Fairytales Revisited.  Who doesn’t love a good fairytale, especially modern retellings?  If you’re struggling to find time to read a novel at the moment, give the two stories below a go for a fun and fast read.

The Beast in the Mirror by Lauralynn Elliott

If you like the old Beauty and the Beast fairytale you’ll enjoy this modern version.

Cursed by a witch for rejecting her advances, Christopher transforms from free-spirited womanizer to lonely recluse, deeply ashamed of the face he sees reflected in the mirror every day.   Having recently moved from the US to a tiny town in England, Rose is drawn daily to the same place, the shadowy crumbling ruins she feels compelled to paint from all different angles, at all times of the day.  She is unaware of the figure watching her from within the ruins, and falling for her more each time she visits. When Christopher finally makes himself known to her, they begin a friendship on different sides of the wall, awaiting the day Christopher works up the courage to show Rose his “scars”.

Beautiful prose flows effortlessly from the page, ahem computer screen. This story has such an old world feel to it that I read with surprise references to the movies, the local art gallery and Christopher’s cell phone.  I had been imagining a land far far away, a long time ago!   The Beast in the Mirror is a charming little story that you can read in half an hour over a cup of tea.

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Happily Ever After by Edward H. Carpenter

Ever wish that Snow White, Cinderella and the rest of the heroines from fairytales would just quit telling their sob stories?  Want to hear from the “evil stepmother’s” side instead? I know I do, especially since watching Wicked in London’s West End.  That Dorothy was such a brat!

I loved the writing style of this story immediately; Carpenter is one witty writer.  We meet the Queen as a young Princess and follow her path to villain/adulthood.  She’s devious, ruthless and oh so delightfully evil, but no more so than many male leaders that dominate the history books, as the author points out in his note at the end of his story.   In this tale, we learn that Snow White was the original owner of the magic mirror, vain little thing, tsk tsk.  Hansel and Gretel may have escaped the gingerbread house but they didn’t get very far after that, thanks to our vengeful Queen.   We also learn that Sleeping Beauty’s rescuers were on a mission to “get paid” and “get laid”.  Warning to traditionalists: the stereotypical Prince Charming is nowhere to be found in this fairytale.

I really enjoyed reading this spoof and how all the various characters and elements of much loved fairytales came together.  Read this dark comedy for a laugh.

Check it out on Amazon HERE