What do you think?
Rate this book
The Fairy Godmother Files #1
Cinderella Complex
Sixteen-year-old Maggie Winters can't think of anything more exciting than junior year. There's her first prom to look forward to, she can drive, and most important Connor Prince has finally noticed her. But unfortunately so has the school snob, Katrina Melville, who goes out of her way to make Maggie's life a living hell. If that's not enough, Maggie's grandma has decided to retire, which doesn't seem like such a big deal. That is until she finds out her grandma is a Fairy Godmother, and not just any Fairy Godmother. The Fairy Godmother, as in Cinderella, pumpkins, and mice. And she has informed Maggie that she's next in line to become the new Fairy Godmother. At first Maggie is excited, the whole getting wings, flying (or rather trying not to crash), and a wand that let's her grant wishes. It's like being a superhero, without all the action, explosions, and spandex. Then she gets her first assignment, Katrina Melville, her nemesis. And if that doesn't make her want to poof herself into oblivion, she finds out that part of Katrina's happily-ever-after is Connor Prince. Life is so unfair. Even worse, she can't tell her two best friends about any of it and they're getting sick of her disappearing acts. Then there are the dangerous creatures, called Grimms who will stop at nothing to keep the happy endings from being fulfilled, even if it means destroying the Fairy Godmother responsible. With time running out, Maggie has to make this wish come true or it will ruin the fates of everyone involved, and open the world to darkness beyond imagination. Maggie will soon find out what it truly means to be a Fairy Godmother-and it isn't all about princes, gowns, and wings, but something much more.
284 pages, Paperback
First published March 19, 2012
5 people are currently reading
166 people want to read
About the author
Rebekah L. Purdy
20 books500 followersI was born and raised in Michigan (just look for the giant mitten on the map—it’ll likely throw a snowball at you). I spent most of my time in Michigan, but while in the army got to call KS, SC, MO, and CA home for awhile as well.
As a kid my family moved around a lot. Try spending both your freshman and senior years at new schools (yeah, loads of fun). I could’ve changed my name to “new girl”.
I love writing for teens because those are the years I remember falling in love with most of my favorite books. Some of the authors I couldn’t put down were L.J. Smith, Christopher Pike, R.L. Stine, Richie Tankersley Cusick, Joan Lowery Nixon, Lois Duncan, amongst several others.
My husband and I have a large family. There are six kids total! So we have LOTS of fun on vacations (although hours on the road, cooped up in the Expedition is kind of stressful—although we pass the time with MAD LIBS and hoping no one gets carsick).
Some fun facts about me:
My first real crush was on Luke Skywalker (LOL—hey, I was like 8 years old and it came out before I was born).
I’m obsessed with several TV shows/Movies: The Vampire Diaries, Lord of the Rings, Star Wars, Sean of the Dead, The Sing Off, Ghost Hunters, Destination Truth, True Blood, Being Human, Fact or Fake, and all the cake designing ones! Oh and all the spoof movies!
I still own all the books I bought as a kid/teen.
I have a hankering for chocolate (like all the time, seriously. If my arm was made of it I’d chew it off).
Celebrity crushes: Johnny Depp (woohoo), Taylor Lautner (okay, I know he’s kind of young for me), Ian Somerhalder (ooh, he’s just right. We’re the same age). Wow, this was like a Goldie Locks and the Three Bears moment. Johnny Depp too old, Taylor Lautner too young, Ian Somerhalder—JUST RIGHT.
In my spare time I like to write (obviously), read, sing, hang out with my kids, play with my animals, camp, play soccer, check my email (hehehe), watch football (go LIONS). I also love hanging out with my sister and hubby!
Look forward to chatting with everyone! And if you’re lucky, I’ll break out the opera voice and chase you around singing!
As a kid my family moved around a lot. Try spending both your freshman and senior years at new schools (yeah, loads of fun). I could’ve changed my name to “new girl”.
I love writing for teens because those are the years I remember falling in love with most of my favorite books. Some of the authors I couldn’t put down were L.J. Smith, Christopher Pike, R.L. Stine, Richie Tankersley Cusick, Joan Lowery Nixon, Lois Duncan, amongst several others.
My husband and I have a large family. There are six kids total! So we have LOTS of fun on vacations (although hours on the road, cooped up in the Expedition is kind of stressful—although we pass the time with MAD LIBS and hoping no one gets carsick).
