Queen Cinder

Shards of the Glass Slipper #1

by Roy A. Mauritsen

One Last Chance To Save Happily Ever After! Can a group of heroes, including Goldenhair, Red Riding Hood, and Rapunzel, help General Snow White and her dwarven resistance fighters defeat the tyrannical Queen Cinderella? And will they succeed before a war with Wonderland destroys everything? Their only hope to stop Cinderella's quest for power lies with a young girl named Patience Muffet. She carries the fabled shards of Cinderella's glass slippers, as well as the dark secret of who murdered the last of the fairy godmothers. Roy A.Mauritsen's fantasy adventure fairy tale epic begins with Shards of the Glass Queen Cinder. "Fantastic... A Magnificent Epic!" -Sarah Beth Durst, author of Into The Wild & Drink, Slay, Love "The Brothers Grimm meets Lord of the Rings." -Patrick Thomas, author of The Murphy's Lore series "Roy Mauritsen's enchanting epic comes at a time when fairy tales are back in the forefront of our collective imagination. If you've missed the stone halls and warm fireplaces of Happily Ever After then look no further." -Darin Kennedy, author

Genres: Fantasy, Fairy Tales, Retellings, Young Adult, Fiction, Fairy Tale Retellings, Romance

320 pages, Kindle Edition

First published March 15, 2012

About the author

It was bound to happen, with pictures being worth what they are in words, that a successful creative artist would eventually entertain the idea of writing a novel. Roy's interests were somewhat atypical as a child. Aside from art and science, there were books and movies--science fiction and fantasy themed--and also role-playing games like Dungeons & Dragons, and a love of fairy tales that started at an early age with a dusty, 1941 hardcover edition of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. Exploring every creative avenue available to him, Roy took every art class he could in school, and also any writing class, especially creative writing. Roy has received several awards in recognition of his artwork. But for this artist-turned-writer, the saying "a picture is worth a thousand words" wasn't enough this time. There was a story to be told, and it demanded to be written. This fairy tale epic fantasy adventure is also the inspiration for Shards, a concept album that Roy collaborated on and the fourth studio release by the band Gene Pool Zombie.
Roy has also somehow managed to have a successful career as a digital artist and graphic designer, and also designing book covers and TV commercials. When he's not trying to figure out how that happened, he enjoys photography, volleyball, SCUBA diving, and traveling. But most of the time, he works on 3D artwork, writing short stories for upcoming anthologies, and working on the follow up to Shards of the Glass Slipper. Roy lives on Long Island, New York, with his wife, Caren, and their dog, a Newfoundland mix named Coda.

Reviews

[Barbara ★ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fairytale Reunion

This is a great mishmash of fairytales - Cinderella, Snow White, Rapunzel, Red Riding Hood, Hansel and Gretel, Goldilocks and the Three Bears and even Alice in Wonderland, White Rabbit, Cheshire Cat and fairy Godmothers. I loved the premise and the execution. A wonderful story that kept me reading until the last page. I will definitely be continuing the adventure.

[Lilyan · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am amazed by the intricacy of the plot! I loved, loved, LOVED, how all my childhood fairytales have been meshed up together in this delightful little book.
I was very excited to find out what plotline Mauritsen had created for each of the Disney princesses and the accompanying cast, each page held a lovely surprise.
The best thing, however, was the introduction of Wonderland in the mix. It's easy to think up of ways to twist our old beloved stories, but Mauritsen hs combined it all in a clear and surprising manner, without losing track of the main plot and messing the story up. I must admit, I was worried for a while that things were going to get confusing and Mauritsen was going to loose sight of the story and make a jumble of things, but he didn't!
It all came together and was wrapped up in a tight plot. I'm NOT happy about the cliffhanger! Especially since I did not realize this was a series. WOT has lead me to take a vow, NEVER to start a series that hasn't ended already. So now, I'm left hanging, for yet another year! Not happy!

Three Stars Clarification

If I liked it so much, why the 3 stars you ask? Well, although the story was highly entertaining I had the following issues:

1. The book needed editing. I'm not a grammar nazi at alll, and I usually don't notice editing problems if I was engrossed with the book, but the story was really entertaining and it would have been so much better had it been properly edited.

