Enthralling Fairy Tales That Will Keep You Glued to the Pages

by MK French

Fairy tales and folklore are great choices for Halloween reading. Here are a couple of books that kepted me enthralled from cover to cover.

Amazon affiliate links are used on this site. Free books were provided for an honest review.

The Cat's Tales by Charlie Creed ~ a Review

by Donna Huber

Once upon a time, the enchanting creature that is the cat infiltrated our lives – and our folklore.

Amazon affiliate links are used on this site. A free book was provided for an honest review.

6 YA Fantasy Novels to Read This Month

by MK French

Fantasy is always a popular genre, but in the lead-up to Halloween, there seems to be more than the usual amount of fantasy novels coming out. If you are still trying to figure out what to read for the holiday or just love young adult fantasy, you will want to add these novels to your reading list.

Amazon affiliate links are used on this site. Free books were provided for an honest review.

Nocturne by Alyssa Wees ~ a Review

by MK French

In 1930s Chicago, Grace Dragotta settled on ballet as her emotional home when orphaned in the Great War. Becoming the Near North Company's prima ballerina took sacrifices, including losing her best friend. But getting Master La Rosa as her personal patron opens her world wider. As Grace uncovers the Master's secrets, she finds beauty, truth, and that there might be another way to achieve the resplendent world she always longed for.

Amazon affiliate links are used on this site. A free book was provided for an honest review.

3 Books for Fans of Folklore and Fairy Tales

by MK French

If you are a fan of folklore, fairy tales, and mythology, then I have three books you are going to want to add to your reading list. Two of them you can get today and the third you can look forward to as it comes out later this month.

Amazon affiliate links are used on this site. Free books were provided for an honest review.

2 Fantastic Fairy Tale Retellings

by MK French

Fairy tales have been told and retold since the beginning of story-telling. It is fun to see old favorites getting a fresh look and these two new re-tellings are fantastic.

Amazon affiliate links are used on this site. Free books were provided for an honest review.

2 Books for Young Readers

by MK French

Are you a teacher looking for new classroom books or do you have children at home in need of entertainment? Here are two books that our young readers will enjoy.

Amazon affilate links are used on this site. Free book were provided for an honest review.

New & Notable in Young Adult Fiction

by MK French

If you enjoy young adult fiction, then here are two books coming out this month that you don't want to miss.

Amazon affiliate links are used on this site. Free books were provided for an honest review.

4 Books for Fans of Young Adult Fiction

by MK French

Hae your kids already read through the books they received for Easter. Here are four more books that will entertain your teen this month. There's a fantasy novel, a contemporary novel, a fairy tale, and a post-apocalyptic novel on this list. So no matter what your young adult reader (and you!) likes to reading, I'm sure there is a book here they will enjoy.

Amazon affiliate links are used on this site. Free books were provided for an honest review.

3 New & Notable YA Fantasy Novels

by MK French

I'm back with another list of not to be missed fantasy novels. This time I'm focusing on 3 young adult fantasy novels that have recently published or coming out later this month.

The Peasant’s Dream by Melanie Dickerson ~ a Review

by MK French

As the youngest daughter of Duke Wilhelm, Adela was never let outside the castle walls. She sneaks out to the market and meets a handsome young man. Meeting Frederick makes her wonder about a simple life as a farmer’s wife rather than the complicated arrangements chosen for her. Frederick is poor and has to earn supplemental income by carving when he dodged his mother’s rages. He’s asked to kidnap Adela, and the two finally learn each others’ identity. What will they risk for love?

4 Books of Folklore and Fairy Tales

by MK French

Fairy tales and folklore are short stories involving fantastic creatures that don't exist in nature, often teaching lessons to readers/listeners as the story progresses. Many of these stories are told and retold in different ways; many of the core themes in these stories actually date back thousands of years. Most of the time, fairy tales are considered stories we tell children, and that grown-ups don't need to listen to the stories themselves. They dismiss the warnings within the stories as silly things that only children would believe and feel that they don't apply to adults anymore. The wonder has gone out of those adults, which is a sad thing. There are still so many lessons that adults can learn from these stories, especially when they're reinterpreted for modern times.

Halloween Reads: Horror & Paranormal Fantasy Edition

by MK French

It that time of year for all things scary, creepy, macabre, and other-worldly. Here's a list of books that range from supernatural thriller to fairytale fantasy to horror. If you prefer lighter fun in your Halloween reads, then check out Donna's list of paranormal cozy mysteries.

An Unexpected Adventure by Kandi J Wyatt ~ a #KidLit Review

by MK French

How it begins...

