Review: Dark Water: A Little Mermaid Reverse Fairytale by J.A. Armitage

Dark Water: A Little Mermaid Reverse Fairytale by J.A. Armitage
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I received an advanced copy from the author in exchange for an honest review.  This is out already, so go check it out.

I actually took the time to read the original Hans Christian Anderson version of The Little Mermaid so I could speak to the accuracy.  I'm reading a couple of retellings this summer so I figured I should do my homework.

This is a reverse fairy tale retelling of The Little Mermaid. It stays fairly true to the original tale and has its own spin as any retelling should. This young adult tale follows Princess Erica who lives in a seaside kingdom, but she has been kept far away from the ocean for her entire life. Her mother is irrationally afraid of the water, she has a good reason but I won’t spoil why. On her 18th birthday, Erica ends up in the ocean and is rescued by Ari. Ari of course is the merman of her dreams.  The sea witch makes an appearance and the rest of the story, while not the same, kind of plays out like you would expect.

There is insta-love which is not my favorite and with any YA romance we have a lot of teenage drama going on. Overall, it’s not my favorite retelling and I found it fairly predictable and has a lot of YA tropes. That being sayd I liked the magical and fantasy elements and I did like it overall, and as a series it has potential.


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Review: Dorothy Must Die by Danielle Paige

Dorothy Must Die by Danielle Paige
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This is another post I had drafted shortly after I finished the audiobook, but I never posted.  It has been sitting in my drafts folder for quite some time now, so I figured I'd dust it off and post it.  I did finish the entire series and I enjoyed it.

This is a really interesting story. It took me a while to adjust to an Oz where Dorothy is the bad guy. None the less I enjoyed this story. It follows Amy Gumm, a poor girl from Kansas, who's had a not so great life. On a particularly crappy day, Amy is swept away in a magic tornado, much the same way Dorothy was, and finds herself in Oz. Amy sets out down the yellow brick road toward the Emerald City, where she sees some strange things along her journey. When she finally gets to the palace and meets the famous Dorothy, she's surprised to see that Dorothy is not at all like the girl from the movie and the storybook. Upon hearing how Amy arrived to Oz, Dorothy throw's Amy in the dungeon to rot. Amy is rescued by Mambi, a wicked witch, sometime later and joins the Order of the Wicked in exchange for her freedom, but lines between Good and Wicked aren't exactly clear in Oz. Amy begins training to fight and learns magic from the resident Wicked Witches. Eventually Amy infiltrates the palace in an undercover mission to kill Dorothy, but things go wrong, covers are blown, and Amy questions her role in the Order of the Wicked. All she knows is Dorothy and her entourage has got to go, but she missed her chance to end things once and for all, but the fight isn't over and Amy is willing to do what needs to be done, but at what cost?

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Review: Spindle Fire by Lexa Hillyer

Spindle Fire by Lexa Hillyer
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This is a very unique retelling of Sleeping Beauty. It has alot more action than the tale that most of us know and the fae have a much larger albeit darker part in the story. Aurora is the princess, who as expected falls asleep by a prick of a spinning wheel when she turns 16, this is all part of the story we know. Much of the rest of the story diverges from the beginning, Aurora cannot speak or feel, as the fae took her speech and ability to feel when she was a baby. The fae all have tithes that they take from humans to maintain and increase their magic. Aurora has a half-sister Isabelle who is blind, but her blindness doesn't keep her from being adventurous. The sisters are best of friends, yet Isabelle or Isbe for short, has always been made to feel inadequate and unworthy. When it comes time for Aurora's 16th birthday and impending wedding, Isbe is to be sent away to a convent. Ever the rebel, Isbe runs away and finds her own adventure. Aurora tries to go after her sister to make amends but finds the spinning wheel instead, and upon pricker her finger she finds herself in another world created by a faerie that everyone has long thought to be dead. Trapt in this dream world, Aurora must decipher the puzzle to not only find her way out but help the other people trapped in the Night Faerie's dream world. Back in the real world, Isbe finds that her sister and everyone in their kingdom has fallen ill with a sleeping sickness. She turns to a neighboring nation to find an ally and hopefully Aurora's true love to break the spell and wake her sister. Of course both sisters find a handsome boy to accompany them on their adventures.

The pacing of the story was a bit slow for my liking. I attribute part of that to the fact that the story jumps around through multiple perspectives. We get several different faerie perspectives and both Aurora and Isabelle's perspectives. The timeline doesn't feel cohesive either, sometimes we are in the past and we are in the present. I wish the backstory of the faerie sisters Malfluer and Belcour was a bit more cohesive. We get some of the information, but I felt like there was so much left out and I'm left wanting more of an explanation of their magic, their broken bond, and a hint at what needs to happen next. I'm just left kind of confused.

