Twice Upon A Time: Fairytale, Folklore, & Myth. Reimagined & Remastered.

by Joshua Allen Mercier (Editor), Bo Balder (Contributor), A.J. Bauers (Contributor)

Fairytales don’t always happen once upon a time. Fables don’t always have a happy ending. Sometimes the stories we love are too dark for nightmares. What if waking Sleeping Beauty was the worse thing the Prince could have done? What if Rapunzel wasn't in that tower for her own protection—but for everyone else’s?

Assembled by The Bearded Scribe Press, Twice Upon A Time combines classics and modern lore in peculiar and spectacular ways. From Rapunzel to Rumpelstiltskin, this unique collection showcases childhood favorites unlike anything you’ve ever seen.

Both traditionally-published and independent authors will take you on a whirlwind ride through fairytale and folklore, myth and majick. Cherished stories are revisited and remastered into newly-treasured tales of hope and heartache, of adversity and adventure.

Featuring stories from Bo Balder, AJ Bauers, Carina Bissett, Rose Blackthorn, S.M. Blooding, Rick Chiantaretto, Richard Chizmar, Liz DeJesus, Court Ellyn, S.Q. Eries, Steven Anthony George, Dale W. Glaser, Jax Goss, K.R. Green, Kelly Hale, Tonia Marie Harris, Brian T. Hodges, Tarran Jones, Jason Kimble, Shari L. Klase, Alethea Kontis, Hannah Lesniak, Wayne Ligon, RS McCoy, Joshua Allen Mercier, Robert D. Moores, Diana Murdock, Nick Nafpliotis, Elizabeth J. Norton, Bobbie Palmer, William Petersen, Rebekah Phillips, Asa Powers, Joe Powers, Brian Rathbone, Julianne Snow, Tracy Arthur Soldan, C.L. Stegall, Brian W. Taylor, Kenechi Udogu, Onser von Fullon, Deborah Walker, Angela Wallace, and Cynthia Ward.

Edited by Joshua Allen Mercier. Cover artwork by Luke Spooner.

Interested in receiving a review copy of this title? Go to http://www.beardedscribe.com/arc-list/
Watch the Book Trailer... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SD4kc...

Genres: Anthologies, Fairy Tales, Short Stories, Fantasy

728 pages, Paperback

First published February 13, 2015

Reviews

[Marquise · Rating 3 out of 5]

Most of the 43 tales in this anthology are either underwhelming or just decent enough as not to rate below a middling range. The short story I liked best was Blood & Water, a Little Mermaid retelling by Alethea Kontis, very grim and dark and definitely not Andersen's plot, but still worth a read.

[Missie · Rating 5 out of 5]

A new published friend asked me to review her short story in the anthology Twice Upon A Time and I could not turn her down. I am so proud of AJ Bauers and all the work she has done in the past year to achieve her dreams! She moved to a brand new state and started going to school to pursue her dream of creative writing - leaving her family, friends and a career behind. She is already making strides with her first story published in Twice Upon a Time!

Likes:
This book is amazing. The anthology has so many amazing re-tellings of classic fairy tales. Plus, with the amazing collection of authors and writings, this book has something for everyone.
The fairy tales go beyond your Disney" classics, spinning off the true Grimm's tales and other folklore pasted down by the generations.
The stories also span all genres - young adult, sci-fi, historical, contemporary, supernatural and even some post Apocalypse goodness!
Specifically for AJ Bauer's story, it is a re-telling of Jack and the Bean Stalk in the style of a space opera. I love the dry wit of Jack, especially as he starts the story writing his own eulogy. AJ Bauer creates a masterful world where Jack, the somewhat misfit - the nicknamed "Screw-Up" has to step up and save the world - or at least his little part of it.

Gripes:
There is nothing to gripe about, if you don't love one story, move onto the next! The book is pretty large, so I would almost suggest the ebook version just for ease of portability and lack of hand cramps!

