The Queen’s Hidden Legacy (Prequel to the River Kelpies series) by Shonna Slayton

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How do you know who can be trusted?

The Queen has given the fairy Morag a huge job: save her twin babies from the danger arising from the battle with the kelpies. Some of the kingdom believes that the baby prince and princess should be sacrificed to the kelpies so the battle will cease. The Queen is terrified this or something else will happen to her babies. She’s dying from a lung disease and knows she won’t be alive much longer. She’s relying on Morag to get her babies to safety and out of the kingdom. The Queen also wants this task to be done secretly by Morag alone. Morag has an injured wing and knows she can’t accomplish this without help. She’s relying on her instincts to know who she can trust without putting the babies in danger.

Likes/dislikes: I enjoyed this prequel to Rise of the Kelpies. The main character, Morag, and the queen both show great strength and bravery. Shonna Slayton is an author who writes clean reads, which is appreciated.
Mature content: G
Language: G
Violence: PG for kidnapping and danger.
Ethnicity: falls to white.

The Forest Grimm by Kathryn Purdie

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Twisted fairytales!

Clara is determined to save her lost mother from the Forest Grimm where she wandered into three years ago. Her best friends Axel and Henni join Clara and they want to save Henni’s lost sister also. The Forest Grimm changed when a curse happened in Grimm Hollow and twisted the magic that used to be helpful to the villagers. The three are in danger of becoming lost themselves because the Forest moves and changes. They are surrounded by creatures who want to cause them harm. They can only trust each other and hope that trust is enough to save them.

Likes/dislikes: Axel’s gift for finding silver linings in any situation is charming. I enjoyed the story of the young ghost, Ollie. It adds a bit of spookiness and melancholy. The author wove a creepy tale of twisted magic.
Mature content: PG for kissing.
Language: PG for 3 swears.
Violence: PG for death.
Ethnicity: falls to white.

Beastly Beauty by Jennifer Donnelly

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A great reminder to live life and write your own story!

19yo Beau rides with a group of thieves who saved his life and expects him to earn his way by stealing, even though he only wants to get away and retrieve his younger brother Matti from the orphanage. 18yo Arabella is a daughter of a Duke, living in a cursed castle with a dangerous beast that appears at midnight. When Beau and his group arrive at the castle, no one is around but the dining table is set for a feast. They eat until a beast arrives, then run, leaving Beau behind. What Beau finds, as he’s trapped in the castle, changes his life forever.

Likes/dislikes: The story contains good messages. The clever names of the court ladies were fun to figure out. The romance could have been more developed.
Mature Content: PG for kissing.
Language: R for 83 swears and no f-words.
Violence: PG-13 for bloody fighting.
Ethnicity: Beau is Spanish and Arabella is white.

Curses by Lish McBride

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Wonderfully descriptive and charming characters!

17yo Merit is cursed to be a beast until she agrees to marry someone who her mother approves of. She meets 19yo Tevin, a professional conman, and they strike a bargain. Merit’s mother has set her up with three worthy candidates and Tevin is going to help Merit navigate their intentions because she doesn’t trust her instincts after being jilted by her boyfriend Jasper. Jasper left Merit after her mother offered him money to leave. Merit feels trapped by her mother and she doesn’t feel anything for the three candidates. As she confides in Tevin, the two of them become friends and more. As they work together, they unknowingly walk into danger and discover deception and they’re going to have to rely on each other more than they realize.

Likes/dislikes: I enjoyed the wonderful descriptions of the setting. The humor is cute and funny. I grew to love the charming characters.
Mature content: PG for brief passionate kissing.
Language: PG for 7 swears and no f-bombs.
Violence: PG-13 for bloody death of an animal.
Ethnicity: Merit is white, other characters are of mixed ethnicity, including fairy.

Beasts and Beauty by Soman Chainani

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Fairytale retellings anthology!

Fairytale retellings in quick snippets!
Cleverly retold fairytale shorts. I think my favorites are the Cinderella and the Hansel and Gretel retellings because they both have wonderful twists in the storyline. 4 stars!

Gilded by Marissa Meyer

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Suspenseful, dangerous and interesting fairytale retelling!

Serilda enjoys creating stories to tell and embellishing the tales every time she retells them. One snowy night, she hears noises outside her house. She dares to go outside and she sees two moss maidens trying to hide from hunters. Serilda helps them hide but lies to the Erlking to keep them safe. He’s intrigued by her story of being able to spin straw into gold so he sends for her to come to his castle. After that, she’s bound to keep going back to the castle because the Erlking won’t let her go. She meets Gild, who the Erlking classifies as a poltergeist. Gild has the gift of magic that allows him to spin straw into gold. He helps Serilda but requires payment in return each time he helps her. The first two times, Serilda gives him the gifts the moss maidens gave her when she saved them from the Erlking. The third time, she offers her future firstborn child as payment. That is the only thing she has to offer. Gild accepts this offer, so his magic will work. Everything grows more complicated and the people Serilda love become endangered. The Erlking is heartless, cold and brutal. He will do whatever it takes to get what he wants.
Gilded is one of the best fairytale retellings I’ve read because Marissa Meyer adds twists and brings original characters to the story. Suspenseful, dangerous and interesting fairytale retelling, 5 stars!

The Bone Spindle by Leslie Vedder

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Fun read!

Fi hunts for books and historical artifacts. She’s been given a message to meet someone for a proposition. That someone is Shane, a treasure hunter that’s given up her inheritance to her brother. The two of them search the vacated woods known as the Witches Jewelry Box. Adventure and action make up most of the story along with the flashbacks and memories that build the characters’ backgrounds. Transitions were sometimes abrupt and jarring and the love between characters didn’t feel truly believable. Still a fun read, 4 stars!

Heartless by Marissa Meyer

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Intrigue, mystery, and adventure!

Catherine loves to bake and wants to be a professional baker but her parents think that baking is servants’ work and they want her to marry the king, even if it’s against her wishes. The king seems very interested in Catherine’s baking and possibly for marriage with her. She’s not remotely interested. Jest, the new joker, fascinates Cath and the two of them develop a relationship. The Jabberwock continues to terrify and attack the people and Cath tells the king that he should be doing something about it. The king happens to be more interested in parties and happy thoughts than the safety of the kingdom. This fairytale retelling is full of intrigue, mystery and adventure as we learn the story of the Queen of Hearts from Wonderland. Enjoyable, suspenseful and heartbreaking, 5 stars!

The Little Mermaid’s Voice by Shonna Slayton

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The Little Mermaid’s Voice by Shonna Slayton
The story opens as the Little Mermaid watches the prince walk away. The sea witch tricked her. Fast forward one hundred years and the mermaids are still suffering from restrictions placed on them because of the Little Mermaid’s actions. She was the present Queen’s sister. Mairin is a daughter of the Queen and she wants to breathe above water but that’s one of the restrictions placed on her people; no going to the surface. An advisor approaches her and gives her the job of going to the surface and tells her how to get to the location where she needs to be. When she arrives she’s told that she has to keep the human prince alive per the agreement made by the Little Mermaid all those years ago. The prince’s descendants have to be kept safe. A finman approaches Mairin and taunts her into listening to his idea to save her kingdom. Go above the surface, make the prince fall in love with her then break his heart by leaving him. This will break the curse and allow the restricted barrier to be broken. Edwin is the descendant that Mairin has to protect and when he boards the Titanic, she has to find a way to get aboard also. What follows is an adventure that takes a dreadful turn. This story meshes fairytale with history, 4 stars!

Beauty’s Rose by Shonna Slayton

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Set in the 1980’s, Beauty’s Rose tells the story of Margot visiting an Aunt in France. Aunt Suzette owns a cozy bookshop in a small French town steeped in traditional tourist attractions, royalty, knights, jousting, and festivals. Margot meets several people her age and enjoys the scenery of Chapais. Burke is an aloof mystery to the town and Sylvain seems to be a player. When Margot starts having dreams involving conversations with a beast, she thinks she’s losing her mind. Aunt Suzette’s friends, who are actually fairies (Clove, Sage, and Thyme), let Margot in on the curse that’s taking over the local prince’s life. Burke and Margot become friends and end up trapped in a hidden mansion together as he transforms into the beast. I was saddened when the story ended because I wanted more! A gentle, contemporary 1980’s fairytale retelling about love, loyalty, and sacrifice.