Malice: A Novel
In her 37th bestselling novel, Danielle Steel tells the compelling story of a woman who must struggle to overcome a shattering betrayal, and the cruelest kind of malice.
At seventeen, the night of her mother's funeral, Grace Adams is attacked. It is not the first time, and a brutal crime ensues.
And to everyone's horror, Grace will not tell the truth. She is a young woman with secrets too horrible to tell, with hurts so deep they may never heal. She is also beautiful enough for men to want her no matter how much she does not want them. Whatever the outcome, Grace Adams will have to live with whatever happened during those terrible years. After a lifetime of being a victim, now she must pay the price for other people's sins.
From the depths of an Illinois women's prison to a Chicago modeling agency to a challenging career in New York, Grace must carry the past with her wherever she goes. And in healing her own pain, she reaches out to battered women and children who live a nightmare she knows all too well.
When Grace meets Charles Mackenzie, a New York lawyer, she has found a man who wants nothing from her-except to heal her, to hear her secrets, and to give her the family she so desperately wants. But, with happiness finally within her grasp, and precious loved ones to protect, Grace is at her most vulnerable-in danger of losing everything to a vicious tabloid press and an enemy from her past, an enemy bent on malice at all costs.
With rare insight and power, Danielle Steel writes this extraordinary woman's story, portraying her struggle to triumph over malice and betrayal, and to transform a lifetime of pain into a blessing for others. Revealing both the stark reality of domestic abuse and the healing power of love, Malice, is more than superb fiction. It is a piece of life.
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Community Reviews
There is so much story that I can’t even begin to summarize without giving away too much.
Here is what I will say. This is a retelling of Sleeping Beauty which is one of my favorite stories in any form it takes. This retelling was amazing. I have no complaints and am absolutely looking forward to the next book! I loved this so much! From beginning to end - LOVED. It was rich in detail and gave just enough explanation on history, characters, and was just well written all the way around. This is what I believe a retelling should look like. Fantastic!
Just go read it!
Here is what I will say. This is a retelling of Sleeping Beauty which is one of my favorite stories in any form it takes. This retelling was amazing. I have no complaints and am absolutely looking forward to the next book! I loved this so much! From beginning to end - LOVED. It was rich in detail and gave just enough explanation on history, characters, and was just well written all the way around. This is what I believe a retelling should look like. Fantastic!
Just go read it!
Originally reviewed on Cyn's Workshop
A Sleeping Beauty retelling, Malice takes readers to a new realm and reinvents the fairy tale with a compelling narrative and beautiful LGBTQ romance.
Great Storytelling
Malice stands apart from typical retellings, foremost with the world-building. Walter gives the story an engaging foundation, establishing three different races. There is the Fae, the humans, and the Vila, which is what Alyce is.
Alyce is called the Dark Grace, half-human and half-Vila, the dark counterpart of Fae. After the war that eradicated the Vila, the Fae gifted their human allies with magic, giving human girls what they call their Grace, turning their blood gold, and allowing them to provide the kingdom with magic and enhancements.
Nevertheless, of course, Alyce is taunted and ignored by her kingdom for being half Vila. They have no problem using her magic in private, but in public, the kingdom shuns her.
Walter does a great job of drawing illusions between the original fairy tale. However, Walter gives her story more history to built up the characterization, depth, and tension. Learning more and more about the Vila gives the story more dimension, luring in the reader.
Amazing Characterization & Development
Honestly, I loved the characterization above everything else. Malice is a character-driven story that follows Alyce and her relationship with Princess Aurora.
Walter does an incredible job of first establishing the friendship between these two incredibly. Aurora does not see Alyce as a monster, simply as another Grace used by her kingdom. Instead, Aurora seeks to break the curse without true love’s kiss so that she can lead her kingdom into a brighter future.
By building up the friendship between the characters, Walter is building up the characterization of these characters. Aurora is not a damsel in distress. She is an intelligent and formidable princess, rebellious while also being considerate. As for Alyce, she is not the monster everyone wants her to be. Alyce is just a woman who wants to be treated fairly and respected instead of scorned for her green blood.
There is an incredible amount of depth to these characters, even the minor ones, that make them relatable and complex. Furthermore, to see the relationship blossom between Alyce and Aurora is fantastic. It is true love and makes the reader eager to see them fight for their true love, rights, and kingdom.
Final Thoughts
Malice is incredible. Everything Walter has done with this novel, from the world-building and history, to the complexities and depth of the characters, will make this novel stand apart.
See more reviews at Cyn's Workshop and follow me on Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | Tumblr | Spotify Podcast | YouTube | BookBub | Goodreads+ | LinkedIn
A Sleeping Beauty retelling, Malice takes readers to a new realm and reinvents the fairy tale with a compelling narrative and beautiful LGBTQ romance.
Great Storytelling
Malice stands apart from typical retellings, foremost with the world-building. Walter gives the story an engaging foundation, establishing three different races. There is the Fae, the humans, and the Vila, which is what Alyce is.
