Fantasy&Education

'Finding Cinderella' a fost o lectură minunată, aproape chiar şi mai magnifică decât 'Losing Hope', ceea ce o adevărată surpriză şi nu pentru că mă aşteptam la mai puţin de la scriitoare, ci pentru că lucrarea este o NUVELĂ, fiind o operă epică de scurtă întindere, doar 105 pagini, mă aşteptam la o acţiune scurtă, dar această lucrare a fost orice (îmi doream), doar nu scurtă, cel puţin aşa mă simt după emoţiile tumultuoase pe care le-am trăit în timpul acestei lecturi- am fost amuzată, tristă, fericită, amuzată din nou, fericită, tristă, iar cu bomba de la final nu mă aşteptam deloc la finalul acestei nuvele

La început, îl cunoaştem pe Daniel, cel mai bun prieten al lui Holder, care încearcă să se sustragă de la lumea minunată a cunoaşterii- mai exact, programul lui a fost incurcat şi încearcă să nu fie descoperită această greşeală- haios băiatul, nu-i aşa?

În timp ce Daniel se închide în debaraua îngrijitorului, o frumoasă prinţesă tristă- nah, doar o fată supărată pe lume- pătrunde în lumea acestui băiat,.. ahem, prinţ... şi pentru o oră, doar ei doi şi deba... ăăă.... palatul prinţului există, astfel prinţul descoperă că prinţesa tristă nu a ţinut niciodată un băiat de mână , dar respectând povestea Cenuşăresei, fata pleacă din debara, iar prinţul nu ştie cine este ea sau cum să o găsească....

Într-o zi, Daniel aflat în camera lui Sky, împreună cu Holder, o fată frumoasă şi sarcastică, reuşeşte să-i atragă atenţia, dacă coroborăm şi faptul că Holder îl ameninţă să stea departe de prietena cea mai bună a lui Sky... ei bine, ştim de ce Daniel va începe această relaţie...

Mi-a plăcut enorm relaţia de prietenie dintre Holder şi Daniel, Sky şi Six, Daniel şi Six, relaţie ce încet va progresa într-o poveste de iubire, un alt aspect pe care l-am adorat a fost relaţia dintre Daniel şi părinţii lui, o relaţie relaxată, confortabilă, precum şi faptul că între Six şi Daniel nu a existat niciun fel de relaţii intime, cel puţin nu până cănd au început să se cunoască mai bine şi chiar să existe sentimente.

Pe parcursul nuvelei, se va dezvălui cine este fata misterioasă din debaraua îngrijitorului, precum şi un mare secret ce i-ar putea ameninţa relaţia lui cu Six.... totuşi sfârşitul a fost dulce şi emoţionant, în stilul caracteristic al lui Daniel.

Naraţiunea se realizează la persoana întâi, din perspectiva lui Daniel si, pentru mine cel puţin a fost o adevărată plăcere să pătrund în mintea acestui prinţ/Casanova/băiat cu probleme.

Personaje:

Daniel- sarcastic amuzant, loial, inteligent, chipeş şi pur şi simplu irezistibil, recunosc că unele replici mi-au amintit de Adrian Ivashkov, personajul principal din seria Bloodlines si personaj secundar în Academia Vampirilor de Richelle Mead. Dar spre deosebire de Adrian, viaţa a fost mai blândă cu el, iar viciile lui sunt aproape nonexistente. Dap, fetelor, acest băiat are o problemă cu temperamentul lui, dar dacă luăm în considerare că este şi impulsiv... ei bine, pare a fi o reţetă spre dezastru, totuşi prietenia lui cu Holder îl ajută foarte mult.

Six- numele ei nu este Six- un detaliu foarte amuzant şi interesant al poveştii, dar aspect ce dovedeşte relaţia perfectă dintre ea şi Daniel- el fiind un băiat care adoră să adreseze porecle fiecărei persoane pe care o cunoaşte, porecle haioase ce par stupide în ochii altor persoane, iar ea o persoană care s-a redenumit după o greşeală a părinţilor ei ca semn de rebeliune. Six este fata ce a cedat prea repede băieţilor, fata cu reputaţie îndoielnică, lipsită de respectul celorlalţi şi chiar de propriul ei respect, dar Daniel o va învăţa o lecţie preţioasă- nimeni nu te poate iubi dacă nu te iubeşti tu însuţi.

Sky şi Holder- relaţia lor continuă, dar vor intra în umbră pentru că locul din prim-plan este deţinut de Six şi Daniel.

Verdict final- continuarea perfectă din 'Hopeless' ce aduce în atenţia cititorului cuplul favorit Sky şi Holder, dar mai ales povestea lui Daniel şi Six, o continuare la fel de emoţionată şi plină de farmec precum 'Losing Hope' şi 'Hopeless'. Sfatul meu, dacă v-a plăcut 'Fără Speranţă' citiţi ' Finding Cinderella'!

Notă: 6/5          

“You're my best friend and I love you. I'm not ashamed to admit that I love a guy. I love you, Holder. Daniel Weasley loves Dean Holder. Always and forever."

"Daniel, go make out with your girlfriend," he says, waving me off.

I shake my head. "Not until you tell me you love me, too."

His head falls back against Sky's headboard. "I fucking love you, now GO AWAY!"

I grin. "I love you more.” 

“You talk to him about the fact that we haven't had sex?" Six says, completely embarrassed.

My father shakes his head. "No, he doesn't have to. I know because every night he comes home he goes straight to his bedroom and takes a thirty-minute shower. I was eighteen once."

Six covers her face with her hands. "Oh, my God." She peeks through her hands at my dad. "I guess I know who Daniel gets his personality from."

My father nods. "Tell me about it. His mother is terribly inappropriate.” 

“Hey!" I yell. Everyone turns around and looks at us. I glance at Six and her eyes are wide. I inhale a deep breath, then turn back to the table. Specifically to Holder. "She fist bumped me,"I say, pointing at Six. "It's not my fault. She hates purses and she fist bumped me, then she made me push her on the damn merry-go-round. After that, she demanded to see where I had sex in the park, then she forced me to sneak into my own bedroom. She's weird and half the time I can't keep up with her, but she thinks I'm funny as hell. And Chunk asked me this morning if I wanted to love her someday, and I realized I've never hoped I could love someone more than I want to love her. So every single one of you who has an issue with us dating is going to have to get over it because..." I pause and turn toward Six. "Because you fist bumped me and I could care less who knows we're together. I'm not going anywhere and I don't want to go anywhere so stop thinking I'm into you because I'm not supposed to be into you." I lift my hands and tilt her face toward mine. "I'm into you because you're awesome. And because you let me accidentally touch your boob." She's smiling wider than I've ever seen her smile. "Daniel Wesley, where'd you learn those smooth moves?" I laugh. "Not moves, Six. Charisma.” 

“In reality, people are who they are and they'll never really change.” 

“I love that you don’t carry a purse,” I say.

“I love that you don’t carry one, either,” she says with a laugh.” 

“I have no idea who you even are and now you're my damn girlfriend. What the hell have you done to me?" She holds her palms up defensively. "Hey, don't blame me. I've gone eighteen years swearing off boyfriends and then you show up out of the blue with your vulgar mouth and terribly awkward first kisses and now look at me. I'm a hypocrite." "I don't even know your phone number," I say. "I don't even know your birthday," she says. "You're the worst girlfriend I've ever had.” 

“She takes a step toward me and slides her hands between my folded arms, pushing against them until they unlock. “Daniel Wesley you owe me a do-over since you made me kiss you in a crowded restaurant right next to a dirty diaper.”

“It wasn’t crowded,” I interject.

She glares at me. “Put your hands on my face and push me against this wall and slip me some tongue! Now!” 

Before she can laugh at herself, my hands are casing her face and her back is pressed against the wall of her house and my mouth is on hers.” 

“I slowly lean in toward her when her lips part into a smile.

“Are you planning on using tongue this time?” she whispers.

I squeeze my eyes shut and take a step back, completely thrown off by her comment. I rub my palms down my face and groan.

“Dammit, Six. I was already feeling inadequate. Now you’ve just put expectations on it.”

She’s smiling when I look at her again. “Oh, there are definitely expectations,” she says teasingly. “I expect this to be the most mind-blowing thing I’ve ever experienced, so you better deliver.” 

“I don't even know if people should use the working fucking and angel in the same thought structure, but shit. She really looks like a fucking angel..” 

“It feels sort of euphoric, like we're in some sort of fairytale. Like she's Tinkerbell and I'm Peter Pan. No, wait. I don't want to be Peter Pan. Maybe she can be like Cinderella and I'll be her Prince Charming. Yeah, I like that fantasy better. Cinderella's hot when she's all poor and sweaty and slaving over the stove.”  

“Daniel?”

I raise an eyebrow to match his expression. “Holder?”

“What are you up to?”

“I do not know what you are talking about,” I reply innocently.

“You do know what I am talking about because when you are lying, you do not use contractions when you speak.”

I ponder his observation for a few seconds. Is that true?

Shit. It’s true.” 

“I hate them,” she says softly.

“Who?”

“Everybody,” she says. “I hate everybody”.

I close my eyes and lift my hand, then run it down her hair, doing my best to comfort her. Finally, someone who actually gets it. I’m not sure why she hates everybody but I have a feeling she’s got a pretty valid reason.“I hate everybody too, Cinderella.” 

“She dips her spoon into her ice cream, then puts the spoon back in her mouth. I can't stop staring at that spoon. I think I love that spoon.” 

“I lean forward and grab the bowl of ice cream she didn't finish and pull it to my, then take a bite. She watches me as I close my lips around the spoon and pull it out of my mouth. She scrunches up her nose staring at the spoon. "I could have herpes, you know," she says. I grin at her and wink. "You somehow just made herpes sound appealing.” 

“I might hate you by the end of the date.”

“Or I might hate you,” I say.

“Impossible.” She props her foot up on the dash. “I’m unhateable.” 

“It blows my mind that I get to love you.” 

“I can't take you tonight," I say. "I had my heart completely broken about an hour ago by a psychotic bitch and I need a little more time to recover from that relationship. How about tomorrow night?” 

“She’s smiling wider than I’ve ever seen her smile. “Daniel Wesley, where’d you learn those smooth moves?” I laugh.

“Not moves, Six. Charisma.” 

“She chokes on her drink with her laugh. "Chunk? You call your little sister Chunk?" "We all call her Chunk. She was a fat baby." She laughs. "You have nicknames for everyone," she says. "You call Sky Cheese Tits. You call Holder Hopeless. What do you call me when I'm not around?” 

“I lean my head back and close my eyes, attempting to figure out where I went right in my life to deserve her.” 

“This is scary,” she whispers. “I’ve never had a boyfriend before. I don’t know how this works. Do people become exclusive this fast? Are we supposed to pretend we’re not that interested for a few more dates?”

Oh, dear God.

I’ve never been turned on by a girl laying claim to me before. I usually run in the other direction. She’s obliterating every single thing I thought I knew about myself with every new sentence that passes those lips.

“I have no interest in faking disinterest,” I say. “If you want to call yourself my girlfriend half as much as I wish you would, then it would save me a whole lot of begging. Because I was literally about to drop to my knees and beg you.”

She squints her eyes playfully. “No begging. It screams desperation.”

“You make me desperate,” I say, pressing my lips to hers again.” 

“Are you going to tell me how awesome that kiss was or are you going to ignore it?”

She shakes her head and laughs at me. “That wasn’t even a real kiss,” she says. “You didn’t even try to put your tongue in my mouth.”

... “I didn’t have to put my tongue in your mouth,” I say. “My kisses are that intense. I don’t even really have to do anything. The only reason I pulled back was that I was sure we were about to experience a classic, ‘When Harry met Sally’ moment.” 

“Normally when I’m attempting a risky, clandestine, secret date and I need to escape my house undetected, I ask myself, ‘What would MacGyver do?’”

Oh, my god, this chick just mentioned MacGyver? 
Hell. 
Yes.

I break my eyes away from hers long enough to hide the fact that I think I just fell for her and also to assess our escape route. I glance at the swing on the porch, then look back at Six when I’m sure the cheesy grin is gone from my face.

“I think MacGyver would take your porch swing and build an invisible force field out of grass and matches. Then he would attach a jet engine to it and fly it out of here undetected. Unfortunately I’m all out of matches.” 

“She fist bumped me, I say, pointing at Six. It's not my fault. She hates purses and she fist bumped me, then made me push her on the damn merry-go-round... I'm into you because you're awesome. And because you let me accidentally touch your boob.” 

“Oh, my god, this chick just mentioned MacGyver?

Hell.

Yes.” 

“I'm serious, Six. Those guys all need a good kick to the clit, because dinner-talk is by far the best part of you.” 

“Daniel,” she whispers.

I groan and drop my forehead to hers, touching her cheek with my hand. “You make me love my name so damn much.” 

“It feels sort of euphoric, like we’re in some sort of fairytale. Like she’s Tinkerbell and I’m Peter Pan.

No, wait. I don’t want to be Peter Pan. Maybe she can be like Cinderella and I’ll be her Prince Charming” 

“You’re very charismatic,” she says.

Jesus. Her voice completely slays me. “Thanks. You’re pretty cute yourself.”