Through a Tangled Wood

Breeders #2.5

by Jamie Campbell, Katie French, Ariele Sieling

A variety of writers come together to twist traditional fairy tales into unusual and mysterious stories. From Beauty and the Beast, to Hansel and Gretel, to the Ugly Duckling, these stories will be sure to pull you into a fantastical world of princes, romance, and maybe a little science fiction. "Plan B" by Katie French. When Nolan is selected as one of the few candidates to work in the Breeders' hospital, he thinks all his troubles are over. Now he can afford precious medicine to save his ailing father. He’s heard of the Breeders’ cruelty, of their inhuman experiments, but he’s sure they’re fabrications. Then he stumbles into the Plan B room and learns how truly awful the Breeders can be. "Tailless" by Ariele Sieling. A retelling of the Ugly Duckling, set on a far away planet in an unknown galaxy. While fighting a war with her people's biggest enemy, young Bode struggles to understand why she feels out of place in her community, and why she, unlike her comrades, was born without a tail. "I Am the Maid" by Sarah Dalton. A hostile zombie killing Maid Marian meets an ill-behaved ex-soldier Robin in this post-apocalyptic retelling of Robin Hood. When a young girl falls deathly sick, the two are forced to join forces in order to outwit the Sheriff, and the mysterious Guy Gisbon. "Three Wishes" by Marijon Braden. When Aladdin rubbed the magic lamp, things went pretty well for him. But a few thousand years later, the world has changed and the genie is old, cranky, and doesn't play fair. Young Alison thinks she's found the answer to all her prayers, but instead finds that having wishes come true isn't all it's cracked up to be. "Killing Snow White" by Jamie Campbell. A magical retelling of the story of Snow White, told entirely by the Evil Queen who supposedly tried to poison her. Think Snow White is innocent? Think again. "A House in the Woods" by H.S. Stone. At the conclusion of a scavenger hunt for Old World artifacts, Hansel and Gretel find themselves lost on the outskirts of the city after dark. They stumble upon a house in the nearby woods, hoping that they will find help inside, but the house's inhabitant has other ideas. “Flight” by Zoe Cannon. A retelling of Beauty and the Beast. Dragged to the palace at swordpoint, commanded to cure the cursed prince with a kiss, Lucia wants nothing more than to return to her solitary world of books and magical study. But she soon discovers that she and the prince share more in common than she could have imagined… and that the truth behind his curse could destroy—or save—them both.

Genres: Fantasy, Short Stories, Retellings, Anthologies, Young Adult, Fairy Tales, Fiction

191 pages, Kindle Edition

First published November 30, 2013

About the author

Jamie was born into a big, crazy family of 6 children. Being the youngest, she always got away with anything and would never shut up. Constantly letting her imagination run wild, her teachers were often frustrated when her ‘What I did on the weekend’ stories contained bunyips and princesses.

Growing up, Jamie did the sensible things and obtained a Bachelor of Business degree from Southern Cross University and worked hard to gain her membership with the Institute of Chartered Accountants in Australia.

Yet nothing compared to writing. Quitting the rat race to spend quality time with her laptop named Lily, Jamie has written several novels and screenplays. Spanning a number of genres and mediums, Jamie writes whatever inspires her from ghost stories to teenage love stories to tantalising murder mysteries. Nothing is off limits.

A self-confessed television addict, dog lover, Taylor Swift fan, and ghost hunter, Jamie loves nothing more than the thrill of sharing her stories.

Reviews

[William · Rating 4 out of 5]

Entertaining fantasy listening 🎶🔰

This is a free novella on Amazon. Oh how I love 💘 those free books 📚!

Seven will written fantasy fairy tale adaptation to a different twist. Each is different with interesting well developed characters lots of action and misdirection leading to each conclusion. I would highly recommend this novella and various authors to readers of fantasy haunting adventure novels 👍🔰. 2023 👒😀😡🏡

[Montzalee Wittmann · Rating 4 out of 5]

Through a Tangled Wood (Breeders #2.5) by Jamie Campbell is a pretty good collection of short stories. I think there was one 3 star but the rest were 4 stars. My favorite was "Tailless".Good book!

