History Literature / Fairest

* EeriePaleSkinnedBrunette: Aza, to keep within the Snow White theme. However, in Ayortha that combination of hair colour and complexion is considered ugly.

* KindheartedCatLover: Aza is generally kindhearted and lives cats. She also cites this as proof that Duchess Olixio can't be all bad, since she adores cats, too.

* PartingWordsRegret: Ijori feels this when he believes that Aza is [[spoiler:part ogre and a traitor to the crown]] and dismisses her with disgust. By the time he's cooled down and realized that her story makes more sense than Ivi's and the Duke Uvu's, the guard sent to assassinate her tells him that Aza is dead. [[spoiler:Good thing the guard was lying, which allowed Ijori to rescue Aza from a DisneyDeath . . .]] According to the guard that tells a (not-dead) Aza, Ijori let out a SkywardScream.
* PinocchioNose: Ivi [[spoiler:licks her lips]] before she lies. Aza even mentions it.

* RejectedApology: [[spoiler: Aza doesn't accept Uellu's apology for accusing her of being an ogre and a traitor.]]
* RightForTheWrongReasons: Sir Uellu correctly reasons that Ivi wasn't acting on her own; she was taking bad advice from someone who wanted to cause a rebellion and get her killed. He's ''in''correct that the someone was Aza, wanting Ivi to die so she could marry Ijori and become queen. [[spoiler: Really it was the creature in Ivi's mirror, wanting her to die because that would temporarily free him from the mirror.]]

* WhyDidItHaveToBeSnakes: Or Apples -- Aza throughout the book emphasizes her hatred of apples, and she encounters a rather deadly one among gnome traders, courtesy of [[spoiler:Ivi]].

** While living with the gnomes, Aza is disgusted that a gnome that stole a pickax is allowed to go home with it and suffer no punishment, because the gnomes saw that if he were punished a worse future would happen. [[spoiler: She later helps Ivi achieve a KarmaHoudini so that King Oscaro can recover and rule the kingdom properly, since Ivi being punished would only result in political chaos.]]

* HappilyAdopted: Aza with her parents, who found her after she was left abandoned in their inn and raised her as their own. Not only does her [[MamaBear mother]] get angry at the royal guards who imply that their daughter [[spoiler:may have ogre's blood]], but her father writes a note to Aza saying that he knows her too well to believe she may be [[spoiler:a traitor to the crown]]. Summed up when another character learns Aza is adopted and says he hadn't realized they weren't Aza's true parents, and she replies that they are her true parents, just not her birth parents.

''Fairest'', by Gail Carson Levine, is a meta-sequel to Levine's ''Literature/EllaEnchanted'', set in the same world and with the sister of Ella's best friend Areida as the main character. ''Fairest'' is a warped Snow White, set in the singing country of Ayortha. Aza is an adopted, abnormal-looking child in a country obsessed with beauty. Her parents are innkeepers, and since Aza is expected to do her part in taking care of the inn, she often falls victim to rude staring and remarks by the guests -- except for the gnomes, one of which becomes her close friend. She has a singing ability that can be done by no one else, called 'illusing', which is actually a voice-throwing skill made magical in a way. Through an interesting course of events, she becomes the companion of the Duchess of Olixio one night thanks to her cat, and makes her way to the castle for the king's wedding.

** Ayorthian names begin and end with the same vowel, so Ivy of Kyrria becomes Ivi of Ayortha

* ThisIsMyNameOnForeign: Ayorthian names begin and end with the same vowel, so some foreign characters change their name's spellings to fit in.
** Ikulni, once a guest at the Featherbed inn, [[spoiler:who was actually Skulni, the creature in Ivi's mirror.]]
** Ivi's actual name is Ivy.

* ThisIsMyNameOnForeign: Ikulni, once a guest at the Featherbed inn, [[spoiler:who was actually Skulni, the creature in Ivi's mirror.]]

* HappilyAdopted: Aza with her parents. Not only does her [[MamaBear mother]] get angry at the royal guards who imply that their daughter [[spoiler:may have ogre's blood]], but her father writes a note to Aza saying that he knows her too well to believe she may be [[spoiler:a traitor to the crown]]. Summed up when another character learns Aza is adopted and says he hadn't realized they weren't Aza's true parents, and she replies that they are her true parents, just not her birth parents.

* HumansAreUgly: Some gnomes have clairvoyant powers, and Aza asks one if she will ever be pretty. The immediate answer is "Never," followed by a clarification that, to gnomes, all humans are ugly. "[[DamnedByFaintPraise You are slightly less ugly than most.]]" [[spoiler:Aza is later discovered to be [[HalfHumanHybrid part-gnome]].]]

* HalfHumanHybrid: Several ancient Ayorthian singers are speculated to have ogre ancestry. [[spoiler:Aza is accused of being part ogre. It turns out she ''is'' a HalfHumanHybrid, but it's not ogre ancestry she has; rather, she's part ''gnome''.]]

* HalfHumanHybrid: Several ancient Ayorthian singers are speculated to have ogre ancestry. [[spoiler:Aza is accused of being part ogre. It turns out she is a HalfHumanHybrid, but her non-human ancestor was actually a gnome.]]