Strands of Bronze and Gold (Strands of Bronze and Gold #1)

Strands of Bronze and Gold begins quite slowly, taking almost the entire first half of the book to create the creepy and dangerous atmosphere that surrounds the story of Bluebeard. While part of it can be attributed to the fact that Bernard doesn’t allow Sophia to venture out of the Abbey, nothing of import seems to happen until the quarter of the book. Before that point, we get to read descriptions of Sophia’s clothing, the exquisite foods that her godfather eats, and the Abbey itself over and over. This repetition and lack of action caused me to start skimming through the pages of description, pausing only to read the salient points. It wasn’t until the last ~50 pages that the action began to pick up, capturing my complete attention. The ending is tense, creepy and full of suspense, though a bit too short for my liking – if the rest of the book had the same pacing, it would have made for a more enjoyable read overall.

Bernard is easily the most intriguing aspect of this book, as he is such a dynamic character. There are hints about his true nature from the beginning of the book, though at first they’re overshadowed by the more positive aspects of his character: his good looks, his generosity, and his charming personality. There is a slow buildup to the revelation of his true character, which is kind of disturbing to behold, though readers with prior knowledge of the fairy tale will not be surprised by it.

I have mixed feelings about the protagonist, Sophia. Her naive, unassuming nature was to be expected, as she said herself that she had been fairly sheltered from the world since her father’s death. Her willingness to sacrifice her happiness to ensure that her family is provided for is admirable, though the inquisitive nature that I expected her to possess – after all, the Bluebeard story is a cautionary tale about the dangers of curiosity – is somewhat lacking.

While I like the Southern Gothic setting, there is a subplot involving the slavery and Underground Railroad that I was not particularly fond of. It’s never fully explored and seems merely to be a plot device to highlight how kind Sophia is for wanting to help the slaves.

Overall, despite all of its potential, Strands of Bronze and Gold was merely an “okay” read. If I hadn’t been familiar with the original fairy tale – which provided me with expectations of a creepy, dark, and horror-filled story – I probably would have enjoyed it a lot more.

Never having read the original story of Bluebeard, this is the second retelling that I have put my hands and eyes upon. I liked Sophie's snarky, yet sweet personality. Her curious nature endeared her to me, because she refused to just blindly accept whatever Bernard told her and what everyone else wanted her to do. The gradual descent into total isolation, dependence and abusive behavior is chilling in just how believable it is written. The depiction of the slaves and the treatment of them is unfortunate, but more than likely true in most cases of 19th century slavery. Sophie's attitudes were great, but I echo similar sentiments to other readers that sometimes the slaves just seemed like plot devices and extra bodies for Sophie to meet/converse with. Her relationship with the Reverend was intriguing and the developing of feelings for him was sweet and very old fashioned - in other words, tonally perfect for the novel. The climax of the novel chilled my blood and was definitely gruesome enough to fit what little I know of the original tale. One of my few complaints is the clinical nature the last few pages of the book took on, kind of 'where are they now' type of thing to try and tie up loose ends. Overall, an interesting retelling and definitely one of the better offerings of recent YA fairy tale re-tellings.

An isolated and fantastical abbey, with rooms painted like underwater castles or adorned with paintings fit for any museum, sets the stage for Nickerson’s Strands of Bronze and Gold. An endearingly naive heroine and an insidiously twisted antagonist added a level of suspense, while the ghosts of Cressac’s ex-wives added a certain creepiness that kept me turning the pages late into the night!

I absolutely adored Sophie. She tried her hardest to be a proper lady, but her eccentric godfather would have none of it! Being “genteel, but only in a theoretical way” she theoretically knew how to live as a lady of wealth, but in practice hadn’t been able to afford it – and now that she could afford it, her godfather wished for her to enjoy life and carpe diem. At first, his oddness was something that Sophie entertained so as to appease him, to show him that she was grateful for his generosity.

"I leaned in to him a little stiffly since he was still practically a stranger, and I bravely kissed his cheek. It was not terrible, being the extraordinarily attractive cheek it was, after all."

As time passed, Sophie began to question her godfathers’ eccentricities.

"I allowed my godfather to stroke my hand or bring it up to his lips or his cheek, labeling his caresses his “Frenchities.” Besides being smitten by him, I genuinely liked him, although sometimes there was a look in his eye that made me uneasy. He could be…dangerous. now, why did that adjective leap to mind? Perhaps because it fit. M. Bernard resembled a tiger – sleep, velvety, smiling, dangerous. And very attractive."

But due to her innocence, I had the hardest time deciphering if his “dangerous” ways were a real threat or merely Sophie and her overactive imagination. It made Strands of Bronze and Gold a fantastically suspenseful read as I worked to unveil Cressac’s infatuations with redheads and true intentions with Sophie. It also made me really enjoy Sophie’s character growth: her childlike innocence was slowly stripped away as she realized the entire household was holding its breath, waiting for Cressac’s next blowup, and that Sophie, and Sophie alone, had the power to cool his temper and restore peace. As her eyes were opened to Cressac’s true nature, and her own curiosities were peaked concerning the details of his four former wives’ deaths, Cressac’s gentile manner was soon shown to be a mere farce, hiding a much more hostile temperament.