2. Because there were so many characters, not all of them got their time in the sun. We only got depth from a couple of the characters, while some key characters came of as shallow and flat. I would have liked to see more character building in rupunzel and elizabeth for example.

3. Finally, I felt the writing style was confused between that of a children's fairy tale and that of an adult book. There were times when the writing felt like a typical fairytale with short, simple basic sentences, and other times when it took on more adult themes, like adultery and it turned into a more adult oriented book.

I have very high hopes for the second book. This is Mauritsen's first book afterall, and as a first time writer he has done a wonderfull job.
If the second book mantains the same forceful imagination as this one, with proper editing, it could easily become a bestseller.

Again, I want to stress, again! That , I will never read an uncompleted series! The wait is just maddening! It's like getting in your car and finding there is no fuel! Hmph!

[Veronica · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow! What an amazing and fun book!! The ending! Holy batshit the ending!

Maldora
I cannot wait to see what the future holds for her!!!


Queen Cinder
Crazy evil bitch..


Goldenhair
Oh, she is just the coolest thing EVER! I LOVE what the author has done with this character.

Elizabeth
Now here is a twist I never saw coming. At ALL!


All of the Wonderland characters as well.

The whole book just made me so very happy! I am looking forward to the next installment.

[Jenne · Rating 1 out of 5]

This wasn't for me. The concept was cool and normally it's something that would spark my interest (I like twisted tales). I just couldn't find myself caring about the characters or the story.
DNF @ 29%

[Charisse C · Rating 3 out of 5]

An action-filled story where our sweet and all-time favorite Cinderella is given a power-hungry witch queen role. A good read. The plot was predictable, which is exactly why I liked the book :)

[Ernie Jr. · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a great read from Roy Mauritsen. The story was well thought out and unique given the nature of the characters. I especially enjoyed the subtle way he worked in the familiar themes into unfamiliar plot twists. Character development and relationship development were well done, especially as we get to see a more mature version of the storybook characters we grew up with.

The only reason I gave this four stars was because of some minor editing issues and style choices. With that said, they did not get in the way of enjoying the book. Roy's first work is a harbinger of great things to come as he grows as an author.

Again, well done. I recommend this to anyone who enjoys a good fairy tale and look forward to more!

Ernie Laurence Jr.
Author: Sundered

[Deb · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoy clever and this book was clever. The nursery rhyme/fairytale characters of our childhoods have grown-up and become embroiled in some dark, adult intrigue. Cinderella is now an evil witch/queen who had an affair and tries to kill her Prince. Snow White commands a rebel army of dwarves against the Queen. Someone named Goldenhair can talk to three bears and other forest creatures. A portal to Wonderland has been breached and a war between worlds is about to break out. Poor Queen Alice is only a puppet for White Rabbit, Mad Hatter and company. Can our ragtag band of heroes save the day and win back their kingdom? I hope so. Book One left me hanging so I had to immediately order up Book Two.
This book is a fun, entertaining, escapist read.

[Matt Schiariti · Rating 4 out of 5]

All is not happy in Marchenton. Ciderella, known now as Queen Cinder, rules with a malevolent and dark fist. When her husband, Prince Charming, left to wage battle against the Giants during what would become the Beanstalk War, she was swayed from the sweet and innocent person she once was into a cruel and scheming dictator by her evil step mother. There looks to be no Happily Ever After in Marchenton...until a young castle servant named Patience enters the picture. Patience holds the shards of Cinderella's glass slippers, the vessel that contains the last remnants of fairy magic in the kingdom. Along with the likes of General Snow White, Goldenhair and her three bears, lieutenant Repunzel, a pied piper, and a familiar girl in a red hood, Patience will embark on a sweeping journey to rid the realm of the evil queen and her Witch stepmother. But, will they succeed when they encounter bounty hunting siblings Hansel and Gretel, the deformed and deadly General of the Queen's armies, and an impending war from a Land filled with Wonder?

