The story of Rapunzel from a new perspective, taking the classic tale and adjusting in them new elements of the story, makes what we know take another sense.

In this historical fiction we follow three points of view, where we are told over the years how it developed in some ways what we know of Rapunzel with one of our narrators locked in the tower, how the witch got to that point and the last one of an author who fights for her voice to be heard.

The joining of three voices in this story, each one in a different time and personality, has made it complex to follow and slow at times, although I enjoyed it I feel that I had more expectations than I thought at the beginning and that has made it a little triggering that not being able to hook me has been so disappointing, but this is from my point of view.

I give it points for the research and how it made everything connect in a congruent way, and that fairy tale touch that the narrative has even though it is historical fiction.

It was a good read, for those who are readers of historical fiction and are fans of Rapunzel, this may be the book for you.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with this ARC.

Charlotte has spent most of her adult life at the court of Louis XIV but, after falling out of favour, she has been exiled to an austere convent. There she learns to love different things. One story she weaves is that of Margarita, a girl from Venice who has been placed in a high tower by a witch. The witch herself also has her own tale to tell.
This is a retelling of the story of Rapunzel which brings together the original elements of the tale with the life of the first recounter. It's certainly magical at times but a little overlong.

Kate Forsyth’s Bitter Greens is a beautifully layered, historically rich reimagining of Rapunzel, blending history, fairy tale, and dark magic. The novel follows three women—Charlotte-Rose de la Force, the real-life writer of the tale; Margherita, the young girl locked in the tower; and Selena Leonelli, the sorceress with her own tragic past.

The strongest aspect of Bitter Greens is its gorgeous prose and immersive historical detail. Forsyth’s depiction of 17th-century France and Renaissance Italy is vivid and thoroughly researched, making it easy to get lost in the world she builds. The novel explores themes of female agency, survival, and power, giving depth to the fairy tale origins. Margherita’s storyline—effectively the Rapunzel retelling—was my favorite, beautifully blending fairy tale elements with historical realism.

However, the novel isn’t without its challenges. The pacing is uneven, with some parts dragging, especially in Charlotte-Rose’s sections. While all three narratives are compelling, they don’t always flow seamlessly, making the book feel longer than necessary. And fair warning—this book is dark. There are heavy themes of abuse, captivity, and sexual violence that may be unsettling for some readers. If you’re expecting a lighter fairy tale retelling, this isn’t it.

Overall, Bitter Greens is an impressive and unique take on Rapunzel, but it may not be for everyone. Fans of historical fiction with a touch of fantasy will likely enjoy it, while those looking for a more fast-paced or hopeful retelling might struggle. If you love richly detailed settings and deeply woven stories about women reclaiming their power, this is worth the read—just be prepared for a long, sometimes dark, journey.

For centuries, fairy tales have entertained and taught lessons to those young and young at heart. One of the most memorable stories was the tale of Rapunzel, the maiden a witch kidnapped because her parents stole a Rapunzel plant from her while Rapunzel’s mother was pregnant. For years, Rapunzel languished in a Tower, her hair growing exponentially until a rogue/ prince climbs her hair and rescues the damsel in distress. The witch dies and Rapunzel and her hero live happily ever after. At least, that is how the story has been passed down to us throughout the centuries, but where did the story come from and how are the stories of three women from different generations and countries connected? Kate Forsyth weaves together the stories of three women and their fates into one delightful novel called, “Bitter Greens.”

I want to thank Allison & Busby and Net Galley for sending me a copy of this novel. When I am not reading historical fiction or nonfiction, I do enjoy reading fairy tales retold, so when I heard about this novel and how it would explore the origins of the story of Rapunzel, it was intriguing to me.

Forsyth breaks down her novel into three separate narratives based on the lives of three women. We begin with Charlotte-Rose de la Force, a woman who weaves stories on a whim at the court of the Sun King Louis XIV. Charlotte is the person who gave the Rapunzel story some of the main characteristics that we are familiar with from the Italian origin story by Giambattista Basile. Her life choices have caused the king to send Charlotte to exile in a convent. It is in the convent that Charlotte meets Soeur Seraphina and she learns the story of Margherita and Selena Leonelli.