"His voice blasted me. Would he actually strike me? I had been waiting for it, fearing it, I realized now, for a long while."

And Cressac! What a brilliant antagonist; he’s an absolute master at manipulating those around him and at hiding his devious thoughts under the pretence of playful banter.

“I worried you might be huddled in your bed terrified. I tried to come reassure you.”
“Did you?”
“I did, but your door was locked. Do you lock it every night?”
“I do.”
“Do you think someone is plotting against your virtue?” A gleam of amusement twinkled in his honey brown eyes.
“No sir, I simply feel more secure with the big dark house shut out.”
“You know I have all the keys, don’t you? I could enter at any time I wanted.”

*Shivers* He knew exactly how to let Sophie know that he had all of the power, while maintaining his smiling and caring facade. It made it that much harder for Sophie to believe that he might not be as sweet and charming as he pretended. My only minor issue with Strands of Bronze and Gold was that despite my love for the two main characters, I didn’t really connect with either of them. I was completely invested in their fates, but only to appease my own curiosity – not because I truly cared about what happened to either of them. Mostly though, it didn’t matter. Thanks to Nickerson’s spot-on pacing, I was completely caught up in uncovering the secrets behind Strands of Bronze and Gold’s plot, and became as obsessed as Sophie in uncovering the truth behind Cressac’s devious scheming and sinister past.

For fans of historical romances with a thrilling twist, Strands of Bronze and Gold was an absolute pleasure to read. With simply lovely prose, an enchanting heroine and a sly antagonist I had a hard time putting it down!

I think this book would be good as a light/quick read. I didn't really feel attached to it, but it was an interesting take on a classic tale.

Background: Seventeen year old Sophia is used to being spoiled by her mysterious godfather, Monsieur Bernard de Cressac. However when her father passes away she is given an offer she cannot refuse, to live with her godfather in his very lavish estate in Mississippi. He is a very mysterious and dark man and Sophia soon learns that her godfather may have more secrets than she bargained for. Nickerson creates a beautiful and exciting retelling of the famous tale of 'Bluebeard'.

Review: I received this book in various formats, which was great. I could experience it in a variety of media formats. I started with an e-book, then received ARCs and an audiobook. I dabbled in all of them. I also have a giveaway on the blog for one of my ARCs.

I really enjoyed this story and had to put it down only to try to slow down my reading, I didn't want to miss anything or take any detail for granted.

The plot is full of suspense, intermingled with spine chilling realizations and blood curdling non-gentlemanly actions. I found that Jane Nickerson's writing was a delight. It was beautifully composed and the historical elements only added to the ambiance of the plot.

Sophia, our heroine, is a bit naive and stubborn, but soon realizes her folly and tries to assert herself within the household of M. de Cressac. Sadly, she finds out very horrible things about her, now, captor.

The whole time there is a feeling of disgust with everything M. de Cressac does and it is NOT wrong to feel that way. I was not disappointed with his horrific character or the part he played, only that he did send shivers up my spine on many occasions.

This may be a slow moving book for some, most of the suspense is in emotions and psychological rather than running, chasing, and such. I did not feel this way but was a little taken aback by the time it took to get to the plots apex, and when it finally did, I felt the book was immediately over...

Overall I felt this was a beautiful retelling of a horrifying fairy tale.

Before reading this I had not heard of the Bluebeard fairy tale. I looked it up first just to see what I was getting myself into and holy moley, I was shocked. When I found out all the betrayal and deceit and mystery behind it, I KNEW I had to read it. And let me tell you, I definitely enjoyed it.
Sophie leaves her other family members behind when her father dies to go and live with her godfather Monsieur Bernard de Cressac to help keep their costs down. When she arrives things are very much different from her old home. But there is a mysterious air about Wyndriven Abbey and as it unfolds, things start to get more and more weird. Then out of nowhere, the mystery finally unfolds and Sophie is left in a compromising position.
For the story to be a retelling, it did not feel like it. For me not having read it before, it really felt like I was reading the original story. The story flowed so smoothly it didn't feel like a retelling. I was also very impressed with the writing of Nickerson. It gave off so much back story without it feeling like an info dump. This was so amazing because the book the background of the slaves, Sophie, and towards the end De Cressac. The only thing I'd like to know is how the sequel will come into play. The ending of this one pretty much sums up the whole story...
Sophie, the main character, grows so much throughout the novel. When she first gets there she seemed a little naiieve and scared to me. She believed anything de Cressac said. As De Cressac's true identity comes to light, Sophie grows by trying her hardest to stay safe. Her character grows stronger as the novel goes on.
Overall this was a wonderful retelling with a great main character and even more amazing writing. This novel is sure to keep and hold your interest and leave you wanting more.

This book has everything that I want in a book. It has deep characters, a great writing style, a beautiful setting, and a page-turning plot. I really love the heroine and I highly recommend it!

This is the kind of book I love--you become lost in the plot, thoroughly enjoy yourself all the way to the finish, and then realize you've learned some interesting historical tidbits along the way. This is an intelligent but easy read with beautiful, descriptive details.

Great read!