At Midnight

Twisted Tales #2

by Suzanna Fowers

Stop the clock from striking twelve

Bridgette has Cinderella complex big time. She has to find true love's kiss to get some weird guy off her back who claims to be her faery godmother. But who is she really?

1. Loser of Omak High
2. Girl who rubs her fingers raw working fast food
3. Victim of the evil stepmother who runs the group home
4. Not-so-proud owner of a hearth where fire-starting goblins live
5. Asylum wannabe with occasional schizophrenic episodes

Not even Bridgette knows. Even if her faery godmother wasn't some guy who knows nothing about romance, how is Bridgette supposed to get true love's kiss if everyone she cares about disappears?
Bridgette must find out who she is in the faerytales or she'll lose everything.

"At Midnight" is the second book in the Twisted Tales Series.

Genres: Fantasy, Fairy Tales, Romance, Young Adult, Fiction, Clean Romance, Contemporary

325 pages, Kindle Edition

First published March 15, 2013

About the author

At the tender age of seven, Suzanna's picture book called, "Candy Land" began her career of writing fantasy. She read stories aloud to her classmates about the donut people who solved crimes and Henry the VIII's wives breaking free to explore the red spot on Jupiter. Her imagination hasn't stopped since. She credits her older brother for her love of fantasy and remembers tugging out his dragon fantasy books from a room he'd painted in dragons, Garfield, and Nerds. Her love for romance comes from the box of historical regency romances tucked under her mother's bed. Of course, reading her family's books on the sly had unintended consequences. Her brother had to wipe away her tears and explain cliffhangers and that her favorite character did NOT actually die at the end of a book, and… maybe she should start with book one, instead of book five? And as for the snitched romances? Unfortunately, Suzanna's mother has spent YEARS trying to comfort her overly-hopeful daughter over her romantic ideals.

Nevertheless, Suzanna has a WILD blend of literary tastes. She is thrilled to invite you on her fantasy-writing journey. She has all sorts of ideas in the works with dystopian, plus some Regency romance fantasy with Greek gods, steampunk crime mysteries (because why settle on one genre?), and yes, more and more fairy tale retellings.

Suzanna also writes under the name, Stephanie Fowers. So, if you're into romantic suspense, romantic comedy, inspirational romance, check out those books too!

Happy reading and imagining!

Reviews

[katie potratz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great quirky tale . Very quick read but fun to follow

[Lori Palle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Poor Bridgette. She has serious abandonment issues. Since she woke up three months ago with no memory of who she is, all she knows is that no one likes her. However, when her "faery godmother" shows up, she's suddenly finding different guys falling for her, and her popularity is on the rise. How is this a bad thing? Well, turns out she's been accidently cursed so that anyone she loves will disappear. Literally.

This follow-up to With a Kiss did not disappoint! Ms. Fowers doesn't just continue with the mythology of the first book, she adds much more depth and details to it! We meet new types of faeries, faery hunters, learn more about the areas of the Sidhe and its politics, and more. Bridgette is a returning character from the first book, and one of the ending scenes in With a Kiss is repeated through Bridgette's perspective, which was really fun. At the start of the book, she's basically an unpopular doormat, and her viewpoint starts off like a horror story as inhuman creatures haunt her, ruining any chances of making friends or feeling safe. As Hobs--who is hilarious as ever as an insensitive yet overprotective guardian--tries to help her find a way to break the curse, we watch her grow more confident and brave.

The romance is clean, and I wasn't sure at first who she'd pick of the four sudden suitors she finds falling for her. One is a gorgeous and mysterious sweetheart, one is her shy friend and coworker, one is a total playboy jerk--ok, it was kinda clear that guy was out--, and one is unattainable because her new best friend, Daphne, loves him. I loved the conflicted romance! By the end, I really enjoyed how the romance progressed.

If you haven't read the first book, you should! There are portions here that would spoil the first book if you read out of order, which also means that if you *do* decide to read this first, you'll be able to catch up quickly. There's a major cliffhanger in the end, so although there is resolution, this shouldn't be read as a standalone!

If you like fantasy with mystical creatures, humor, character development, and action, this book is for you. This one is definitely a 5 out of 5 for me.