Some fun facts about me:
My first real crush was on Luke Skywalker (LOL—hey, I was like 8 years old and it came out before I was born).
I’m obsessed with several TV shows/Movies: The Vampire Diaries, Lord of the Rings, Star Wars, Sean of the Dead, The Sing Off, Ghost Hunters, Destination Truth, True Blood, Being Human, Fact or Fake, and all the cake designing ones! Oh and all the spoof movies!
I still own all the books I bought as a kid/teen.
I have a hankering for chocolate (like all the time, seriously. If my arm was made of it I’d chew it off).
Celebrity crushes: Johnny Depp (woohoo), Taylor Lautner (okay, I know he’s kind of young for me), Ian Somerhalder (ooh, he’s just right. We’re the same age). Wow, this was like a Goldie Locks and the Three Bears moment. Johnny Depp too old, Taylor Lautner too young, Ian Somerhalder—JUST RIGHT.
In my spare time I like to write (obviously), read, sing, hang out with my kids, play with my animals, camp, play soccer, check my email (hehehe), watch football (go LIONS). I also love hanging out with my sister and hubby!
Look forward to chatting with everyone! And if you’re lucky, I’ll break out the opera voice and chase you around singing!
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
May 8, 2012
Maggie is hoping her junior year will be the best year yet, but her hopes are dashed on the very first day when the school mean girl targets her as the victim of displaced anger.
Add to that the family secret she discovers at her grandmother’s retirement party, leaving Maggie with no choice but to take over for her grandmother as the newest…fairy godmother–wings, wand, and all–and her prime directive is to make sure all her assignments get their “happy ever after”.
Easier said than done.
Her first mission turns out to be none other than her nemesis, mean girl Katrina Melville. But naturally, the indignation doesn’t stop there. Kat’s HEA includes the one guy Maggie has been crushing on since puberty hit, school hottie Connor Prince.
To top it all off, her new responsibilities require to disappear at a moment’s notice (literally) to answer every beck and call of the assigned prima donna. And Maggie’s friends don’t take very kindly to being ditched in the middle of bonding time. So much for junior year being the best yet.
This was exceptionally well written. The story was engaging from the very beginning and it had everything you could want: romance, action, suspense, love triangles, evil stepmother, monsters… And of course, it sets up for a continuing story at the end. I did think it was a little strange that while her “knight”/body guard received ongoing training for his job, Maggie herself received none. Of course, that just added to the humor when her spells kept going wrong, and to the suspense when she ran into the evil Grimms–so not necessarily a bad thing.
The dialogue between the characters is so well-timed and well-written it gives a great sense of the characters and the age group. The sibling rivalry and the anger towards the father (I hated that guy) for the way he was treating Maggie and her brother were both funny and realistic. Loved the character interaction.
I laughed out loud throughout this whole book. So many funny lines and lots of physical comedy. Great for young adult and adult readers alike. It’s a clean read, but there are some older themes, so I wouldn’t recommend for younger than high school age
Add to that the family secret she discovers at her grandmother’s retirement party, leaving Maggie with no choice but to take over for her grandmother as the newest…fairy godmother–wings, wand, and all–and her prime directive is to make sure all her assignments get their “happy ever after”.
Easier said than done.
Her first mission turns out to be none other than her nemesis, mean girl Katrina Melville. But naturally, the indignation doesn’t stop there. Kat’s HEA includes the one guy Maggie has been crushing on since puberty hit, school hottie Connor Prince.
To top it all off, her new responsibilities require to disappear at a moment’s notice (literally) to answer every beck and call of the assigned prima donna. And Maggie’s friends don’t take very kindly to being ditched in the middle of bonding time. So much for junior year being the best yet.
This was exceptionally well written. The story was engaging from the very beginning and it had everything you could want: romance, action, suspense, love triangles, evil stepmother, monsters… And of course, it sets up for a continuing story at the end. I did think it was a little strange that while her “knight”/body guard received ongoing training for his job, Maggie herself received none. Of course, that just added to the humor when her spells kept going wrong, and to the suspense when she ran into the evil Grimms–so not necessarily a bad thing.
The dialogue between the characters is so well-timed and well-written it gives a great sense of the characters and the age group. The sibling rivalry and the anger towards the father (I hated that guy) for the way he was treating Maggie and her brother were both funny and realistic. Loved the character interaction.
