Enter the magical, unpredictable, wonderful world of fairy tales!
What if Cinderella was the wicked one, and manipulated her kind, loving stepmother and stepsisters?
Is being a handsome, charming prince really as effortless and trouble-free as it seems?
Would you be alarmed if you realized that the beautiful red shoes you’re admiring change their appearance to appeal to whoever is looking at them?
And speaking of shoes, how did Cinderella manage to dance in glass slippers without them breaking and slicing her feet to shreds?
Innocence and Deceit, the second volume in the Ever After Fairy Tales anthology series, contains fourteen fairy tales retold, reimagined, and reinvented.
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The Stories
After the fairy king grants him the feline body he’s always longed for, Tobi upholds his end of the bargain by serving as messenger between the fairy court and the powerful wizard Baba Yaga in “Claws at Hand,” by Brigid Collins. But there’s one thing that could make Tobi lose his hard-earned cathood…
In “The Fennigsan’s Challenge,” by Stefon Mears, Lloxup is robbed and left for dead, and then comes across the Fennigsan, the legendary Dark Lady of the Woods. If he passes her challenge, her power could change his life. But failure means death.
Valentina overhears a strange conversation between another couple in Jamie Ferguson’s “Inside a Fairy Tale.” Filled with foreboding, Valentina follows them, and finds herself inside a modern-day fairy tale.
“The Lizard Horses,” by Leah Cutter, is set in modern-day Hungary. Jelek loves reading old myths and legends, like the stories of Hungarian wizards, how they only drink milk and always carry around weighty spell books. But what if some myths are true?
In “The Red Stilettos,” by Sharon Kae Reamer,Caitlin is backstage at a music competition when one of the performers collapses. The unfortunate woman wears a beautiful pair of red stilettos Caitlin realizes she herself desires so strongly there must be something supernaturally bad about them.
Some people blame poor Prince Charming for throwing Cinderella into the dungeon, having little Snow White beheaded, and ordering Sleeping Beauty to be burned at the stake. But “True Love (or the Many Brides of Prince Charming) ,” by Todd Fahnestock and Giles Carwyn, tells us the other side of the story…
Philip doesn’t find a bride fast enough to suit his father in Deb Logan’s “Beauty or Butterface?” so the king writes Philip’s marriage into a treaty with the neighboring kingdom. Philip just has to choose between the other king’s twin daughters. What could be easier?
A visit to one of her favorite childhood places gives Cecily one last chance to find the magic she lost growing up in Annie Reed’s “Chance of Bunnies and Occasional Toad.” Not only for herself, but for her aunt, a free spirit who taught Cecily the value of imagination.
In “If the Shoe Fits” by Dayle A. Dermatis, is Prince Charming really interested in Cinderella…or was it her shoes that captured his attention?
Korshan falls and cuts her knee on a hidden rock in Diana Benedict’s “City of Nowhere in the World.” Korshan seeks the shaman to ask for salve for her knee, not realizing what magical adventures await her.
Connor and his brother are on their way to get ice cream in DeAnna Knippling’s “Doctor Rudolfo Meets his Match.” They come across a strange antique shop…so strange they find themselves inside of it after turning to walk away.
In Karen L. Abrahamson’s “Like Wind Over Water,” Romy left her mermaid form to search for her beloved. Five years later, on a ship heading up the Canadian coast, she finally finds him—and learns his secret.
Cinderella’s stepmother gets the chance to tell her side of the story and explain what really happened in Pam McCutcheon’s “After the Ball.”
Mellie blames fairy tales for ruining her life in Kristine Grayson’s “The Charming Way.” She wants to keep this from happening to other people by forcing booksellers to stop selling fairy tales. Then she runs into a handsome, book-loving man…who also happens to be Prince Charming.
Find Innocence and Deceit
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Ever After Fairy Tales
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