Review Detail

4.8 2

Mirrored

Young Adult Fiction 710

Who's the Fairest

October 19, 2015 (Updated: June 15, 2026)

Overall rating

4.0

Plot

4.0

Characters

4.0

Writing Style

4.0

Illustrations/Photos (if applicable)

N/A

In the 1980s, Celine struggles with her looks and her distant mother. She longs for the love of Greg, but he is interested only in Jennifer. Even when she discovers that she has magical powers and is tutored in using them by the enigmatic Kendra, Greg is not interested, and she remains a social pariah despite her beauty. Fast forward to the present day, and Greg and Jennifer's daughter, Violet, has struggles of her own. After her mother is killed in a freak zoo accident, her father marries Celine. At first, things are fine, and Celine is nice to her. When Violet becomes a teen and starts to become more beautiful, Celine views her as a threat. Kendra befriends Violet, who also has magical powers, and lets her in on Celine's troubled past. Befriended by Jonah, a person of short stature, and his family, Violet tries to hide out at their home and avoid Celine. What will happen when the two witches collide?

Good Points

Flinn is the master of the modernized fairy tale, and this is a version of Snow White that will appeal to teen readers who like tales of mean girls, witches and magic. The time spent in the 1980s is fun, and the teen movies of John Hughes are discussed; oddly, these are still popular with young people today. Fans of Beastly and Bewitching will find the continued story of Kendra appealing.

Since Celine's story brings in so many vivid facets of the 1980s, I had to wonder if the names of the characters were a homage to the popular but doomed All My Children couple, Greg and Jenny!