I have to admit that I wasn't sure if I was going to like this novel when I decided to read it. Fairy tales? Me? They're honestly not my bag. Truth be told, I wasn't even that much into Disney when I was a kid! But as it turns out, I was pleasantly surprised by Shards of the Glass Slipper.

Labeled as an 'Epic Fairy Tale Fantasy', this book lives up to its billing. It has the epic quest and reluctant chosen one aspect of Lord of the Rings and combines it with the political intrigue and behind the scenes double dealings of Game of Thrones, just using iconic characters that have been around for a LONG long time. And speaking of characters, for me, that's where the book really shines: these aren't your animated Disney archetypes. Mauritsen's imagination is in great evidence here as he makes the characters his own. He really twists and changes up the same ole same ole of the fluffy characters many of us grew up with. Cinderella is dark, evil, and self serving; the embodiment of absolute power corrupting absolutely. Snow White is the general of the dwarven resistance army; she's gruff, strong and melancholy. Goldenhair (aka Goldilocks), has three bears but their back story goes much beyond porridge and comfortable beds. My favorite take on an old standard has to be Little Red Riding hood. I LOVED what he did with the character, but I'm not going to spoil it for you. Let's just say that I was pleasantly surprised by the twist he put on her. I could go on and on about the cast but the review would be entirely too long, but there doesn't seem to be many classics left out of this, and that includes Rabbits with pocket watches, cats with wide grins, and a certain guy who sold a cow for some 'magic' beans, among many others.

I found the plot to be pretty tight overall. It reads like the beginnings of a saga and has the character moments and large battle scenes that are the hallmarks of any type of fantasy.

I did have several issues with the book, none of which were deal breakers, but they're there and in the interest of full disclosure, I have to mention them:

Sometimes the point of view is a little 'loose'. It's told in the third person and, generally when reading a book in this perspective, each scene has one character whose head the reader is invited into. Sometimes in Shards, the point of view character seemed to change from paragraph to paragraph. Shifting points of view is nothing new and it's welcomed when the narrative is told in the third person, but a page break or even a new chapter are usually when those perspectives are changed. While it doesn't make the book confusing, it does make it 'stutter' a bit when you're not quite sure who's eyes you're seeing the world through. Now, I admit that the amount of fairy tales I've read could fit into a thimble, so maybe this is just a style of those types of stories. I'm unsure of that. So, while it could very well just be me, it can stand out in a modern day novel. Once again, not a total deal breaker because more often than not, Mauritsen is clear about who's experiencing what.

While I found it to flow pretty well for the most part, there are a couple points where the pacing gets a little slow; some overly expository dialogues for the most part. It only happens in a few places so once again, nothing major.

Included in the ebook version are some VERY nice 3D digital renderings from the author. There is some fantastic artwork in the book every few chapters, so that's a very nice bonus.

It's obvious that Mauritsen has a great imagination and the ability to convey what he sees in his head to the reader. Despite a few hiccups along the way, I found Shards Of The Glass Slipper to be vivid, well told, and fun. What's more, it's accessible to those who have a working knowledge of the classic fairy tales of old and those who don't know much about them other than what they've seen in cartoons over the years, like me. This is just the beginning of a bigger saga and the ending leaves me very curious as to where he'll go with the next installment. Give this one a shot!

[Shannon Dempsey · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was an enchanting tale with an amazing group of characters. What I truly loved about it was how Mauritsen used more than just the general fairytales, like Cinderella and Snow White. While, yes, those tales were a focal point, we also had Jack from 'Jack and the beanstalk' and Pied Piper of Hamelin.

It was an adventures tale that always kept you on your toes. It was even really fun trying to piece together peoples stories and find out which fairytale character they were (or which fairytale they originated).

[AudioBookReviewer · Rating 3 out of 5]

ABR's full Queen Cinder audiobook review and many others can be found at Audiobook Reviewer.

Shards of the glass slipper is the first book of a series with the same name, its written by Roy A. Mauritsen self ublished in March 24th 2015, its narrated by Christopher Crosby Morris (with sixteen hours and thirty two minutes).