Margherita is the daughter of a mask maker and his wife. When she turns 7, a sorceress named La Strega Bella tells her parents that it is time to pay for their crime of stealing bitter greens. La Strega Bella wants to raise Margherita as her child, so she kidnaps Margherita, changes her name to Petrosinella, and places her in a convent. When Margherita turns 12, she is taken from the convent, placed in a tower, and given her characteristically long hair.

The question is why did La Strega Bella take Margherita from her parents just to put her in a tower with such long hair? It is through Selena Leonelli’s story that we can discover the truth about La Strega Bella. A woman who had to survive in the dark days of the plague in the early 16th century when her family died, she learned how to use spells and the power of plants from a woman named Sibillia. Life was not always fair for Selena, but then she met a man named Tiziano, who we know as Titian, and she inspired his art. Selena is afraid of growing old and wants to stay young forever, so she comes up with a dark and twisted plan.

This novel is dark and full of tragedies, love, and adventures. While I did enjoy reading it, there were a few historical inaccuracies, such as the plague doctor uniform was not introduced until the 17th century, not the 16th century. If you want a dark version of a fairy tale retold with a historical twist, I think you will enjoy “Bitter Greens” by Kate Forsyth.

I really like retellings of Rapunzel and I absolutely love books set at the French court so this was the best of both worlds. Charlotte-Rose's story was really interesting and gives so much history as to the time period. I loved how the stories blended into each other with her's being the backbone.

Selena, or the witch, had a really interesting story as well. I loved seeing how she came to be who she was. Her story was equal parts tragic and horrible.

Margherita's story was wonderfully done with the darker elements expected of traditional fairytales. Her's was definitely my favourite.

This book is just so beautifully written. The descriptions of everything-clothing, characters, settings-paint such a clear picture. I'm absolutely in love with this book!

In a Nutshell: A three-in-one historical fiction: a Rapunzel retelling, a real-life author’s fictionalised biography, and a witch’s origin story. The scope is thus wide and impressive, but also lengthy and complex. I liked the three stories (to varying degrees) but am not too happy with how they were structured and with the gratuitous adult content. Recommended to historical fiction readers, as long as you are okay with reading dark, R-rated sexual content and violence. (Take this last warning seriously; it gets very disturbing.)

Plot Preview:
1697. Versailles, France. Charlotte-Rose de la Force – always a great teller of stories, now banished by Louis XIV to the convent for going a step too far. She is not prepared for spartan novice life after all the years of palatial luxury, all the more as she isn't even Catholic but one of the persecuted Huguenots. When a fellow nun starts telling her a story to while away time when gardening, Charlotte-Rose finds herself enamoured.
The tale narrated by Sœur Seraphina to Charlotte is of a young Italian girl named Margherita, who was forced away from her parents for a handful of bitter greens and locked up in a tower by La Strega aka Selena Leonelli, who has her own reasons for doing so.
The content is presented as a story-within-a-story format, with Charlotte-Rose telling us her life story in first person, Seraphina narrating Margherita’s story to Charlotte-Rose in third person, and within this narrated story, Selena Leonelli telling her backstory to Margherita in first person. Understood? 👀

This book was first published in 2012, and has been reprinted several times since. The edition I read was published on 20th March 2025.
In all honesty, I grabbed this mainly because the blurb called it a dark retelling of Rapunzel. I haven’t ever read a retelling of this fairy tale and grabbed the chance. The novel does contain Rapunzel’s story but it is so much more than that!