Alyce is called the Dark Grace, half-human and half-Vila, the dark counterpart of Fae. After the war that eradicated the Vila, the Fae gifted their human allies with magic, giving human girls what they call their Grace, turning their blood gold, and allowing them to provide the kingdom with magic and enhancements.
Nevertheless, of course, Alyce is taunted and ignored by her kingdom for being half Vila. They have no problem using her magic in private, but in public, the kingdom shuns her.
Walter does a great job of drawing illusions between the original fairy tale. However, Walter gives her story more history to built up the characterization, depth, and tension. Learning more and more about the Vila gives the story more dimension, luring in the reader.
Amazing Characterization & Development
Honestly, I loved the characterization above everything else. Malice is a character-driven story that follows Alyce and her relationship with Princess Aurora.
Walter does an incredible job of first establishing the friendship between these two incredibly. Aurora does not see Alyce as a monster, simply as another Grace used by her kingdom. Instead, Aurora seeks to break the curse without true love’s kiss so that she can lead her kingdom into a brighter future.
By building up the friendship between the characters, Walter is building up the characterization of these characters. Aurora is not a damsel in distress. She is an intelligent and formidable princess, rebellious while also being considerate. As for Alyce, she is not the monster everyone wants her to be. Alyce is just a woman who wants to be treated fairly and respected instead of scorned for her green blood.
There is an incredible amount of depth to these characters, even the minor ones, that make them relatable and complex. Furthermore, to see the relationship blossom between Alyce and Aurora is fantastic. It is true love and makes the reader eager to see them fight for their true love, rights, and kingdom.
Final Thoughts
Malice is incredible. Everything Walter has done with this novel, from the world-building and history, to the complexities and depth of the characters, will make this novel stand apart.
See more reviews at Cyn's Workshop and follow me on Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | Tumblr | Spotify Podcast | YouTube | BookBub | Goodreads+ | LinkedIn
I will admit that I discarded this book just as quickly as I picked it up. However, my boyfriend convinced me to give it more of a chance, and I'm so grateful he did. The story as a whole is absolutely stunning. The character development alone is magic within itself. I love reading a villain origin story, and that is truly what this book is. Inspired by sleeping beauty, this story takes on a life of its own, separate and whole and beautiful. There were times that I wanted the main character, Alyce, to break. I wanted to see her take her revenge.
Despite thinking that the writing was amazing I will say that it has a very young feel to it that I wasn't expecting. YA books aim, from my understanding, at an audience between 13-18 years old. I would say that this book leans more towards the younger end of the spectrum, something that I was a little disappointed by. Then, it has a sudden sex scene thrown into the mix. I question its purpose and existence at all amongst the younger-audience-vibe that I was getting through the writing itself. Most YA books gloss over those scenes but this one gave much detail, not that I personally minded.
Another half annoyance is the romance. It doesn't take front stage, it's not all consuming, which I loved. Without a romance that takes up all the oxygen, Alyce and her character, along with the plot, grew and twisted and became extraordinary. Throughout the story we get hints of jealousy, all from Alyce, but we don't really get those from Aurora. It seems like all she wants is friendship. Yes, there is interest from her behalf, but nothing that I thought was leaning towards the romance that I knew was coming. And then... The kiss.
The kiss changes everything. Suddenly their love is all consuming: fast, hot, steamy, and the driving force for the rest of the story. It even convinces Aurora to rescue Alyce from the dungeons of the king. I wonder if it will be enough when she wakes and finds what Alyce has done to Briar. Will love conquer all, as it always seems to do? Or will this be a different type of fairy tale, the twisted villainous one we were promised? I honestly don't know what I hope for. Does she deserve a happy ending, or does she get handed what every villain before has been dealt, defeat? I think maybe somewhere in the middle will be good.
Despite thinking that the writing was amazing I will say that it has a very young feel to it that I wasn't expecting. YA books aim, from my understanding, at an audience between 13-18 years old. I would say that this book leans more towards the younger end of the spectrum, something that I was a little disappointed by. Then, it has a sudden sex scene thrown into the mix. I question its purpose and existence at all amongst the younger-audience-vibe that I was getting through the writing itself. Most YA books gloss over those scenes but this one gave much detail, not that I personally minded.
Another half annoyance is the romance. It doesn't take front stage, it's not all consuming, which I loved. Without a romance that takes up all the oxygen, Alyce and her character, along with the plot, grew and twisted and became extraordinary. Throughout the story we get hints of jealousy, all from Alyce, but we don't really get those from Aurora. It seems like all she wants is friendship. Yes, there is interest from her behalf, but nothing that I thought was leaning towards the romance that I knew was coming. And then... The kiss.
The kiss changes everything. Suddenly their love is all consuming: fast, hot, steamy, and the driving force for the rest of the story. It even convinces Aurora to rescue Alyce from the dungeons of the king. I wonder if it will be enough when she wakes and finds what Alyce has done to Briar. Will love conquer all, as it always seems to do? Or will this be a different type of fairy tale, the twisted villainous one we were promised? I honestly don't know what I hope for. Does she deserve a happy ending, or does she get handed what every villain before has been dealt, defeat? I think maybe somewhere in the middle will be good.