I laughed out loud throughout this whole book. So many funny lines and lots of physical comedy. Great for young adult and adult readers alike. It’s a clean read, but there are some older themes, so I wouldn’t recommend for younger than high school age
February 25, 2013
Originally posted at: http://www.longandshortreviews.com/bo...
A LASR BEST BOOK!!
I think every teenager (and some adults) hopes that there is some secret destiny meant only for them, just waiting to be discovered. It may be a secret talent, or maybe you want to be the next “big thing” in the acting or modeling world. Perhaps, for some maybe it’s the life of a spy, or if you really dream big, maybe you are waiting to find out that you are the long, lost princess of a foreign land. I could hazard a guess that not many expect to find out that they are the next Fairy Godmother. Yes, that one. Minus the singing mice (so far). I think few could do it with the absolute hilarity that Maggie Winters does though.
Going to your grandmother’s birthday party, expecting a nice, normal, boring night, only to find out that your grandmother is the Fairy Godmother from all the fairy tales that you’ve grown up reading is shocking enough, but to find out that you are the next in line to inherit the title? That’s complete insanity to a high school girl. If she refuses, the world will be taken over by evil. Talk about pressure! There are some perks though. She gets to learn how to fly and do magic. She even gets her very own Knight in Shining Armor – what more could a girl want? Well, for one thing, maybe for the Knight to not be her brother. At least the boy that she’s been crushing on for years, Connor Prince, is finally noticing her. Except then she finds out that her very first assignment is, Katrina, a classmate that she loathes and her happily ever after is with Connor. Oh and not only is she not allowed to tell anyone but now she has these evil things called Grimms that are trying to kill her. Junior year is so not working out like she thought it would.
The voice of the teenager in this book is so authentic that they could have been standing in front of me narrating it. Ms. Purdy has done an excellent job with the characters in this book. We have the nice girl, the mean girl, the jealous best friend, the annoying brother, the hot guy, the guy best friend that could be more, and the evil stepmother. All of them are well fleshed out and uniquely individual. Maggie is a great heroine. She is her own person, even if she’s not sure for herself who that is yet, the reader can clearly see it. She is compassionate and selfless, insecure and lovestruck and hilariously overwhelmed with her new responsibilities. Jackson is a great older brother, both protective and annoying, as most older brothers are. Seth is sweet, a little bit of a bad boy and very hot. And Taylor is fantastically loyal and protective of her friend while Katrina is guarded and prickly until you get to know the real girl hiding behind the mask. Maggie’s mom and dad, her evil stepmother and the annoying step-sisters are all well drawn out. Even though we don’t see as much of them as the others, we get a clear picture on who they are.
There were a couple of points in the book that confused me a bit. It took me a while to figure out how old Maggie’s brother, Jackson, is. They have the same friends, eat lunch together at school and seem pretty close so, for a while, I wondered if maybe they were twins. This got cleared up but it was quite a ways into the book. I was also confused as to why Maggie’s grandmother just sort of threw her into the position without helping her figure out what she was doing. Especially when there are Grimms whose sole mission is to kill her. Having said that, Maggie not knowing what she is doing leads to several hilarious moments.
This book kept me laughing out loud through the entire thing. I haven’t laughed this much reading a book in a while. If it ever gets picked up for a movie, I will be the first in line. Despite the humor, there is a very valuable lesson that comes across in this book – things, and people, aren’t ever what they seem, whether good or bad. In helping the girl that has been bullying her in school, Maggie soon realizes that Katrina isn’t truly the image she displays at school and that there are reasons for the way she is. In learning this lesson, she gains a new friend.
This is one book, that while I lamented the open ending that left me hanging a bit, I was glad to see that I’ll get to follow more of the adventures of these fun teens. I will be anxiously watching for the next book in this series. I can’t wait! Well written, with a few twists and turns that had me gripping my reader in suspense, and tons of humor, this is a book that I would recommend to anyone, adults and teens alike. If you pass this one up, you will truly be missing out on an excellent story.
A LASR BEST BOOK!!
I think every teenager (and some adults) hopes that there is some secret destiny meant only for them, just waiting to be discovered. It may be a secret talent, or maybe you want to be the next “big thing” in the acting or modeling world. Perhaps, for some maybe it’s the life of a spy, or if you really dream big, maybe you are waiting to find out that you are the long, lost princess of a foreign land. I could hazard a guess that not many expect to find out that they are the next Fairy Godmother. Yes, that one. Minus the singing mice (so far). I think few could do it with the absolute hilarity that Maggie Winters does though.