Bookish Yays:
🍷 The little foreword on who actually wrote Rapunzel. I had assumed that it was a German fairy tale because of the Grimm Brothers. Nope!
🍷 The book is divided into multiple sections, each named after a part/type of musical composition. (I couldn’t figure out the reason for this but it was interesting to realise!) Each section begins with an excerpt from a version of Rapunzel by different writers.
🍷 Margherita’s story – The retelling of Rapunzel, though not exactly the same as the Madame de la Force version. Loved how well this retelling combines the fairy tale aspects with the historical setting and also liked the backstory of the long hair. My favourite of the three narratives. I wish it had had greater page space, especially as the book is promoted as a retelling.
🍷 Selena’s story – The shortest of the three tales, and possibly, the toughest to evaluate as it is tragic as well as devious. It’s difficult to decide what to call Selena – a villain or a victim. Either way, it was a powerful narrative.
🍷 The real-life inclusions – amazing! I’m impressed that two of the stories contains true-life content to some extent or the other, even though only one was based on an actual woman.
🍷 The historical content, spanning almost two hundred years and covering buildings, outfits, thought processes, social mores, and actual events. The research clearly shows! I especially loved Charlotte-Rose’s timeline in this regard for its detailed depiction of the Sun King’s autocratic declarations and his philandering behaviour, the general attitude of his courtiers, the persecution of the Huguenots, and the infamous “Affair of the Poisons”.
🍷 Just because Charlotte-Rose is the main heroine doesn’t mean that she is depicted as the victim of her situation. I loved her outspoken character and the honest depiction of her strengths and flaws. From whatever little I could find about her online, it looks like the book is quite precise about her scandalous behaviour.
🍷 The vocabulary! I love it when authors know how to use different words without making them appear like random substitutions from the thesaurus.
🍷 The ending, that links all narratives and also includes a real-life Easter egg. While I had already guessed a part of the reveal, I still liked how things were brought to a smooth close, with happy endings for the fairy tales and a realistic finish to the real-life story.
🍷 The Afterword, which lets us know Charlotte-Rose’s fate after the events of this story. I was quite grateful for this considerate and fascinating inclusion.

Bookish Mixed Bags:
🩸 The idea of a triple nested narrative sounds great but it gets tricky as well. The story moves across multiple timelines for the same character, but not at regular intervals. Thus we might get a long section from Charlotte-Rose’s timeline, then a lengthy section from Margherita’s story, then back to Charlotte-Rose for a extended spell, jumping again to Margherita but maybe at another point in time… By the time we return to a character, we might even forget what happened the last time we met that character. A huge test of the memory, this! (If you plan to get to this on audiobook, you better be an avid audio listener. Not for audio newbies.)
🩸 Further to the above, because the three stories are so distinct to each other in tone and setting and era, it feels like we are reading three historical fiction novels at once. Each story is fabulous, but too independent in style to feel like part of the same novel.
🩸 Charlotte-Rose’s story – Gets the most page space as it is the dominant narrative inside which the other two rest. But in impact, it isn’t as strong as the other two ladies’ stories, though it has the most historical details. At times, it feels crammed with too much data.
🩸 The filter-free depiction of the historical periods. The treatment of women in all three timelines is especially frustrating to accept from this 21st century perspective. Moreover, the attitude of the royalty towards women in general, towards the Protestant Huguenots, and towards animals during hunts, are barbaric. These are mostly accurate representations of the time, even if they make for discomfiting reading. HOWEVER, some inclusions were too gratuitous and/or risqué. This MIGHT have been necessary in certain scenes such as those involving sexual assault, but the rest of the times, I found the writing become needlessly graphic (whether in terms of violence or sexual content.) One particular racy scene stretched on for multiple pages!
🩸 The pacing is inconsistent. As this is a character-driven novel, a slow pace is expected. But some events go by quickly and others take their own sweet time to move ahead. For such a lengthy book, this random tempo gets tedious.
🩸 La Strega’s first-person narrative doesn’t completely sound a verbal recollection, being too detailed. I loved the content of her storyline, but it might have worked better as an independent narrative instead of being framed as a conversational infodump by her to Margherita.

All in all, I am impressed by the concept, the research, the characters, and most of all, the triple historical bonanza. I just wish that the nested narrative structure had been better planned, and that the writing had toned down on the unnecessary “telling” of the historical cruelty towards women and animals. The fairy tale itself was disturbing, as was the fate of women under Louis XIV. There was no call for adding more darkness through unwarranted cruelty. Moreover, if the book is being promoted as a retelling, it might attract YA fairytale lovers as well, and many of the scenes are inappropriate for the younger YA segment. There should have been a clear warning in the blurb/cover about the R-rated stuff.
I am slightly torn over my rating for this book. The concept and research are mindblowing enough, and many of my Nays stem from my preferences. However, my reading experience did get much affected by the distressing adult scenes, so I shall be rounding my rating downwards.
3.5 stars.
My thanks to Allison & Busby for providing the DRC of “Bitter Greens” via NetGalley. This review is voluntary and contains my honest opinion about the book.

4.25/5 stars
~
If you are looking for a sweeping historical fiction book with complex characters, romance without it being the focus of the story, a vivid backdrop, and a bit of magic, add BITTER GREENS to your TBR!

