Once Upon a Mirror

by C.M. Mason

Once Upon A Time, A Girl Vanished, and A Boy Waited For Her

Twenty years ago, Nessa Davis vanished into an enchanted realm inside a magical mirror—a world where fairy tales are real. Her best friend, Charlie Grimm, has been waiting for her ever since.

One night, the portal reopens. Charlie enters the magical realm with his six-year-old niece and nephew. He finally reunites with Nessa, but a lot has changed over the years. She is now the princess and ruler of the kingdom of Glimmerfell. Nessa has a sworn duty to stay and lead the peaceful kingdom they visited in their childhood.

While Charlie and Nessa catch up on their lost years, a mysterious threat plagues the kingdom. It wants to use the mirror to escape the realm. Pumpkin creatures attack the castle and kidnap Charlie’s niece and nephew. Nessa and Charlie are given an hand over the mirror in three days in exchange for the children.

In a magical realm filled with danger and threats around every corner, Nessa and Charlie must journey into a dark forest to rescue the children before it’s too late.

An Everfell Fairy Tale suitable for all ages.


This book is not affiliated with, authorized by or endorsed by Disney or any other company. All characters and dialogue are products solely of the author’s imagination. Some of the characters were inspired by public domain characters from Charles Perrault or the Grimms Fairy Tales.

Genres: Fantasy

290 pages, Kindle Edition

Published October 21, 2025

Reviews

[Haley Smith]

There isn’t enough words to describe how much I enjoyed this book! An easy 100/100 ⭐️ read for me! Will be sharing this with my boys (4 and 6) for sure! Loved every second of it!

[Elisabeth M]

This was a fun easy read, loved the special characters

[Jay Diane]

Once Upon a Mirror by C.M. Mason Review

​This fairytale fantasy is a charming, quick read centered on Charlie Grimm and Nessa, two friends who discovered a magical world through a mirrored portal. The story opens tragically: Nessa disappears at age 13, and the portal is no longer active and Charlie is Left in the world without his best friend and unable to explain fully to the adults in their life without seeming crazy.

​Twenty years later, the mirror unexpectedly reopens while Charlie is watching his niece and nephew, kicking off a new adventure to a world where familiar fairy tales are real—and perhaps a chance to find Nessa.

​Structurally, the book is straightforward, concluding with a traditional happy ending that also sets the stage for a related story within this world called Brightfell, one of several kingdoms.

While the resolution of the ultimate conflict felt quick and I would have liked a little bit more character development, the book succeeds when viewed as a modern take on a traditional fairy tale structure. The book prioritizes friendship and family, making it a swift journey for readers seeking a simple, nostalgic escape that is also suitable for the whole family. So prepare yourself to meet some old friends from fairytales of our past.

Note: I was an ARC reader for Once upon a Mirror and glad to have been able to experience the journey.

[Jenna]

I loved this book so much!! It had such a nostalgic feel to it reminding me of the books I loved the most as a child. The characters were so likeable and had so much personality to them that they instantly felt alive on the page. I loved the dynamic between them all and their interactions with one another, their humour and banter with one another made this book so fun to read and it had such a strong found family feeling to it that made this feel like such a comfort read. The plot was so clever and I especially loved the way it wove traditional fairytales into it and the way they existed within both Charlie’s world and the mirror world. I just know I’ll find myself coming back to reread this book again and again and definitely recommend it to people of all ages who love fun fairytale books with everything from princesses, to villains to pirates, to a loveable mmc! I really hope there’ll be other books within this series as I’d love to revisit this world and characters again!

[Stefany Emsley]

Charlie Grimm and his best childhood girlfriend pass through a mirror into a fairytale land all the time: one day she passes through on her own and when he tries to he can’t get through (mirror broke on other side) in the real world Charlie has to deal with police and parents asking where she has gone and in fairy tale land she is taken in by the king and queen to be the princess. The mirror is repaired and an imp passes through to bring Charlie back.

A sweet story not my usual genre. Very young adult and fantasy like.

[Sheri]

This is truly good, clean, family friendly fun with fairy tales. I'd compare it to Jumanji for all ages. There are some situations only adults will understand, mild fighting scenes involving pumpkins and gingerbread, and lots of fun people of all ages will enjoy. I definitely recommend giving it a read!

Thank you to the author for the early copy! This is my honest voluntary review.

[Jamie Beth]

Reading this reminded me of when I read The Chronicles of Narnia when I was little.

Charlie's demeanor has an abrupt shift during the meeting with Cy and it felt very off character.

This was a cute adventure with the tiniest tinge of romance.

I couldn't tell if the last chapter is a teaser towards the next book or a backstory of the villain.

[Jennifer Swift]

I really enjoyed this book. It was well written, had a good story line, and is friendly for the whole family. It had magic, villains, heroes, family, and fairy tail spins. Anything you could want in a good clean read. I would highly recommend this book. Can't wait for more stories to come out in this world..

[Dyanna Minor]

Absolutely amazing!

I absolutely love this! Pirates, princesses, & perfect lol. The plot, the characters, the love & the waiting was absolute torture!

A bit of a spoiler here...

The thing is, & I'm a bit confused but that ending who was Madeline? She was never mentioned or anything

[Emily Prior]

4/5 stars

I like to read this story with being an uncle to th kids and having a avenge in a mirror with a bunch of grim fiery tales to adventure with a friend in the mirror and the adventure for the kids to!

[Deanna Morgan]

Such a believable story line with many classic fairytales wove into it! I felt like I was truly there and that to me is the sign of an awesome Author!

[Felicia]

nice

It was a nice little fairy tale book! It was cute. Had some action and characters get back together! Nicely written!

[Jan]

dnf

[Chaos]

Very cute story. Definitely geared for younger readers and I loved it for that!! Easy read and helped me unwind a bit.

[Bailey Webb]

Simply wasn't what I was expecting

[Kyle Kesatie]

Premise was interesting, but it was a decidedly average book. I almost abandoned it, and then realized I was already 70% through the book so I might as well finish it

[Harmonie Williams]

I love it! So much fairytales and connections that still was its own fairytale! Good story!

[Michele]

I had no idea this was a fairytale for younger readers, but it was good.