Going to your grandmother’s birthday party, expecting a nice, normal, boring night, only to find out that your grandmother is the Fairy Godmother from all the fairy tales that you’ve grown up reading is shocking enough, but to find out that you are the next in line to inherit the title? That’s complete insanity to a high school girl. If she refuses, the world will be taken over by evil. Talk about pressure! There are some perks though. She gets to learn how to fly and do magic. She even gets her very own Knight in Shining Armor – what more could a girl want? Well, for one thing, maybe for the Knight to not be her brother. At least the boy that she’s been crushing on for years, Connor Prince, is finally noticing her. Except then she finds out that her very first assignment is, Katrina, a classmate that she loathes and her happily ever after is with Connor. Oh and not only is she not allowed to tell anyone but now she has these evil things called Grimms that are trying to kill her. Junior year is so not working out like she thought it would.
The voice of the teenager in this book is so authentic that they could have been standing in front of me narrating it. Ms. Purdy has done an excellent job with the characters in this book. We have the nice girl, the mean girl, the jealous best friend, the annoying brother, the hot guy, the guy best friend that could be more, and the evil stepmother. All of them are well fleshed out and uniquely individual. Maggie is a great heroine. She is her own person, even if she’s not sure for herself who that is yet, the reader can clearly see it. She is compassionate and selfless, insecure and lovestruck and hilariously overwhelmed with her new responsibilities. Jackson is a great older brother, both protective and annoying, as most older brothers are. Seth is sweet, a little bit of a bad boy and very hot. And Taylor is fantastically loyal and protective of her friend while Katrina is guarded and prickly until you get to know the real girl hiding behind the mask. Maggie’s mom and dad, her evil stepmother and the annoying step-sisters are all well drawn out. Even though we don’t see as much of them as the others, we get a clear picture on who they are.
There were a couple of points in the book that confused me a bit. It took me a while to figure out how old Maggie’s brother, Jackson, is. They have the same friends, eat lunch together at school and seem pretty close so, for a while, I wondered if maybe they were twins. This got cleared up but it was quite a ways into the book. I was also confused as to why Maggie’s grandmother just sort of threw her into the position without helping her figure out what she was doing. Especially when there are Grimms whose sole mission is to kill her. Having said that, Maggie not knowing what she is doing leads to several hilarious moments.
This book kept me laughing out loud through the entire thing. I haven’t laughed this much reading a book in a while. If it ever gets picked up for a movie, I will be the first in line. Despite the humor, there is a very valuable lesson that comes across in this book – things, and people, aren’t ever what they seem, whether good or bad. In helping the girl that has been bullying her in school, Maggie soon realizes that Katrina isn’t truly the image she displays at school and that there are reasons for the way she is. In learning this lesson, she gains a new friend.
This is one book, that while I lamented the open ending that left me hanging a bit, I was glad to see that I’ll get to follow more of the adventures of these fun teens. I will be anxiously watching for the next book in this series. I can’t wait! Well written, with a few twists and turns that had me gripping my reader in suspense, and tons of humor, this is a book that I would recommend to anyone, adults and teens alike. If you pass this one up, you will truly be missing out on an excellent story.
March 25, 2012
Love, love, LOVE these characters and hope there's a sequel on the horizon. It's fast-paced, fun, and romantic. I adore this book in the way I adored Meg Cabot's Avalon High and Mediator series.
(Yes I'm repeating myself/adult author alter-rgo ^_^)
(Yes I'm repeating myself/adult author alter-rgo ^_^)
December 20, 2016
Nothing like a dumb heroine who doesn't use any of the resources readily available to ruin an otherwise interesting story.
