Bargain Ebook: If the Slipper Fits: A Cinderella Sisterhood Series by Olivia Drake for $2.99

If the Slipper Fits: A Cinderella Sisterhood Series by Olivia Drake is on sale for $2.99 in ebook format. And yes, this one is Cinderella inspired.

Book description from the publisher:

“A tale filled with gothic overtones, sensuality, sprightly dialogue, emotion, an engaging cast and a beautiful pair of perfectly fitting slippers.” —RT Book Reviews (4 stars)

Raised in a girls’ school, Annabelle Quinn longs for the world outside the walls of the academy. When she’s hired as the governess to an orphaned duke, Annabelle never expects the child’s breathtakingly handsome guardian to capture her imagination—or her heart.

Falling for his young nephew’s governess is an irksome complication in Lord Simon Westbury’s orderly life, but Annabelle’s quiet beauty and wry intellect are too much to resist. Meanwhile, a mysterious danger looms over the remote Cornwall estate. Will their newfound desire stand the test of time? Or are some happy endings just too good to come true?

“A dash of danger and a dash of fairytale in the form of a very special pair of shoes add to the romance plot, filling out If the Slipper Fits nicely.” —Romance Junkies

“Filled with romance, breathtaking passion, and a dash of mystery that will leave you wanting more.” —Night Owl Reviews

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New Book: Order of Swans by Jude Deveraux

 

A new book released in the last month: Order of Swans: A Magical Romantasy Journey of Love and Destiny in a Fairy Tale Kingdom, Filled with Suspense, Romance, and the Power to Change Fate by Jude Deveraux. I included the full subtitle here because these new marketing techniques amuse and fascinate me. 

Jude Deveraux is a bestselling mainstay in the romance genre. So when she releases a new fairy tale inspired book--not just a sword and princess fantasy labeled a fairy tale--I pay attention. Mainstream publishing has been mostly quiet on the fairy tale inspired novels recently but this may be a one-off or the start of a new uptick. Deveraux apparently plays with several in this novel. Be warned that it is a duology so there are some complaints about the unsatisfactory ending to this one that I am sure will be resolved in book two.

Book description from the publisher:

"A captivating blend of science fiction, fantasy, and fairy tale reimagining that challenges traditional genre boundaries. . . . an engaging, thought-provoking reading experience that challenges and delights in equal measure.”  —Medium

In this spellbinding, fantasy-rich romance, a woman is swept into a world where she has the power to alter fairy tales, and change a kingdom’s destiny…

To Kaley Arens, a PhD student and expert in folklore, fairy stories have always had a power and an allure beyond mere entertainment.

It’s only when Kaley accompanies her lifelong friend Jobi on a visit to his home that she realizes how much she still has to learn. Bellis isn’t the remote island that she believed it to be. It’s another world—a stunningly beautiful and seductive one, with its own royalty, its own rules, and inhabitants who breathe life into the tales she was taught were fiction.

Kaley’s presence is no simple holiday. She has a mysterious connection with Jobi and with Bellis, and abilities that may help determine this world’s fate. Tasked with locating a lost prince, Kaley and her companions—the enigmatic Tanek, a member of the Order of Swans, and Sojee, Kaley's colossal bodyguard—journey through a land both thrilling and terrifying, where the uncanny and the familiar go hand in hand.

But in fairy tales, heroes and villains are easy to discern. Here, nothing is quite as it seems. And though Kaley is discovering that she can change the outcome of the fairy tales she knows so well, her own story is unfolding in ways impossible to predict, with a destiny she could never have foretold…

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New Book: One Cursed Rose (Grimm Bargains Book 1) by Rebecca Zanetti

 

One Cursed Rose (Grimm Bargains Book 1) by Rebecca Zanetti is released today. This one is the start of a new dark fantasy romance inspired by Beauty and the Beast.

