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Sappho's Fables: Lesbian Fairy Tales
Braided: A Lesbian Rapunzel
Zelda is cursed to spend her days on a platform in an ancient, holy tree, growing her hair long enough to touch the ground. But it wasn’t her curse to bear: Gray, the witch’s daughter, was meant for that lonely fate. Gray visits Zelda each day, mourning their switched fates, and falling deeper in love with the cursed girl, until one night, at the Not-There Fair, an extraordinary creature outlines a magical plan that could set both of them free. Will Gray’s love for Zelda be strong enough to survive the strange dream world of Chimera, or will Zelda remain a prisoner of the curse forever?
The novella BRAIDED is the lesbian retelling of the classic fairy tale Rapunzel. It is part of the series SAPPHO’S FABLES: LESBIAN FAIRY TALES.
The novella BRAIDED is the lesbian retelling of the classic fairy tale Rapunzel. It is part of the series SAPPHO’S FABLES: LESBIAN FAIRY TALES.
Kindle Edition
First published April 3, 2012
11 people are currently reading
1196 people want to read
About the author
Elora Bishop
11 books171 followersElora Bishop is a queer author of magical lesbian love stories. You will often find her wearing soft skirts, curled up in a sunny window (much like a cat), Austen in hand, cup of tea (two cream, one sugar) nearby, always piping hot. She is bewitched by all beautiful things–but, most of all, by her beloved wife. She writes lesbian YA as Sarah Diemer.
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Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews
April 8, 2012
Braided is the new lesbian fairytale rewriting by Elora Bishop (also known as Sarah Diemer). I actually selected it as my reward for supporting The Dark Wife audiobook project Kickstarter, but she sent me it early when I inquired about it on Twitter -- I see so many horror stories about interactions with authors that I felt I had to note this positive one! (And it wasn't my first positive interaction with Sarah Diemer; I also buy things fairly frequently from The Fable Tribe, like this pendant I purchased recently, and I traded a couple of emails with her when I donated to her wedding fund.)
Anyway, I'm reviewing the book, not the author, fantastic and sparkly as she is. I enjoyed Braided a lot; I think it might be my favourite of her stories so far. The world feels fully realised and the story completely satisfying; I believed in the girls and I wanted them to succeed. I thought her reimagining of the story was very original, and I also liked details like the not-evil witch who the protagonist doesn't hate, despite her doing 'bad' things (although without her doing those bad things, how would the good outcome eventually have happened?). The wicked witch is overplayed: roll on the well-meaning but guilty, regretful and distant mother.
I really need to get my sister reading these. I wish we'd both had Sarah Diemer's books when we were younger -- all the books we read needed reimagining to make sure there were people like us in them. I remember reading teenage girly books where the guy always got the girl; how much more giggly and toe-curly would I have been if I'd been able to read books where the girl gets the girl?
In conclusion, I love what Elora Bishop/Sarah Diemer does.
Anyway, I'm reviewing the book, not the author, fantastic and sparkly as she is. I enjoyed Braided a lot; I think it might be my favourite of her stories so far. The world feels fully realised and the story completely satisfying; I believed in the girls and I wanted them to succeed. I thought her reimagining of the story was very original, and I also liked details like the not-evil witch who the protagonist doesn't hate, despite her doing 'bad' things (although without her doing those bad things, how would the good outcome eventually have happened?). The wicked witch is overplayed: roll on the well-meaning but guilty, regretful and distant mother.
I really need to get my sister reading these. I wish we'd both had Sarah Diemer's books when we were younger -- all the books we read needed reimagining to make sure there were people like us in them. I remember reading teenage girly books where the guy always got the girl; how much more giggly and toe-curly would I have been if I'd been able to read books where the girl gets the girl?
In conclusion, I love what Elora Bishop/Sarah Diemer does.
July 23, 2018
Braided: A Lesbian Rapunzel (Sappho's Fables: Lesbian Fairy Tales) is the second part in a series of well-known fairy tale retellings by Elora Bischop (aka Jennifer Diemer, aka S. E. Diemer, aka Bridget Essex).
Again, Bischop alters the original fairy tale so much you can hardly call it a re-telling anymore but something uniquely hers. I recognized the tower and the part where she lets down her hair but that was about it.
Bischop uses beautiful rich imagery with a trademark sadness in the undertones. I loved the perfect fairy tale atmosphere it created. Magical stuff.
f/f they keep it clean folks, just a few shared kisses.
Themes: hair hair everywhere, the Holity, oak tree, fates entwined, despair, plant the seed and it will grow
4 stars
Again, Bischop alters the original fairy tale so much you can hardly call it a re-telling anymore but something uniquely hers. I recognized the tower and the part where she lets down her hair but that was about it.
Bischop uses beautiful rich imagery with a trademark sadness in the undertones. I loved the perfect fairy tale atmosphere it created. Magical stuff.
f/f they keep it clean folks, just a few shared kisses.
Themes: hair hair everywhere, the Holity, oak tree, fates entwined, despair, plant the seed and it will grow
4 stars
June 1, 2012
Sometimes when I really love a book, I get tongue-tied in reviews - all I really want to say is "I loved this. You should read it."
I loved this. You should read it. It's a beautifully written, romantic fantasy novella that transforms Rapunzel into something entrancing - and, well, read it. You won't regret it. It's gorgeous.
I loved this. You should read it. It's a beautifully written, romantic fantasy novella that transforms Rapunzel into something entrancing - and, well, read it. You won't regret it. It's gorgeous.
August 7, 2020
Beautiful prose and a magical new retelling!
July 28, 2016
Evocative, surreal love story between two girls caught in the grip of magical forces that was decided when they were children. The MC's mom has imprisoned the other girl in a sacred tree to protect her own daughter from being the one in the tree. Anyway, it's always lovely to see fairy tales where the girl gets the girl.
May 17, 2022
Super cute. Stays inside of that fairy tale narrative with the voice and the descriptions.
On a side note: I ended up going doing a weird rabbit hole about liminal spaces in traditional and modern fairy tales, because of the midnight fair that shows up. I love when books get me thinking about story telling tropes and liminal spaces, even if it's not on purpose.
If you are looking for cute & heartfelt lesbian fairy tale retellings Absolutely check out Elora Bishop, who also writes under Sarah Diemer.
On a side note: I ended up going doing a weird rabbit hole about liminal spaces in traditional and modern fairy tales, because of the midnight fair that shows up. I love when books get me thinking about story telling tropes and liminal spaces, even if it's not on purpose.
If you are looking for cute & heartfelt lesbian fairy tale retellings Absolutely check out Elora Bishop, who also writes under Sarah Diemer.
January 1, 2023
"I will give you a riddle, because a riddle is a key, and you possess a lock"
Rep: lesbian MC & love interest, achilliean side characters
This was one little atmospheric fairy tale retelling and it was just delightful. The beginning was kind of lame but it may have been just me adjusting to first person point of view. Anyway, the cottage core sapphics keep winning 💞
June 8, 2020
I loved this. I read it so fast, but I couldn't stop. Gray and Zelda were so sweet and I loved the mystical aspects.
July 28, 2017
The second entry in the Sappho's Fables collection is much like the first: a sweet F/F romance that will be particularly enjoyable to fairy-tale lovers and those familiar with the original tale.
In summary:
-sweet romance with a HEA
-interesting though under-utilised magic
-refreshing portrayal of the mother character
-quiet and rather lacking in tension, but I didn't really mind
It's slightly shorter than Seven: A Lesbian Snow White, so I forgave it for having flatter characters and minimal worldbuilding. What made up for those weak points and made this novella that much more interesting was the lack of a direct antagonist. Gray has a complicated relationship with her mother and with the Holity, the tree Zelda is bound to, but neither are antagonistic forces, really. As such, the novella lacks tension, but I was so engrossed in how Gray and Zelda would figure out how to be together and free Zelda that I didn't care. Still, if Braided hadn't been a retelling, and I hadn't been waiting and interested to see how the story would spin and how familiar motifs would come into play, I know my rating would be lower.
What sold me on this story and gave it three stars were the imaginative, inventive reinterpretations of classic tropes. Zelda isn't imprisoned in a tower, but bound by magic to a platform resting in the crown of a once-great wishing tree. She isn't the witch's daughter, but a child the witch bargained for to save her own daughter, Gray, from that fate. The witch, Momma Bone, is a woman who tried desperately to save her own child, and in doing so consigned her to a life of grief and guilt. Gray finds respite only in the visits she makes with Zelda, and the rampion from her mother's garden that she eats daily, a plant that substitutes for the rapunzel of the original tale.