March 1, 2015
I'm sure that we all wonder how much stress someone is under who has a physically or mentally demanding job. And I'm sure we wonder if God himself, a supreme being sometimes has moments of stress. This story answers the question about how much stress a fairy godmother has or a rookie fairy godmother. Maggie Winters is thrilled about becoming a junior in high school because she can now fulfill her dreams of driving and going to the prom with a boy that she's always had her eye on. In the midst of her junior year, her grandmother who is a fairy godmother wants to retire from her profession and she wants to pass the torch to Maggie. At first she's excited about having supernatural powers and plans to use them to her advantage until her grandmother reminds her that she will have powers to help others find happiness and love. What makes matters worse for her is that her first client is her arch enemy and she has to pair her up with the boy that she wanted to take to the prom. If she lets her feelings get in the way of her duties, this could bring about the end of the aide of fairy godmothers. The author Rebekah L. Purdy did a wonderful job at creating not a farce about fairy godmothers but a real story. She very easily could have made this a farce about the typical Cinderella like stories and turned events around. Instead, she created a serious story with some humor, innocent/non-innocent fun and a little suspense. Basically, if you want to know what a fairy godmother goes through, check this one out. I mean, you have to realize something; a fairy godmother's job is to help people find love but do they have love themselves?
January 13, 2014
Reviewed by Angie
Book provided by the publisher for review
Review originally posted at Romancing the Book
This was one of the most well-written and funniest young adult novels I’ve read. Ms. Purdy sure knows how to pull you in page after page until the next thing you know, it’s 5AM and you have to get your teenage kids up for school in two hours…might as well finish reading!
Maggie is a great female protagonist with an amazing supporting group of characters surrounding her. She’s charming, vulnerable, witty, humorous…I laughed my way throughout almost the whole book.
I couldn’t believe it when I read that there are over 200 pages in this book – I read it in about 6 hours! I highly recommend it to anyone who likes YA and a new twist on fairy tales. I can’t wait to for the second book to come out so that I can find out what happens with Maggie.
Favorite Quote:Then maybe I’d fly into the grill of a semi-truck or a hunter might shoot me out of the sky, thinking I was a big duck or something. And they’d stuff me like a turduken – only I’d be a turMaggen. Yeah, not a great visual.
Book provided by the publisher for review
Review originally posted at Romancing the Book
This was one of the most well-written and funniest young adult novels I’ve read. Ms. Purdy sure knows how to pull you in page after page until the next thing you know, it’s 5AM and you have to get your teenage kids up for school in two hours…might as well finish reading!
Maggie is a great female protagonist with an amazing supporting group of characters surrounding her. She’s charming, vulnerable, witty, humorous…I laughed my way throughout almost the whole book.
I couldn’t believe it when I read that there are over 200 pages in this book – I read it in about 6 hours! I highly recommend it to anyone who likes YA and a new twist on fairy tales. I can’t wait to for the second book to come out so that I can find out what happens with Maggie.
Favorite Quote:Then maybe I’d fly into the grill of a semi-truck or a hunter might shoot me out of the sky, thinking I was a big duck or something. And they’d stuff me like a turduken – only I’d be a turMaggen. Yeah, not a great visual.
March 24, 2012
This is a great story that mixes fantasy with reality in a very magical way. The characters are believable, the situations hilarious, and the end result charming! It's got all the right ingredients for a Happily Ever After with a twist! It's so refreshing and humorous it actually makes you WANT to go back to high school!
August 18, 2012
I love a book that makes me laugh so hard I scare my dog. I also like the fact that my 12 year-old daughter could read this book because it's perfect for her maturity level, but that I also found it wonderfully entertaining. I really hope there is a sequel.
June 28, 2014
Fun premise, OK writing, and some lines so hilarious I literally laughed 'til tears sprang from my eyes! It seems like there'd be a sequel but no sign of one since this came out ~2 years ago. Leaves us primed for more teen angst, adventures (romantic and otherwise) and danger at the end.
March 20, 2012
The characters are a lot of fun. I had a lot of laugh out loud moments. Have to say that Seth was one of my favorite characters. He's HOT (fanning myself) and funny!
March 23, 2012
I LOVED it. The characters are SO fabulous. It's a fairytale story with a twist. Something light and a bit dark. If you're looking for a quick, satisfying read, this is it!!
March 23, 2012
This story is fabulous. You'll fall in love with Mags, Seth, Katrina, Connor and all the other characters in the book. Its a light read with a dark underlining.
August 18, 2016
Love, love, LOVE these characters and hope there's a sequel on the horizon. It's fast-paced, fun, and romantic. I adore this book in the way I adored Meg Cabot's Avalon High and Mediator series.
September 21, 2013
This digital library find was so good I read it in a day. It such a unique twist on a modern fairy tale. I look forward to reading the sequel.
September 4, 2016
I LOVED THIS BOOK! I wish I could read the rest of the series. :(
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews