REVIEW #117: Rapunzel Untangled by Cindy C. Bennett

Title: Rapunzel Untangled
Author: Cindy C. Bennett
Publisher: Cedar Fort, Inc.
Release Date: February 12th 2013
Pages: Hardcover, 294 pages

Summary from Goodreads:
Rapunzel is not your average teenager.

For one thing, she has a serious illness that keeps her inside the mysterious Gothel Mansion. And for another, her hair is 15 feet long. Not to mention that she’s also the key to ultimately saving the world from certain destruction. But then she meets a boy named Fane, who changes all she has ever known, and she decides to risk everything familiar to find out who she really is.

Filled with romance, adventure, and mystery, Rapunzel Untangled is one story you won’t want to put down. Discover the true meaning of love and friendship in this modern twist to the classic fairytale.

Rapunzel Untangled peaked my interest as soon as I saw the cover and read the summary. My library did not have it, so I caved and bought it the book. The story flies by sticking by the basic fairytale, Rapunzel Untangled is modern day re-telling and takes some interesting liberties with the story.

Rapunzel is trapped up in her tower and is told by her mother that she cannot leave not only because the future depends on her but also because she has a disease that makes very highly susceptible to all germs. To keep up with her studies she is given books and a laptop. Rapunzel discovers Facebook and precedes to friend a cute boy that she notices lives in the same area. Random Facebook boy, Fane, is our prince charming character.

While the whole friend a stranger on Facebook, reminds me a bit more of Myspace, it was an interesting way to modernize the story. The two chatted whenever they could and their friendship grew into a relationship. Through their discussions, Rapunzel’s curiosity about her living situation exponentially increased and through their explorations and research she learned something was not right.

After recently reading Towering and being a bit disappointed it was a pleasant surprise to enjoy this retelling. The relationship between Rapunzel and Fane was cute, although they moved quickly the relationship still grew out of a friendship. I thought Bennett modernized the story quite well, I enjoyed her references to Google and Facebook and how she tied them into the plot.  The lies the evil mother told Rapunzel were well thought out and clever as well!

Rapunzel Untangled was a quick, mostly easy read with a cute love story and modern take on the classic story. While sometimes the story dragged on a bit, the ending seemed to be quite abrupt. The paranormal aspects could have used a bit more development but other than that it was a solid 3 star book. I would recommend if you are in the mood for a light read with a modern fairytale storyline.