Wicked Ugly Bad

A Kinda Fairytale #1

by Cassandra Gannon

Once Upon a Time…

Scarlett Riding is NOT an ugly stepsister. Cinderella is the evil one in the family and Letty is determined to prove it. Unfortunately, that’s kinda hard to do from behind bars. After the debacle at the ball, Letty and her sister Dru were dragged off to the Wicked, Ugly and Bad Mental Health Treatment Center and Maximum Security Prison. While Cindy’s planning her dream wedding, her two stepsisters are being forced to endure life in the dreariest dungeon in the land.

Luckily, Letty has a plan to change that unhappy ending. If she can just get to Prince Charming and prove the glass slipper doesn’t fit Cinderella’s foot, she can reclaim her life. In order to do that, though, she needs to convince The Big Bad Wolf to lend a hand in organizing a jailbreak.

Marrok Wolf isn’t sure what to make of the idealistic redhead in his group therapy sessions. With fifty counts of Badness on his criminal record, Marrok’s used to being surrounded by crooks and scumbags. Scarlett wants to lecture him about equal rights for trolls! When the little do-gooder comes up with an elaborate plan to break their entire “share circle” out of prison, though, Marrok is certainly willing to go along with the plot. And not just because he wants to see her naked. The woman may not be wicked, ugly, or Bad, but she’s definitely the only one who can save him.

Together with a wicked witch, a timid bridge ogre, an evil prince, and other villains straight out of a storybook, Scarlett and Marrok are about to make sure that Baddies finally have a happily ever after.

Genres: Fantasy, Romance, Fantasy Romance, Retellings, Humor, Paranormal, Fairy Tales

317 pages, ebook

First published March 12, 2013

Reviews

[Namera [The Literary Invertebrate] · Rating 5 out of 5]

⤅ Basically, this book is insane. In the best way possible.

The worldbuilding is wildly inventive, the dialogue is laugh-out-loud hilarious, the romance is adorable, and the characters are well-developed.

We start out with our heroine, ugly stepsister Scarlett Riding, in the Wicked Ugly Bad prison/mental institute for Bad folk. In the world of the Four Kingdoms, people are genetically divided into Good and Bad; Baddies are used as servants and menials by sneering Good folk. Good folk such as Cinderella, who is not the lovable orphan waif of Disney, but a sadistic rat-loving psychopath who confined Scarlett and Drusilla to the WUB prison so she could marry Prince Charming herself.

Scarlett's been going slowly insane inside WUB - and Marrok Wolf is a large part of that. The famous Bad athlete just won't stop teasing her, flirting with her, and generally making her want to rip her hair out. Why on earth would someone like him be interested in an ugly stepsister? The other members of their Tuesday share circle aren't much better: she's been saddled with Rumpelstiltskin, a deposed prince, a bridge troll, and a witch.

(Yes, this is a Red Riding Hood/Cinderella mashup. That's only the least of this book's awesomeness).

The world is BRILLIANT. We have a twist on the fated-mates trope where everyone has a True Love, but the kicker is that only Bad folk can recognise their True Loves on sight. Goodies need to get a little more... physical before their innate recognition kicks in. All the characters of myth and fairytale populate the Four Kingdoms (sometimes in very different guises to the ones we know) and it honestly makes me wonder if the author was tripping on acid or something when she wrote this, because how else do you explain Hansel and Gretel the serial-killing conjoined twins, or Thumbelina and Tinkerbelle being responsible for the Neverland Massacre?

The dialogue is actually so funny. Avenant (the deposed prince) tends to get the best lines, but Marrok's snarky humour ranks high too. It pairs brilliantly with Scarlett's general do-gooding demeanour.

I won't go into too much detail about the plot, because it really is best experienced for yourself (let's just say it features one of the funniest prison break scenes in literature) but there's a reason why I keep returning to this book. It's the ultimate comfort read.
__
Original review: I've read this book at least twice before, and it just gets better every time. Honestly, this is one of the most underappreciated books I've EVER read.

It's an absolutely hilarious (I laughed out loud multiple times) romp through an awesome mishmash of fairytale worlds, with superbly drawn characters, sizzling UST, a swoonworthy romance and brilliant dialogue. Yes, there are six million typos, but I genuinely do not give a damn.

That's how good this book is.

[Somia · Rating 4 out of 5]

17th April 2019

The more I re-read this book the more I enjoy it.