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A Flurry of Ponderings

[Emily Craven · Rating 3 out of 5]

This anthology was a mixed bag for me, some stories were brilliant and other stories needed a tight edit (I'd say the ones that were brilliant were because the author themselves already had a tight handle on editing). While, conceptually a great idea, the anthology needed a much tighter curation, at 745 pages in length it needed to be about half the size (I have this feeling the editor didn't want to say 'no' to anyone). In saying that, if you skip over the stories that aren't doing it for you, there's some great stuff there: stories by Richard Chizmar, Liz DeJesus, Tarran Jones and Rick Chiantaretto to name a few of the ones I thoroughly enjoyed. Some stories it took me a while to figure out what story they were twisting, but once I did it was a marvel to see the new ideas they brought to the party. Worth a read but only if you have time to sort the wheat from the chaff.

[Amy (Lost in a Good Book) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Note: I was provided with a copy of this book for review.

Twice Upon a Time is an anthology of fairytale retellings and cover everything from the Grimm Brothers, Hans Christian Anderson, fables, myths, as well as numerous folklores. Each fairy tale has been interpreted and retold differently and the myriad of authors who contribute have created stories that reimagine fairy tales in beautiful, unimaginable, and captivating ways.

What is wonderful about this collection is each story takes a different approach; while some may stay true to the darker or original story in many ways, others deviate completely and have been reworked into completely new stories that are sometimes a world away from their originals. In doing so, there are delightful stories about romance, magic, and true love alongside stories in other worlds and battles with giants in space, hidden dangers, wicked witches, or dark bloodthirsty creatures from the deep. But no matter how much a story seems to stray from the primary story, there is always an element of the original under the surface, connecting its origins back to the well known classic and keeping the fairy tale alive.

Every story is different and there is no doubting the creativity and imagination of the authors to recreate fairy tales and fables in such ways. Everything from The Grimm Brothers to and fables and myths in-between is covered, some easily recognisable others not so much, though this all depends on your own knowledge of fables and fairy tales.

There are a few peculiar ones and certainly not all will be to everyone's liking, but with so many stories and numerous styles of story there are bound to be more than enough to satisfy every lover of fables and fairy tales alike. Even if not every story is appealing, there is no denying the work and creativity that went into each one of these stories. The approach each author has taken to these stories is clever and commendable, and they are certainly stories you can return to and reread over and over again. I really hope that one day this anthology is recognised as a great addition to the ever growing collection of fairy tale retelling.

A longer version of this review was posted on my blog https://lostinagoodbk.wordpress.com/2...

[Kimber Wheaton · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received this book from the editor in exchange for an honest review

I'm going to start by saying WOW. Not since Brothers' Grimm have I been so entranced with a collection of short stories. What made this anthology fantastic was the imagination and creativity that went into each individual story. These authors weren't just hacking up old stories and regurgitating them. The stories in Twice Upon a Time were unique and compelling -- all of them. The stories range from modern to fantasy to sci-fi, and each one captured my interest.

This is also not some short anthology thrown together. It featured so many stories, I couldn't even begin to offer individual reviews of each one-- I'd be here all night. If you like fairy tales, then Twice Upon a Time is a must-read! One note though-- this anthology is not for the faint of heart, for some stories are dark, some are gory, and some are twisted. And I loved every minute of it.

[N.M. · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received a copy of this anthology in exchange for an honest review.

Twice Upon a Time is a short story anthology with a focus on re-tellings and re-imaginings of fairy tales, folklore, and myths. I don’t tend to review anthologies, but I do love me a good fairy tale and as I’m also a fan of the Cinder series I wanted to read more re-imaginings of the same genre.

I’ll find it easier to review the anthology as a whole, as it would be too much to review each individual story. Of course, some I enjoyed more than others but I’ll try to speak generally when possible. In general, I really did enjoy reading the different stories. At times I was frustrated that I wasn’t able to identify the fairy tales/folklore they were inspired by and I’m not sure it’s as simple as my inability to recognize the story. Some were definitely based on obscure fairy tales (which there's nothing wrong with), while others weren’t a retelling but rather a completely new story with the same moral lesson as the original fairy tale. In that case, I likely wouldn’t have included it in the anthology or would have advertised it differently.