[Marquise · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Killing Snow White" was my favourite of all the stories, although I think it went a bit far in portraying the Evil Queen as too naïve and a bit of a pushover comparing to her stepdaughter. The rest of the retellings are passable.

[Raquel (Silver Valkyrie Reads)]

I read the first story, and it was okay (2 stars). Started a couple of the others and didn't feel much like finishing them. Too bleak for me, I guess.

Also, just based on the first story I would NOT recommend this for younger readers: it has death, medical abuse, a sprinkling of language, and just generally a harsh setting.

[Laura Martinelli · Rating 2 out of 5]

I’m conflicted on where I stand with this collection, because while I didn’t dislike it, I found it to be fairly underwhelming in terms of content. Considering that this begins with a fairly disturbing retelling of Sleeping Beauty (which is a disturbing fairy tale to begin with), and then to have two comical and somewhat childish stories following three dark stories is really a tonal whiplash for me. The weakest story in the collection, “Killing Snow White”, could have been a funny dark comedy, but it never gets there. Also, that story lost points for directly referencing the Disney version—the dwarfs don’t have specific personality traits in the original story. “Three Wishes” also suffers from this as well, particularly considering the last wish in the story. Aside from “Plan B” (the aforementioned Sleeping Beauty), none of the other stories really stood out for me. “Flight” was the only other strong story in the collection, but everything else in this collection is worth skipping.

[Mandy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Enjoyed most of these YA fairy story retellings

[Aquamarine♡ · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the first anthology I read and I've got to say I felt very controversial about the stories. I'll leave a separate rating for each short-story and maybe some comments there if I have sth to say.
"Plan B" by Katie French:⭐⭐⭐⭐ Okay so this is actually the only kind of creepy story and was a good one to start. I really liked it but it kinda left some things open thus this one is my least favorite.
"Tailless" by Ariele Sieling: ⭐⭐ This one was definitely not for me. I couldn't concentrate empathize with the characters or actuallu understand the story so sorry but no.
"I Am the Maid" by Sarah Dalton: ⭐⭐⭐⭐💫 Wow this is actually my second favorite. I really loved the whole post-apocalyptic zombie atmosphere, amazing characters. That half point that is missing is because of the ending... I like them a bit open like "okay let me imagine the details" but not his "leave me hanging to figure out what happens with that special who and that other who... too open for me...
"Three Wishes" by Marijon Braden: ⭐💫 It's a miracle this was short and I didn't abandon it halfway. I was not interested AT ALL about this one.. sorry
"Killing Snow White" by Jamie Campbell: ⭐⭐⭐💫 This was an interested twist and pov.. it does seem a little far-fetched in some details but I liked it generally.
"A House in the Woods" by H.S. Stone:⭐⭐⭐ This was too short to be a little creepy and I don't think it changes much from the retellings I've seen so it was "okay" not bad but not so good either.
“Flight” by Zoe Cannon: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ And now to my outmost favorite🥁 another beauty and the beast retelling, yeah I'm a sucker for these. But indeed I love the magic twist and the ending and it left me whole.

[Bonnie Dale Keck · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not kindle unlmited, might be permafree or something as that, freebie day or whatever, though got it a while back.

Not going to go through all of them specifically, the good one seems to be the beauty and the beast one but even that one didn't luv it just at least liked it unlike the others, some of the others well the 1st one took me forever to figure out what it was supposed to be {not the ugly duckling one, just didn't like that one much},the only reason it even got a 2 is because of the one meantioned first, otherwise would have given it a 1.

the goodreads 2 stars is for the amazon 2 stars, have pretty much given up trying to make them equal in meaning, just stars

[Rachel Russell · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've had this on my kindle for quite a while and only recently have got around to reading it. It's a very mixed bag of anthologies by authors that I am new to, it introduced me to some new authors that I will be looking up in the future and from Sarah Dalton. If you love Fantasy and fairy stories then this will be a book for you, but overall I found it a really good read.

[Annie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Some stories were fantastic, some were okay

Plan B - 🌟🌟🌟🌟
Tailless - 🌟🌟
I Am the Maid - 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 please write a whole novel for this plot!!!
Three Wishes - 🌟🌟
Killing Snow White - 🌟🌟
A House in the Woods - 🌟🌟🌟
Flight - 🌟🌟🌟🌟

[Kathy · Rating 5 out of 5]

These shorts were really good!

The new takes on well known fairy tales were quite ingenious. They were each well written, and frankly, better edited than the vast majority of new books.
I look forward to reading more by these authors.

[Yishai Sered]

Delicious compendium of tales

Excellent choice of short stories, reworking familiar themes in imaginative new settings. I enjoyed them very much.
From past to future to never-been.

[Julie Powell · Rating 4 out of 5]

An enjoyable set of fairytale inspired stories.

My favourite is from Sarah Dalton, as I always enjoy her stories.

Recommended to lovers of fantasy and fairytales.

[Ida Electra · Rating 3 out of 5]

This collection was somewhat difficult to rate, as I enjoyed some parts well enough, while others less. Overall I enjoyed the atmpsphere of this book, and most of the stories had some stong points, but unfortunately most of them had some less strong points too. I had hoped for more explicit retellings (some don't qualify at all in my opinion), and several of the endings let me down. Though I did really enjoy "Three wishes", "A house in the woods", and "Flight" was probably my favourite.

[Claudia · Rating 3 out of 5]

I quite enjoyed plan B But felt some of the others were a bit of a let down. There was two I wished were a bit longer and a couple I'd skip if read again.

[Matt · Rating 4 out of 5]

3 of the stories were incredible. Killing snow white, a house in the woods, and flight. The rest I really could have done without. Plan B was decent but that's about it.

[Jenn · Rating 3 out of 5]

They were interesting little short story twists. Of course they make me sad they're so short and long for actual novels.

[Christine Shrum]

I DNF this book.... Just not that interesting.

[L.S. Palafox · Rating 5 out of 5]

That book was totally awesome.

[Rebecca Fortes · Rating 5 out of 5]

Glad I bought it.

I liked every one of the stories. It made me look up every one of the authors, to see what else they had written. Thoroughly enjoyed the book.

[Valerie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Definitely an exciting collection of short stories by young authors who will hopefully continue to provide us with years of reading adventures.

[Carolyn Evans]

Enthralling

A truly twisted take on some familiar fairy tales served.up by various authors, this is a very entertaining and enthralling read.

[Rachael · Rating 4 out of 5]

Review Posted at Rachael Turns Pages

Plan B
I really didn't know what to expect of this series of short stories coming into the novel. I knew it was a set of fairy tale retellings. The first is a retelling of Sleeping Beauty, but in a way I have never seen it done before. Nolan goes to work for the Breeders hospital to get money to help his ailing father. It isn't long before Nolan sees the Breeders cruelty and lives through the nightmare with his supervisor Samuel. This first story was achingly beautiful. Nolan cared deeply for his father and the sleeping girls. He wanted to do what was right in every situation even if it meant losing his life. What a nightmare Nolan went through, but the ending of Nolan's story was so beautiful that everything he went through was worth it.

Tailless
I don't think this will be my favorite short story of the novel, but it was pretty good. This one was a retelling of The Ugly Duckling. Bode is a soldier. She has no tail and can not shoot the same kind of gun the other soldiers can. I can't say too much more because I would spoil the ending. The implications of the Ugly Duckling of wanting acceptance were a big part of this story. I feel like that is problem enough just being a woman in the military, but adding these other flaws make it even more difficult. The ending the of the short story was great. It explained so much about her situation and had the aha sweet moment attached.

I am the Maid
I didn't overly care for this retelling of Robin Hood. The story was way too long for this set of short stories. I found myself bored with Marian and Robin talking and not doing anything. The ending of the story proved to be excited and intense as they reached their conclusion. I love the story of Robin Hood, but I have difficulties with book adaptations of it. I haven't really found any that I have loved. I think this might just be another example of a Robin Hood adaptation that didn't fit with me. I did like that the story took Marian's side of the story more and made her the hero versus Robin Hood. Robin Hood was more of a sidekick in this story.

Three Wishes
This is my favorite story of the book so far. This one was a retelling of Aladin or One Thousand and One Nights. The girl in the story Ali has a lot of spunk. She thinks about her decisions carefully and weighs her options. Her best friend Shel is also a noble character in this book. She helps Ali to make her wishes and stands by her side. Then there is Etok, the genie. Etok proves to be a sneaky genie that makes these wishes sound great, but doesn't follow through. Not all genie are as helpful as Genie in the Disney movie. The ending of this story is truly shocking and that is what won me over. Unlike other stories in this anthology I was able to read this story in one sitting without feeling bored. I think so far this is the story that has won me over.

Killing Snow White
I have Cinderella is Evil on my computer also from Jamie Campell and after reading Killing Snow White I can't wait to dive into that one. I loved how this story switched places. The queen was not evil, Snow White was. The queen felt guilty for never building a mother-daughter relationship with Snow White. It also followed the original Grimm Fairy Tale extremely well. It also added to the Grimm fairy tale also because who said that only Snow White gets to have a happily ever after. This was by far my favorite story of the anthology.

A House In the Woods
This one was a retelling of Hansel and Gretel. A fairy tale I actually don't know a whole lot about. I really like the changes the author made to the story and the author added a lot of depth to the fairy tale. I overall thought this story was a great addition to the book and had a modern feel to it, but still felt like a fairy tale in the wood.

Flight
This was one I did not like at all. I don't actually know which fairy tale it was off of. It had a feel of beauty and the beast, but it wasn't totally beauty in the beast. This one was much too long and left me feeling bored while reading it. It got to be repetive. Lucia was a strong female character which I liked while the Prince was bitter and mean.


That's a Wrap
Overall I think Through a Tangled Wood was worth my time to read. I did not like some story and I liked others. Killing Snow White was my favorite of this anthology. I also really enjoyed Three Wishes. Through a Tangled Wood is still a Kindle Freebie on Amazon so if this review has made you interested go ahead and check it out.

[J · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found this book through having read an eARC of Sarah Dalton's book, White Hart, and seeing that it was free on Amazon, I tried it out. My feelings about the stories vary a lot from story to story, but overall, I liked it well enough.

"Plan B" is really, really creepy--which is not something I'm drawn to as a reader, but it was also slightly disappointing as a short story because it gives hints of a world significantly different from ours without ever developing the story enough for us to see what it is. However, I suspected--correctly, it turns out--that it takes place in another universe that the author did develop in more detail. I think this story will appeal to readers who like creepy dystopia.

I struggled with "Tailless" because I didn't understand enough about the world to really connect with what was happening, and I only had surface impressions of the characters from what the story said. I appreciated the idea of making humans the "Other" but overall, again, not quite enough (or perhaps too much) world-building in the short story for me to feel significantly grounded.

While I wasn't a big fan of White Hart, "I am the Maid" was my favorite story in this collection. Slightly upper YA, and I didn't love the sometimes crude way the characters talked, but overall I found it inventive, with just enough detail to make a short story--well, short, but also satisfying. Though I'm not a fan of zombies, this convinced me that I should still keep an eye on Dalton's work.

"Three Wishes", "Killing Snow White", and "A House in the Woods" are all fairly predictable retellings that don't deviate much from the actual story. Of the three, my favorite was "A House in the Woods", which is generally well-written (though, seriously, what a creepy and violent fairy tale). "Three Wishes" is cute, though I didn't feel any deep connection to it--but I understand that writing a short story with enough depth to allow a reader to connect to the characters and world while also keeping it short is tricky.

"Killing Snow White" is interesting in that it gives you the "evil stepmother's" point of view, but I thought it was a bit too long for what it is (which is not something I normally say). It keeps the fairy tale element of not really explaining why someone is so evil and why someone is so good, but just switches the places of Snow White and the stepmother in those roles. So--interesting, but not the kind of depth I was hoping for in a retelling. Also, I found the overabundance of comma splices in this story distracting.

I'm also not a fan of mages/witchcraft/extensive magic in stories, but I found that I liked "Flight". It is a sweet retelling of "Beauty and the Beast" that manages to develop a level of believable romance and resolution in a short story.

Although the varying levels of paranormal and sci-fi are not, perhaps, in line with my natural preference in what I read (I do tend toward high fantasy and fairy tale retellings that aren't necessarily super dark, more a la Cruel Beauty), the stories were still fine overall.