Cinderella is bonkers/twisted, and certain scenes with her remain Ick.

This book will have you looking at: Cinderella, The Ugly Stepsisters, the Big Bad Wolf and Snow White, in a whole new light.

4th December 2019

Her books are the perfect blend of humour, charm and romance. Love Gannon's take on the Fairy-tales - she takes the story of Cinderella and turns it on its head wonderfully. She certainly had me cheering the ruin of wicked Cinderella and believing in the world she had created.

Once you read one book, you'll be downloading the rest fast.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Okay I'm going to hold my hands up and say that if I'd stumbled across this cover on Amazon I don't think I'd even have got as far as reading the blurb, the only reason I even picked this up was because Ilona Andrews raved about the third book in the series (The Kingpin of Camelot) and I can't read a series out of order so I thought I'd give it a try. I'm so glad for that recommendation though because I had so much fun reading Wicked Ugly Bad! This is a fairytale retelling that is totally different to any others that I've come across, in fact it's not really a retelling, more a completely new story but with characters you may find familiar.

Cassandra Gannon has created a world where characters are either born "good" or "bad", there doesn't seem to be much rhyme or reason over who gets put into which camp, it's something you're categorised as at birth and you can't do anything to change it. What is very clear is that this is a world designed to let "good" characters thrive and where "bad" characters are constantly discriminated against. Scarlet Riding (Letty) is bad, she was born bad and she's happy to be bad just like her grandmother but she knows there is a big difference between being bad and being evil. In fact the evil one in her family is definitely her stepsister Cinderella but Cindy has conned everyone into believing she's the hard done one in the family who has been abused by Letty and her sister Dru for years.

Cindy has set Letty and Dru up and now they've been imprisoned in the Wicked Ugly Bad Mental Health Treatment Centre and Maximum Security Prison while Cindy plans her wedding to Prince Charming. Letty is determined to show everyone that Cindy is lying (she even has the glass slipper to prove it!) but first she has to arrange a prison break with the help of her support group.

I don't want to say too much more about this novel but it was absolutely hilarious, nothing you've ever believed about your favourite fairytale characters is true and the author makes it so incredibly easy to see Cindy as the bad one and have us rooting for the ugly stepsisters. I'm not going to lie there were a few spelling mistakes and this could have been incredible with a proper edit but there are FAR less errors than a lot of self published novels and I was enjoying the story so much that I just didn't care about the problems. I loved the characters, there was a brilliant romance, the humour was fantastic and the story was full of adventure. This series has me excited and I can't wait to see how the author twists all the other fairytales on their head as it continues.

______________________

Ilona Andrews recommended The Kingpin of Camelot, so of course I must follow her lead and read the series. I can't start at book 3 though so let's hope the first 2 books are awesome too!

[Aisling Zena · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 stars

*edit 12/11/17

Warning: Proceed with caution as this will change the image of Cinderella in your mind. Burned to cinders. Literally. Cindy is not the main character in this. The scenes with her that are a bit off the wall are small and just show you how bad she really is. It is uncomfortable in a way but it does fit the overall story the author is trying to achieve.

If you're sensitive to that kind of thing please don't read it. And if you wanna see if you can handle it open:

Dear Cindy is a bit of a lunatic in this one. And along with that she gets off by being degraded. By her rat guards. She describes how she likes it when they make her do things (like cleaning) and sexually use her. And there's one scene where she has sex with one of them. The sex is consensual. She wants to be treated that way and basically orders her guards to do it. It's not overly detailed but it's descriptive enough to be a bit gross. But it wasn't the actual scenes that were the problem. It was the visual of it. Because they are rats. Big human size rats.. If you replaced the guards with humans it would be a bit out there but not gross(at least for me). Maybe uncomfortable because she likes being humiliated and degraded but not disgusting.

[juli✨ · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is by far the darkest timeline Cinderella has ever been apart of …

And I seriously do not think I'll ever be able to look at the Cinderella fairytale the same way ever again … *bleaches brain*

But for real though, I had an absolute blast reading this book. It was such a fresh and inventive take on the traditional fairy-tale romance. While I did have a couple of issues, for the most part this book was such a fun time. Plus, I love how take charge and badass Letty was. She wasn't afraid to whack someone over the head with a chair to get shit done.

