So, I just finished a book that drew my attention based on the cover and the title long before I knew anything about the premise. And I’m glad it did! It’s a really fun, rather cute book.

THE STEPSISTER SCHEME, by Jim C. Hines

The premise in question is that the fairy tales are true, but the grapevine has tweaked the details a bit. For instance, the reason Cinderella wore glass slippers to the ball is because her father was a glass maker – but her name was never “Ella.” And she didn’t ride to the ball in an enchanted pumpkin, never mind the mice.

I love well writte stories that play with fairy tales, and this one is no exception. It take Cinderella, Snow White, and Sleeping Beauty, and just plays. Some of the tales we know are intact, and others are treated as gossip. It also combines myths and stories about other types of fairies. Trolls live under bridges, the king and queen of Fairyland could have come straight off the pages of “A Midsummer Night’s Dream,” and everyone always asks for your unborn child (even if said child is not yet conceived) as payment.

It’s a very fun book.