Book description from the publisher:

They christened me Alana—and while the name means beauty, beneath that surface is a depth I allow very few to see. I’m sole heir to Aquarius Social, a media giant about to succumb to an unseen enemy. My father’s solution is to marry me off to the son of a competing family. My reaction? Not a chance. Now I have just a week before the wedding to change my fate.

Who knew the unforeseen twist would be an assassination attempt on me and an unwanted rescue by Thorn Beathach, the head of the rival social media empire driving Aquarius under? The richest, most ruthless of them all, the Beast protects his realm with an iron rule: no one sees his face. When he shows himself to me, I know he’ll never let me go.

Thorn may think he can lock me in his enchanted castle forever, but I’m not the docile Beauty he expects. If the Beast wants to tie me up, I’m going to take pleasure from every minute of it . . .and we’ll just see who ends up shackled.

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New Book: Tangled Up In You (Meant to Be Series 4) by Christina Lauren

Tangled Up In You (Meant To Be Book 4) by Christina Lauren is released today. The book is fourth in a series of romance novels inspired by Disney versions of fairy tales by different authors. As one does. And I hope that sentence made sense, too. This one is inspired by Tangled and thus Rapunzel, of course.

Book description from the publisher:

A witty and deeply romantic modern reimagining of Disney’s Tangled, by the New York Times bestselling author duo Christina Lauren, part of the acclaimed and bestselling Meant to Be collection.

She has a dream. He has a plan. Together they’ll take a leap of faith.

Ren has never held an iPhone, googled the answer to a question, or followed a crush on social media. What she has done: Read a book or two, or three (okay, hundreds). Taught herself to paint. Built a working wind power system from scratch. But for all the books she’s read, Ren has never found one that’s taught a woman raised on a homestead and off the grid for most of her twenty-two years how to live in the real world. So when she finally achieves her lifelong dream of attending Corona College, it feels like her life is finally beginning.

Fitz has the rest of his life mapped out: Graduate from Corona at the top of his class, get his criminal record wiped clean, and pass himself off as the rich, handsome player everyone thinks he is. He’s a few short months from checking off step one of his plans when Ren Gylden, with her cascading blonde hair and encyclopedic brain, crashes into his life, and for the first time Fitz’s plan is in jeopardy.

But a simple assignment in their immunology seminar changes the course of both their lives, and suddenly they’re thrown out of the frying pan and into the fireon a road trip that will lead them in the most unexpected directions. Out on the open road, the world somehow shifts, and the unlikely pair realize that, maybe, the key to the dreams they've both been chasing have been sitting next to them the whole time.

Previous books in the series include:

1: If the Shoe Fits: A Meant to Be Novel by Julie Murphy (Cinderella inspired)

2: By the Book: A Meant to Be Novel by Jasmine Guillory (Beauty and the Beast inspired)

3: Kiss the Girl A Meant to Be Novel by Zoraida Córdova (Little Mermaid inspired)

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New Release: The Lady Meets Her Match by Gina Conkle

The Lady Meets Her Match (Midnight Meetings) by Gina Conkle was released this week. It's the second in Conkle's fairy tale romance series that began with last year's release of Meet the Earl at Midnight (Midnight Meetings). I don't devote much blog space to romance novels since they are harder to track and I find of overall lesser interest to readers here, but when I see a series, I try to share here. I'm always fascinated by the ways any fairy tale is reinterpreted in almost any genre. The new book is a Cinderella retelling while the first, Meet the Earl at Midnight (Midnight Meetings), is a Beauty and the Beast retelling.

Book description for The Lady Meets Her Match (Midnight Meetings):

LOCATING HER IS ONLY HALF THE BATTLE

Cyrus Ryland didn't become England's wealthiest bachelor by being a pushover, but the mysterious beauty he discovers sneaking around at his grand ball enflames his curiosity. When the clock chimes midnight and she's nowhere to be found, Cyrus vows to scour all of London to uncover who she is. Little does he know that not only does Claire Mayhew not want to be found, but she wants nothing to do with him at all...

Book description for Meet the Earl at Midnight (Midnight Meetings):

It's going to take a Beast to tame this Beauty

The Enigma Earl. The Lord Phantom. That's what the gossip pages call Lord Greenwich, a mysterious nobleman who doesn't show his face in London Society. With a reputation like that, it's no wonder that Lydia Montgomery is horrified to be dragged from bed and packed off to live with him to save her mother from penury.

While Lydia has received all of the training a lady should endure, she's decidedly un-ladylike. She despises her corset and isn't interested in marriage; in fact, she would prefer to remain unmarried so that she can spend her time improving her art. But if she wants a chance at happiness, she'll have to set aside her fear of Lord Greenwich and discover the man hiding behind the beast.

Fairy Tale Romances by Victoria Alexander

Back in the last century, granted the very end of it, romance novels with fairy tale themes were popular. Actually, things haven't changed much. They still are or are again depending on your perspective.

Two of the titles on the fairy tale romance novels list that have always intrigued me are The Emperor's New Clothes, first published in 1997, and The Princess and the Pea, first published in 1996, by Victoria Alexander. Stand alone novels, according to Alexander's site, the novels were out of print for a while but have been reissued in recent years. Recently, they have also been released digitally for the first time which means they don't have to ever go out of print again. (Do you get sick of my glee over books staying in print as ebooks? I don't obviously. I still am thrilled every time I see older titles are released and achieve a new life.)

So why do these books stand out to me--I've not read them I admit--they weren't even readily available again until recently. It's probably obvious to some of you but I'll explain myself. These are two fairy tales that are rarely reinterpreted in modern fiction of any sort. Whatever the result, I admire an author who takes on that challenge. Alexander chose two Hans Christian Andersen tales, too, which I doubt was a coincidence. Those are some tricky fairy tales to reinterpret in a novel length effort. To remind ourselves of the short list, visit the Modern Interpretations pages at Emperor's New Clothes and Princess and the Pea. Romances aren't on the lists there but on a separate list. To my knowledge it's the only novel length interpretation of Emperor's Clothes ever. All others have been short stories or in the case of Adam Gidwitz's In a Glass Grimmly, it was a chapter of a novel.

Are you interested in a list of fairy tale romance novel titles? I have a list hidden on SurLaLune at Fairy Tale Romances. It hasn't been updated in a while, but it's still one of the best lists around of that nature. The Cinderella list could be almost doubled by now. She's a favorite trope for romance authors. Ditto Beauty and the Beast although those interpretations tend to be much looser than the Cinderella ones. The others, not so much.

Book description for The Emperor's New Clothes:

#1 New York Times bestselling author Victoria Alexander spins the unforgettable story of a beautiful grifter and an irresistible mayor ...

Mistaken for the Countess of Bridgewater, expert con artist Ophelia Kendrake can't believe her good fortune. This could be the opportunity she needs to secure the future of the sister who means so much to her. But when she meets Tyler "Tye" Matthews, her plans to dupe the sleepy town of Dead End, Wyoming, prove difficult—for she's met her match in the wildly attractive mayor.

As the reluctant new mayor of Dead End, Tye is irritated to learn his first duty in office is to escort a visiting countess. But when he sees the stunning beauty, he wants to spend every waking moment with her. Suspecting Ophelia has secrets, Tye vows to uncover them—and thoroughly seduce her.

Book description for The Princess and the Pea:

The classic tale of a fervent courtship between an American heiress and a dashing British earl from #1 New York Times bestselling author Victoria Alexander

Feel the pea through this bed and win the heart of the man you'll wed.

A true American princess, Cecily White stood to inherit her father's business empire. And with the twentieth century right around the corner, the independent beauty had no intention of marrying some foreign nobleman seeking her money. Then, on a trip to England, Cece fell under the spell of a dashing peer who had more to recommend him than the length of his title and the size of his countinghouse. But Cece wouldn't surrender her heart to the virile Earl of Graystone until he proved that the only treasure he wanted was her love.

Rutgers University Press Book Sale

Rutgers University Press is having a sale with 40% off all titles for a limited time when you use code 02SPRG14. While RUP's catalog isn't very rich in folklore related titles, I thought these two may be of interest to readers here: The Glass Slipper: Women and Love Stories and The Lives of Dwarfs: Their Journey from Public Curiosity toward Social Liberation.

My links are to Amazon since that is the easiest way for me to generate images and stable links for the books but follow the RUP link to buy the books directly from the publisher if you like--with the discount code they are cheaper there for as long as the code is valid. The Glass Slipper is also available in ebook format for about the same price as the paperback with the discount code and you can preview the book on Amazon by using the Look Inside feature.

Personally, I am more interested in the book about dwarfs. I also imagine that it is richer with fairy tale references.

Book description for The Glass Slipper: Women and Love Stories:

Why is the story of romance in books, magazines, and films still aimed at women rather than at men? Even after decades of feminism, traditional ideas and messages about romantic love still hold sway and, in our “postfeminist” age, are more popular than ever. Increasingly, we have become a culture of romance: stories of all kinds shape the terms of love. Women, in particular, love a love story.

The Glass Slipper is about the persistence of a familiar Anglo-American love story into the digital age. Comparing influential classics to their current counterparts, Susan Ostrov Weisser relates in highly amusing prose how these stories are shaped and defined by and for women, the main consumers of romantic texts. Following a trajectory that begins with Jane Austen and concludes with Internet dating sites, Weisser shows the many ways in which nineteenth-century views of women’s nature and the Victorian idea of romance have survived the feminist critique of the 1970s and continue in new and more ambiguous forms in today’s media, with profound implications for women.

More than a book about romance in fiction and media, The Glass Slipper illustrates how traditional stories about women’s sexuality, femininity, and romantic love have survived as seemingly protective elements in a more modern, feminist, sexually open society, confusing the picture for women themselves. Weisser compares diverse narratives—historical and contemporary from high literature and “low” genres—discussing novels by Jane Austen and Charlotte Brontë, Victorian women’s magazines, and D. H. Lawrence’s Lady Chatterley’s Lover; Disney movies; popular Harlequin romance novels; masochistic love in films; pornography and its relationship to romance; and reality TV and Internet ads as romantic stories.

Ultimately, Weisser shows that the narrative versions of the Glass Slipper should be taken as seriously as the Glass Ceiling as we see how these representations of romantic love are meant to inform women’s beliefs and goals. In this book, Weisser’s goal is not to shatter the Glass Slipper, but to see through it.

Book description for The Lives of Dwarfs: Their Journey from Public Curiosity toward Social Liberation:

"The Lives of Dwarfs is extraordinary in its range and vision. Beautifully written. Totally absorbing."—Ursula Hegi, author of Stones from the River

"As a little person, husband, and father of a little person, I dream of the day when dwarfs attain full acceptance in society. The Lives of Dwarfs provides a giant step in that direction."—Rick Spiegel, former president of Little People of America

"This important book makes it possible for both average- and short-statured people to challenge our collective understanding of dwarfism as a synonym for diminishment or as an array of cute and evil fairy-tale figures. The libratory work of this book is to invite us all to reimagine dwarfism as a livable experience and tenable way of being in the world."—Rosemarie Garland Thomson, author of Extraordinary Bodies: Figuring Physical Disability in American Culture and Literature

"A work of compassionate scholarship. A unique contribution to the literature of physical deformity and social isolation and a gift to the individuals whose personal struggle this is."—Linda Hunt, actor

Historically, they have borne the labels "freaks" and "oddities"; they have been collected as pets, displayed as spectacles, and treated as comic relief. Now, for the first time, in this elegant and comprehensive volume, the lives of dwarfs are explored in all their fullness and humanity.