❝Son-of-a-bitch!❞ He slammed his fist into the other man’s face, looking incensed. ❝You just hit my True Love!❞

┍━━━━━━━━━━━┑
𝗔 𝗞𝗜𝗡𝗗𝗔 𝗙𝗔𝗜𝗥𝗬𝗧𝗔𝗟𝗘 𝗦𝗘𝗥𝗜𝗘𝗦

𝗪𝗶𝗰𝗸𝗲𝗱 𝗨𝗴𝗹𝘆 𝗕𝗮𝗱 | 𝟰.𝟮𝟱
𝗕𝗲𝗮𝘀𝘁 𝗶𝗻 𝗦𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗔𝗿𝗺𝗼𝗿 | 𝟱
𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗞𝗶𝗻𝗴𝗽𝗶𝗻 𝗼𝗳 𝗖𝗮𝗺𝗲𝗹𝗼𝘁 | 𝟯.𝟮𝟱
𝗕𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗞𝗻𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝗘𝘃𝗲𝗿 | 𝟱
𝗦𝗲𝗱𝘂𝗰𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗦𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗳𝗳 𝗼𝗳 𝗡𝗼𝘁𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴𝗵𝗮𝗺 | 𝟯.𝟮𝟱
𝗛𝗮𝗽𝗽𝗶𝗹𝘆 𝗘𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝗪𝗶𝘁𝗰𝗵 | 𝟯
𝗠𝘆 𝗨𝗻𝗧𝗿𝘂𝗲 𝗟𝗼𝘃𝗲 | 𝟮.𝟱
┕━━━━━━━━━━━┙

[Julia · Rating 5 out of 5]

How has this book never entered my radar??! Theres somethign seriously wrong with their algorithm if all of my Goodreads friends have read it and I haven't seen it mentioned even once.

I digress...

Anyway... loved loved loved this book! The heroine was baller. The hero was magnificent. The villain was her own unique kind of crazy. And everythign was smart! I never openly laugh when I read but there were a few instances where I actually burst out laughing and openly smiled because I was enjoying it that much.

This is an automatic 5 stars and added to the favorite shelf.

[abi · Rating 4 out of 5]

*4.5

This is my third Cassandra Gannon book, and so far, we are on a 4-5 star streak! I love her writing so much, and how fun her stories always end up being. This story was no exception to that description. The world was so unique and funny, and the main romance was great, although too instalovey, and all the characters and relationships were probably the highlight of the book. The Marrok and Scarlett had such great banter, and ended up being really cute together. My main complaint is I wish there was more build up between them. They are fated mates, so the relationship was a little too instalovey for my tastes, but Cassandra Gannon managed to make it work out in the end. All the rest of the characters and their interactions, including evil Cinderella, the Wicked Witch of the West, Rumplestilkin, and more were hilarious. I loved pretty much everything about this book, I can’t wait to continue on.


* * *


this sounds so campy, give it to me

[Linda Kage · Rating 5 out of 5]

My first read of the year is a winner for me!

I always enjoy reading a new spin on the Cinderella tale, but this one takes the cake!! This time around, Cinderella is the villain and the wicked step sister (don’t you dare call her ugly) is the heroin…except, I think she’s also supposed to be Little Red Riding Hood, which was interesting. And her hero is the big bad wolf. And HE’s definitely interesting!

I loved Scarlett! She kicked ass and took names, fought for what she believed in, and had a heart of gold, thinking about her sister Dru and Prince Charming’s happiness before her own. She was bound and determined to break out of a mental institution for the criminally Bad just to help them, and enlist the help of a few oddball baddies while she was at it.

And I loved Marrok! Flirty, cocky, sarcastic, and too handsome for his own good, he’s desperately devoted to not only this True Love, but to Letty herself as a person. He melted me in his first appearance and only got better from there.

I loved their banter, and all the twists on the original fairy tale, except oh my goodness, I’ll never be able to think about Cinderella the same again…especially her relationship with her mice…er, rats! EWWWW. LOL! I even liked how Letty decided no one is pure Good or Bad, they’re all just people with good and bad in them. There was a nice moral theme hidden under all the fun adventure and steamy goodness.

I also loved the Tuesday share group! Like the story quotes: “Being part of the Tuesday share circle was like being a part of a screwed-up, criminally-inclined family. Even when they didn’t like you, they were still there to help you blow shit up. It was touching.”