🌹 France, 1697: Charlotte Rose—-a French noblewoman and writer whose sharp tongue and Huguenot heritage leads her to be confined to a convent. Chafing against societal restraints, she finds refuge in the garden, and with it, a magical tale.

🌹 Venice, 1599—Margherita’s father stole bitter greens from a witch, and if he does not want to lose his hands as a thief, he must trade over his daughter. Trapped in a tower, visited only by La Strega, she longs for a life of her own.

🌹 Venice, 1504—-Selena seeks refuge with a witch as her only way of surviving while also maintaining her independence. Her fears of abandonment and loss of control lead her down a dark path of self preservation. The “evil witch” in Rapunzel’s tale is stunningly human, complex, and sympathetic.

This story pulled on so many heartstrings as I watched each of the women fight to write their own story. I loved seeing how the different timelines came together! I also enjoyed the excerpts of poems and other Rapunzel literature interspersed with the chapters. My only complaint is lengthy portions were spent on each woman, so I had a hard time readjusting to the other timelines when they appeared again/remembering what had happened in their previous chapters.

Bitter Greens is an ambitious and intricately woven novel that combines history, fairy tale, and magic. It reimagines Rapunzel through the lens of historical fiction, centering on three women: Charlotte-Rose de Caumont de La Force, the real-life writer of the fairy tale; Margherita, a young girl locked in a tower; and Selena Leonelli, the witch who holds her captive.

Forsyth’s writing is beautifully descriptive, and the historical settings—17th-century France and Renaissance Italy—are richly detailed. The novel explores themes of female resilience, power, and survival in a patriarchal world, which adds depth to the fairy tale elements.

However, the book isn’t without its flaws. The pacing is uneven, with some sections dragging, particularly in Charlotte-Rose’s storyline. While the multiple perspectives add complexity, they also slow the momentum at times. Additionally, some of the darker themes may not be for everyone, as certain parts of the story are quite grim.

Overall, Bitter Greens is an interesting and well-researched take on Rapunzel, but it didn’t fully captivate me. While the prose and historical detail are impressive, the slow pacing and occasionally heavy-handed storytelling made it a bit of a challenge to get through. Worth a read for fans of historical fiction and fairy tale retellings, but not a standout for me.

*Thank you to NetGalley, and Allison & Busby, for sending me a copy of this book and allowing me to read it. This review is left voluntarily and entirely my own opinion.*

A captivating book, quite 'spellbinding'!
I'm not normally a fan of 'fairytale re-tellings', but did enjoy this one, which was both interesting and compelling.
It was very difficult to put down, despite its length!
I was interested because of the Venice angle, which is a city I know well, including the history. I am most happy to report that this was obviously well-researched! The France sections were also indicative of a lot of research, and I was quite fascinated to read the information at the end of the book.
Despite all this 'research', the story was not dry, but was well crafted, with great characters. Although the setting and timeline jumped back and forth, it was clearly stated in the chapter headings and easy to follow. The different settings and characters made it clear that you were reading about a different thread, and each of the two places also had flashbacks. But I had no trouble at all following what was going on, and the many reveals were fascinating.
I do recommend this book to those who love fantasy, history, and those like me who just like a good story!

Bitter Greens was first published in 2012 but has been picked up again and republished by Allison & Busby. I’m not sure how it managed to escape my attention for the last 13 years but I do know that I didn’t hesitate to click that widget when lovely Josie Rushin offered it to me. Historical fiction combined with a fairy tale retelling? It couldn’t be more up my street!

Before long, I realised that my spidey senses had not let me astray: I truly loved Bitter Greens! I burned through those 500-something pages like there was no tomorrow.

Charlotte-Rose’s tale was fascinating, especially her time at the court of Louis XIV, which is a time period I haven’t often encountered in fiction and which had me captivated. Selena’s storyline, her time as a courtesan in 16th century Venice as well as her role as La Bella Strega (the Beautiful Witch), was equally engrossing. I do enjoy a good villain origin story, and you know it’s done well when you don’t just hate them, but you also feel empathy towards them. Margherita’s (Rapunzel’s) tale was executed perfectly in view of the other two storylines, reading more like historical fiction with some magical realism than a true fairy tale.

I had a brilliant time with Bitter Greens. I was invested in all three storylines and while they all came to a natural ending, I didn’t want any of them to actually end. I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend Bitter Greens to readers of historical fiction.

