About the Book
Experience a touch of magic with these four fairytale-ish novellas that span over one hundred years. Linked by an illustrated book of fairytales, each novella is an enchanting combination of a beloved classic sprinkled with the author’s own brand of fairy dust.
Between Stairs and Stardust is set in 1913 Asheville, NC at the beautiful Biltmore Estate and includes a budding children’s book illustrator, an out-of-the box heir, and a teensy bit of Cinderella romance.
Entanglements has a Rapunzel twist and is set in 1920’s Boston between a reluctant heiress, a charming piano tuner, and a game of chess.
Twice Upon A Time is a Beauty-And-The-Beast inspired tale that brings a romance novelist back home to her family’s pecan farm… and the ex-fiance she left behind.
Once Bitten is a nod to Snow White that includes a fake date with a handsome woodsman, seven geeks, and the world’s best apple tarts.
Excerpt
Between Stairs and Stardust
James Gregory Craven wasn’t one to lose his head in fairytales, though a new invention or innovative idea for his trees certainly inspired his creativity, but as he pulled his drenched and trembling sister into the little boat, his attention caught in a pixie’s gaze. Amber eyes stared back at him, almost serene. Golden hair, haloed by fading sunlight, floated around her pale face in a sunburst shape as she released her hold on his sister.
He couldn’t look away. Couldn’t move.
Every story his mother had ever told him of fairies and mermaids swarmed back to his mind. Even Tennyson’s haunting poem burst from the rusty recesses of his college days. “‘She has a lovely face.'”
Who was she?Entanglements
“I want to perform well, Thomas.”
“You will, my darling.” Thomas tilted her chin up to him at an awkward angle and smothered her lips with his mouth. She tried to lick the brandy taste away as he disengaged, wondering why the sensations she read of in her favorite novels were more akin to a wet fish flopping on shore at the meeting of her fiancè’s lips with her own.
“Thank you.”
“We will find a situation perfectly suitable.”
“Perfect.”
Perfect. It would be the last perfect moment of her life before she tucked her dreams of love and music, kisses and chess into a hope chest and settled for a third-rate fairytale.Twice Upon a Time
What if it could be? What did that even mean? Did he expect her to live here alone? These walls, a constant reminder of the life that could have been? And what about her life in Boston?
Sure, she hadn’t missed riding the T, or her bare-bones apartment, or her winter jacket. Truth be told, she hadn’t really missed anything about her life back in the city. But that was probably because she knew she was returning.
And now, apparently, in only one week’s time.
She wanted to tell him thanks a whole lot for the reminder of how she’d disappointed her grandmother. The love stories had always seemed so simple in the fairytale book she’d read repeatedly as a girl, and in the real-life romances of her parents and grandparents. But her own life was different.Once Bitten
He flipped carefully through the thin pages, the hand-drawn pictures of familiar fairytales flashing past in various tones of green and blue and gold. The trapped princess in the tower with the long hair. That book-loving woman who fell in love with the beast. Little Red Riding Hood.
The page fell open to Snow White. The princess’s dark hair and milky white skin reminded him a lot of Maggie. The seven dwarfs paraded across the next page, with their short, stumpy legs and long, drooping beards.
Someone had certainly loved this book prior—several pages contained tiny circular water stains, as if someone had cried over the ink. Little doodles filled the margins of other pages, with pictures and tiny words scripted in a handwriting he couldn’t decipher. This book obviously held stories—multiple ones, judging by the title page—but it looked like it, too, was a story in itself.
Sort of like a certain bookstore owner he knew.
Review
This was such a fun collection of novellas—all very different in setting and tone, yet complementing one another nicely. I loved that the authors didn’t try to retell fairytales, but instead drew on themes and elements of the plots and incorporated them in creative ways. And tying each of the novellas together is a book of fairytales titled, not surprisingly, “Finding Ever After.”
Between Stairs and Stardust
Stella Emory has come to Biltmore to try and keep a low profile while her benefactress gathers evidence to refute a false accusation brought against her. Her plans go a little awry when she rescues a young girl who’s fallen into the lake on the beautiful Biltmore Estate. Suddenly she’s meeting regularly with the young girl and her tree-loving older brother to tell fairytales and spark their imaginations. And perhaps beginning to hope for her own happily-ever-after—until she discovers James isn’t the humble gardener she thought he was, and her past catches up with her and threatens to shatter the fairytale.
This story is full of charm, whimsical wit, and some wonderful reminders about the beauty of imagination. Pepper Basham has a wonderful way of drawing her characters’ hearts together, and James and Stella drew my own heart in from the very first page. Such an enjoyable read!
