Let Down Your Braid!

In Leah Wilcox's Falling for Rapunzel, Rapunzel can't hear very well and when the prince asks her to let down her golden locks, she throws out dirty socks.  It is a very funny picture book, especially now that kids are familiar with the Rapunzel story, thanks to Disney!  Towering is another take on the Rapunzel story.  It's for an older crowd and more gruesome than Disney, of course, by Alex Flinn, whom I love.  If you like the rebooted fair tales, this one is for you. 

Beastly Little Treat

As I wrote in the Bewitching review, I loved Beastly and so it was a great treat to find this little ebook, novella. It is the Beastly story told from Lindy's POV: Beastly: Lindy's Diary.

I was really disappointed that the Beastly movie bombed. I didn't even see it, but if you have seen the movie and hated it, but haven't read the book I urge you to read the book! It is a great, great story. And then you'll want to read this as well!

A new series from Alex Flinn

I was very excited to learn that Alex Flinn is coming out with a new series, The Kendra Chronicles .  Bewitching was the first and I really loved it.  If you read Beastly you will remember Kendra as the witch who started it all.  This is Kendra's story, how she discovered she was a witch, or maybe how she became one, I'm not sure how that works, and some of her witchy exploits over time.  Kendra's story begins in 1666.  There's a lot of history in the book, too, which makes it interesting.  Great book!!

Fairy Tales Can Come True, It Can Happen to You...

if you're young at heart.  Good song.  Great song even.
And I thought that Cloaked was yet another great book from one of my favorite authors, Alex Flinn.  I've sung her praises before here.  I was disappointed that Beastly the movie didn't get better reviews and/or a better response at the box office, because, while I didn't see the movie, I thought the book was excellent and I was hoping it would spark a great interest in Flinn's novels.  Notice I said better reviews AND/OR a better response at the box office, because the two are not mutually exclusive!  I just hope more folks will read Flinn's books.  She is a truly gifted and fresh writer.  Cloaked takes a bunch of fairy tales, from The Elves and the Shoemaker to The Salad (which I had never heard of) and turns them into the story of Johnny, who works in a posh South Beach hotel, fixing shoes for the hotel's wealthy guests.  Johnny meets a princess and is suddenly off on a quest that takes him to the Florida Keys and all around the world.  My buddy Karen is vacationing in Florida now and as I was reading this book I was asking her about the wildlife mentioned in the book.  It was a fun bonus!
This book is a lot of fun and I can't wait to read more from Flinn, as usual.

Not Beastly at All

I have always loved Alex Flinn, ever since reading Fade to Black and Nothing to Lose. She writes fresh, original, realistic books that really make me think and hold my interest. I just happened upon her and I wish that more folks knew about her because everyone I ask has never heard of her.

Hopefully Beastly will change that. In July the movie will be out and judging from the trailer, it looks like a good one.

The image on the book cover over there <- says Read It Before You See It. I couldn't agree more. Books over 300 pages always intimidate me but I blew through this baby.

It is a modern twist, of course, on the Beauty and Beast tale and it is just so darn good! I truly enjoyed this book and it was one those that when it was over, I was sorry!