SFF Hot from Printers: New Releases discussion

Spoil away!

Remember Rocky and Bullwinkle show on Saturday mornings? They would have a segment of fractured fairy tales. So far this is even more fractured.

I finished this a few days ago, I think I liked it but it was so short I was left not really felling any strong feelings one way or the other. My hope is that this sets up a set of novellas in this vein because there could be some interesting takes on other fairy tales that do a bit more than this one. I get the feeling that most of this book was setting up the idea that somehow ppl can traverse universes and connect with others with similar storylines. All in all it was just fine.

Due out I believe in June is the 2nd installment in this series.

I finished the book but yet to write a review. Meanwhile, real-life news connected to the story of a sleeping beauty in an unexpected way. Just yesterday at a joint press conference with Macron, Putin said
“Like it or not, beauty, you have to put up with it,”

This is a slightly changed quote from a song of a punk band from the late 1980s. The full quote is like (pardon for an offensive language)
Sleeping beauty lies in a coffin
I crept up and fuck her
Like it or not
Dream on my beauty!

Just imagine a similar comment of any western leader, with a clear allusion to rape as a normal thing

My review https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

I really enjoyed the pacing and precise word choice of this author. I thought it had a tongue in cheek tone that kept me engaged throughout the tale. Zinnia and Charm's conversations seemed true to life and Primrose was a good fairy tale princess. I agree with Rebecca, the tales all connect with a similar storyline: Zinnia, Primrose, and Zellandine are all sleeping beauties. The ending seems a little flat because it is so tidy after the twists and turns of the rest of the novel. And I agree with Oleksandr, (though creatively written) the novel does check off the modern list of novel must haves.
For me, the strength of the writing outweighed the downsides of the book.

Natalie wrote: " The ending seems a little flat because it is so tidy after the twists and turns of the rest of the novel.."

Agreed. From the start, as I've seen GR page, where it has "Fractured Fables #1" series for it I understood that the protagonist won't die and so her recovery was expected - so not a lot of emotion

Oleksandr wrote: "I finished the book but yet to write a review. Meanwhile, real-life news connected to the story of a sleeping beauty in an unexpected way. Just yesterday at a joint press conference with Macron, Pu..."

Geez, that's rough.

Rebecca wrote: "I finished this a few days ago, I think I liked it but it was so short I was left not really felling any strong feelings one way or the other. My hope is that this sets up a set of novellas in this..."

Yeah, this was pretty much my feelings too.

Kristenelle wrote: "Geez, that's rough."

Definitely. And if it were just words, but there are deeds no less rough

I generally enjoy modern retelling of fairy tales, particularly when they reflect on changes in social norms (I've had a go at it myself in short stories). But this novella was a little too YA for me. It was fun to listen to the audiobook, but the story felt a bit simplistic compared to, for example, some sketches written by Margaret Atwood on the topic of Cinderella, or the essays written on the depiction of witches and stepmothers.

Khira wrote: "I generally enjoy modern retelling of fairy tales, particularly when they reflect on changes in social norms (I've had a go at it myself in short stories). But this novella was a little too YA for ..."
Where did you find the essays on witches and stepmothers? I haven't read many fairy tale retellings other than Circe by Miller, Uprooted, and A Curse Dark as Gold. All those were much longer, giving the author more time to flesh out the parts of the original tale mixed with the retelling.

Natalie wrote: "Where did you find the essays on witches and stepmothers?"

These aren't really fictional retellings, but rather analytical discussions. I first came across them on the podcast here:

https://www.abc.net.au/radionational/...

There are some additional links (including to the 'Evil women' series) here:

https://www.gresham.ac.uk/lectures-an...

Margaret Atwood has some short, heart-wrenching sketches in Good Bones and Simple Murders that make you feel wretched about the way the evil step-sisters are treated.

I'll look into those Khira, thanks!

Khira wrote: "a little too YA for me. It was fun to listen to the audiobook, but the story felt a bit simplistic."

I agree, I also prefer more complex stories, but this one is a nice easy going one, I need such from time to time, just to have some fun