This novel is fantasy, magic, and adventures (some will consider it to be a dystopian novel).

This novel is about a resistance movement including fairy tales heroes such as: Goldenhair, Red Riding Hood, Rapunzel and Snow White against the evil queen Cinderella (she isn’t under any spell she is just evil), and her dominating step-mother. In a land with almost no magic left, that happens to be in a state of war with Wonderland.

I had a very hard time reviewing this novel, so I will be doing it in a different style (I couldn’t do it any other way).

What I liked about this novel:

1. The idea: the idea is pretty awesome and creative. It gathers many of the characters from all of the of the well-known fairy tales. Add in a dark kingdom under a dictatorship, and the coup d’état plan in a neighboring kingdom.

2. The setting: it was a very good and suitable for the mood in the story (the time is after years from the timeline in the original tales, the place is Marchenton a kingdom whose magic is about to run out, the royal palace is surrounded by “blood thorns “so no one can enter or exit without queen Cinderella or her step-mother permission ) and bunch of other interesting places

3. The events are fast paced and told in a very dramatic way (overly dramatic sometimes). I was almost able forget myself and was absorbed in the action scenes.

4. The audiobook came with music and sound effects which was totally great, it gave the story a third dimension, and made it more enjoyable.

5. Good, as in not evil (or almost good), female leader roles.

What I didn’t like about this novel:

1. The plot: the plot is confusing and chaotic, it left me with a lot of questions. Mostly wondering about plausibility of the events (a lot of them weren’t very convincing, and generally naïve even)

2. The characters: they are shallow, amateurs, boring, and just a mere shadow of their past known glory. Considering all of the fantastic story telling, this was a let down.

3. Horrible male leader models: each man in this story could be classified under one of those categories: useless, womanizer, coward, traitor, irresponsible or a combination of two or more of these characteristics …seriously it was frustrating.

4. The audiobook pacing: while I liked the music and the sound idea (I hope to see it in more books). I did find the voice of Christopher Crosby Morris to be very suitable for fairy tales. Yet it was so slow for me (and I mean painfully sloooooooow).

5. I don’t know to which age group this novel target. Because the novelty of the plot and the music would apply to children, yet there are things that I don’t feel comfortable for a child to hear.

Audiobook provided for for review by the author.

[Michael Taylor · Rating 5 out of 5]

Once upon a time takes on new meaning in Roy Mauritsen’s Shards of the Glass Slipper. In the great tradition of true masters of fairy tales, Mauritsen twists the reader in and out of timeless stories, and leaves the reader asking, “Is there a happily ever after?” Shards of the Glass Slipper is a book that will stand the test of time. This will become a work that will find itself in classrooms from middle school to college.

I was incredibly impressed with Mauritsen’s ability to alter the reader’s traditional ideas of certain characters from fairy tales. He has, with great skill, given the world of fairy tales new life. He’s breathed fresh air into antiquated stories, and in doing so, revived stories that may very well have faded into the past.

The way Mauritsen changed my perceptions of fairy tale characters equals Maguire’s way to make the reader sympathize for the Wicked Witch of the West. Mauritsen is a true visionary who sees a world that is forever changing, and in his vision he’s given us a masterpiece to cherish.

If ratings went higher than five stars, I would give Mauritsen every one of them. He deserves each of them for allowing the world to experience Shards of the Glass Slipper.

[Kimberly Vanderbloom · Rating 5 out of 5]

All I can is wow. I was super impressed with this book. I loved the storyline and the characters. It was an intense ride that is for sure. I got the opportunity to listen to the audio book and it was a completely unique experience. I heard a clip on Facebook and I knew I had to get it. It was enhanced with music and sound effects. For the first time ever I felt like I was watching a movie in my head. It is going to be difficult to listen to any other audible books because none can compare to this. If you want to give yourself quite a treat pick yourself up a copy of the audible book because you will not be disappointed. I loved the journey the story you took you on. It went so many different directions there was no way to predict it which is a nice change. I am dying to listen to the next book. This is the first work I have read from this author and definitely will not be the last. I would recommend this to anyone who likes a different twist on some old characters.