PSST, Harley." Cherise's voice, although quiet for her, was loud enough to get us into trouble with Miss Smith. "Harley!"

The Enchanted Chest by Jean-Francois Chabas and David Sala ~ A #KidLit Review

by MK French

Today I have a book that you can enjoy with your child this summer.

Review: Enchanted by the Highlander by Lecia Cornwall

by MK French

Gillian MacLeod is one of twelve daughters in her family and is known as the shy one. Her sisters and father tend to talk over her and offer their opinions in place of her own, and she wants adventure and to marry for love. Because of this, at a masked ball, she decides to kiss John Erly, a disowned Englishman that serves as the captain of her brother-in-law's guard. He has to fight off his own attraction for her as well, believing himself unworthy of a laird's daughter, even if she chooses him as her husband.

Amazon affiliate links are used on this site. A free book was provided for an honest review.

November 2017; Swerve; fairy tale, historical

Gillian is a fun kind of heroine because she is the overprotected girl that still manages to get skilled in various tasks that wouldn't be expected of her. She hunts small game and walks in the woods as a way to be alone and limit her stress when her sisters are too overbearing because she is withdrawn enough not to voice her own opinions. When she starts to, however, she's still talked over. It comes as a shock to others when she shouts and gives directions, which is amusing to the reader because we knew it was there all along.

John similarly isn't the heartless rogue that people gossip about, and his story makes you like him even more.

They're a great match in this, and both are stubborn in similar ways. Instead of a misunderstanding between the two of them that provides the wedge, it's the misunderstanding of others and their own principles. The happily ever after is sweetened up in an almost over the top way, but it fits Gillian and John well.

Buy Enchanted by the Highlander at Amazon

Born and raised in New York City, M.K. French started writing stories when very young, dreaming of different worlds and places to visit. She always had an interest in folklore, fairy tales, and the macabre, which has definitely influenced her work. She currently lives in the Midwest with her husband, three young children, and golden retriever.

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Review: Ensnared by Rita Stradling

by MK French

Alainn Murphy's father is hired on to create an AI for the reclusive billionaire Lorccan Garbhan, and he created the Rose model in Alainn's image. There are some flaws with the AI and the design, and her father isn't being given more time to perfect it. In order to ensure that he isn't sent to prison for fraud, Alainn takes the place of the robot. She is isolated in Lorccan's tower, away from living things and windows, as he is scarred and has a poor immune system. At first, she is scared of the situation, but gradually comes to love him.

Beyond the Fairy-Tale: The Reflections of Queen Snow White

review by Elisa Hordon

An extremely emotional story of love, loss,grief and trying to move on.

The Reflections of Queen Snow White by David Meredith was well written and takes the reader beyond the fairy-tale. Snow White reflects on her life, how she got to where she was and everything she went through to get there, what a life she has lived and her love for Charming was for eternity.

I felt a whole gambit of emotions while reading this story, Love, Anger, Sadness, Loss and it was beautifully written even with the language from the period, which I must admit I had fun researching.

Snow Whites character was amazing after everything she had been through in her life and then facing the last loss of her Charming. The Mirror as a character was interesting, was the Mirror really evil or did it depend on the person asking it questions? Personally, I felt the Mirror was just honest and wanted to show Snow White what she needed to see to get through the grief and depression she was feeling even if as the reader I felt it was cruel at times it was also necessary within the context of the story.

When Snow White finds her mirror, the mirror helps her reflect on her life with memories which is not always a good memory and the mirror comes off a bit mad at times and cruel towards Snow White, but in the end she needed to see what the mirror showed her to get through her grief and loss.

I loved the whole grief, loss and depression as it really hit home for me about how hard losing a loved one is and it really was beautifully written, but then I also wanted to shake Snow White because she still had so much to live for, her daughter Raven was about to get married and she would eventually have children of her own Snow White might have lost her true love but she still had a future and it would be a full future with lot's happy family moments if only she could let go of her grief.

I was skeptical about reading this book as a long-time lover of classic fairy tales I was not sure I wanted to read about what happened after Snow and Charming got their happily ever after, but I am glad I did, this book is by no means for children as the original fairy-tale is, this beautifully written book is for adults who love their fairy tales and dream of what happened next, but I also feel the need to put a disclaimer that there is some graphic violence within the story which may not be for everyone, I understood it in the context it was written but I still struggled to read it as I'm not a fan of reading violent scenes especially in a story that stems from a much loved childhood classic fairy-tale.

Buy The Reflections of Queen Snow White at Amazon

Book info:
available formats: ebook (155 pages)
published: October 2013
genres: romance, fantasy
source: author




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