El protagonista, Félix, es desbancado como rey de Paflagonia por su tío Valeroso. La hija de éste, Angélica, es ofrecida entonces en matrimonio a Bulbo, príncipe del reino vecino. Félix, enamorado de Angélica, le regala un anillo que le da el poder de parecer guapa. Pero, tras una riña entre los pretendientes, Angélica se quita el anillo y se muestra como fea que es. Bulbo usa entonces otro objeto mágico, una rosa, que la hace parecer guapa de nuevo. Angélica queda definitivamente prendada de Bulbo y se casan.

A delightful fairytale parody. You have the usual suspects, fairy-godmothers, princes and princesses, magic etc. But it doesn't take itself seriously and even critiques the fairytale tropes a bit.
Not much else to say other than it ended on a particularly high note which was great as so many things i read tend to fall down a bit during the finale. ( )

Thackeray's Christmas pantomime for children follows the general tropes of other books of this ilk written in the 1800s: there's silliness for the kiddos, but it's also filled with social and political quips clearly intended for adults. Neither have aged well and the whole thing just didn't land for me. I think I have a low tolerance for this particular genre: the plot is flimsy, and the feeling that the author/narrator is constantly wink-winking and nudge-nudging you with his jokes becomes tiresome fairly quickly. *shrug* ( )

This is a short, silly story about two kingdoms called Paflagonia and Crim Tartary, and the dealings of the Fairy Blackstick, who decrees that the best thing for two royal babies in these realms is for them to experience a bit of misfortune. There are cases of mistaken identity, wicked characters who receive their just deserts eventually, and some very silly character names. The story is told with arch narration and is amusing enough. I’m not sure how much of it will stick with me, but it’s certainly worth trying out if you like that sort of old-fashioned story. ( )

According to the author's introduction, this was intended to be put on as a dramatic presentation, or pantomime, at Christmastime, for children.

It was indeed published at Christmas (1854), but I'm not at all convinced that the main intended audience was children. This is, technically, a fairy tale, but it's mainly a political and social satire, caricaturing the events and personalities of the day. I'm quite certain that quite a lot of the humor flew past me, but it seems that it was quite timely.

The titular rose and ring are magical objects that makes the bearer seem irresistibly beautiful to those around them. They originate with the Fairy Blackstick, who is quite unpopular after wishing some infants 'misfortune' at their christenings, rather than magical blessings. However, sometimes a bit of misfortune is good for the character.

The plot is a rather slapstick romantic comedy, with quite a lot of lampooning of the upper crust. It's entertaining - but was probably even funnier 150 years ago. ( )