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    Mother Knows Best by Serena Valentino Summary

    Mother Knows Best
    Serena Valentino
    Fiction
    Suspense
    Relationship
    Mythology
    Overview
    Key Takeaways
    Author
    FAQs

    Overview of Mother Knows Best

    Discover Mother Gothel's twisted origins in Serena Valentino's fan-favorite Disney Villains novel. With nearly 13,000 Goodreads ratings and translations worldwide, this dark reimagining reveals how the Odd Sisters shaped Tangled's most complex villain. What sinister magic first corrupted her soul?

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    Elon MuskCharlie KirkBill GatesSteve JobsAndrew HubermanJoe RoganJordan Peterson
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    Key Takeaways

    1

    The Shadow of Sisterhood

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    Deep within a forest where sunlight rarely penetrates stands a gray cobblestone mansion perched on the tallest hill. This is the dead forest, a liminal space between the living and dead, home to three sister witches-Gothel, Hazel, and Primrose. Though triplets, they couldn't be more different. Pragmatic Gothel with her raven hair prepares to eventually take her mother's place. Ghostlike Hazel moves silently through their home like a wraith. Vibrant Primrose, with striking red hair, remains lighthearted, yearning for adventure beyond their grim surroundings. The sisters share a special "understanding"-an ability to sense each other's emotions without reading minds. This bond sustains them in their isolation, where they spend days exploring the forest's mausoleums and headstones. Each copes differently with their macabre surroundings: Hazel makes rubbings of ornate tombstones, Primrose hangs wishes written on red parchment from dead branches, and Gothel secretly reads her mother's magic books, dreaming of worlds beyond. Their mother, Manea, rules as the feared queen of the dead. When Gothel expresses frustration about withheld magic, Manea demonstrates her terrifying power by summoning lightning and awakening the dead from their crypts. She commands skeletal creatures to attack a nearby village that's been hoarding their dead-a glimpse of the power that awaits Gothel should she take her mother's place.

    2

    Blood Magic and Broken Trust

    3

    The Golden Flower's Curse

    4

    Sisters in Sickness and Health

    5

    The Odd Sisters' Web

    6

    The Birth of a Villain

    7

    The Final Transformation