[Matt Kelland · Rating 1 out of 5]

Retold fairy tales seem to be much in vogue these days: there's the fantastic comic series Fables: Legends in Exile, on TV we've had Once Upon a Time and Grimm, and in the movies we've had two different Snow Whites this year alone. This is one of the many recent books designed to appeal to people who liked those. Its main gimmick - in common with several of the above - is to put all the different fairytale characters into one world, then weave a big cataclysmic story involving all of them, each slightly re-imagined.

This one didn't work for me. It started off as an interesting idea, and I liked the way it was going at first, but somewhere round about the point where we met "General Snow White, leader of the dwarven resistance", I gave up.

[Andrew Weston · Rating 5 out of 5]

I rarely get the chance to simply sit down and read for fun, and when I do, I like a story that's smooth on the eye and easy to follow. In Shards of the Glass Slipper, I found exactly that. Now, I will admit I approached the subject with a little trepidation. While I enjoy the fairy-tale classics, I've been turned off in recent years by a well-known, ongoing TV series based on a "similar" premise of mixing such characters together. And I can't stand it. However, if that series had been based on Roy Mauritsen's "Shards", I think it would have been a different story.
I've noted how certain other reviewers got a pit picky over certain issues?
Me? All I can say is I base my reviews on how quickly I can to relate to the premise, the setting, and the story itself.
Long story short...I thoroughly enjoyed it, and - without giving the game away - WILL be reading more.

[Darin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Disclaimer - I'm a good friend of Roy's, so take what I say with a grain of salt. That being said, Shards of the Glass Slipper is clearly a love letter from Roy to The Brothers Grimm and Lewis Carroll. The characters are simultaneously new and familiar, and I think many will enjoy that. There are many great parts to the book, but nothing got to me quite like the incorporation of the zany made up Lewis Carroll words from Jabberwocky during our heroes' altercation with said creature. Quite the intricate plot, and book two should pick up right where book one left off. All best to Roy as he works on putting out the second part of Shards!

[Audree · Rating 5 out of 5]

That was an awesome book! Loved the characters and all the twists off the original stories and fairy tales; glad the author did his homework on the originals as well. I smiled whenever I recognized another character that was spun into the plot and I thought it was awesome that Cinderella was the evil queen. Also, I wouldn't just recommend this story to girls because it also had many detailed fighting and action scenes and wasn't all lovey-dovey which I also appreciated. Can't wait for the next installment as the ending left you wanting more. Hope it comes out soon!

[Silversnow · Rating 5 out of 5]

nooooooooooooooooo!!
a cliffhanger!!
really??
why why why??
I think I just died :(

Yhis is one of the most cleverly written books i have ever read.
I loved the way roy incorporated every single character of different fairy tales and still their identities were preserved.
We saw many of them in entirely new light even when their back-stories were not changed.

The best thing was awesome art work ...i just can't keep goldenhair and her lovable bears out of my mind. i was bawling my eyes out when niko died.

[Christopher · Rating 4 out of 5]

More Grimm than the 20th century incarnations, these versions of the fairy tale characters flow together very nicely with a few odd twists, most of which are enjoyable. (A couple of quibbles, but they work in the story.) I don't want to give anything away -- I'd rather let the characters reveal themselves as the story progresses, even if you think you know who's coming next.

My only complaint was that the subplot was actually the build-up to the sequel, which I now have to find. (Like I wasn't going to get it anyway!)

[LK · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome twist on fairy tale lore

An unexpected gem of a book where all your favorite fairy tale characters are thrust together in a time of turmoil and war. Who turns evil, who remains good,and who is a new unsuspected hero. Really loved this one. Now to read the next in the series. ;)

[Patrick Thomas · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was lucky enough to get a pre-publication copy for review and loved it. I describe it as The Brothers Grim meets The Lord of The Rings. If you like epic fantasy or fairy tales then this is the book for you.

