Silent Songbird - A Review

Published - November 2016, Thomas Nelson
Author - Melanie Dickerson
Title - The Silent Songbird
Format - ebook, paper, audio
Find on Amazon

About the book (from Goodreads):
Evangeline longs to be free, to live in the world outside the castle walls. But freedom comes at a cost. Evangeline is the ward and cousin of King Richard II, and yet she dreams of a life outside of Berkhamsted Castle, where she might be free to marry for love and not politics. But the young king betroths her to his closest advisor, Lord Shiveley, a man twice as old as Evangeline. Desperate to escape a life married to a man she finds revolting, Evangeline runs away from the king and joins a small band of servants on their way back to their home village. To keep her identity a secret, Evangeline pretends to be mute. Evangeline soon regrets the charade as she gets to know Wesley, the handsome young leader of the servants, whom she later discovers is the son of a wealthy lord. But she cannot reveal her true identity for fear she will be forced to return to King Richard and her arranged marriage. Wesley le Wyse is intrigued by the beautiful new servant girl. When he learns that she lost her voice from a beating by a cruel former master, he is outraged. But his anger is soon redirected when he learns she has been lying to him. Not only is she not mute, but she isn't even a servant. Weighed down by remorse for deceiving Wesley, Evangeline fears no one will ever love her. But her future is not the only thing at stake, as she finds herself embroiled in a tangled web that threatens England's monarchy. Should she give herself up to save the only person who cares about her? If she does, who will save the king from a plot to steal his throne? 

My Thoughts:
Loosely based on the fairy tale, The Little Mermaid, Melanie Dickerson brings readers another delightful, medieval romance. One of the things that I loved about this book is that it is connected to The Merchant's Daughter. Sure, it's set in the same fictional world as the author's other fairy tale retellings, but this one is a sequel to the Merchant's Daughter. As with any of the books in this series, this one stands alone.

I loved Evangeline from the moment that she appeared in the book. I loved how she was determined to prove that she could in fact pretend to be a servant. She tried so hard. In some ways, it was rather comical. I also thought that Wesley was almost too perfect. I'd guess his biggest flaw was his anger. But even with that, the book was very enjoyable. I'm eager to see where the author takes the reader in her next fairy tale novel as well as which fairy tale will be retold. 

I received the Kindle version of this book for free from the publisher as part of the Booklook Bloggers program. I was asked to give my honest opinion about the book, which I have done. My thoughts and opinions are my own.

Recommended to fans of fairy tales, young adult, Melanie Dickerson, Jessica Day George

Rating - 4 stars