And now I’m more than eager to get started on book two: Beast in Shining Armor. I had no idea Avenant from the Tuesday Share Circle was the Beauty and Beast guy until late in this book…after he had a while to grow on me. I can’t wait to get a glimpse past all his hoity toity pomp and see what he’s really like. I wonder if he’ll always call everyone “peasant”!
Anyway, awesome story!! I’m off to read the next now!!

[Gavin · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a fairytale romance with a fun twist on a few of the familiar fairytale characters. As with the other Cassandra Gannon books I've read this one was packed full of humour and easy to like characters.

The Four Kingdoms was a world with a familiar fairytale feel to it and populated by a bunch of easy to recognize characters from various popular fairytales. There was every one from Rumpelstiltskin to Cinderella! Gannon's world had a fun twist as the inhabitants of the Four Kingdoms are deemed either Good or Bad at birth and that dictates how society treats them. It is a problem for Scarlet Riding as her evil stepsister Cinderella has got Scarlett and her sister Drusilla thrown into prison and is on her way to marrying Prince Charming and becoming ruler of the Westlands.

The story was quite fun as Scarlett met a bunch of crazy new friends in prison, and a love interest in the Big Bad Wolf, who help her break out and wreak havoc on Cinderella's wedding and on the society of the Four Kingdoms in general as she pushes for social change!

The humor was fantastic and it was super easy to root for Scarlet and her crazy companions as they sought to escape an unfair imprisonment.

All in all I really enjoyed this one and will definitely be reading the sequel to see what happens next in this world.

Rating: 4 stars.

[RLbooks (in and out) · Rating 4 out of 5]

The A Kinda Fairytale series is proving to be just a fun read with laughs, action, and romance throughout. I loved Scarlett/Letty (h) and Marrok (H) individually, but together they popped off the page for me. I liked that Letty surprises everyone, since most people write her off as an "ugly stepsister", but she's brilliant and strong. Marrok is a wolf shifter who's an athlete, but despite his own cunning nature and celebrity, wolf shifters in this world are abused regularly so he has some unexpected vulnerabilities. Cinderella is actually the main villain in this story, but there are other fairytale characters throughout. I was familiar with the set-up of this world because I cheated and read book 3 first so knew that people are separated as Good or Bad and the Bad population is looked down on and sometimes oppressed by the Good population. I like that the Bad characters can sense their One True Love immediately but the Good characters can't so there's a bit of angst at times.

In this book, Letty, Marrok, and others are in prison for being Bad except Letty's not actually bad, she's been imprisoned with her sister to keep them out of the way. She's trying to survive and escape to save herself and those she cares about and she's taking along the Tuesday Share Circle (the forced group therapy folks she was paired with in the prison) along with her. Their group was amazing and hilarious and they don't come together naturally, but slowly become a unit. Marrok is a part of that group and is very focused on Letty, who he drives crazy with his attitude and amazing looks. The first half of this story focuses on their time in prison (lots of moving pieces and humor) and then the mission that Letty's on once they're out of prison. Written in third person, multi-POV (including the villain, whose detailed sex life I could have done without honestly). Slight ow drama in that ow show interest in the H but he's only about the h from the moment he meets her (and the h recognizes that these ow are abusive with their interest), some om drama because the H believes that the h wants to be a princess, and neither are virgins (H was forced to be with others when he was younger and punished when he refused when he was older so was a victim and then later may have slept around some, but most of his history shared focuses on him as a victim; no history given for h that I can remember).

Like in book 3, there were many twists and turns throughout this story that I don't want to spoil. It was very fast paced even when the characters had a moment to breathe, because there was still plotting and shenanigans occurring. I really enjoyed how Letty and Marrok's relationship developed and felt that they were truly in love with each other by the end. As they go through all the chaos surrounding them, they bonded and came to truly understand the heart of the other, it was a very sweet romance, even when Marrok was driving Letty crazy. I also loved that Letty is an idealist who's passionate about Good and Bad equality, while Marrok is just there to be with her, baffled at what she says at times but supporting her just the same. There's not a lot of steam in the story, but there is some that's on page and open door.

The side characters in this world play large roles, some more likable than others, and some are in later books as well. The rest of the Tuesday Share Circle really shined in the story, along with Prince Charming, and Letty's grandmother (who truly was a character). Prince Avenant is the book after this one and I think he's going to be a fun character to into and possibly have some growth.