Spanning the centuries from ancient Egypt to the present, this unique social history chronicles the various ways this population has been exploited, describes their strategies for coping, and notes the persistent influence of mythology upon perceptions of them by others. The narrative also highlights the lives of eminent individuals and contains a thought-provoking account of the representation and participation of dwarfs in the arts, enhanced by outstanding color photographs. Betty M. Adelson, the mother of a daughter with dwarfism, brings special insight and sensitivity to the research. She traces the widespread mistreatment of dwarfs over the centuries, engendered by their being viewed as curiosities rather than as human beings capable of the same accomplishments as people of average height, and deserving of the same pleasures. For much of their history, dwarfs have resorted to exhibiting themselves: because of social stigma no other employment was available.

Only in recent years have short-statured individuals begun to challenge their position in society. Medical advances, new economic opportunities, and disability legislation have led to progress, mainly in Western nations. Advocacy groups have also formed in countries as diverse as Chile, South Korea, and Nigeria. Adelson compares what she refers to as the "small revolution" to similar social and cultural awakenings that women, African Americans, gays and lesbians, and persons with disabilities experienced when they identified themselves as a community with shared goals and obstacles.

Written with passion, grace, and the dignity that the subject deserves, The Lives of Dwarfs will not only revolutionize current perceptions about the historically misrepresented dwarf population, but also offer pause for thought on issues of disability, medical treatment, height, beauty, and identity.

Four Fairy Tale Related Ebooks on Sale

I will not be posting much this week with the holiday season but wanted to share these fairy tale related ebook titles that are on sale for those looking to fill up a new reader. I use Amazon links here but most of these titles are also on sale on Barnes and Noble for Nooks and other ebook sellers. Four books--3 newly released in 2013--can be acquired for a total of $12.

Stung by Bethany Wiggins is $2.99. It has been on sale previously and draws inspiration from Sleeping Beauty and Beauty and the Beast.

Book description:

Fiona doesn't remember going to sleep. But when she opens her eyes, she discovers her entire world has been altered-her house is abandoned and broken, and the entire neighborhood is barren and dead. Even stranger is the tattoo on her right wrist-a black oval with five marks on either side-that she doesn't remember getting but somehow knows she must cover at any cost. And she's right. When the honeybee population collapsed, a worldwide pandemic occurred and the government tried to bio-engineer a cure. Only the solution was deadlier than the original problem-the vaccination turned people into ferocious, deadly beasts who were branded as a warning to un-vaccinated survivors. Key people needed to rebuild society are protected from disease and beasts inside a fortress-like wall. But Fiona has awakened branded, alone-and on the wrong side of the wall . . .

Princess of the Midnight Ball (Twelve Dancing Princesses) by Jessica Day George is also $2.99. This has been on sale previously. It draws inspiration from The Twelve Dancing Princesses.

Book description:

A tale of twelve princesses doomed to dance until dawn…

Galen is a young soldier returning from war; Rose is one of twelve princesses condemned to dance each night for the King Under Stone. Together Galen and Rose will search for a way to break the curse that forces the princesses to dance at the midnight balls. All they need is one invisibility cloak, a black wool chain knit with enchanted silver needles, and that most critical ingredient of all—true love—to conquer their foes in the dark halls below. But malevolent forces are working against them above ground as well, and as cruel as the King Under Stone has seemed, his wrath is mere irritation compared to the evil that awaits Galen and Rose in the brighter world above.

Captivating from start to finish, Jessica Day George’s take on the Grimms’ tale The Twelve Dancing Princesses demonstrates yet again her mastery at spinning something entirely fresh out of a story you thought you knew.

If the Shoe Fits by Megan Mulry has NOT been on sale previously to my knowledge. It draws inspiration from Cinderella. It is also $2.99.

Book description:

The only thing worse than being in the spotlight is being kept in the dark...

With paparazzi nipping at his heels, Devon Heyworth, rakish brother of the Duke of Northrop, spends his whole life hiding his intelligence and flaunting his playboy persona. Fast cars and faster women give the tabloids plenty to talk about.

