The Little Selkie by K.M. Shea, 2015

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Dylan—a selkie—makes a terrible mistake when she brashly chases an evil sea witch onto land. Captured and stripped of her pelt—leaving her unable to return to the sea in her sea lion body—Dylan’s only chance of survival is to serve as the sea witch’s tool. Instead of allowing the sea witch to use her selkie ability to control water, Dylan asks a wandering enchantress to seal her voice, rendering her unable to use her selkie magic. Stranded—with no allies and no way to contact her family—Dylan fears she will never successfully steal her pelt back.
Luckily, Dylan is not alone. She is befriended by Prince Callan, a kind, human prince whose country is being pulverized by the sea witch. Combining the strength of humans and the intelligence of the selkies, the pair unites to save their people.
But when the storm is over will Dylan choose to stay with Callan, or return to the sea and leave him behind…forever?

(274 pages)

Despite my love for fairytale retellings, and my penchant for devouring Shea's books, it's taken me a while to get through this series. It's probably because I've read so many retellings by this point that I've gotten pretty picky, and I got frustrated by a couple books feeling a bit too predictable and cheesy. Whatever the reason, I seem to have mostly gotten over it: I downloaded a bunch of these books onto my phone with Kindle Unlimited and have been gobbling them up like potato chips all week.

Why am I reviewing The Little Selkie, out of all of the books in this series? Simple: because I love Dylan. I love how foreign she feels throughout the book, the way it's impossible to ever forget that she's a magical, inhuman sea being. She has no frame of reference for human behaviour, and even when she's been on land for a while she still holds onto this unique essence. I loved the way she genuinely didn't care about fancy clothes, and completely ignored the catty remarks from the mean girls at court. Her obsession with food is endearing, and I chuckled every time Callan held his hand out to her and she frantically searched her surroundings for a present to put into it. Overall, she's just a really fun character to follow around.

As for Callan, he's a pretty bog-standard fairytale prince. I liked his sense of humour, and the way he delights in Dylan exactly the way she is. It was cute watching him trick her into wardrobe fittings by feeding her a steady stream of new human foods which kept her utterly distracted. I didn't get much out of the scenes told from his point of view, though, and to be honest I kind of felt like most of his feelings and decisions were just whatever was best from a plot perspective.

The other two main characters are Callan's best friends: a flamboyant member of the nobility and his very beleaguered assistant. I already returned the book so I can't look up their names, which is a shame because they were a really fun part of the story. They're not-so-secretly in love with each other, but class differences make the assistant hesitant to admit her feelings for him. So he spends the entire story making over-dramatic romantic gestures, which are invariably met with an admonishment about his irresponsible spending habits. They make a cute couple and I hope I get to see more of them in another book.

All in all, it's a cute book which definitely has its flaws but is a fun read nonetheless. I'm a sucker for Little Mermaid retellings, and this one is no exception. What is your favourite retelling of The Little Mermaid?

The Autumn Fairy by Brittany Fichter, 2017

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Katrin knows little about her origins, but whatever she is, it's certainly not human.On an island where humans have banned magic and hunt all who possess it, the dark power within her has become too strong to hide. With each passing day, the threat grows. For if she cannot master her terrifying abilities soon, everyone around her will suffer. And that's something she cannot accept.

While Katrin is willing to sacrifice herself to save others, Peter, her childhood friend and protector, is not. But when he promises to save her at all costs, jeopardizing his own kingdom in return, he finds that his failure will mean either Katrin’s death or the isle’s doom.

And if unraveling the source of Katrin’s power isn’t difficult enough, a mysterious and powerful stranger from the forest reveals that he has plans of his own for Katrin…and the rest of the isle.

To protect their home, Katrin and Peter must face not only their worst fears about who and what they are but their true feelings for one another as well. For if they don't, everything they love will perish...

(538 pages)

    I'd give this a solid "meh". I was initially really excited about the premise, with the girl who doesn't know who/what she is and the boy who is incredibly loyal to her.

