Tag: Fairy Tales

Review: The Festival of Hungry Ghosts by Stephen Frame

~ likelystory18 ~ 2 Comments

Synopsis:

He was a big bad wolf, and he left Fairyland in 1929 to go work as a private detective in Los Angeles. He’s got a new case he doesn’t want; finding the kidnapped son of a local crime lord. He’s got a new partner he doesn’t trust; a chaotic female gangster who likes dames, booze, and bullets. Those are just the start of his problems. There are monsters in his way. And not all of them are human.

Favorite Lines:

“The love of my family sustains me.”

“She enjoys life too much to be worrying about heaven.”

My Opinion:

I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for my honest opinion.

When I received the request for this book, I thought it sounded really intriguing. A spin off of a classic fairy tale featuring the big bad wolf as a private detective; what’s not to love? This story follows the big bad wolf – or BB – as a private detective in LA and he isn’t as big or bad as the fairy tales make him seem; at least not to those on his good side. From the first paragraph, I knew this was going to be a good read. I felt pulled in by the conversational flow of the writing and was hooked before I knew it.

I thought the premise of this story was really interesting, I enjoyed the plot as well as the creative characters that were brought to life on the page. Frame did a great job at combining culture, fairytales, and a variety of themes in an entertaining tale that had me chuckling throughout.

Summary:

Overall, I was pleasantly surprised with this book. Don’t be thrown off or misled by the cover, if you like a twist on classic fairy tales, action, adventure, and/or cop dramas (or in this case private detective dramas), then this book could be for you! Happy reading!

The Festival of Hungry Ghosts

 

Review: The Happy Ending by Mandy Zundel

~ likelystory18 ~ Leave a comment

Synopsis:

The land of Anvara is a land where fairy tales are real. Because of a powerful spell on the land called the Happy Ending, the same tales are lived over and over again, with a few new additions from time to time. Each of these tales always ends the same way–happily.

Cinderella, Jack and the Beanstalk, and Sleeping Beauty have begun again, along with a new tale for the land: The Twelve Dancing Princesses. Their courses are set with their endings as sure as their beginnings. Until the Happy Ending breaks.

Confused and frightened, the citizens of Anvara must adjust to a new reality, one where things can go horribly wrong, the familiar tales are not following their usual patterns, and there is no certainty of a happy ending for anyone.

But this is not all. The breaking of the Happy Ending has uncovered a secret that has been waiting to be revealed for thousands of years. And all of this time, Darkness has been waiting for its chance to strike.

Favorite Lines:

“But being cheerful and carefree was not easy.”

“Sighing in frustration, Darya pushed her thoughts away from all of the what ifs and should haves. This kind of thinking would not do any of them any good.”

My Opinion:

I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for my honest opinion.

When Zundel requested a review for this book, I thought it sounded cute and had similar enough to Once Upon a Time that I knew I had to read it. This story follows four fairy tales in a land that always has happy endings…until it doesn’t. Readers follow along as characters in the fairy tales realize that what they thought were blessings for happy endings were actually a curse and the happy endings they thought they were getting were actually weakening them. They have to put aside their differences and work together if they want any chance at real happiness while also learning what real happiness even is.

I thought the characters were well written and the plot had me seriously invested. This book has a lot of themes and lessons that I think can be enjoyed by any age group but I could especially see it being enjoyed by young adults. As I mentioned previously, this gave me Once Upon a Time vibes so if you are a fan of the show, I am sure you will enjoy this.

Summary:

Overall, I thought this was a really creative idea and Zundel did a great job at executing it. If you like fantasy and fairytales retellings with a twist, then this book could be for you. Happy reading!

The Happy Ending