American entrepreneur Sarah James is singularly unimpressed with "The Earl" when she meets him at a wedding. But she's made quite an impression on him. When he pursues her all the way across the pond, he discovers that Miss James has no intention of being won over by glitz and glamor—she's got real issues to deal with, and the last thing she needs is larger-than-life royalty mucking about her business...

The School for Good and Evil by Soman Chainani (Author), Iacopo Bruno (Illustrator) is still on sale through the end of December for $2.99. It has been a top fairy tale pick for 2013.

Book description:

At the School for Good and Evil, failing your fairy tale is not an option.

Welcome to the School for Good and Evil, where best friends Sophie and Agatha are about to embark on the adventure of a lifetime.

With her glass slippers and devotion to good deeds, Sophie knows she'll earn top marks at the School for Good and join the ranks of past students like Cinderella, Rapunzel, and Snow White. Meanwhile, Agatha, with her shapeless black frocks and wicked black cat, seems a natural fit for the villains in the School for Evil.

The two girls soon find their fortunes reversed—Sophie's dumped in the School for Evil to take Uglification, Death Curses, and Henchmen Training, while Agatha finds herself in the School for Good, thrust among handsome princes and fair maidens for classes in Princess Etiquette and Animal Communication.

But what if the mistake is actually the first clue to discovering who Sophie and Agatha really are . . . ?

The School for Good and Evil is an epic journey into a dazzling new world, where the only way out of a fairy tale is to live through one.

New Book: Once Upon a Tower by Eloisa James

Once Upon a Tower by Eloisa James was released last week and has dropped in price since its release date. This is the most recent book in James's fairy tale inspired romance series. There's a good review of it at Heroes and Heartbreakers which provides some content and shows how James tries to break some romance tropes in her books.

Book description:

To win her love. . .

As an extremely wealthy laird, Gowan Stoughton, Duke of Kinross, can have any of the maidens at the ball he attends. The only problem is they are all English and Gowan is not so certain they are suitable. He is accustomed to the hard-working lasses from his Highlands, not these dainty noblewomen who spend their days drinking tea or some other such nonsense. But then he makes the acquaintance of Lady Edith Gilchrist. Utterly bewitched by the emerald-eyed beauty with lush golden locks, he knows he must have her.

He must free her from her tower. . .

"Edie" had the misfortune of being dreadfully ill at her debut ball and barely remembers what Gowan looks like. Even worse, she accepted his proposal the following day. Edie's only true passion is playing music—until Gowan writes a scandalous letter and stirs the most irresistible desire. Yet when they marry, Edie realizes her husband needs a lesson and locks herself in a tower. Somehow Gowan must find a way to enter the tower and convince his new bride that she belongs in his arms.

  

Bargain Ebook: Beauty and the Bounty Hunter: Once Upon a Time in the West by Lori Austin

Beauty and the Bounty Hunter: Once Upon a Time in the West by Lori Austin is $2.99 through June 4th in anticipation of the release of the second book in the series, An Outlaw in Wonderland: Once Upon a Time in the West (ONCE UPON A TIME IN WEST), on the same date. I cannot tell from the descriptions how much fairy tale themes are used in these books beyond clever book and series titles, but I thought I would share anyway.

Book description:

Cathleen Chase is no killer—but as Cat O’Banyon, she is a ruthless bounty hunter who always gets her man. Catching one lowlife after another, she continues her search for the only man she really cares to locate. The one whose voice she will never forget; the man who murdered her husband. She’ll stop at nothing to find him.

Con artist Alexi Romanov taught Cat every trick she knows. He is a master of deceit, disguise, and desire. He’s difficult to trust, and even more difficult to resist, but he has news she can’t ignore. The man she’s after has placed a bounty on her head. To get him before he gets her, she’ll have to team up with Alexi again....And just like before, the two of them together are nothing but trouble.