I do very much recommend this series because the two books I've read sucked me in from the start and kept me in their hold throughout. The author's writing style is somewhat quirky and there are some editing errors at times, but it's such a fun take on fairytales with characters you can cheer for or root against. I'm looking forward to reading the whole series eventually.

[Rachel · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 Twisted Fairy Tale Stars

“We all deserve a chance at a happily ever after.”

This is my second read by Cassandra Gannon, and once again I find myself comparing her writing to films and tv shows I've enjoyed. There is a vivid, dynamic nature to her stories that evokes cinematic styles.

Wicked Ugly Bad is a delightful confection, crafted with sprinkles of Shrek, a large serving of Once Upon a Time, a smattering of Prison Break, and a dash of In Treatment. In the best style of twisted fairy tales, Wicked Ugly Bad puts a fun twist on some of the beloved classic stories.

Scarlett "Letty" Riding (aka Red Riding Hood) has been imprisoned in the Wicked, Ugly and Bad Mental Health Treatment Center and Maximum Security Prison. She is determined to escape, but needs the help of her fellow inmates to get out.

Enter the Big Bad Wolf, Marrok Wolf. (*cue the song "Bad Reputation"). With fifty counts of Badness on his criminal record, Marrok embraces his villainy, but once he meets Letty, he is a smitten kitten. Gah...I loved Marrok. Growly, dangerous, snarky, sexy, and absolutely devoted to his True Love.

Then, there are the fantastically endearing secondary characters. These "villains" are so much fun! Embracing their dark side while also finding a little "Good" in their hearts; I can't wait to read more about this motley crew.

From now on, "I'm holding out for a hero," (but only if my hero is also a bit of a villain, too)!

Fun, fanciful, fast-paced. Highly recommend!

[❁ lilyreadsromance ❁ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Today in group, we tried a team building exercise.
There were three fatalities.
Psychiatric case notes of Dr. Ramona Fae

I wasn't kidding when I said that this book gave me a more adult version of Disney Descendants vibes. With smut, of course. You can never separate me and my smutty books.

Anyhow, this book was hilarious and light-hearted (I don't know why I feel like the stakes were low in this one, despite the doom that masochist Cinderella was harping on and on).

“First thing my husband noticed about me was the knife I had pressed to his throat.”  Jana reminisced.  “Yeah, I went to Camelot to steal his big sword him, but I stayed for his big sword.  The man fucked like a wicked machine of wickedness.”

I love the psychotics side characters. The pompous Avenant (a.k.a. the Beast from Beauty & the Beast), the cunning Esmeralda, the cute insecure bridge troll, Benji; and the epic Grandma Jana. These people were misfits and misplaced in their own version of madhouse and I love LOVE their antics.

Oh and I love the romance. I love Letty and Marrok's relationship and although it's quite insta-lovey, it's insta-lovey that I can accept. Hell, people hate insta-love trope and here I am, loving the shit out of it, WHEN IT IS DONE RIGHT.

Scarlett leaned into his embrace. “I would die for you, too.”
“I’ll kill you if you even try it.”
She snorted. “You really are a poet.”

[Tink Magoo is bad at reviews · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars

I'll never picture fairytales the same again.



This was a unique take on all your favourite fairytale characters but with a devious perverted twist. You have everyone from red Ridinghood, Snow White, Cinderella (who is one crazy kinky bitch) to the Cheshire cat. It was amusing, slightly bonkers and eyebrow-raising but also endearing.

[Jessie ツ · Rating 5 out of 5]

Talking about evil Cinderella:

”Does she really fuck those mice?”

“They’re rats and yes she does. I’ll be telling Charming about that, too.”

Funny romantic adventure with fairy-tale elements!

I didn’t expect to laugh so much but the humor was top notch for me 🙌

…..

In this tale, you’re either born ‘bad’ or ‘good’. And those that are bad often get locked up in this dungeon aka psych ward (of which they rarely get to leave). Our FMC, Scarlett Riding, knows she’s bad but everyone around her - especially Marrok Wolf - keeps telling her she’s undoubtedly good.

Anywho, this story follows the Tuesday Share circle group who plan an escape from the dungeon. Our Scarlett Riding has her own motivations of stopping her step-sister Cinderella from forcing Prince Charming into marriage.