    And in many ways, it lived up to my expectations. I loved the way Katrin started the book in a terrible place, feeling abandoned and abused by everyone she'd ever known and horrified of her own abilities. It takes her a really long time to learn more about herself, and she is fully convinced that she is a monster just waiting to kill.

    I also loved her childhood relationship with Peter, and the way they clearly have such an incredibly deep bond. Childhood friends-to-lovers is one of my absolute favourite romance stories, and this one was particularly strong.

    However, as more and more pages went by, I wound up getting increasingly frustrated with it. For one thing, the eventual plot dump of Katrin's powers, and the characters who explained stuff to her, wasn't as exciting as it could have been. It was okay, though - mostly because I was at least curious about her powers. What I really got sick of was all of the side characters I had no investment in. Peter has like six knights he travels with, and we waste way too much time getting to know them. Plus Peter's quest in the later part of the book is pretty boring; every time I was reading about it, I really just wanted to go back to Katrin.

    I actually spent most of the book way more invested in Katrin than in Peter, and I think that's because I was just really frustrated with Peter. He may clearly be halfway in love with Katrin throughout the book, but he doesn't acknowledge it at all and instead spends most of the book seeing zero problems with his plans to have her just hang around him while he's married to another woman. A woman who is clearly a terrible, manipulative person. Which he doesn't see for way too long.

    Plus, the phrase "she's like a sister to me" is used way too many times in this book. It's one thing to say it once or twice toward the beginning of the story, to show how oblivious to their feelings their characters are about their feelings, but it's a bit gross to see Peter say stuff like that throughout most of the book. I guess the only redeeming factor is that he doesn't have any actual siblings, so he doesn't know how he'd feel toward one. Because reader, he definitely does not have familial feelings toward Katrin.

    Overall, it was an entertaining read which I enjoyed, but it could have been so much more. I think someone should have gone through and chopped out some of those 500 pages. They could have made a much leaner story which would have been a bit less frustrating. I enjoyed it enough, though, that I do plan to pick up the other two books in the series. Keep an eye out for those reviews.

Pearl of Magic: A Little Mermaid Romance by Emily Deady, 2020

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 Life in captivity is horrible.

 But pretending to be a prisoner is worse.

 Aizel is a Majis and, against her will, a spy. She is supposed to be uncovering secrets for a cruel king, but spends most of her time listening to the haughty, self-absorbed musings of her captor, Prince Erich.

 It would be much less frustrating if she could at least complain about it, but the king has silenced her, taking away her voice so that she cannot wield her magic.

 If she fails to gather information from Erich, her family will be killed. But if she reports back to the king, her people's only hope for freedom will be exterminated. Can she find a way to communicate with her captor and convince him of the truth about the Majis?

(259 pages)

    I've been on a huge fairytale retelling kick lately, and I really enjoyed Deady's take on Cinderella and Beauty & the Beast in the first two books in this series. I was excited for Pearl of Magic because it can be taken in so many interesting directions.

    The first couple pages were very confusing to get into, because there was no recap to bring us back up to speed. I actually had to flip back to the earlier books to remind myself of the countries and characters that have already been established, and to verify that Erich is a younger siblings of the two princes in the earlier books. I also got muddled between the two countries on the mainland.

    Once I got all that straightened out, though, I really enjoyed this interesting take on the Little Mermaid story. It was interesting to explore a scenario where the prince knows she's being forced not to talk, and her voice has been taken from her as a way to take away her magic. I'm also really glad Deady didn't go with the Ursula plotline of an imposter almost stealing the little mermaid's man, because you really have to bend over backward to make it plausible.

    Both Erich and Aizel are fun characters to follow. Erich sometimes felt a bit tropey to me, like a carefully selected collection of personality traits rather than a fully-fleshed person. I thought the shift in his attitude toward Aizel and the Majis was pretty realistic, as he spent more and more time learning who she was through daily interactions. Their growing relationship is a cute thing to watch, and I enjoyed their interactions and wished there were more of them. I did feel like the climax was a bit rushed, though.