(Originally posted on my blog and shortened here for brevity. I received a copy for an honest and unbiased review.)

[Mandy Sickle · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received At Midnight in return for an honest review as part of the tour hosted by Xpresso Book Tours. At midnight starts right after With a Kiss ends. Halley has learned who she is, Babs has been sent to live in the same town that Halley grew up in. However she’s not living the happy life that Halley had instead she’s working at a fast food join, living in a halfway house for teens with an evil stepmother as she calls her and mean girls like sisters. Hobs shows up intent on getting Bab’s to kiss her true love so that he can save Halley from what’s hunting her in Faery.

However getting Bab’s who’s now Bridgette to believe isn't going to be easy but due to Halley’s curse in attempt to help Bab’s she’s been dealing with some unwanted pests. When Hobs solves some of her issues with her unwanted pests and gives her a chance to talk to the really Halley she agrees to help. Bridgette has a hard time picking out a guy for loves kiss since the guy she wants she doesn't see her that way. The pair set out to get Bab’s kissed they head to the shadow of Halley’s party confronting her to tell them who the otherworldly is who has the treasures of faery. Will Bab’s get her kiss? Will they save Halley?

I really loved this part of the story. We saw a side of Hob’s we didn't in the first and I really loved his character this time around. He’s so in love with Halley more so than I thought from the first book. Plus Bab’s aka Bridgette is an awesome character she’s easy to connect with I spent the whole book cheering for her. At midnight is a whirlwind adventure filled with faery tales, monsters and romance. I had a hard time putting it down, I wanted to know if Bab’s would get the guy and save Halley. The twisted Tales series is a well done collection of Faery tales with a fun new twist. I loved this installment in the series. I’m so glad I have the next one or I’d be going nuts.

[Korbie Harrison · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's not often that I actually write up a review for a book. . .but I quite liked this book. I'm a sucker for fairy tale rewrites, and all things faery, and I loved how this series combined both. It was actually a pretty addicting read; I was a little unfocused on everything while I read this series because I was too busy thinking about the characters and how I'd left them in peril to. . .ahem, try to live life like a responsible adult. I'd recommend it wholeheartedly :)

[Rachel · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm loving this series! I'm a fan of faery tales with a modern twist and this faery story didn't disappoint. I liked how the narrator changed from the first book so you get the story from a different perspective. This book kept me up too late more than one night because I couldn't put it down! I love the unexpected plot twists and the writing is great. I also liked the quotes at the beginning of each chapter. Great job Stephanie, I can't wait to read more!

[A.L. Sowards]

Of the three books in this series, I think this one was my favorite. Maybe because I could identify with Bridgette (ah, memories of working at a fast food place where all the customers assume all the employees are idiots), maybe because I liked the banter between Ren and Hobs. Good mix of magic, high school, clean romance, and adventure.

[Kerri · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this one much better than the first, but there's still a lot of explanation lacking. Hobs especially is too much a mystery, and hides too much from Bridgette, and for no apparent reason. I like the characters, I like the twists, and the interweaving of the fairy tales is a lot of fun. More description of settings would be nice; a lot is left to the imagination. Overall, a fun read.

[Megan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fairy tale regurgitation. definitely better than the last one. I didn't spend nearly as much time confused at conversation/scene jumps. I still feel like here is just too much going on here. Too many fairy tales weaving together in not always clear ways. But I'm liking the story! I'm glad Hobs is in the stories so much.

[Shannon Cooley · Rating 5 out of 5]

My soul has been stolen by this series. See my review of the first book. I can't get it out of my head even when I stop reading, and I'm anxious to start the 3rd (though also wary, because the dishes are piling up and my boxes are not getting unpacked).

[Teresa Dickson · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not a real fan of this book. Too confusing

[Becky · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was okay, but I didn't know that it was a part of a series. It was a good retelling but it got confusing.

[Shaunna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cool

Great second book, it kept me on my toes, a little predictable at times, but very good twist to the fairy tales.

[Amy]

At least a four star, not really sure yet.

[Coy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really enjoyed

[Angie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this book better. It made more sense.