With hijinks, evil-plots, looney side characters, and true loves we get fun, action, and romance/smut all at once.

I loved everything about it! 😍

——TROPES——
-fairytale
-he falls first
-*one true love
-pnr
-funny banter
-spice

*True Love = Everyone in kingdom born with 1 true love. Those who are “bad” have an innate knowledge when they meet theirs.

SPOILERS BELOW!!!!👇
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—THOUGHTS—
@ 51%-omg im either a dumbass or this is the first time they said Scarlett’s last name. Scarlett Riding which is why she’s “good” bc she��s little red riding hood & her True Love is Marrock — a wolf 😭😭. Maybe she was wrongfully put as Cinderella’s step sister or smthn?? Lmao I’m prob just stupid. And it’s why she isn’t safe in the woods where the wolfs are bc they can sense she’s good — 🤦‍♀️🤦‍♀️😭I’m a dumbass lol

EDIT-I am in fact a DUMBASS.
They said her name so many times. It’s even in the blurb. 😭😭 I’m so dense …

[girlwithhearteyes · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 stars

This fairytale villain retelling was absolutely hilarious, delightfully offbeat and quirky! I had such a good time reading this.

I loved both Letty (one of Cinderella’s stepsisters) the Type A do-gooder and Marrok the hot wolf athlete, who meet when they’re both locked up in the prison for ‘Bad’ folk. She’s prickly on the surface but is a crusader for justice, and he’s cocky but has deep insecurities that brings out her protective side. And how he was so besotted and protective over her! Their pairing was just 😍😍😍. No games, just lots of heart eyes.

The prison break storyline and the gang of misfits (a.k.a. the unwilling group therapy participants) was also super entertaining. Loved the reluctant family vibes. 🤣

Cinderella was so twisted though. I was disturbed but also couldn’t stop myself of laughing. Never going to think about that fairytale the same way again.

[Meghan · Rating 1 out of 5]

I love the elements series. So I had high expectations. :( it was kinda icky for me. And not even close to as funny. Cheapo romance novel, predictable plot, and yucky stuff. I figured it out before the escape even happened. And that was under 50% through book. I didn't finish it. Bummer dude. I usually like any kind of fairytale retelling, even cheesy or cheapo ones, but really the Cinderella stuff was just gross and I don't want to read that. Like, ever.

[Rachael*Caribbean*girl*bibliophile · Rating 3 out of 5]

Spoilers ahead


A plot twist of a fairytale where Cinderella is the bad guy and the ugly stepsisters are the good ones.

The negatives
Marrok's sexual history
Too much from Cinderella's pov,I really didn't need to know about her kinky sex life
Lost steam a bit in the lead up to the ending
Againnnnnnn sexy times sucked
Againnnnnnn unsatisfying epilogue

The positives
Fun and interesting plot
Likeable mcs



No cheating
Marrok was coerced into sex when he was younger and appeared slightly manwhoreish later
Letty wasn't a virgin though I can't remember any details of her past

[Alexandra · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wickedly AMAZING! It was a recommendation by Ilona Andrews and boy, did I enjoy it!

[Lakshmi C · Rating 5 out of 5]

Scarlett is a prisoner.
Her days are numbered.
She is snarky, spunky and a survivor.
Even here she is compassionate and thinking about the other prisoners and their fates.
She has high standards, is an excellent plotter and an anarchist.
She is proactive and determined to overthrow a system that perpetuates hate, discrimnation, abuse and exploitation.

Stuck with an unbearable gorgeous wolf who enjoys toying with her. And he's academic about it.
Hey, Doc, what’s the politically correct phrase for not gettin’ any, again?”
“Oh, yeah!”  He snapped his fingers.  “Your repressed sexual desires got the better of you, Red.”

Marrock.
He knows something she doesn't.
Everyone’s afraid of The Big Bad Wolf.  And for good reason.

“Maybe you’re not ready to feel that way about me, yet.”  He continued, his eyes intent.  “I can accept that.  But, it bothers me --a lot-- that you would feel that way about someone else.”

There is a feelings journal...
He probably filled his feelings journal with poems about repentance and kittens.

Avenant lifted a shoulder in an indifferent shrug.  “I’m sure sheep would rather be called elephants… But they’re still sheep.”
Avenant. Hope he gets his book. Avenant the Adorable.