[Chryl · Rating 5 out of 5]

love,love,love this book!!I am anxiously waiting his next books! I know they will be as great as this! your favorite faerie tales for grown ups! I love how some peoples mind work! wish I could be this creative! If I was able I would give Roy A. Mauritsen a rating of 10!!

[Edward III · Rating 5 out of 5]

An awesome new take on fairy tales I thought I knew very well. Mauritsen manages to breathe life into some VERY old characters. I found this book to be fun, well written, and very entertaining. Highly recommended.

[Susan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was amazing. Imagine every fairytale you have read and more coming together in one fantastic book.

[Tammy Hall · Rating 5 out of 5]

What can I say I love my fairy tales! This one however, is not told by Disney and has twists and turns you will never see coming!

[Jen · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great read! It was a cleaver book that incorporated many fairy tales uniquely. Loved it!

[Bethany · Rating 3 out of 5]

A solid three stars. It might have been more by I put this book down for like three years, before picking it back up again. But it was interesting enough over all to keep from being 2 stars. Once I picked it up agian I finished it fairly quickly, in about three days. Listening to this made it a whole lot easier.
Audibly this was an interesting experience. I enjoy full cast audio productions but I don't get to listen to them very often. Still over all it wasn't so bad. My only complaint is that there are times when the background sound effects seriously drown out the narrator, so it was hard to hear the story. But I didn't mind the sound effects overall.
Plot wise, it was interesting. I could see all the fairy tales woven together and although at times it did feel as though everything but the kitchen sink was thrown in. although I thought it was clever, when Mauritsen worked in the little miss muffet nursery rhyme. It was things like this that make me think the author planned this story fairly well.
I am interested in reading the second book in this series.
Recommended? Sure, but it might take a while to get through.
Buy/Borrow? Borrow

[Rachel · Rating 3 out of 5]

I. Was looking for a fairy tale last summer and this sounded cute .each chapter was a different character but somehow it just didn't meet my expectations. I wanted Cinderella gone bad and she only had like one chapter in her p.o.v. it was cute I suppose but the characters were boring. I kept expections low because i hadn't read a classic fairy tail remake in a while but kept hoping for a twist and it felt anticlimactic. Everyone says oh she's the awful evil villain but she was never truly Wicked. Her evil deed came across as a tantrum because of a rushed and love less marriage. Granted her choice was bad but the writing style just didn't make me care.

I can't complain too much I did give the series a second chance with the Alice in wonderland remake and that was also cute if boring. The villains need more screen time so they can be fleshed out. One chapter per character isn't enough to make these versions standout. The plot was good though and I thought both books had an interesting idea going I just really wanted to care about the too many characters and what they wanted and couldn't.

[Eero · Rating 1 out of 5]

On second thought, although I did not finish the book, it is still better to rate it one star than leave it unrated, because the Goodreads software keeps recommending me stuff based on it, on the erroneous assumption of gratitude. The prose did not meet my requirements of coherence and polish. The beginning was promising, but along the way the language started to feel sloppy or awkward. I may have judged the book too soon, but with so many books to choose from I have become a little more sensitive to warning signs.

I mean, it was not exactly Eye of Argon territory, but seemed to be heading in that general direction.

Other than that, it was somewhat like the flashback sequences in "Once Upon A Time".

[Bonnie · Rating 2 out of 5]

I usually love re-tellings of fairy tales, and had high hopes for this book. Unfortunately, a choppy plotline and clunky writing firmly puts this book into the 'meh' category. I feel like this book could have been much improved upon with a good editor.

In regards to the plot, this maybe would have felt fresh and interesting 5 years ago. But a lot of it resonates too closely with other current hit fairy tale media, mostly with the fantastic Fables comic series. As a result, I really couldn't get into this book.

[Nancie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this first book of the series. I liked having all the well known fairy tales along with the not so well known ones all together in one story. I also love all things Wonderland so I'm really excited to have that thrown in as well. It has great plot and storyline, but I thought it dragged in some places and the style of writing seems slightly immature at times. It could also use a bit of editing. Overall it's a very fun read.