You know how sometimes I distinguish between a historical romance, where characters act in period-appropriate ways, and a costume romance, where modern characters are dressed in historical costumes and situations? I thought about that a lot while I was reading this book. Some of the girls are living in a historical story, where they are the product of their society and their times. Some of them are us, with our modern attitudes toward men and what we can do. And one of them is Jo, who is beautif...

In what is a retelling of the fairy-tale "The Twelve Dancing Princesses" we join Jo Hamilton and her eleven sisters. Throughout there lives they have lived in a wealthy but isolated household with Jo, only having seen her mother on a handful of occasions and some of her sisters never. The girls are ruled with an iron fist by there father and things will go from bad to worse after the death of there mother when they learn that they are to be married of to the most acceptable suitors.Known as "The...

In this fairy tale retelling, author Genevieve Valentine takes the classic story of the Twelve Dancing Princesses and transplants it to Jazz Age Manhattan, with a result that is equal parts captivating and frustrating.The Twelve Dancing Princesses was always one of my favorite fairy tales. In a nutshell: A king with twelve daughters locks the princesses into their chamber each night, but each morning finds that their shoes are worn completely through. He offers the pick of the princesses to any

Well! I've done very little the past few hours except read this book. I did feel disconnected from it at times, but, overall, I liked it a lot. The narration is a bit dreamy, fairy tale-like, at times and that appealed to me a lot.And I was able to keep track of all 12 sisters, which I thought was pretty impressive. (Of the book AND of me.)(I read a review that called this a YA, which surprised me. Having read it, I still don't think it's a YA.)

This review can also be found at Carole's Random Life in Books.I did like this book. I have had a review copy of this book for a very long time and I have to admit that I didn't remember a whole lot about what the book was about when I got started with it. I now realize that this book is a retelling of the Twelve Dancing Princesses. I have a small confession to make...I don't know a lot of fairytales well. I pretty much know what Disney has covered. I was discussing this book with my teenage dau...

One of my all time favorite fairy tales is The Twelve Dancing Princesses, and this is set in the 20s, so I could not resist it! It's not magical, but that doesn't make it less enjoyable. Instead this is a story about sisterhood and women who are subjected to a father who does not know the meaning of love, much less doing the right thing by his family.Josephine, who goes by Jo, and who is called General by her eleven younger sisters, has taken on the care of them. They are afraid and at times dis...

This is historical fiction and a fairy tale retelling. Combine the prohibition era with 'The Twelve Dancing Princesses' and you get 'The Girls at the Kingfisher Club.' The roaring twenties is a perfect setting for this Grimm fairy tale. The reality of restriction and prohibition in the society of day leading to an overwhelming majority of citizens rebelling by drinking at the speakeasy's at night. Politicians and policemen frequented the speakeasy's while their political platforms railed against...

Sparkling, boozy, and surprisingly subversive: in The Girls at the Kingfisher Club, Genevieve Valentine retells The Twelve Dancing Princesses with feminist, 1920s flapper flair. From the cramped attics of their cruel father’s townhouse to the smoky basement speakeasies, this book follows Jo “The General” and her sisters as they take their lives into their own hands through dance. Written in unique (and highly parenthetical) prose and with excellent attention to historical period, Valentine’s nov...

Valentine creates a pleasing tale similar to The Twelve Princesses by The Brothers Grimm. I admit I was taken with this story from the beginning. I furiously turned every page with my curiosity and attention fully piqued. Needless to say I devoured this book in a matter of hours. Besides capturing my attention I completely adored the main protagonist Jo. Her protective nature, the way she diligently guards and cares for her sisters. She is ingenious, clever and ever self-sacrificing as she attem...

Retelling something as familiar as a fairy tale can be a risky proposition. In some cases, magic can come out of the details as an author elaborates on a classic. For instance, I happen to love Robin McKinley’s book Beauty, a take on the old tale “Beauty and the Beast.” On the other hand, when she re-told the story again twenty years later in Rose Daughter, I didn’t care for it at all. So I brought few expectations to my reading of The Girls at the Kingfisher Club, a retelling of the fairy tale

Although I didn't love this one as much as I had hoped that I would, The Girls at the Kingfisher Club was an immensely entertaining read. What did it for me with this book was the setting. Every time I picked up my Nook to do some reading on my lunch hour, I was completely immersed in 1920s Manhattan. I won't lie, it took me a little while to get used to Genevieve Valentine's writing style, but once I got into it, I came to realize that it was perfect for this book. It was a little odd, but the

So, so, so, so good. Read entirely in one day. I could not put it down (except for the Germany vs. Argentina game) and didn't realize I had settled in for the night to finish it until I got to the last page. Oh, that awful father. And oh, poor Jo's heart wrenching decision. I liked the guys on the side as much as the girls and loved the glitz and glamour with an undercurrent of fear.

The rating for this book may suffer a bit from comparison. I first came across this book while browsing Valentine's page after being mesmerizing by Mechanique: A Tale of the Circus Tresaulti. Of the books on the page, this jumped out at me because I have something of a fascinating with flappers and the 20s, and also with fairy tale retellings. But this book just didn't quite have the same magic as the first, for me - thus the comparison thing.It is told in a similar style, which I think really w...

I like Genevieve Valentine's writing. I have enjoyed everything I have been able to read by her.I am not at all familure with the fairy tale of the Twelve Dancing Princesses as told by the Brothers Grimm, so I am not sure if it helped or hindered my reading of a retelling of the tale.After finishing the book I looked here on GR to read some of the reviews of the book to see what others thought of the tale. To my surprise I could not find many reviews by other guys, which kind of worried me, as I...

The Girls at the Kingfisher Club, by Genevieve Valentine, is an excellent retelling/updating of a classic fairy tale into a more modern setting. Rather than a pseudo-medieval castle filled with princesses and their suitors, Valentine gives us twelve sisters living in New York City during the Roaring Twenties who have been shut away from the world by their father. Their only entertainment, and their only contact with the outside world, come from their clandestine nightly excursions to speakeasi

I absolutely adored Mechanique: A Tale of the Circus Tresaulti and thought at the time that Valentine was a beautiful writer with heartbreaking characters. This book confirms it. It also shows that Mechanique's Elena is Valentine’s favorite type of heroine. Because Jo Hamilton, eldest of the twelve dancing sisters, is another version of Elena. Both girls are strict and stiff and unyielding - they do the right thing when it’s the hard thing and they contain their composure and their stiff upper l...

This book. There are no words.This book ripped me to shreds. I heard that it was good, and when I knew what it was about, I had to read it. A novelization of 'The Twelve Dancing Princess' set in the Roaring Twenties? Yes, please!I started and could. not. stop. I think I stayed up until about three in the morning reading until I couldn't keep my eyes open, which hasn't actually happened in a long time.I just. Wow. The writing was beautiful, and both the characters and the plot were so well-formed...

I enjoyed this book, but it just didn't draw me in as much as I was hoping for. The characters were interesting, but it's almost as if the tough exteriors they'd developed to keep them from being hurt and heartbroken as they went out dancing also kept the reader distant. I expected to experience all of their frustration, excitement, joy, sadness, and fear, but that strong connection never fully happened. The reader sees most of the story from Jo's perspective, and several times I wished I could

**Thank you Atria Books and Netgalley for providing this in exchange for an honest review**DNF @ 45%I should have loved this book. It has two of my reading favorites going for it: Fairy Tale retelling and the 1920s setting. Everything about it fell flat. I really wanted to finish this, since it was provided free of charge, but after making it only 45% in 4 days I think it's time to admit defeat. I seem to be the only person who didn't care for this title. Maybe it's a case of the author's writin...

Thanks to Genevieve Valentine, I know what I’m getting my oldest sister for Christmas.The Twelve Dancing Sisters is a hard fairy tale to retell. Creating twelve unique characters is tough, and having them all appear on stage at the same time even harder. Yet I immediately felt engaged in the narrative, and I think that’s because Valentine mainly focuses on one character—the oldest sister Jo—and her deep but also undemonstrated love for all eleven of her sisters. Jo is the General to her sisters,...