“That’s why I banished all bureaucrats, lawyers, politicians, and sports stars from my kingdom.”  Avenant agreed.  “They all want to steal my power.”  He looked pointedly at Marrok.  “Especially, the sports stars.”

Is Scarlett both a stepsister and Red Riding Hood? Theory time.

They have a fantastic Tuesday share circle full of infuriating, wicked characters.

Cindy is 50 shades of messed up, a drama queen, annoying and dangerous.

Everybody gets a chance to save the day.

The Bad guys recognize their True Loves and are willing to do anything for their partners. This was incredibly sweet.

Favourite parts

1 Prison break
2 Family bonding
3 Benji's personal growth
4 Marrock's new kingdom
5 Dragon slaying
6 Ramona's notes at the beginning of each chapter.
7 Jabberwocky

To conclude, I loved the writing, the pace, the humour, the friends, family, banter and am diving into book 2.

[Jai M {Cat Crazy Dragon } · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun twists, but too sweet and safe, not enough tart or humour.

I love a good fairytale re-write, and this one was definitely original and creative.
But it wasn’t a complete success.

First part was a little weak and shallow. A cross between a cosy PNR, and a parody.
A weird dichotomy between sweet and cheesy, but also crude and a little twisted.
If it had added more of the later to contrast the earlier, would have been a truly fun read.
However, those touches were few and far between for the first half, making it drag and cause moments of eye rolling.

The start of the second half got better, more fun, more twisted aspects to elevate this to more than just another cute read.

What was a disappointment though, was the loss of the secondary character involvement.
They were the best part of the beginning, and their lack in the latter part, made the FMC’s moralising and lecturing less inspiring, and more tedious.
It was too much without the humorous balance of the others.

The MMC was perfection! I loved every aspect of him, but that lovability, combined with the FMC’s earnest carry-on, just didn’t work as well without the sidekicks.

Plus, for 2/3, the blatant stupidity of the FMC, in contrast to her obvious intelligence, was so freaking annoying!!
Clearly it was meant to be endearing and funny. EPIC FAIL!

The humour…I smirked at times, I think I hmmphed once. 🤷‍♀️

The end was a total cheese all, Disney finish, very disappointing after some of those later character interactions…😮‍💨

You will see the major plot twist a mile away, with the minor one surprising, but not earth shattering, or all that overall important.
Several bits are too convenient, with some details seemingly coming out of nowhere.

It’s those last bits and the MMC that save this and elevate it to 3⭐️’s, otherwise would be a 2⭐️.

[Kagama-the Literaturevixen · Rating 1 out of 5]

The main character is ugly stepsister Scarlett "Letty" Riding who has been incarcerated in the WUB (Wicked,Bad,Ugly) mental instution together with her sister Drusilla after Cinderella got her happy ending. Stuck in Group therapy with a bridge troll,a witch,an evil deposed Prince and an infuriating Big bad wolf,Scarlett organizes an escape.

Interesting idea about fairytale characters being categorized as Good or Bad..but its executed poorly. There are also many spelling errors.

The characters and the world wich it is set feels crude and I am not just talking about the way Marrok Wolf behaves towards Scarlett.

I could really have done without Cinderella being into BSDM and bestiality.

[Zero · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cinderella gets engaged to Prince Charming and puts her stepsisters into a mental institution/prison for fairytale Baddies. But the distinction between the Good folk and the Bad is more complicated than one might expect.

I like the characters in this book. The romance between Letty and Marrok was sweet and I liked how their relationship grew. The supporting cast was great, too, especially Avenant. Cinderella has a few chapters that are somewhat disturbing, but she's an interesting villain.

Wicked Ugly Bad is a lot of fun, especially the parts set in the institution. I really like how some fairytales are shown in a whole new light. I'm excited to read the next book in the series.

[Stephaniec · Rating 4 out of 5]

Updated review - you know the books in this series stuck with me. So much so that they are a go to when I don't know what to read. They really need an audio version

Okay, I liked this story but there were waayyyyy too many editing errors. So many I found it hard at points to concentrate on and enjoy the story.

[Uyen · Rating 2 out of 5]

dnf p. 26

good god I was stuck reading about someone going on and on about being bad and the injustice of being in this prison.

just couldn't get into it.

[Elizabeth · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.4 stars.

I really enjoy this world and the ideas of Bad and Good.

