Mathilde and Rosamund are secondary characters and are Lady Tremaine’s biological daughters. Their father is Henry Tremaine. They were left without a father when Henry died while away on a trade trip, when they were only eight and seven, respectively. The girls “were born twelve months apart, almost to the day”; although “close enough to be twins, […] the girls turned out to be nothing alike” (72). Mathilde is the older of the two, and her birth and infancy were difficult for Lady Tremaine. Her name means “mighty in battle,” as she was “the victor of a tiny war, of [Lady Tremaine’s] womb” (72). She proves to be the stronger, bolder, and more assertive of Lady Tremaine’s daughters in the narrative present, too. When disaster or disappointment strike, Rosamund is more likely to descend into tears and despair, while Mathilde is more likely to assume a pragmatic stance and embrace logic and action over emotionality.

While Mathilde’s and Rosamund’s characters’ feature throughout the novel, they serve a supporting role, facilitating Lady Tremaine’s character arc. The two daughters give Lady Tremaine’s life meaning and purpose and motivate her actions throughout the story. She loves them dearly and genuinely, devoting all her energies to their lives in the present and orchestrating their fates. However, Lady Tremaine doesn’t often regard them as individuals. Her narrative mostly thinks of them according to how best to manipulate their futures—and how an advantageous alliance for one might lead to an advantageous alliance for the other. Over the course of the novel, Lady Tremaine’s failure to perceive their individual needs becomes more apparent. This is particularly true after she tells them the truth about Prince Simeon’s malicious nature and brutal past. The girls get upset with Lady Tremaine for treating them like pawns, jeopardizing their safety, and vacillating between siding with and endangering their stepsister.

Elina, Hochhauser’s version of the Cinderella character, plays a secondary role in this version of the story. Whereas Cinderella is most often presented as the sympathetic heroine, in Hochhauser’s retelling, Elin is quick to infatuation, married to convention, and resistant to love. Through the flashback scenes, Lady Tremaine underscores her early attempts to endear herself to Elin after marrying her father, Lord Bramley. Despite her desire to show Elin kindness and foster kinship with her daughters, Elin proved disinterested in welcoming her new family into her heart. Over the years, Lady Tremaine has become increasingly disgusted by Elin, frustrated with her refusal to adapt to their altered economic circumstances or pitch in and help the family support themselves, highlighting the novel’s thematic focus on Women’s Survival Within a Rigid Patriarchal System. When Elin shows up at the ball against Lady Tremaine’s wishes, she sees it as the ultimate sign of impertinence and entitlement. She disparages Elin’s belief that the ball could deliver her from Bramley Hall and into a life of royal luxury—even though this is the very thing Lady Tremaine hopes for her own daughters.

While Elin’s character doesn’t experience a full transformation by the novel’s end, she catalyzes change in Lady Tremaine. Via Elin, Lady Tremaine comes to understand her own shortcomings—particularly as a mother. She learns that while love for her biological children is easy, love for her stepdaughter requires more work yet is no less worthwhile. Despite her long-time resentment for Elin, Lady Tremaine rescues her from the prince and welcomes her back home as one of her own.

Henry is Lady Tremaine’s childhood love, her first husband, and Mathilde and Rosamund’s biological father. Because he died when the two were just children, his character features most heavily in the scenes of flashback—where Lady Tremaine reflects on her early life and her romance with her first husband.

In Lady Tremaine’s memory, Henry appears like a mystical creature: the epitome of love, charm, and boyish kindness. When Lady Tremaine was young, she fell in love with Henry when his family would spend summers at their hunting lodge in her village. Henry taught her how to work with falcons and hawks and showed interest in her as a person. She quickly realized how advantageous it would be if Henry were to propose to her, as a marriage to Henry would mean a ready exit from her humble village. In retrospect, Lady Tremaine continues to think of Henry in loving terms—“He was patient,” “He was always ready to laugh,” “He asked for my thoughts,” “He responded in turn” (52). Her reflections set up the contrast between her first marriage and her second, highlighting Hochhauser’s thematic focus on The Tension Between Love and Ambition. Henry’s death also taught her that romantic love is both rare and fleeting and that a young woman should not stake her life on it.