Entanglements
Esther Hunnisett is engaged to be married to man who is a terrible chess player and hasn’t the sense to recognise that the Bach/Gounod version of Ave Maria is superior to the Schubert (which is totally true, by the way). He’s giving her one last opportunity to perform a recital to “get her little dream out of her system” (his words) before she’s married and whisked away to a “congregation of cows in upstate Massachusetts” (not his words). But then maths teacher and piano tuner Nic Ricci is hired as her rehearsal accompanist. And he just happens to be looking for a girl who can string Mozart and chess into the same sentence…
This novella was deliciously romantic, and I absolutely adored the passionately intelligent Esther and the quietly intelligent Nic. In fact, a high percentage of Rachel McMillan’s characters are numbered among my all-time favourites, and Esther and Nic just got added to the list. I’m not sure you really need any further justification to read this book, but in case you do, the story is entrancing and I love the way chess figured into the solution for freeing Esther from her entanglement.
Twice Upon a Time
Is there any creature more beastly than an ex-fiancè who leaves you without a word? How about an ex-fiancè who leaves college—and you—without a word and returns to YOUR family to help them run the farm YOU were supposed to inherit upon your marriage to said ex-fiancè? Emma Jane Bailey can’t think of one, and now that the farm is hers to sell—in spite of her single status—she’s not going to let Sawyer Hammonds get his hands on it. Well, except for when he’s helping to fix up the house free of charge, like he offered. And when he’s pruning the pecan trees. And . . . well, maybe this is going to be a little more complicated than Emma thought.
Emma’s fighting a losing battle from the moment Sawyer walks onto the page. Notwithstanding that his decision to leave Emma without any explanation wasn’t his brightest moment, he’s hardworking, dependable, and more than a little bit charming. Pretty difficult not to like! I particularly like the way this novella took the theme of restoration from Beauty and the Beast—of seeing the potential beneath the surface not just with her relationship with Sawyer but also with the farm she’s determined to sell.
Once Bitten
Maggie Craft thought she was going to avoid the annual winter cabin get-away with her stepmother and stepsister this year. No constant reminders of all the ways she never measures up to their standards of perfection, no pointed remarks about her continuing single status. But alas, she receives the dreaded invitation—and rashly says she’ll be bringing a plus one before she can think better of it. Surely, out of seven geeky book-club guys and a handsome handyman, she can come up with a date for the weekend, even if she has to bribe them with her famous apple tarts.
You know what one of my favourite things was about this novella? Griff “didn’t feel that zing of attraction” for Maggie in the beginning. She was “someone you wanted to be near and enjoyed,” but “more like a comfortable quilt.” His attraction to Maggie only developed as he spent time with her and got to know her, and that doesn’t happen often enough in romance novels if you ask me. But Griff’s also got a little secret of his own that complicates things, particularly once their faux relationship doesn’t seem quite so faux after all.
This novella was a great combination of sweet and sassy, funny and sincere, and often made me think I knew what was coming only to do something completely different—and better—at the last minute. I loved that too. In fact, I loved the whole thing.
I provided editing services to one of the authors in this collection, however I do not receive any financial benefit from the sale of this collection. I also received a copy of the complete collection from the authors. None of this has influenced the content of my review, which is always my honest opinion.
About the Authors
Pepper Basham is an award-winning author who writes historical and contemporary romance novels with grace, humor, and culture clashes. She’s a Blue Ridge Mountain native and an anglophile who enjoys combining her two loves to create memorable stories of hope. Pepper is also a mom of five, a speech-language pathologist, and a lover of Jesus and chocolate. She resides in Asheville, North Carolina with her family.
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Rachel McMillan is a keen history enthusiast and a lifelong bibliophile. When not writing or reading, she can most often be found drinking tea and watching British miniseries. Rachel lives in bustling Toronto, where she works in educational publishing and pursues her passion for art, literature, music, and theater.
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Ashley Clark writes romance with southern grace. She’s dreamed of being a writer ever since the thumbprint-cookie-days of library story hour. Ashley has an M.A. in English and enjoys teaching literature courses as an adjunct. She’s an active member of American Christian Fiction Writers. When she’s not writing, Ashley’s usually busy rescuing stray animals and finding charming new towns.
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Betsy St. Amant Haddox is the author of fifteen inspirational romance novels and novellas. She resides in north Louisiana with her newlywed hubby, two story-telling young daughters, a collection of Austen novels, and an impressive stash of Pickle Pringles. Betsy has a B.A. in Communications and a deep-rooted passion for seeing women restored in Christ. When she’s not composing her next book or trying to prove unicorns are real, Betsy can usually be found somewhere in the vicinity of a white-chocolate mocha. She blogs frequently at www.ibelieve.com, a devotional site for women.
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