Modern Magic: A Quartet of Fractured Fairytales

“A Late-Blooming Rose”: Beau of Landry’s Rare Books is looking for first edition Edgar Rice Burroughs. No one has been able to convince Eva Mitcham to part with her grandfather’s collection. Beau takes on the challenge, hoping to prove himself and knowing that failure is not an option.

“Music to Her Ears": Old friends Hannah “Goldie" Loxley and Kayleigh find themselves in a mutually beneficial situation: Kayleigh needs to find a personal assistant who would house/cat sit for the first two weeks of a trial period. Hannah gets the job and arrives at The Ursa Trio’s residence a day early, unbeknownst to the British musicians who are on tour in the United States.

“Fairy Trouble":  Esmeralda, who is not a full-fledged fairy godmother yet finds herself attending a party in Cindy’s place. Love is in the air, but for whom?

“His One Wish”:  Aiden Cooper must retrieve property stolen from Turhan Technologies by Jin Ru; a friend of Jazlin, to get a fresh start after a tour in Afghanistan.

One opens this book wondering how the various authors will reimagine well-known tales. Some plots are more complicated than others; the most enjoyable being those with unexpected twists. These make the reader push the original plot line to the back of the mind, and enjoy the story before them. “A Late Blooming Rose" and “His One Wish” depict possible reality, while “Music to Her Ears" and “Fairy Trouble” are more fanciful in nature. The time span each story covers contributes to the tale’s plausibility and ranges from a matter of hours to months. The characters within represent different temperaments and circumstances, but attraction/love are the common thread running through all four stories.

Digest one before going on to the next; missing out on these imaginative “fractured fairytales” would be a shame!

Heather R. Nielsen