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Morgan Sheppard (936 KP) created a post

May 14, 2025  
📖 ARC CALL! ✨

Daffodils and Dreams (Brodyr Alarch #4) is READY! 💙 This fantasy romance is a Little Briar Rose retelling full of dreams, ancient magic, and a love story wrapped in thorns and hope. 🌙🌼

Looking for early readers! Want a copy? Sign up for a chance to dive into a world of magic, adventure, and love - https://forms.gle/jwdFDqs77LD4D2Tu5

Never read the series? I’ve got you covered. ARCs of books 1–3 are available too. 👑

🦢 Welsh-inspired fairytales
đź’« Sweet, slow-burn romance
đź‘‘ Royal brothers & powerful heroines

📚 Let me know if you'd like one—and thank you for supporting indie authors! 💙
     
A Study in Scarlet (The Sherlock Holmes Children's Collection #1)
A Study in Scarlet (The Sherlock Holmes Children's Collection #1)
Arthur Conan Doyle, Stephanie Baudet | 2019 | Children, Comics & Graphic Novels
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Wonderful Retelling For Children
‏I was provided with a complimentary copy of this book so I could give an honest review.

Stephanie Baudet has written over 50 books for children. Among them, The Sherlock Holmes Children's Collection, a retelling of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's brilliant novels for children ages seven and up.

To give a fair and accurate review of the first book in the series, A Study in Scarlet, I read the original novel. I am not going to review Conan Doyle's work at this time. This review deals with Baudet's adaption. Although I will add, those who are not familiar with Holmes and Watson should start the series with this adaption. It introduces the characters when they first meet and agree to move into Baker Street together.

Baudet's adaption is so enjoyable and entertaining, if they were available years ago, I would have bought the entire collection for my children. The drawings are well done. All of the major points in the original work are presented clearly for children to understand and appreciate Conan Doyle's work.

To date, there are 12 adaptions published. None of them are Sir Author Conan Doyle's most famous work, The Hound of the Baskervilles. I appreciate that Baudet adapted his lesser-known work to allow children access to stories they may not have discovered otherwise.

This 200-word review was published on Philomathinphila.com on 5/29/20.
  
His Hideous Heart
His Hideous Heart
Dahlia Adler | 2019 | Fiction & Poetry, Horror, Young Adult (YA)
10
8.5 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
His Hideous Heart is an anthology collection of 13 re-imagined tales inspired by works of Edgar Allan Poe. The book is split into two sections: The Tales Retold and The Original Tales. What I liked about the layout of this collection is that it’s easy for those of us who’ve read the originals to revisit them before or after reading the retold stories — and it’s also convenient for readers who’ve never been introduced to Poe before. When it comes to retellings in any form, catching on to the fact that a story was inspired by another can be a challenge, especially if the inspiration is rather loose. But that’s another reason why I love the layout of this collection: It’s clear as to which original story inspired a retelling, and I loved reading along, connecting the dots and yet, being surprised by all the new twists and turns.

In a perfect world, IÂ’d love to review each and every retelling in this collection, because many of them were downright gorgeous and grotesque. However, my absolute favorites were:

1. ItÂ’s Carnival! by Tiffany D. Jackson
2. Lygia by Dahlia Adler (inspired by “Ligeia”)
3. Happy Days, Sweetheart by Stephanie Kuehn
4. The Glittering Death by Caleb Roehrig

Check out my full review to find out WHY I adored these stories: https://bookishvalhalla.com/his-hideous-heart-by-dahlia-adler-a-poe-etic-review-of-genre-bending-tales/
  
American Crime Story Season 1: The People v. O.J. Simpson
American Crime Story Season 1: The People v. O.J. Simpson
2016 | Biography, Drama, Thriller
Performances are all brilliant (1 more)
The script is great
Gripping TV
This retelling of one of the most high profile American crime investigations in recent history is well acted, well written and gripping throughout. Everyone puts in a great performance, from Cuba Gooding Jr as O.J, David Schwimmer as Robert Kardashian and Sterling K Brown and Sarah Paulson as the prosecuting lawyers.
Whether you think that O.J did what he was accused of is left up to you, but that honestly doesn't really matter here as the show focuses more on the mentality of the main players involved in the case.
If you are a fan of high quality courtroom dramas, then this show is perfect for you.
  
AR
Adam Raccoon and the Circus Master
Glen Keane | 1987
10
10.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Adam Raccoon works every day in the forest with King Aren, but when the circus comes to town one day, Adam is enchanted and decides to run away to join the circus. Will that be a good idea? What will happen if Adam changes his mind?

This picture book is an obvious retelling of Jesus’s parable of the prodigal son, but that isn’t really an issue because the fresh settings gives it fresh life and drive home the point of God’s love and forgiveness anew. The colorful pictures will help hold kid’s attention in this fun book.

Read my full review at <a href="http://carstairsconsiders.blogspot.com/2016/12/book-review-adam-raccoon-and-circus.html">Carstairs Considers</a>.
  
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KarenRC (6 KP) rated Two Steps Forward in Books

Jul 23, 2018  
Two Steps Forward
Two Steps Forward
Anne Buist, Graeme Simsion | 2017 | Fiction & Poetry
8
7.7 (3 Ratings)
Book Rating
This book was a really enjoyable read.
Ultimately a love story, but also a story of loss, dealing with grief, betrayal and personal growth set in a beautiful landscape.
 It was an easy read, despite a slightly slow start and once the characters met, the story seemed to pick up and was certainly more engaging.
I loved the format of the writing, the back and forth between Zoe and Martins stories was done very well and even with the retelling of certain parts from the different perspective, the story moved on perfectly.
The extra characters were also great additions, whilst not detracting from the main story of the two main characters.
I would definitely recommend this book.
  
Goddess of Legend
Goddess of Legend
P.C. Cast | 2019
9
9.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
The characters (0 more)
Inspiring
This was the 2nd book that I read in the Goddess series and it was just as good as the first one I read. I love how strong and thought out the female characters are, how they tend to be more mature women that are still finding themselves rather than the clichéd teen dramas, and the attention to detail that Cast puts into the world building.

This is a retelling of a sorts of the Legend of King Arthur and is simply brilliant. If you enjoy retellings of fairytales and myths then you really must read this series, please note that it isn't for younger readers as it has explicit content.
  
I'm always surprised that the story of Cu Chulainn, The Hound of Ulster, isn't better known; not as well known as, say, The Legend of King Arthur and his Knights, or of Robin Hood and his outlaws.

Based primarily around the Cattle Raid of Cooley at the end of Cu Chulainn's life, this graphic novel is a mythic retelling of that story, split into 6 distinct chapters. Interestingly, nearly every chapter includes a flash-back (shown in gray-scale) to an earlier part of Cu Chulainn's life, taking in how he got that name (from his birth name Setanta) and his training to become a warrior, for example.

Short? Yes.

Did I enjoy this? Also yes.
  
Gerard&#039;s Beauty (Kingdom, #2)
Gerard's Beauty (Kingdom, #2)
Marie Hall | 2012
7
7.0 (5 Ratings)
Book Rating
Beauty and the beast with a twist
A not so classic retelling of Beauty and the Beast, as seen through the eyes of the villain...

Betty Hart has had it with men. Jilted in love, her life now consists of shelving books by day, watching too much Anime by night, and occasionally dressing up like a superhero on ...

The second book in the Kingdom series and for a short read it was pretty good. I enjoy Marie Halls take on the beloved fairy tales bringing them up to date with a bit of spice. Gerard's beauty is a spin on beauty and the beast but with a bit of a twist. An easy but fun read!