Overall, I think this was a decent first installment, and definitely a unique take on Sleeping Beauty. There is alot going on, and there is alot of unfinished business at the end. I'm anxious to see where the next installment takes us.  I have an ARC of Winter Glass which comes out in April, so look for that review to be posted soon.

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Review: Little Boy Lost (The Librarian #1) by Eric Hobbs

Little Boy Lost by Eric Hobbs
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for my honest review.  I'm not sure how I got on Eric Hobbs' email list, but I'm glad I did.  This book has been on my Amazon wishlist for a while now.  It showed up as a recommendation for fans of the Percy Jackson books.  I jumped on the chance to review books 1 & 2.  I need to get to book 2 so I can find out what happens.  This was a quick and enjoyable read.  Eric was nice enough to send me an autographed copy as well which I'm super excited to put with my actual books.  I highly recommend this for middle grade readers.  I think my 7 and 9 year old would really love this series.  They love watching Once Upon a Time with me on TV and seeing all the fairy tale character retellings.  I would highly recommend it for young readers who like adventure stories in a fantasy setting.

I enjoyed this book, and I'm anxious to get to book 2. Hobbs blends some of our favorite children's stories into this tale but gives them a distinct twist. Our main character Wesley finds himself on a field trip to tour a local library. Also on the trip are his best friend Taylor and worst enemy Randy. Wesley is regularly bullied by Randy and his crew of goons, while Taylor is always sticking up for him and telling him to stand up for himself. Wesley and Taylor break away from the history lesson on the tour and end up learning that the historical library is more than it seems. There are some truly magical things hiding in its walls. Randy's father is also on the trip with the class, but it turns out he wants to demolish the historical library and all its magic. While trying to stay out of Randy and his father's sights, Wesley finds himself drawn to a strange painting of Neverland. He also runs into Locke, who happens to be one of Peter Pan's Lost Boy's from Neverland. Locke is looking for the mysterious Librarian.

Wesley, Locke, and Taylor can't find the Librarian, but they do discover that Locke must get back to his own story. The kids end up in Oz and learn that once a story is written, it must not be changed. Taylor won't be swayed though and she is determined to help the Tin Man find his true love. If you know the rules of time travel, they kind of apply here, you don't mess with the timeline or it will have consequences. Eventually the kids face off with Randy and his dad to get the Neverland key back so Locke can go back. The find the Librarian and face off with the Headless Horseman. Wesley who is almost irritatingly weak throughout the story, finds his inner strength and starts to stand up for himself. He gets tired of being pushed around all the time which is a good lesson for young readers especially if they are in a similar situation with a kid like Randy. Locke heads back to Neverland, but Wes, Taylor, and the Librarian are left in the real world to deal with the mess they've made. The story ends with a bit of a cliffhanger, but not a bad one. I kind of saw it coming.

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Review: Charm (A Cinderella reverse fairytale) by J.A. Armitage

Charm (A Cinderella reverse fairytale) by J.A. Armitage
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I received an ARC of this book from the author via instafreebie in exchange for an honest review.  This is out tomorrow, I recommend grabbing a copy if you like fairy tale retellings.

I really enjoyed this Cinderella retelling, but in reverse. It is like Cinderella meets the Selection, and I really liked the original fairy tale elements that the author wove into the story but with a new twist. Main character Charmaine must find a husband, much like the prince from the original fairy tale we all know. Charmaine isn't interested in getting married, becoming queen, or palace politics like her other sisters. Charmaine wants to read and explore and be comfortable. Tragedy has befallen her family and leaving Charmaine next in line, and duty calls for her to find a husband at the ball and hold a wedding that her parents have already started planning. Never really one to play by the rules, Charmaine finds herself in the kitchens after hours with a kitchen hand named Cynder. Cynder is a mage, who can use magic with the aid of a wand, but magic is highly regulated and pretty much illegal in the kingdom of Silverwood. Cynder and Charmaine become fast friends during their nightly cooking and dishwashing sessions. As the 100 suitors chosen by her parents begin to arrive, Charmaine finds herself wishing she could spend more time with Cynder than anyone else. After narrowing the men down from 100 to 5, Charmaine must decide who stays and who goes. As she gets to know the gentlemen, she also learns the reason the Magi are so restricted in society and why her mother and father have kept that information from her. When more and more strange things start to happen and the palace wrongfully blame the Magi for the violent acts, Charmaine realizes that she can use her royal position and the man she marries to make changes in the world. Things don't exactly go according to plan, and Charmaine finds herself not only fighting for love, but for her people.

I loved this. If you like fairy tales, Cinderella, or the Selection this is the book for you. Cinderella is one of my favorite tales and I loved the Selection. This unique retelling is well written, and kept me on my toes until the end. I can't wait until book 2 to see where things go next.  It comes out in December and I'll be patiently waiting.  This is the first book I've read by J.A. Armitage, but you can bet I'll be checking out more of her stuff.