Book Review: Midnight in Everwood by MA Kuzniar

This YA spin on the Nutcracker is just the ticket for a wintry night’s read…

Review: Someone Else’s Shoes by Aldrea Alien

This queer Cinderella retelling is only a novella, but it packs in a lot of worldbuilding and character work!

Blog Tour: Misrule by Heather Walter

Back in 2021 I was on the blog tour for Malice, the first book in a sapphic duology retelling Sleeping Beauty from the point of view of the villain – well, the second half of the series is here, and it’s a fantastic and surprising end to the story!

Review: The Language of Roses by Heather Rose Jones

A lyrical, original, queer take on Beauty and the Beast, perfect for those who love historical retellings and thought-provoking emotional journeys.

Review: A Spindle Splintered and A Mirror Mended by Alix E Harrow

A double review today, for a pair of novellas that are so good, I’m almost angry I didn’t write them…

Review: The Bone Spindle by Leslie Vedder

This YA fantasy sounded so promising, pitched as Sleeping Beauty meets Indiana Jones, but let me down so badly!

Review: The Girl Who Fell Beneath The Sea by Axie Oh

This YA fantasy retelling of the Tale of Shim Cheong is as gorgeous as its cover!

Review: Beasts and Beauty – Dangerous Tales by Soman Chainani

I really enjoyed The School for Good and Evil, Soman Chainani’s middle grade series that takes on fairy tale tropes, so I was looking forward to his collection of reinvented fairy tales – and this certainly is a gorgeous book!

Review: Gilded by Marissa Meyer

I’ve had the hardest time putting my thoughts about this Rumplestiltskin retelling into some kind of order – there’s a lot to love, but also some very strange aspects…

#SweepUpYourSmols TBR!

Two TBRs in a week?! I know, it’s unheard of! But this weekend is the third round of #SweepUpYourSmols, my mini-readathon where the goal is to read as many books under 300 pages as you can. So, do you want to see the books I’m choosing from? There’s no way I’ll get to all of these, but I’ve got a nice selection!

I actually found myself really having to search for small books to include! I think I’ve been picking them off and leaving the longer chonks to wait, which is not ideal… Still, there’s an eclectic mix of things so I feel like I’ll be fine for some mood reading.

The Game by Diana Wynne Jones

I’m working my way through the few books on Diana Wynne Jones’s backlist that I didn’t read as a child, and this sounds like an interesting one – I’m in the perfect mood for one of her magical, fun stories.

Beauty and the Beast stories edited by Maria Tatar

This is a collection of different animal spouse fairytales from around the world – Maria Tatar’s name on it makes me sure it’s going to be interesting, and I always love adding new variations of fairytales to my repertoire!

Wood Angel by Erin Bow

I’ve seen lots of warnings that this is a pretty grim book for middle grade, violent and quite sad, but I was still tempted into it by its talking cat and witchy vibes, so I’ll give it a go, and if I’m not feeling the darker side of it, I’ll DNF.

Grayling’s Song by Karen Cushman

More witchy middle grade! This sounds like the kind of charming adventure I really love, with a girl out to stop a curse and rescue her mother. I think this would make a good bath read.

A True Princess by Diane Zahler

Diane Zahler’s fairy tale retellings are always great – a little dark, but really beautiful takes on their original stories. I’ve actually just finished writing my own take on The Princess and the Pea, so this might be a good time to read A True Princess!

Dark Breaks the Dawn by Sara B Larson

These next three were in my TBR during the last round of Sweep Up Your Smols – maybe this is the right time to get to this YA retelling of Swan Lake?

The Abyss Surrounds Us by Emily Skrutskie

I don’t know too much about this one other than that it has a fantastic cover and queer female pirates, which honestly was enough to sell me on it!

Shatter the Sky by Rebecca Kim Wells

This actually popped up in my TBR Spotlight a few weeks ago, so head there for more of my thoughts on it!

Hawk of May by Gillian Bradshaw

This Arthurian retelling has been on my shelf for longer than I can remember. I’m actually a lot pickier now with Arthurian stories than I used to be, so I’m not sure if I’ll get on with this one, but it’s a high priority for me to at least try it and see if it’s a keeper, or if I can have some more space!

As You Wish by Cary Elwes

I love The Princess Bride movie – who doesn’t? And I also love love love behind the scenes books, so I’m really looking forward to this look back at its filming, from the horse’s mouth. I read the introduction when I got this book and decided to save it for a rainy day, as it was just so charming.

Will you be joining in with #SweepUpYourSmols? I’d love to see your short book picks!