While Beauty Slept - by Elizabeth Blackwell (Paperback)

About the Book

When Elise Dalriss hears her great-granddaughter recount a minstrel's tale about a beautiful princess asleep in a tower, it pushes open a door to the past, a door Elise has long kept locked. For Elise was the companion to the real princess who slumbered-- and she is the only one left who knows what actually happened so many years ago. Her story unveils a labyrinth where secrets connect to an inconceivable evil. As only Elise understands all too well, the truth is no fairy tale.

Book Synopsis

"Elizabeth Blackwell is a story-telling genius. Her mesmerizing writing weaves a spell that will enchant you. While Beauty Slept breathes new life into the fairytale genre with a historical twist that will take your breath away." --Meg Cabot, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Princess Diaries and Heather Wells mystery series

I am not the sort of person about whom stories are told. Those of humble birth suffer their heartbreaks and celebrate their triumphs unnoticed by the bards, leaving no trace in the fables of their time...

And so begins Elise Dalriss's story. When she hears her great-granddaughter recount a minstrel's tale about a beautiful princess asleep in a tower, it pushes open a door to the past, a door Elise has long kept locked. For Elise was the companion to the real princess who slumbered--and she is the only one left who knows what actually happened so many years ago.

As the memories start to unfold, Elise is plunged back into the magnificent world behind the palace walls she left behind more than a half century ago, a labyrinth where the secrets of her real father and the mysterious fate of her mother connect to an inconceivable evil. Elise has guarded these secrets for a lifetime. As only Elise understands all too well, the truth is no fairy tale.

Review Quotes

"Following in the inspired footsteps of Gregory Maguire's fairy-tale twists, this debut novel puts a spellbinding new spin on a classic yarn." --Booklist

"Unexpected and heartrending . . . A gripping tale full of romance, secrets, and promises made and broken. This beautiful, original reinterpretation of a classic story is engrossing and often surprising." --Library Journal, starred review

"Blackwell is a storytelling genius." --Meg Cabot, #1 New York Times bestselling author

"Elizabeth Blackwell's writing is magical in this complex, dark, and sensual retelling of 'Sleeping Beauty.' Imaginative, evocative, full of surprises, this is a captivating debut." --M.J. Rose, international bestselling author of Seduction

" While Beauty Slept is like no version of the Sleeping Beauty story that you've read before." --Alma Katsu, author of The Taker trilogy

About the Author

Elizabeth Blackwell is a freelance writer. Her work has appeared in the Wall Street Journal, Ladies' Home Journal, Parenting, and the Chicago Tribune, among other publications.