I love the idea of the ugly stepsister actually being Good even as she wants to convince people she's Bad. She and the wolf were cute and I loved that.

But I had a bunch of issues with this book.

First, I hated the sexual abuse. It was so disturbing. It was treated pretty flippantly but is actually pretty horrifying. Marrok, and others, were forced to have sex. That would have been bad enough but Marrock (and other wolves) have True Loves. I hated that we hear that Marrock sometimes had sex because he wanted to. When he KNEW he had a true love.

I hate the storyline with Cinderella. Maybe it's because I've read a lot of monster romance but it felt so gross and disrespectful in a way I cannot describe.

There was also fatphobia thrown in for jokes' sake that drove me crazy. Authors, don't use "fat" as a pejorative. It's disrespectful.

The romance was perfectly fine but couldn't make up for some of the faults in this book.

[Sade]

You know for someone who loves happily ever afters (shocking i know) i can never quite bring myself to read the middle of romance books where the bulk of the problem is solved. Maybe i have problem avoidance issues.
Anyways i read a couple of chapters and i read the end so i totally endorse this book (i'm not being sarcastic) for people who love lighthearted comedic romance.

[Lake · Rating 1 out of 5]

I like fairytale retellings and I've heard a lot about Cassandra Gannon so I was excited for this book. I thought the premise was a fun twist. It reminded me of the show Once Upon A Time, with the bonkers plot twists and villains wanting their happy endings. And all the sleeping curses of course.

I thought Marrok and Letty were cute as main characters, though it progresses a bit quickly in a 'oops I slipped now we're having sex oh well' way. Avenant and Esmeralda were the funniest, and the set up for the next book was cute.
This is not a book for plot readers, because there is very little plot - it's mostly enjoyable tropey fun if you're in the mood for that. But what I'm most confused about is the plot twist that never came. Letty is...Red Riding Hood right? Scarlett Riding? Red haired? She was a Good Folk all along? True Love of the Big Bad Wolf? I kept waiting for that reveal but it didn't happen and now I don't know what it means.

The Cinderella plotline was not for me though. I don't mind kink or BDSM, though I don't really read much of it, but there was so much shaming around it here, I was uncomfortable. It was a very weird mocking portrayal of people who enjoy kinky sex and I don't like that kind of humour tbh.

This would have been a 2 star 'not for me but I can see other people enjoying it' if not for all the kink shaming. That was awful, and it took up too much page time to ignore.

[Tasha · Rating 2 out of 5]

ugh. I keep trying yall.

Listen, this book and this series came highly highly recommended. I have tried so many of this author’s books and I just don’t get the hype. I understand why people like it, but I just don’t. I don’t connect with the characters and I don’t like the writing style I guess? I also think it’s like a big ha ha funny, and not the more subtle funny that I appreciate. Also, what the fuck was with the rats. Like I’m into dark humor and I can take a lot of fucked up shit in books, but it was so random and weird it like gave me the ick I couldn’t get past it. I did appreciate the relationship between Marrok and Scarlett, but I feel like the overall character development of Scarlet was just unfinished. Not to mention the spice was just bleh. And shifted spice that was not descriptive enough?! I digress. I feel badly because I feel like I SHOULD have enjoyed this. Just, didn’t.

[Roopa Ramachandra · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh, I loved this book.
It's positively hilarious. And the characters are so well written. 10 percent in, and I was already attached to the characters.

At first, it was so disconcerting. I mean, Cinderella is the evil sister, she is so delusional and fallacious and disgustingly perverse. And the protagonists are the so-called BAD people. But then, you'll get the hang of it and it's so good and different from what we usually read.

The whole story is fast paced and doesn't bore you anywhere. And, did I tell you that it is hilarious? It is so hilarious!!

I loved Benji, the bridge ogre, Marrok, the wolf and our hero. But most of all, I loved Jabberwocky the best. Amazingly portrayed.

I am definitely reading the remaining books in this series.

[aarya · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is so fucked up, but the ship is great. 😭 Um. I can’t recommend this in good conscience. I’d also be dishonest if I didn’t mention that I breezed through this in two hours. Gannon is so readable, lol. Let’s just say that first books in a series often have growing pains.

Seriously, do not start here. Books 3 or 5 work as standalones. 2 is dependent on reading 1 first; 4 is dependent on reading 3 first.