Some stories were not short stories at all, but instead were excerpts of a full novel. Those were the worst for me and I don’t think the editor should have included those at all. That’s not to say I didn’t enjoy them, but they don’t have a place in this type of anthology.

I also was not a fan of how the stories were arranged. There didn’t seem to be any flow or pattern to the entries. I likely would have tried to organize them in some form of pattern, such as moral lessons, type of retelling (alternate universe, sci-fi, role reversals, etc) but as far as I could tell it was a bit of a jumble. There was also the inclusion, near the end of the anthology, of two biblical narratives which seemed very jarring and out of place. I understand that the anthology was advertised as including myth, but I would be very careful calling Old Testament narratives myth, especially if they are based on events that have been historically confirmed. There’s a completely separate genre for stories set in that time period. Two in fact: historical fiction, and Biblical fiction.

Overall, the stories chosen for the anthology were well written and I enjoyed the imagination of the various authors. Again, some of the stories I wouldn’t consider re-tellings, but that doesn’t stop me from enjoying them for the unique qualities. I would have preferred a bit more flow to the layout of the anthology as a whole. But overall I did enjoy the variety of stories.

[Tay LaRoi · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

“Twice Upon A Time” is a brilliant collection of tales that breathe new life into classic stories and introduce readers to ones that feel like they should be classics. It also provides a wonderful chance for independent authors to showcase their work along traditionally-published authors, proving once and for all that they have what it takes to write along side those who take more conventional routes to success.

My favorite thing about retelling fairytales is that the creative possibilities are endless. These stories speak to people in different ways, resulting in different characteristics being emphasized in their new versions while other things are change or diminished, depending on the writer. Nowhere is that more apparent than in “Twice Upon A Time.” Each author has their own unique take on stories most people know very well. That or they know exactly what makes a story feel like a fairytale and work to make something new and just as timeless.

I also love how dark retellings tend to be since it hails back to these stories’ earliest roots. The authors of “Twice Upon A Time” do a brilliant job making their fantastic tales spellbinding, eerie, and downright terrifying in equal measure.

So, if you’re a fan of the fantastic, the creepy, and the creative, I highly recommend “Twice Upon A Time.” The stories are diverse, well-written, and unique as the people writing them. And if it turns out you really like a particular work, “Twice Upon A Time” does a great job giving you ways to connect with those particular authors. There are quite a few I want to find on social media because I really want to read more of their work. If for no other reason, check out “Twice Upon A Time” for that, because there are some magnificent writers here waiting to be discovered.

As posted on cheapreads.wordpress.com on November 5, 2016.

[Queen Spades · Rating 4 out of 5]

Note: A copy of this book was provided by the editor in exchange for an honest review.

Twice Upon a Time is a juggernaut of fairy tales, folklore and myth—a collaboration of different authors for the purpose of giving an alternate take … a dark side, if you will, to a genre usually geared towards the “moral of the story” and “happily ever after”.

I typically start off with the assets of a book but I will deviate from my usual and begin with some suggested improvements.

Cons

Triathlon of Talent

When I say “juggernaut”, I am not exaggerating. This collection is quite massive, spanning hundreds and hundreds of pages. I am not sure if it is because the presenter could not refuse anyone or if it was because this was going to be a once in a lifetime opportunity. Whatever the case, for the average reader, it could prove to be quite a challenge to get through such a length—even if the premise is a wonderful one.

Talent Imbalance

The content symmetry is a few degrees off in the collection. By content symmetry, I mean that there is a clear divide amongst the writing caliber of authors when a smoother blend would have been better suited. There are some stories that are amazingly rich … where romancing the words flourishes and the local color is so defined, one becomes deeply invested in that world. With other stories, not as much polish, along with a few small mistakes missed by the editor. Some stories fit more than others with the overall goal, and it would have been nice for a bit more coherence, or even dividing this up in multiple volumes (separate books) to make it a bit easier to read.

For The ‘Really’ Dark Items, Warning Labels Recommended

A disclaimer would be helpful to prepare the reader that some of the works are gorier than others. It wasn’t bothersome to me because I am a fan of darker tales but I did want to put it out there for people interested in checking out the anthology.