Bitter Greens is out now with a shiny new cover from Allison & Busby.

Massive thanks to Allison & Busby and NetGalley for the DRC. All opinions are my own.

What an unexpectedly enchanting read this was! Like the movie "Ever After" was the basis for the fable of Cinderella, so Bitter Greens is the mesmerizing retelling of Rapunzal and the true historical story of the author, Charlotte-Rose de Caumont de la Force. The story opens in 1666 with Charlotte being involuntarily committed to a convent by the Sun King for her unacceptable behavior at Versailles. While in the convent, she reflects back on her life as she endures the difficult and sometimes cruel experiences there. She develops a friendship with Sour Serephina, who shares the fascinating story of the tale of Margherita, who is taken from her parents and imprisoned in a tower and Selena Leonelli, the witch. The book is a dark, adult retelling with a prose that doesn't shy away from the violence and despair that the women find themselves experiencing due to royal capriciousness, poverty and limited choices. And yet, there is beauty, love and redemption in the friendships, loyalty and mercies extended. There is magic, the plague, religious strife and royal court life based on history. The historical details demonstrate the author's research as she creates vivid images of the French and Italian cultures and decadence as well as the bitter poverty. The 3 women's stories intertwine seamlessly and while each character is flawed, they each develop and persevere in their circumstances. There is some sexual details and violence that can be hard to read, but isn't gratuitous in nature and aligns with the times and circumstances. There is some foul language, brief same sex attempt and court life debauchery that again resonates with history. The lush story telling creates suspense, an emotional roller coaster of hope and fear, and ends with a satisfying and surprising twist. I highly recommend this 4.5 rated book for those who love well crafted historical fiction, fleshed out fairy tales, can read through some dark scenes to find the beauty of love and redemption. A huge thank you to NetGalley and publisher Allison & Busby for the privilege of the ARC. All opinions expressed are my own.

There has been an increase in the number of fairytale retellings and fairytale inspired stories in recent years and I have loved so many of these novels.
As a result, I jumped at the opportunity to read Bitter Greens by Kate Forsyth, a retelling of sorts of the well-known Rapunzel tale. In Bitter Greens, we have three separate strands to the tale:
Charlotte-Rose fe la Force - our author
Selena Leonelli - our villain
Margherita - our Rapunzel

The storyline jumps not just back and forth between these three characters but also in time as their stories and connections are slowly revealed. I was most intrigued by Margherita's tale and found myself becoming bored at times with the story of Charlotte as she was so self-focused.

This is a slow-burn story and worth your time. Especially for the stories of Selena and Margherita which are the most interesting.

I don’t know how to my describe my feelings about this book, it was certainly interesting but I don’t know that I would say it was an enjoyable read. For me, the pace was very slow and it did hop about different years, that I had to keep an eye on the dates to know where I was in the story. The author did a lot of research and I always appreciate that. This story featured three main women characters and the times they lived in did no favours for women. There was something about the story that I felt compelled to read to the end. I received a copy and have voluntarily reviewed it. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Charlotte-Rose fe la Force, exiled from the court of King Louis XIV, has always been a great talker and teller of tales. Selena Leonelli, once the exquisite muse of the great Venetian artist Tiziano, is terrified of time. Margherita, trapped in a doorless tower and burdened by tangles of her red-gold hair, must find a way to escape. You think you know the story of Rapunzel....

This book is a retelling of the fairytale Rapunzel. The story is told from multiple points of view. I loved all the female characters. I wass shocked when I read the Afterword to discover that Charlotte-Rose de Caumont de la Force was a real person. We get four different stories, but they do jump around a bit. There were parts stat made it a bit of an uncomfortable read. but overall, this is quite an enjoyable read.

I would like to thank #NetGalley #AllisonandBusby abd the author #KateForsyth for my ARC of #BitterGreens in exchange for an honest review.