    As for Aizel, her development was much more fleshed out than Erich's - which makes sense, since most of the book is told from her perspective. There is a decent amount of nuance to her, especially around her ethical struggles. The king is holding her little sister's life hostage, and says he'll only spare her if Aizel kills Erich. I liked watching her really wrestle with this challenge, questioning whether she's the sort of person who could kill anyone - even to save a loved one - but also desperate to do whatever it takes to save her sister. My only qualm about Aizel is that I didn't necessarily see how her personality was especially suited to Erich's; she spends most of the book stressed out, terrified, and/or furious. She doesn't have much of a chance to discuss hobbies or life philosophies or anything with him, because she's literally muted.

    Overall, this was a cute book which I enjoyed reading. I think my favorite book in the series must still be Thorn of Rose, the Beauty & the Beast retelling. And my all-time favorite Little Mermaid retelling is definitely still A.G. Marshall's Princess of Mermaids. But this is a fun read that I do recommend to anyone looking for a nice fairytale retelling.

Brave Red, Smart Frog by Emily Jenkins, 2017

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Step into a wintry forest where seven iconic fairy tales unfold, retold with keen insight and touches of humor.
There once was a frozen forest so cold, you could feel it through the soles of your boots. It was a strange place where some kisses broke enchantments and others began them. Many said witches lived there -- some with cold hearts, others with hot ovens and ugly appetites -- and also dwarves in tiny houses made of stones. In this icy wood, a stepmother might eat a girl's heart to restore her own beauty, while a woodcutter might become stupid with grief at the death of his donkey. Here a princess with too many dresses grows spiteful out of loneliness, while a mistreated girl who is kind to a crone finds pearls dropping from her mouth whenever she speaks. With empathy and an ear for emotion, Emily Jenkins retells seven fairy tales in contemporary language that reveals both the pathos and humor of some of our most beloved stories. Charming illustrations by Rohan Daniel Eason add whimsical details that enhance every new reading.

(104 pages)

Like most people, I've always loved fairy tales. There's something really magical about reading the stories that have been honed through generations of telling and retelling, where magic exists and it usually teaches a lesson and bad people/decisions wind up in terrible trouble. I haven't read all the original tales, but I had a storybook when I was little that told the "true" stories in a pretty way without putting too much emphasis on the gore. I always liked those versions more than the Disney ones.

That's why I chose to review Brave Red, Smart Frog. I did indeed know six of them in some form or another (though my version of the woodcutter who gets three wishes involved a river spirit throwing increasingly-ornate axes onto the bank); the only one that was completely unfamiliar was "The Three Great Noodles," which was actually a really cool story. It may well have been my favorite from the collection, and not just because it was the only new one for me!

I do like these retellings; they stick with the original material but cut out the worst parts and very cleverly fill in some of the logic gaps left by the originals. They also feature familial relationships that are much more realistic than the ones usually described in the fairy tales (full of dysfunction, yes, but also love). However, I wish the stories were longer–they each take up about 13 pages or so, a shortness that I'm just not used to anymore. I suppose this is good for kids listening to the stories at bedtime, but it leaves me wishing for more!

If you like fairy tale retellings, then Brave Red, Smart Frog might be what you're looking for. I can't say that it stands head and shoulders above all the other fairy tale retellings out there, because it doesn't really, but I can say that I enjoyed it and I'm sure others will as well. It doesn't have many illustrations, which is a pity, but the stories are told very well. Jenkins put together a very nice collection!

Disclaimer: I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for my honest review.

The Fairy-Tale Matchmaker by E.D. Baker, 2014

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Cory is a young tooth fairy in training who wants to be anything but that, except there's no way the Tooth Fairy Guild or her mother will let that happen. After yet another bad night on the job, Cory quits to explore other things—like babysitting an adventurous Humpty Dumpty, helping Suzy organize seashells by the seashore, and attempting to finally rid the spiders that plague Marjorie Muffet. But it isn't until Marjorie asks Cory to help set her up with a boy that Cory taps into a power she never knew she had. As she tries to understand her new-found romantic visions, will Cory finally discover her own true path?
Just as she did with her Wide-Awake Princess series, E. D. Baker spins a tale that is poised to launch her to the top of the fairy tale canon with a new series that fans of Gail Carson Levine and Diana Wynne Jones.