Pros

Cover Utopia

I adore the cover—the whole “mirror has two faces”, “light vs. dark”, “reality vs. illusion”. It definitely fit the whimsical component of the anthology.

Mashup and Horror Quotient Met

While I could see a definite division of writing skill, the majority of the works in Twice Upon a Time were vivid and partially satiated my thirst for horror. One of my favorite tales that was a bit on the gory side was the twisted rendition of Aladdin—“The Wish Witch”. In addition, I did enjoy the various mashups presented in this collection. One which stands out and still has me chuckling was “The Screw Up”. I was impressed with this one because of the effortless swirl of Sci-Fi and comedy. There were many others I liked but to go through all of them would be an anthology within itself.

Immediate Meet and Greet with Authors Following Their Stories

I did like that the brief biography and links for each writer were right after their perspective stories, as opposed to the very end of the book. There are authors I have bookmarked that I will definitely give a closer look to outside of this ambitious undertaking.

If you are a fan of a different spin on old tales and don’t mind a bit of gore every now and again, I do recommend Twice Upon a Time.

Verdict: 4 Stars

[Crystal Marie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a pretty cool book, but I knew it would be from the description. Basically, it’s an anthology of fairy tales told in a new way. There’s Grimm Brothers of course, fables, myths, folklore – it’s awesome. Each tale is different and imaginative in a way that I didn’t know was possible.

My favorite story in this book was the Spear Among Spindles, which is the retelling of the Helen of Troy myth in modern day. I thought the way it was brought into the present was incredible and captivating and I didn’t want the story to end. I also really enjoyed Blood and water, which was dark and fascinating as well as the Princess in Peril. I am willing to bet that you will be just as entranced by this book as I was.

What I really appreciated about it was how stories we all know have been reimagined and retold in a completely fresh way – I think that has to be hard to do, but when it’s done right is just so darn good! These are stories that include romance, action, witches, dark creatures – it still manages to surprise you even with stories that are so familiar.

I’m on a lucky streak lately and I’m reading some really great books. I have to add this book to that list, because I’m going to give it 5 stars. Buy it for yourself, gift it to your friends, it’s a keeper!

Reviewed by Sara Squared for Crystal’s Many Reviewers
*Copy Provided for Review*

[Kim · Rating 3 out of 5]

Twice Upon a time is a collection of Fairytale Folklore with a darkness woven throughout. Unlike the happy tales we all know, each author tells the take in their own unique way. There are so many different tales told, giving each reader something to enjoy.
The first story was a bit too twisted for me. Luckily, it was a quick read and the next one proved to be much better. Some are so dark and full of horrendous acts, and some feature romance and suspense. The tale that stood out the most for me, and the one I enjoyed, was Wish Witch.
Wish Witch is a dark version of Aladdin. Tom is a drunk and wishes everyone that is “out to get him” is dead. He yells out the ways he wants them dead and that is exactly how each person has been found. The police believe he is a serial killer, but Tom eventually finds out that a witch/demon is actually committing the killings. They stop after his 7 wishes are done and Tom goes back to his drunk ways.
Overall, while the stories are not linked to one another, nor do they all have the same level of darkness, they do all work together to create an anthology that is different than most

*I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review

[Kim Falconer · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've delighted in these stories. Such a wonderful range. Beautifully written and edited.

My favourite?

Tarran Jone's ‘All That Glitters’. The retelling of the 'girl with no hands' is very moving to me, a story I researched when the far distant planet Sedna was discovered. In ancient lore, Sedna was also a girl with no hands, the meaning and metaphor as relevant today as ever.

Fabulous read!

[Katherine · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good imagination of the writers, loved the remastered stories

[Nicola]

A collection of essentially amateur writers. May revisit when retired.

[Andretta Schellinger · Rating 4 out of 5]

There were done really good stories and some that could use some work. The main issue is that this was over 740 pages long. Would have done alot better in pieces.

[Liz · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars. A good mix of stories. As always for an anthology, some were more to my taste than others.

[Keegan Lee · Rating 3 out of 5]

A great collection of stories. I kept getting sidetracked and reading more of the authors work/series after reading this