Three women and two timelines combine to tell the story of Rapunzel in this retelling of a much loved fairy tale.
The story of Margherita is set in 15 th century Venice, and relates how she came to be locked in a tower and who put her there. She is at first seen as a victim, almost a sacrifice, but as her character develops, she shows a fight and the courage to experience love and how to live life on her own terms.
The story of Charlotte - Rose de la Force, the narrator takes place in 17 th century France. Her life story starts in the glittering court of Versailles, where she has many admirers, is distantly related to the King, and has the role of Maid of Honour to Queen Marie Therese. She finds herself banished and exiled to the Abbey - en- Brie, she is a Huguenot and that becomes a forbidden religion .
Whilst at the Abbey, she is taken under the wing of Sister Seraphina who tends the gardens. Seraphina is afraid of time, and tells Charlotte-Rose of her role in this fairytale. Charlotte - Rose publishes a version of the fairytale in 1698 , called Persinette, this pays tribute to both women, both stories are woven together, but the last piece of this jigsaw doesn’t fall into place until the very end.
I found this to be a very long tale indeed, better editing would have helped, the research was in danger of drowning out the story, less can be more.
I thought it would have read better in two books, one in France and the second in Venice. I can see the connections now, but it took a good while to get there. I did find the story to be rather rambling and repetitive, with the last 30% being the most interesting.
I gave this a three star rating, it would have been higher if the story had been of a tighter construction.
My thanks to Netgalley and the publishers, Allison and Busby for my ARC, freely given in exchange for my honest review. I will leave reviews to Goodreads and Netgalley UK.

I’ve always loved fairy tales, from my very first, and now rather battered copy of Grimm’s Fairy Tales, to this sumptuous retelling of the story of Rapunzel. The author shares with us the gift of her imagination as she vividly brings to life Charlotte-Rose de Caumont de la Force who had been exiled to a nunnery by the Sun King, Louis XIV. Charlotte was a real person, a teller of tales and it is her 1698 story, Persinette, which inspired the Grimm’s version of Rapunzel.

The story gets off to a bit of slow start but once the main threads of the story come together then it becomes a clever mixture of history, fantasy and fairy tale. It’s always difficult to recreate an old story which has been previously well told but the author does a good job of breathing new life into an old tale. I enjoyed Charlotte-Rose’s story, she’s a fascinating character and a strong woman when women were not treated very well. As a lover of fairy tales I was equally enthralled with Marguerite and Selina both of whom bring everything together in a fascinating way.

It’s been well worth a re-read as Bitter Greens was previously published in 2013. Its bright and attractive new cover art will certainly help to bring the book to a new audience.

This enchanting novel is a retelling of the Rapunzel fairy tale, wrapped inside the story of the banishment to a convent in 1697, of novelist Charlotte-Rose de la Force, from Louis XIV’s court of Versailles. As strict as the convent rules are, and as difficult as it is for Charlotte-Rose to adjust to her downturn in circumstance, she bonds with Soeur Seraphina over her herb garden, where the two very different women find a kind of peace within the tranquility of nature, as Seraphina relates Rapunzel’s story.
Newly re-released after its original 2014 publishing date, this novel shines in a time where historical novels of gothic darkness and magical realism are in popular abundance. Warmly recommended to readers of lyrical, poetic novels which can sweep us into another world entirely.

Bitter Greens is a dark retelling of Rapunzel. A tale of three women Charlotte Rose who was at the court of King Louis XIX, Marguerite who we know as Rapunzel and Selena a witch who traps Marguerite and who we know as Mother Gothel.It is quite dark and very detailed the writing is beautiful and flows so well I think this is what kept me reading as it was not what I expected it to be.

Thank you to the publishers for sending me a widget to Netgalley in return for an honest review.

Two stories seemingly intertwine, but it takes until the very end for the connection to become clear. This made it hard to truly immerse myself.
In one story we follow Marguarite in 1500's Venice, in the other we get to know Charlotte Rose and her life in Versailles in the 1600's. Absolutely stunning historical fiction. It gets confused when both women are forced to leave their homes, Marguarite ending up in a deserted tower, Charlotte Rose in a convent. Their lives go from abundent and cheerful to poor and sad. Both are survivors. A nice twist a few pages out from the book's finale eventually connects the dots.

I personally think the two stories could work better in seperate novels. I would buy them in a heartbeat! The writing is exquisite, the pace perfect, the surroundings within reach. A moving read.

Thank you Netgalley and Allison & Busby for the ARC.

Know that you might have read this when it was originally published in 2012- I did and I enjoyed it then. It's a richly atmospheric retelling of Rapunzel that focuses on three women whose stories will eventually weave together. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. Even leaving aside the fairy tale aspect, it's a good read for fans of historical fiction.