(352 pages)

When I originally saw this coming out, I thought it looked really dumb. I mean, a book about a girl who goes around setting up couples? How dumb would that be? I barely scanned the synopsis before clicking away, and never even gave it a try.

Until a week ago, when I saw it sitting on a library shelf and grabbed it because, well, I might as well because it was there anyway. When I got it home and started reading, I realized that I'd made a mistake: The Fairy-Tale Matchmaker was nothing like what I'd expected to be - and it was much the better for it.

After all, just for starters Cory's world is really fascinating. I read a lot of fairy-tale mashups, but this has to be one of my favorites. I mean, a world where people communicate by basket mail (which is just like texting, but way cooler) and various fairy-tale characters and stereotypes are all mixed together in a magical land that lives next to but is completely separate from the human world.

Another great thing about The Fairy-Tale Matchmaker is that it's realistic (if the word can ever be applied to fairytale mashups) - Cory is an adult trying to find a job that suits her, and she bounces around doing odds and ends in the meantime. There's a beauty in watching the little random things come together in new ways, as by the end of the book Cory's found ways to make almost everyone's life a little bit better by introducing them to other people she's encountered in her wanderings. I like to think that this same sort of falling into place can happen in real life, though I know that's not always the case.

My biggest trouble with the book, honestly, is the ending. Once things get a little darker for Cory and she starts uncovering the hardcore secrets her mother kept from her the book lost some of its appealing rationalism. There's a certain appeal in what happens, though, and I think that it just depends on what sort of mood you're in when you read it. For me it worked, though just barely, and I was interested enough in the turn things took that I immediately went and requested the sequel. I haven't gotten around to reading it yet, but I'll be sure to post a review once I do!

The Enchanted Wood by Edith Blyton, 1939

Joe, Beth and Franny move to the country and find an Enchanted Wood right on their doorstep. In the magic Faraway Tree live the magical characters that soon become their new friends – Moon-Face, Silky the fairy, and Saucepan Man. Together they visit the strange lands (the Roundabout Land, the Land of Ice and Snow, Toyland and the Land of Take What You Want) atop the tree and have the most exciting adventures – and narrow escapes.


The Enchanted Wood was absolutely one of my favorite books when I was younger. I haven't read it in a while, but I just noticed it on my shelf and thought I'd go for it and review them. Who wouldn't want to find a magic tree that has a magic land at the top which switches periodically? I could practically quote large sections of this book from memory, and I have to say that to this day, if I could pick anywhere to have a birthday party, I would pick Birthday Land. No question.

When I was at the prime age for reading the Faraway Tree series we couldn't get any of the sequals (turns out that outside of Switzerland - where my parents bought our copy of Enchanted Wood - they're pretty hard to get!), and I didn't get them until one memorable Christmas a few years later when I received not only the two other Faraway Tree books, but the Magical Rocking Chair (or whatever it's called), too! I remember enjoying seeing the kids again, but it was the first book that won my heart. Faraway Tree is full of fairies, mean old ladies, giants, and more. But the children are at the heart of the story, those delightful little kids who found the tree on a picnic and had lots of adventures while their parents smiled and waved them off from behind (yes, it's that kind of book). But they also did their chores, even getting held back from going to the tree because they have to work in the garden, etc. At one point they go to a great big market with almost everything, and besides a few more quirky purchases they obtain a new garden spade and a goat for their mother. They aren't the generic Mary Sue, but they are sweet, dutiful children who made me secretly yearn to live in a little cottage near a big forest.

And Moon Face. Who can forget Moon Face? Or Sylvia? I loved the characters so much when I was younger, and I'm just now thinking about them for the first time in years. These books probably fed my love of reading more than almost any other book (besides Narnia, my first love). Give them to your daughters, your sons, your nieces and nephews. As soon as they can read, offer this book to them. Please.

And read it yourself while you're at it!

P.S. Sorry about the low quality cover pic, it was the only one I could find of the copy I own. The other covers are a little too tacky-looking for my taste.