I have less to say about Braided: A Lesbian Rapunzel than I did about Seven, which I put down to the flat characters and lack of worldbuilding. (There was also limited worldbuilding in Seven, though what little there was worked for me.) In Braided, there's a famous, holy wishing tree, a witch's cottage, the nearby village, and the Not-There Fair, which only appears between sunset and midnight. There's a lot of potential there, but it's never realised; the setting is quite as flat as the characters. By flat here I mean still enjoyable, there's just nothing that makes them stand out or grab my attention, and they'll fade from memory. Despite this, I loved the concept of the wishing tree as the tower that imprisons Zelda. I wanted to love the whimsical Not-There Fair and the dreamscape of Chimera that Zelda and Gray explore, but I feel the author just didn't have enough time to flesh them out. Also, in all due fairness to this book, I read Braided having just come from The Star-Touched Queen, and next to Roshani Chokshi's Night Bazaar and Otherworld, the Not-There Fair seemed bland and almost quotidian.
In retrospect, Seven is a much darker little story than I gave it credit for in my review, I think. It became much clearer in comparison to Braided, which had the potential to be dark , but went down a much quieter route. It has a hopeful ending and was a satisfying read despite not exploiting its full potential.
Would I recommend? Not as good as Seven, but overall yes. It does exactly what it says on the tin: be a lesbian retelling of Rapunzel. If that's what you're looking for, then go all in.
In summary:
-sweet romance with a HEA
-interesting though under-utilised magic
-refreshing portrayal of the mother character
-quiet and rather lacking in tension, but I didn't really mind
It's slightly shorter than Seven: A Lesbian Snow White, so I forgave it for having flatter characters and minimal worldbuilding. What made up for those weak points and made this novella that much more interesting was the lack of a direct antagonist. Gray has a complicated relationship with her mother and with the Holity, the tree Zelda is bound to, but neither are antagonistic forces, really. As such, the novella lacks tension, but I was so engrossed in how Gray and Zelda would figure out how to be together and free Zelda that I didn't care. Still, if Braided hadn't been a retelling, and I hadn't been waiting and interested to see how the story would spin and how familiar motifs would come into play, I know my rating would be lower.
What sold me on this story and gave it three stars were the imaginative, inventive reinterpretations of classic tropes. Zelda isn't imprisoned in a tower, but bound by magic to a platform resting in the crown of a once-great wishing tree. She isn't the witch's daughter, but a child the witch bargained for to save her own daughter, Gray, from that fate. The witch, Momma Bone, is a woman who tried desperately to save her own child, and in doing so consigned her to a life of grief and guilt. Gray finds respite only in the visits she makes with Zelda, and the rampion from her mother's garden that she eats daily, a plant that substitutes for the rapunzel of the original tale.
I have less to say about Braided: A Lesbian Rapunzel than I did about Seven, which I put down to the flat characters and lack of worldbuilding. (There was also limited worldbuilding in Seven, though what little there was worked for me.) In Braided, there's a famous, holy wishing tree, a witch's cottage, the nearby village, and the Not-There Fair, which only appears between sunset and midnight. There's a lot of potential there, but it's never realised; the setting is quite as flat as the characters. By flat here I mean still enjoyable, there's just nothing that makes them stand out or grab my attention, and they'll fade from memory. Despite this, I loved the concept of the wishing tree as the tower that imprisons Zelda. I wanted to love the whimsical Not-There Fair and the dreamscape of Chimera that Zelda and Gray explore, but I feel the author just didn't have enough time to flesh them out. Also, in all due fairness to this book, I read Braided having just come from The Star-Touched Queen, and next to Roshani Chokshi's Night Bazaar and Otherworld, the Not-There Fair seemed bland and almost quotidian.
In retrospect, Seven is a much darker little story than I gave it credit for in my review, I think. It became much clearer in comparison to Braided, which had the potential to be dark , but went down a much quieter route. It has a hopeful ending and was a satisfying read despite not exploiting its full potential.
Would I recommend? Not as good as Seven, but overall yes. It does exactly what it says on the tin: be a lesbian retelling of Rapunzel. If that's what you're looking for, then go all in.
March 6, 2014
Zelda's hair reaches to the grown from her platform in an ancient holy tree, where she is cursed to spend all her days allowing pilgrims to braid wishes into her nut brown locks. But this was not to be her curse, and Gray, the witches daughter can not bear the woman she loves wrongfully suffering for it. The arrival of the Not-There-Fair, however, changes everything. Can Gray and Zelda solve a strange creature's riddle, and change both their fates?
Braided is the first I've read of Elora Bishop's series Sappho's Fables and it certainly won't be the last. This novella is a lesbian retelling of the Rapunzel fairy tale, but is both original and enchanting.
There are a few typos in the kindle version, but they are easily overlooked. I loved Elora Bishops's take on the which as a distant mother who wished no one ill, but simply didn't know what else to do for her daughter. Also, I believe I will have her description of the magical dream world, the Chimera stuck in my mind for a long time to come.
In short-I loved this, you should read it!
Braided is the first I've read of Elora Bishop's series Sappho's Fables and it certainly won't be the last. This novella is a lesbian retelling of the Rapunzel fairy tale, but is both original and enchanting.
There are a few typos in the kindle version, but they are easily overlooked. I loved Elora Bishops's take on the which as a distant mother who wished no one ill, but simply didn't know what else to do for her daughter. Also, I believe I will have her description of the magical dream world, the Chimera stuck in my mind for a long time to come.
In short-I loved this, you should read it!
April 20, 2012
Once again Elora Bishop rebuilds a classic fairy tale from the ground up, stripping back the layers to get to the soul of the story, the core that speaks to us of love and the human spirit.
In 'Braided', a re-imagining of Rapunzel, Zelda is fated to spend her whole life up in the Holity (Holy Tree), listening to the prayers and wishes of the people of the town. Meanwhile Gray, the witch's daughter, has kept a painful secret since she was a child: she was meant to spend her life in the Holity, not Zelda. But she loves Zelda and is determined to set her free.
This story weaves dreams and the waking world together into a beautiful tapestry. At times, the feel of Gray's quest reminded me of the magic and wonder of the land of Fantasia from The Neverending Story. But the path is treacherous, and only love can overcome the dangers.
In 'Braided', a re-imagining of Rapunzel, Zelda is fated to spend her whole life up in the Holity (Holy Tree), listening to the prayers and wishes of the people of the town. Meanwhile Gray, the witch's daughter, has kept a painful secret since she was a child: she was meant to spend her life in the Holity, not Zelda. But she loves Zelda and is determined to set her free.
This story weaves dreams and the waking world together into a beautiful tapestry. At times, the feel of Gray's quest reminded me of the magic and wonder of the land of Fantasia from The Neverending Story. But the path is treacherous, and only love can overcome the dangers.
April 17, 2013
This was an amazing mythic retelling that I recommended to everyone I knew. Jennifer Diemer cleverly and evocatively wove myth and fairytale into a totally new version of the Rapunzel tale. I loved the tale of a girl who is part of a sacred tree, unable to leave it. Other people believe she grants their wishes, but her own is just to be free.
As always with Sarah and Jennifer Diemer, the pacing and unravelling of the tale is always just right. I would have had no idea how to end this story, but she found a perfect ending.
As always with Sarah and Jennifer Diemer, the pacing and unravelling of the tale is always just right. I would have had no idea how to end this story, but she found a perfect ending.
June 7, 2012
This novella was well written and although based on the concept of the story of Rupunzel's hair, its a completely different story of how two girls are trapped by a shared fate and how they overcome it.
I would go so far as to say that labeling this a "Lesbian" Rapunzel might make people think they would not enjoy the story if they are not lesbian which could not be further from the truth.
I would go so far as to say that labeling this a "Lesbian" Rapunzel might make people think they would not enjoy the story if they are not lesbian which could not be further from the truth.
November 17, 2012
Guh. This book ate me. Chewed me up, pushed me back out, and made me something new and different. It's been nearly half a year and the ideas from it have stayed. Love. The notes tied to the tree. The girl who is a tree. The souls which can be swapped.
This is another glorious act of Elora's everyone should love on.
This is another glorious act of Elora's everyone should love on.
March 6, 2013
Once again, I'm blown away by the creativity and general loveliness of Elora Bishop' writing. I love what she does to fairytales. She not only shifts them to feature two young women instead of a princess and a prince, but truly claims the story as her own. It's obviously based on Rapunzel, but Braided is fully its own story. It gave me beautiful dreams of lovely trees.
February 6, 2013
Not actually a book, but a short story, and a good one. This isn't just a lesbian Rapunzel, but a complete reimagining of the story, very original and well done. The Kindle edition I had has a few typos, but they are fairly easily overlooked. I highly recommend it.
October 2, 2014
I usually love these kinds of stories, but I just couldn't really get into the beat of this one. Maybe it was because there was a little too much fantasy? Nonetheless, the revisited story is very original and worth a short read!
April 9, 2015
Was definitely my favorite of the three novellas that came in Sappho's Fables. It was a complete story but left me wanting more backstory of the world they live in. Short stories always do that to me though :)
August 17, 2012
Lovely.
November 25, 2012
Another great retelling of a fairy tale!
January 5, 2014
Lesbian fairytale, what else is there to say?
September 23, 2015
Quick read but definitely worth it! Stop reading reviews and just read the story! :)
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August 12, 2019this was cute and since the characters knew each other prior to the story beginning, it didn't feel rushed. i liked it
Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews