The oldest story can be made new again, changed and altered until it is reimagined and restored.
Pride interferes with happily-ever-afters: a proud princess is tested and tests the prince in return; a young thief is caught red-handed and must make amends; and a vain queen struggles to save her stepdaughter.
Finding love is not a simple task: a hero searches for the ideal magical bride; an innocent librarian is charmed by a man with a menacing secret; a queen takes a spoiled prince as her sole deckhand, and a well-intentioned princess seeks to make things right with her father.
Change causes chaos, for better or worse: a scheming cat seeks to better the lot of his daydreaming master; a cursed pirate captain is given a second chance when he finds a young stowaway; a spoiled teenager suffers the consequences of turning her best friend into a toad, and a thief and a rebel hiding secrets meet at a ball.
Follow these characters on their journeys as eleven magical tales are turned on their heads and seen from new perspectives.
My Review:
Rating: 5 magical stars
I generally prefer to read novels rather than anthologies because it takes really talented authors to weave a tale complete with interesting plot, characters and a satisfying ending within a few thousand words. But the stories in this anthology are really well-written with interesting characters and twists to the old fairy tales. Of course, there were a couple that wasn’t to my taste mostly because of my obsession with HEAs, but even they were really well-written and would appeal to readers who don’t have my quirk π
My favorites from this collection are:
1. The Thief and the Spy by Katelyn Barbee – This was a unique twist on Cinderella with really well-developed characters, intriguing plot and very interesting backstory. Add in the magical talents that certain people of the society have and I was really sucked into the world. I ended up wishing that the author develops this story into a novel so that I could read more about them.
2. Vanity by Kristy Perkins – This was a hilarious take on Snow White where the Queen actually did not plot to kill Snow but had to face the suspicion of her people because of a ‘corset incident’. She actually tries to find Snow White and bring her back, but all her plans are foiled. The ending of the story really blew me away, I never saw that coming π
I also loved the other stories especially, The Scarred Shepherdess, The Veiled Queen, and Monsieur Puss. If you are a fan of fairytale retellings, I highly recommend that you give this a try. I bet you’d love it as I did.
Have you read this anthology already? If so, what’s your favorite story?