why was she not included in her husband's will despite that); why is it never fully addressed that Roger and Anita essentially stole the 84 puppies that Cruella had legally procured; and why was she named Cruella in the first place? I also agree with some other reviews that have mentioned that the Cruella that we see through most of the book does not transform into the well-known villain from the 1961 animated film very smoothly.
Overall, I really enjoyed reading this novel. If Ms. Valentino continues with this new approach, I may enjoy her future books as well.
Images in this review
Reviewed in the United States on August 4, 2023
Top reviews from other countries
Isabelle Boivin
Looooved the writing and story
Reviewed in Canada on January 24, 2024
Angel
Narradora excelente, trama buena, desenlace algo decepcionante
Reviewed in Mexico on August 16, 2020
Angel
Reviewed in Mexico on August 16, 2020
Me conmovió bastante la historia de Cruella, aunque no me gusta esta villana, fue importante más que nada para mí leerla por la continuidad de la saga. Al final no me gustó el rumbo que tomó el personaje y sus desiciones, pero todo fue por despecho y rencor.
Me encantó que fuera Cruella misma la que narra la historia así que eso le da excelentes puntos al libro.
Me encanta Serena y siempre ansío su siguiente historia, me considero fan y seguidor desde sus primeros dos libros de esta saga de Villanos.
Images in this review
Clara Monnerat
A tale of how Cruella became the evil thing we all know
Reviewed in Brazil on August 10, 2020