The Charmed Wife
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From the award-winning author comes a sophisticated literary fairy tale for the twenty-first...
A Grimm Curse (Grimm Tales #3)
8.0
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Long before Andi woke up in a world that was not her own, her grandmother, Cynthia was entangled in...
Fondant Fumble
8.0
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The Fairy Tale Cupcakes crew helps two professional football players in knead when the athletes are...
Sophia (Bookwyrming Thoughts) (530 KP) rated Spelled (The Storymakers, #1) in Books
Jan 23, 2020
Pun intended in that post title.
As the crown princess of Emerald who may be cursed to set the world on fire, Dorthea has been locked in the Emerald Palace since she was born and kept away from anything that could potentially catch fire. When she gets a wishing star, she decides to use it, only to have it completely backfire on her.
<i>Spelled</i> is filled with bits of humor throughout, particularly from the side characters who have quickly become my favorite characters. The main character, on the other hand...
<blockquote>But I really, <i>really</i> don't want to.</blockquote>
Dorthea pretty much annoyed me for a good part of the book. She's snotty, stuck-up, spoiled – gosh, I'm turning that into a tongue twister with so many s-words. She's also whiny – Dorthea spends her time whining and complaining for quite literally a quarter of the book before someone snarks at her and tells her to shut up, grow up, and act like a proper princess (she even had the nerve to say no one else had manners – manners? *flips hair* Ha! Nope!) She's funny at some points, but the majority of her sarcasm seemed more like an attempt at sounding funny rather than actually being as funny as Rexi's use of sarcasm and snark.
<blockquote><b>Bob:</b> No, Priestess. When all his nails are broken, he will die.
<b>Rexi:</b> You can't get a haircut, and he can't get a manicure. Death by salon visit.</blockquote>
I even started wondering if <i>Spelled,</i> as pretty as the cover the book and premise is, would even last. The book isn't strictly a retelling of <i>The Wizard of Oz</i> – there are other fairy tale characters as well. Throwing in other fairy tale characters aren't exactly bothersome in my case, but Schow throws in King Midas and chimeras – both of whom are from <i>Greek mythology</i>, NOT from a fairy tale. Someone please tell me I'm wrong and those two actually appear in a fairy tale, because if they do appear in one, I obviously haven't read enough of the non-gruesome original fairy tales. Or do they actually appear in the gruesome ones? I would love to know.
<i>Spelled</i> could be considered a fun read, if you put aside all of the problems – there's humor, a good premise, and an amazing cast of side characters. But if you don't have the patience to handle a spoiled and stuck-up princess who whines a lot for approximately a quarter of the book, <i>Spelled</i> might not be a book on your radar.
<a href="https://bookwyrmingthoughts.com/arc-review-spelled-by-betsy-schow/"; target="_blank">This review was originally posted on Bookwyrming Thoughts</a>
Merissa (12051 KP) rated Once Upon a Forbidden Desire: Fairy Tales and Other Stories in Books
Sep 13, 2023
With an abundance of new-to-me authors, as well as old favourites, I now have a list of various stories and series that I want to read, based on their stories in this anthology. There was not a single one that let the side down.
This was a fantastic collection of fairy tale retellings, each with its own heat rating at the beginning. I loved every story and thoroughly appreciated the range of various fairy tales to enjoy. Highly recommended by me.
** same worded review will appear elsewhere **
* A copy of this book was provided to me with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book, and the comments here are my honest opinion. *
Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
Aug 19, 2022
Erika (17788 KP) rated Penelope (2006) in Movies
Apr 8, 2018
This movie is legitimately one of my top ten favorite movies.
Penelope is a modern, cute fairy tale about Penelope, who happens to have a pig nose because of a curse.
This movie has a ton of random actors in it: Christina Ricci is the title character. Youngish James McAvoy (<3), Reese Witherspoon, and Peter Dinklage.
Justin Taylor (59 KP) rated Shrek (2001) in Movies
Oct 30, 2018
The cast is great and almost all of the characters are hilarious and the humor is gut hurtingly funny.
One negative is the villain is not that great
Beauty's Release (Sleeping Beauty, #3)
7.0
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In this Anne Rice classic, Beauty's adventures in the hypnotic realm of sexuality make her the bound...
The Dragon and the Nibblesome Knight
Benji Davies and Elli Woollard
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When a kind young boy helps a strange-looking bird, a beautiful friendship forms. But what these two...
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Sjón (author of The Whispering Muse) and . Sjon
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The year is 1883. The stark Icelandic winter landscape is the backdrop. We follow the priest,...