Fairest of All by Serena Valentino

 Fairest of All by Serena Valentino - 250 pages

The tale of the young princess and her evil stepmother, the Wicked Queen, is widely known. Despite a few variations from telling to telling, the story remains the same—the Queen was jealous of the girl’s beauty, and this jealousy culminated in the Queen’s attempt on the sweet, naive girl’s life.

Another tale far less often spoken of is the one that explains what caused the Queen to become so contemptuously vile. Still, some have attempted to guess at the reason. Perhaps the Queen’s true nature was that of a wicked hag and her beautiful, regal appearance a disguise used to fool the King. Others claim that the Queen might have hated the girl for her resemblance to the King’s first wife. Mostly, the Queen is painted as a morally abhorrent woman who never loved another being during the course of her miserable life.

In fact, the theories about exactly what cause the Queen’s obsessive vanity and jealous rage are too numerous to catalog. This book recounts a version of the story that has remained untold until now. It is a tragic tale of love and loss, and it contains a bit of magic. It is a tale of the Wicked Queen…

The Sleeping Beauty by Mercedes Lackey

The Sleeping Beauty by Mercedes Lackey, 345 pages
(Tale of the Five Hundred Kingdoms)

The Tradition is a force that likes to play with people's lives - weaving them into a story that has been told over and over again (like Snow White, Cinderella, etc.).  The Godmothers are many and guard unwitting souls from being sucked into The Tradition's path, instead allowing the persons to make their own path free of the Tradition's sometimes dangerous leadings. In this story, the Tradition has its sights on Princess Rosamund, a beautiful and young daughter King Thurmond and Queen Celeste of Eltaria. Eltaria is a very rich kindgom, fraught with never-ending battles, and when Queen Celeste dies, many descend upon it to claim Thurmond's hand and become the "wicked stepmother" of many tales. Thankfully, Fairy Godmother Lily steps in and rescues Thurmond from that fate by becoming his wife (as Queen Sable) instead - in name only. This appeases The Tradition until King Thurmond dies and leaves a teen princess quite alone. Determined to keep Princess Rosamund from living a dangerous fairytale story when all surrounding neighbors plan to attack the now "undefended" kingdom, Godmother Lily creates a test and invites all princes from surrounding kingdoms to compete for Princess Rosamund's hand. Unfortunately for Godmother Lily, The Tradition is adamant that it has its way and many troubles will follow. This wasn't as good a read as Beauty and the Werewolf. The storyline seemed to flounder about as if the writer wasn't sure what direction to take the story in.

Snow in Summer by Jane Yolen

Snow in Summer by Jane Yolen - 243 pages

Snow in Summer, called Summer by her family and friends, believes in True Love.  After all, her father was so consumed by grief after her mother died that it caused him to basically shut down.  That is the power of True Love.  So when her father brings a new mother home she believes that once again it is True Love and that everything will be wonderful again.  But soon after the wedding, her father grows old and is no longer able to do anything but sit in the rocking chair.  Snow, as she is called by her stepmother, does most of the work in the house and on the farm.  But she is fine with that as her stepmother loves her . . . right?
This is a great retelling of Snow White with an Appalachian  setting.  It was unusual in that every element of the story is set in real life - except the mirror.  It is the one bit of fantasy in the story.  I liked the short chapters added in from the viewpoints of some of the more minor characters.  It added new perspective to the story as it was seen from many different sides.