Reflection: A Twisted Tale

Arrived on time and in great condition! This twisted tale wasn’t as good as some but I still enjoyed it!

After reading the first three books in this series, I'm loving it. I think it's fun to learn about different other versions of my favorite Disney movies, it means there's more to their story. I was very excited to read this twisted tale on Mulan when it arrived.

First, these are best read when you're familiar with the source story. I've watched the live action film, but not the animated version. This means I had some idea of the plot, and the writing helped me catch up easily.This tale is heavily based in Chinese mythology of the Underworld:"Mulan didn’t know whether she should be awed or frightened. After all, it was the first time she had ever encountered a deity. To her surprise, Yama didn’t glow like his subjects, and he looked nothing like the demons. Yet his appearance was monstrous.Wrinkles contorted his face, and his cheeks were ruddy; his eyes flickered a fiery red and yellow. His neck was thick as the trunk of a willow tree, and his wild black hair was so abundant it rivaled ShiShi’s mane. When he stood, as he did now, the top of his heavy gold crown disappeared into the dark space above, and his black and emerald robes flooded down the steps past his desk."It's a great read for the mythology as well as a continuation of Mulan's tale. I appreciate that it stays culturally true rather than Westernizing into a princess fairy tale ending. I would read more from this author.

Okay, this book sent my little shipper's heart all a fluttering!I'm going to be brief with this review because I don't want to reveal spoilers, and in the fact of that there's SO MUCH that happens in this book. I will tell you guys right up front, this book pays homage and does its predecessor justice with its twisted retelling, where it sends your Mulan X Shang shipping heart all the feels. It's a fanfic come to life!The story takes place after the battle on Tung-Show Mountain, where Mulan as Ping shot their last cannon at the mountain causing the avalanche that obliterated Shan Yu's army. Instead of Shan Yu striking Mulan, Shang leaps in front of her and takes a fatal blow. From there on, facing the possibility of Shang dying from the wound, their descent from the mountain becomes weary. One night, after Shang's condition worsens, General Li's spirit comes to tell Mulan that there is a way to save his son's life. After that, Mulan finds herself in Diyuu, the Chinese version of the World of the Dead, where she strikes a deal with the Underwold ruler himself, King Yuma, that if she can find Shang and escape Diyuu before morning, Shang will live.Mulan, Shang, and the Li family's guardian, Shishi, go through tremendous obstacles throughout Diyuu, where all of them must face both inner and outer demons; Mulan especially. There's even the big reveal of Mulan's gender in this story, in which I find myself favoring over the movie's version of it. And the relationship between Shang and Mulan is just as invigorating as in the movie itself, and even more so in this book.At the end of this book, I wish it were in the canon-verse of Mulan.

I love these books. The concept is so interesting, but also relatable due to the finney nature.

For the longest time I’ve been debating whether or not to read the Twisted Tales from Disney. Typically, I’ll read any Disney related book, but the first two books in the series got such mixed reviews, that it deterred me from picking one up. Then the Beauty and the Beast one and this one came out and they got better reviews. So I finally decided to try one out. I’m so glad I did because this was really good!First off, I was really happy that Disney choose a Asian author to write this book. I think #OwnVoices literature is so important. You can tell that the author knew the culture so well. She did a great job incorporating the Chinese underworld and mythology into the story.I also have to give the author major props for doing her homework. It was very clear that she watched the direct-to-DVD Mulan 2 movie. There was one part where Shang says, “Perhaps when I marry, I’ll combine the ancestral temples so my bride won’t have to leave her family” (175). That is exactly what ends up happening in Mulan 2. When I read that line, I immediately remembered that part in the movie.Since the book starts during the battle against the huns on the mountain, I was happy that it still referenced earlier events in the movie. They were woven into the story nicely.Overall, I just think the whole book was so well done. From the writing style to the incorporation of mirrors and reflections, it hit all the checkboxes.

I was a little skeptical about this book at first because it started out extremely slow. I pushed through the slow parts and I was surprised. The author has a great way of writing to spike the readers emotions and keep them wanting more. I couldn't put it down because enjoyed this book so much.

This was a really neat adaptation of Mulan. What if Li Shang was mortally wounded in the avalanche scene of Mulan, and Mulan had to go to Diyu (The Underworld) to try and bring Shang's spirit back to try and save him? I enjoyed the new characters that were introduced with this story, along with seeing other characters I know and love from Mulan (1998).In terms of shipping—the book arrived in great condition! No creases, damages to the cover, etc. I will note that at first I thought something had happened to the pages, but I then realized that the pages have a watermark of blood splatter or water splatter.