[Rachel · Rating 4 out of 5]

This short story collection contains seven retellings of classic tales, mostly set in sci-fi or fantasy worlds. It doesn't appear to be labeled as YA, though I would classify it as such. The primary characters in most of the stories range in age from maybe about twelve to young adult, and the emotional depth and reading level feel pretty YA to me as well. I'll write three sentences about each of the seven stories:

"Plan B - A Breeder's Tale Based on Sleeping Beauty," by Katie French.
This story is scary and evocative. There's a strong moody foreboding from start to finish. My only criticism would be that I felt that it didn't quite manage the fine balance between revealing the answers to the mysteries vs. leaving questions unanswered, so it didn't really feel done for me at the end.

"Tailless," by Ariele Sieling. This is a retelling of the ugly duckling story as space sci-fi, with lots of action. A tailless girl who can see in full daylight struggles to prove herself worthy in a society of the tailed with night vision, until she discovers her true identity. Skillfully written.

"I Am the Maid," by Sarah Dalton. Dystopian zombie Robin Hood. Nice action, some YA-style romance, and I really felt the difficulty of orphan Marian's struggle to lead her distressed community. With a well-crafted plot, Dalton manages to pack a lot of story into this short story.

"Three Wishes," by Marijon Braden. Two contemporary teens buy a bottle from a thrift store, and discover that it contains a mischievous genie. Can they plan their wishes cleverly enough to outsmart the genie? Good perspective on getting what one wants.

"Killing Snow White," by Jamie Campbell. This was the only story in the book that was truly weak. Snow White's whiny stepmother tells the story from her own point of view. The characters are flat and the happily-ever-after ending feels both predictable and forced.

"A House In the Woods," by H.S. Stone. Hansel and Gretel in a dystopian future. The plot pretty much follows the fairy tale. This one didn't especially strike me, but there wasn't anything I didn't like about it.

"Flight," by Zoe Cannon. A fantasy retelling of Beauty and the Beast. When Lucia's family is called to send a daughter to break the spell laid upon the prince, they give her up instead of her more charming, beautiful sister. It turns out Lucia's dreams of studying magic are more useful than beauty. Enjoyable classic fairy tale set-up with an original twist.

Overall, Tangled Wood is a fine collection of shorts. There's good variety to keep the reader's interest piqued, but enough thematic continuity to feel like a true collection. For the most part, the stories are well-written and imaginative. I'd recommend to anyone who likes YA sci-fi/fantasy.

[Wandering Bemused · Rating 3 out of 5]

Plan B by Kate French (Sleeping Beauty)

I was generally weirded out or just confused for most of it. It was... strange. I don't know where to group it.

Rating:


Tailless

ditto

Rating:


I am the Maid

OMG I LOVED THIS BOOK!!!! It was zoo good, I was inching to read more *hint hint Sarah, make a book based on this it was awesome and exciting, I love a good robin hood story, especially one that has one thats as bad ass as Marian is in this one

Rating:


Three Wishes

I felt like this book was just there, no real conflict or anything, just there

Rating:


Killing Snow White

*deep long breath in and sigh of relief* I love a good anti-princess book, but I totally feel bad for the queen tho.

Rating:


A house in the Woods

To short for any real plot, kinda boring, reason why it took so long for me to read

Rating:


*this was me*

Flight

I love Beauty and the Beast, so this was an utter joy to read, interesting and nice

Rating:


Average:
2.85 or 3

[Emmanuelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

PLAN B by Katie French
I haven't read the Breeders series yet, but this short book made me want to stop reading this book to pick up the first book in the Breeders series. I can't say for sure whether you're better off reading the Breeders series before or after, but if you're seeing if you like this author's writing style, this is a perfect example. The action is fast-paced and void of lots of background history on the Breeders; that's what the full length novels are for. This is a Sleeping Beauty rendition, set in a modern dystopian world.

TAILLESS by Ariele Sieling
Bode is the main character in this story and she's been bullied her whole life because she's different. She simply wants to be accepted and does her best to be the best to prove to her peers that she's no different. But will a secret from her past provide answers?

I AM THE MAID by Sarah Dalton
A zombie rendition of Robin Hood and the Maid. This story was surprisingly enthralling. I think a longer adventure could be written for these two; there's certainly the character and story build-up for that to happen. I have read The Blemished series by this author, and her writing is consistently great.

