Met by Midnight

De: Janeen Ippolito

Narrado por: Kate Prendergast

An outcast prince. A captive healer. A single night that changes their destinies.

She lives a nightmare.

As a Mender, Renna is held captive to an endless cycle of receiving and recovering from the physical ailments of others - a cycle that led her mother to an early grave. When her father becomes deathly ill, Renna is desperate to save her only remaining family. Even if it means allying with criminals and taking an illegal mission into the royal palace on the night of their greatest ball.

He’s haunted by dreams.

Unable to be Mended, Prince Jaric’s existence is a curse to his family’s façade of health and security. Marrying him off at the ball and sending him to a distant dukedom is the royal solution - but Jaric has his own plans. For years he’s dreamed of a young woman, a strong-hearted Mender he would give everything for. When she arrives the night of his betrothal, he’s determined to discover her true identity.

Met by midnight, their fates are entwined.

While escape seems the only answer, powerful forces conspire to keep Renna and Jaric within their cages. Forces that undermine the foundations of the kingdom itself - and threaten any hope of a future together.

This YA romance features Cinderella in an original fantasy world with a dystopian twist.

©2020 Janeen Ippolito (P)2021 Janeen Ippolito

Excellent, engaging story!

This delightful and riveting story is my favorite by the author! I couldn't stop listening to find out what happens next! The prose is rich without being overdone and matches the tone beautifully. The narration is also masterful. I highly recommend this book!

A unique and exciting Cinderella retelling!

FTC Disclosure: I was given a free audiobook copy of this book in exchange for a review. A positive review was not required. The following is my honest opinion.


I'm signed up for the email list for Uncommon Universes Press and when they sent out a newsletter featuring an offer for a free review copy of the audiobook for this story, I quickly replied with my request. After all, I love fairytale retellings, the synopsis grabbed me immediately, and while I hadn't yet read anything by Janeen Ippolito, she's long been on my list of authors to check out.


I enjoyed this a lot! Met by Midnight is a Cinderella retelling. I've read a fair number of those by now, and am always curious to find out how close (or not) each new one sticks to the originals. Met at Midnight had a pleasant balance where the major, recognizable elements of Cinderella are present, but the world in which they're set is unique enough that it all feels fresh, especially when some of the recognizable elements were given a twist in order to fit the world better.


For example, I found it refreshing that the stepmother and stepsisters were absent from this retelling, but we still find Cinderella (Renna) in a situation where she's in servitude from which she can't easily escape. In this case, Renna is a "Mender" which means she's of a race of people that can take on the wounds and illnesses of others and heal from them so the other person doesn't have to. (As a side note, this ability reminded me strongly of the Star Trek Original Series episode, "The Empath.") While Menders are paid for this work, they don't have much choice about doing it, having been dehumanized by the ruling class to the point that the physical toll that this ability takes on them is ignored, and many Menders die an early death due to healing too much, too frequently.


I also found it refreshing that the "fairy godmother" character didn't have magical powers (except the magic of money and influence, LOL) and that, instead of popping out of nowhere at Renna's greatest need, her first encounter with Renna was a completely natural meeting in which the woman learned that Menders do actually feel it when receiving the pain and illness of others, and therefore felt convicted enough to do something to help Renna and her father, and to help change the way Menders are treated overall.


Another twist that I thought was well done was the way that Renna and the prince actually knew each other before meeting, since they met in dreams many times before the ball. I've seen this done with Sleeping Beauty retellings, but I thought it worked well for Cinderella, too, since it also has the insta-love problem. And the whole thing has a great in-world explanation that ended up being quite a plot twist!


And wow, I really loved that climax! It had me worried about several characters for a minute, but it was exciting and tied things together so well!


I highly recommend this story to lovers of fairytale retellings, but it's different enough from the original, that I think even people who don't care about the retelling element would be able to enjoy it, too!

Interesting

This book was a retelling of Cinderella in a fantasy dystopian world. I enjoyed the magic and the true love, even though sometimes the thoughts and comments voiced by the characters bordered on inappropriate. Their actions never crossed the line, and the happy ending was wonderful!

A powerful tale of defiance and love.

Met by Midnight is the Cinderella retelling you didn't know you needed in your life.

Janeen Ippolito weaves a poetic story using powerful prose to make you feel every possible emotion. When I say this book has all the feels I mean all of them. You will feel joy, sorrow, depression, righteous furry, and even shock as the ever twisting plot seeks to throw you off balance at every turn.

This emotional ride is aided by the soothing voice of Kate Pendergast. She reads with emotion and passion. She reads the lyrical prose as if the whole story is one epic poem, which I suppose, it is.

If you are looking for a well written fantasy with deep themes and engaging characters this book will check all the boxes.

Made me happy

People review this as a Cinderella retelling, but I thought it had so much more soul! I enjoyed the conflict and the setting. Well written and a very enjoyable listen. I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.

Interesting twist on Cinderella

The absolute insta love was hard to believe. The story line was great, but I found it hard to accept how deeply they fell without more set up for the soul/mind bonding.

Wonderful world building and the twist at the end with his sister was well done. I would have enjoyed the story being a bit more in-depth to flesh out the world and the relationships.

If you are looking for a quick read with insta love, you’ll enjoy this one.