Review: "Beguiled" by Jody Hedlund

 Snow White reimagined by Jody Hedlund? Yes, please!

Review: "Beauty and the Baron" by Joanna Barker

It's no secret that I'm a sucker for fairy tale retellings! I've read many retellings of Beauty and the Beast, and even though some have been horrifically terrible, I just can't seem to resist picking up another. So when one of the bookstagrammers I follow posted about Beauty and the Baron, I snapped it up on Kindle Unlimited!

"Beauty" by Robin McKinley

With the release of Disney's new live-action Beauty and the Beast (which I loved), other retellings of the fairy tale are all the rage. I wasn't aware of Robin McKinley's Beauty until it showed up in Modern Mrs. Darcy's Kindle deals list the other day, but as soon as I saw it, I knew I needed to read it!

(Also. If you're not already subscribed to MMD's deals, do it! She's responsible for 90% of my ebook purchases.)

"the princess spy" by melanie dickerson

Who doesn't love a good fairy tale? With their resurgence in popularity, thanks in no small part to Once Upon a Time and Frozen, Melanie Dickerson's retold fairy tales series fits right in.

---

Margaretha has always been a romantic, and she hopes her newest suitor, Lord Claybrook, is destined to be her one true love. But then an injured man is brought to Hagenheim Castle, claiming to be an English lord who was attacked by Claybrook and left for dead. And only Margaretha—one of the few who speaks his language—understands the wild story.

Unable to pass his message on to her father, the duke, Margaretha convinces herself “Lord Colin” is just an addled stranger. But when Colin asks her to spy on Claybrook as repayment for retrieving a lost heirloom, Margaretha discovers that she might be very wrong about both Colin and her potential betrothed.

---

In The Princess Spy, Melanie Dickerson takes "The Frog Prince" and adapts it into a compelling novel about deceit, treachery, faith, and love. After reading three or so pages, I was completely hooked. The point of view shifts between Margaretha and Colin, and it's nice to see the events developing from both of their perspectives. Their relationship is sweet, moving first to friendship, then to love.

The villain is sufficiently evil, and the danger is real, yet nothing is graphically described, making this novel appropriate for even young teens. Adults, too, will enjoy this novel. It's one of the only YA novels I've read that I can wholeheartedly recommend to everyone.

Some of the protagonists of Dickerson's other novels appear in The Princess Spy, but I didn't discover this until I'd finished reading. I had no knowledge of her other novels when I read this one, and it functions completely as a stand alone novel. But now I would like to go back and read the others in the series—if they're anything like The Princess Spy, reading them would be time well spent! 5 stars.

See what others are saying.
Buy the book.
Learn more about Melanie Dickerson and her novels.

---

Melanie Dickerson is the author of The Healer’s Apprentice, a Christy Award finalist and winner of the National Reader’s Choice Award for Best First Book. Melanie earned a bachelor’s degree in special education from the University of Alabama and has been a teacher and a missionary. She lives with her husband and two daughters in Huntsville, Alabama.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookLook blogger program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. Also, some of the links in the post above are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase an item, I will receive an affiliate commission. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

"cinderella goes to the potty" by justin blaney

About the book (from Litfuse):

An Isfits book.

Isfits . . . postmodern fairy tales and cautionary confessions.

Cinderella scratched a new line on the wall every night when the clock struck twelve. For 999 nights, she'd sworn to herself that she wouldn't stay long enough to see 1000. Cinderella heard the old man and the old woman clunking up the stairs. The clock began to chime. Cinderella was out of time. She had a decision to make---the kind of decision that could change her life or take it from her.

What Is Isfits?

A cast of characters sampled from icons of adolescence, re-imagined.

A graphic novel, like you've never seen before.

This eBook is 1/6th the full length graphic novel. Read it in about 5 minutes. Enjoy for years.

My take: Bizarre. That's my first reaction following reading Cinderella Goes to the Potty. I love the illustrations, and the concept—a twist on classic fairy tales—is fun. But it's also a very strange and dark graphic novel (kind of Tim Burton-esque), and I'm not sure how appropriate it is for children. I would be interested in reading more of these Isfits graphic novels, but I wouldn't read them to young children. (I'd say they're for ages 12 and up.)

My rating: 3-1/2 stars

See what others are saying.
Buy the book.
Join the Isfits launch team. 
Support the Kickstarter project.

About the author: Justin Blaney is the author of the Amazon bestseller Evan Burl and the Falling which reached the #1 position in fantasy, teen and thriller categories. His latest project is "Isfits," a series of graphically illustrated postmodern fairytales and cautionary confessions for young adults. The stories follow the adventures of a cast of characters based on icons of adolescence placed in a darkly-humored world of blissful brokenness where they possess the power to affect cultural and personal change in the real world. Blaney is the founder of Innovate for Jesus (www.I4J.org) and Inkliss, a film production company. He lives outside Seattle with his wife and three daughters.

Learn more about Justin at www.JustinBlaney.com

About the giveaway:

Hello! I'm partnering with Justin Blaney to help him spread the word about his fun new book series, Isfits.

He's launching the series with a Kickstarter campaign---he wants to turn these fun/unique stories into full-color, hardback, glossy-paged books.

Who's Justin? Justin Blaney is a virtuoso. He does a little of everything, but one of the coolest things he does (besides writing amazing stories) is run an organization called Innovate for Jesus (resources for pastors, ministry leaders, non profits, authors, etc.). The site features people like Francis Chan, Rick Warren, Pete Wilson, Matt Chandler, Mary DeMuth, and more.

Besides the super cool graphics, what is special about Isfits? Justin is releasing his Isfits series in the general kids book market rather than as Christian releases. His hope is to spread the gospel message to children who aren't normally exposed to Christian content.

What Is Isfits?

• Postmodern fairytales & cautionary confessions
• A cast of characters sampled from icons of adolescence, re-imagined.
• A completely new genre of fiction. Since that's hard to describe, let's call it a graphic novel like you've never seen before.
• Nearly 200 original designs, optimized for inspirational display in your home, office, prison cell, igloo, or hut.

Click here for more information. If you'd like to sign up to review the first book in the series, Cinderella Goes to the Potty (It's a five-minute read! You'll love it!), email info {at} litfusegroup {dot} com (and be entered to win $100 Amazon.com gift card!).  And if you'd like to learn more and support Justin's Kickstarter, GO HERE.


Disclosure of Material Connection: I received a pdf of this book free from Litfuse Publicity Group. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."