THREE WISHES by Marijon Braden
Two girls find a genie who grants them three wishes...but is a stickler for conditions. After one wish goes astray, they learn to be specific to get what they want. The girls, however, realize that certain things aren't worth wishing for when hard work can achieve their goals. Instead, they teach the genie a lesson.

KILLING SNOW WHITE by Jamie Campbell
This Snow White retelling is told from the perspective of the mother-in-law, the one we've always called the evil queen. But what if she wasn't evil? What if she was simply misunderstood and her actions were all rumored as being evil? This story explores the possibility that she was simply trying to get Snow White to love her and accept her.

A HOUSE IN THE WOODS by H.S. Stone
What if the story of Hansel and Gretel took place in a post-apocalyptic world? This story explores that possibility. Not the most entertaining, but certainly an interesting version of this classic tale.

FLIGHT by Zoe Cannon
In this Beauty and the Beast retelling, Lucia is comes face to face with the Prince. She is given an ultimatum: either break the curse put on the Prince or die. But the more Lucia learns about this "curse", she realizes that things are not as they seem.

[John Brownstone · Rating 5 out of 5]

Through a Tangled Woods is a collection of fairy tales, each one a delight of it's own. Some you will recognize as old favorites re-worked yet still as enticing as the ones we knew as children.

Seven stories by seven different authors all bring together the theme of a fairy tale all in a new light.

From Snow White, to Hansel and Gretel, Sleeping Beauty, and the fabled genie in the lamp, all these and more.

Don't let those fool you though, the tales are dark and in some cases twisted, but that only adds to them. Once I started reading I found it hard to put the book down.

All the stories are well written, intriguing, and even for their dark side pulls one in.

The new take on Sleeping beauty is one of addiction, love, and a modern dystopian society. Even with those elements the story works and moves along well and keeps the reader riveted.

Hansel and Gretel, who doesn't know the tale of the two children lost in the woods only to stumble upon the witch’s cottage. This tale takes place in the future of a world destroyed where day-to-day survival is key.

Three Wishes is a classic retelling of the genie in the lamp. This time though two teenage girls are the ones to stumble upon the lamp and are granted the wishes.
Will they fall prey to the wishes and get more then they bargain for or can they outplay the genie at his own game?

I highly recommend this book as it was not only fun with the retelling of the classic fairy tale's but the new take on them added a new and dark twist which made them compelling to read.

[Dee · Rating 3 out of 5]

These are not merely twisted fairy tales, but the majority of them also follow the post-apocalyptic dystopian themes which are so popular in YA fiction at the moment. I probably wouldn't have purchased it if I had realized that, because I'm not normally a fan of that genre, but I am a fan of dark fairy tale retellings, and so here I am.

That being said, this is a very uneven anthology. Some of the stories are really good, and some are just terrible. I think the stronger stories make it a worthwhile buy, but if you want my advice, you won't even bother reading "Killing Snow White" (Jamie Campbell). It's very flat and reads like an early effort by a high schooler or younger. The concept of Snow White retold with the queen as protagonist is not new, and was done infinitely better by Neil Gaiman in his short story "Snow, Glass, Apples."

The Sarah Dalton contribution is on par with her other works, of which I am a fan. I think that's how I originally found this collection, but I don't actually remember for certain. It popped up as a recommendation somewhere. I also very much enjoyed the stories by Ariele Seiling, Katie French, and Zoe Cannon. Those three authors are new to me, but their stories made me want to find out what else they'd written.

There are two other stories in the collection which were not bad, but definitely forgettable.

[Kelsie Engen · Rating 2 out of 5]

This collection of stories sounded good, but ultimately fell flat for me. None of the stories held my interest and some of them I skimmed through just to get through the book.

There is a distinct post apocalyptic or dystopian vibe to almost all of the stories which didn't interest me. If you enjoy the mashup of fairy tale and dystopian/post apocalyptic, then perhaps you would enjoy this.

Stories include retellings of the most popular tales like Sleeping Beauty, Snow White, and Beauty and the Beast. Other stories were lesser known tales, or perhaps simply not recognizable enough to me.

Overall a book I really had to force myself to read. Just not for me.