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Fairytale Collections #2
Midsummer Night Dreams
Somewhere far away, the recalcitrant guardian of a magical bridge meets a wandering fool; a man with barely a name (and even less of a past) searches the world for meaning; a heartbroken princess with a girl gang of huntresses takes on matters of retribution; a talentless poet courts a disinterested gardener; a downtrodden orphan finds herself torn between equally bloodthirsty loves. In this second anthology of fairytales for the modern era, Olivie Blake (Fairytales of the Macabre and Masters of Death) brings you further tales of romance, each one a wistful meandering into whimsical comedy, incurable longing, and as always, the impractical persuasions of love.
231 pages, Kindle Edition
First published June 23, 2018
14 people are currently reading
2461 people want to read
About the author
Olivie Blake
49 books17.3k followersOlivie Blake is the pseudonym of Alexene Farol Follmuth, a lover and writer of stories, many of which involve the fantastic, the paranormal, or the supernatural, but not always. More often, her works revolve around what it means to be human (or not), and the endlessly interesting complexities of life and love.
Olivie has penned several indie SFF projects, including the webtoon Clara and the Devil with illustrator Little Chmura and the viral Atlas series. As Follmuth, her young adult rom-com My Mechanical Romance releases May 2022.
Olivie lives in Los Angeles with her husband and new baby, where she is generally tolerated by her rescue pit bull.
Olivie has penned several indie SFF projects, including the webtoon Clara and the Devil with illustrator Little Chmura and the viral Atlas series. As Follmuth, her young adult rom-com My Mechanical Romance releases May 2022.
Olivie lives in Los Angeles with her husband and new baby, where she is generally tolerated by her rescue pit bull.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 61 reviews
July 29, 2022
4.5/5 stars
I am in love with the fairytale collection series.
The novellas are so good and I am absolutely in love with the Huntsmen and Lion story in this book. The wish bridge was a great start for the book and pulled me in right away especially the entire concept behind the story and the magic. The romance sublet in the stories, as well as the overall writing style fits so well together with it being fairytales. Some of the short stories have more of an open ending and I would love to read a full book of some of these and get more info. Yet the open ending, also makes me think a lot more about the stories after finishing and I really like deciding myself what I would add on to them.
ranking of the stories:
The twelve Huntsmen: 5/5 (amazing romance, love triangle, a secret, strong women, magic)
The wish bridge: 5/5 (ghost type, soulmates, second chances, wishes)
Avalon: 4/5 (amazing concept honestly. The honesty in this story, the funny way he talked to some of the people, the open ending)
How to dispel and curse friends: 5/5 (built up out of poems that have funny undertones, falling in love with a witch, love letters, love confessions)
sucker for pain: 4/5 (vampire and witches, hunters, magic, falling for the enemy, obsessions, gory, death, interesting story telling with a open ending)
I am in love with the fairytale collection series.
The novellas are so good and I am absolutely in love with the Huntsmen and Lion story in this book. The wish bridge was a great start for the book and pulled me in right away especially the entire concept behind the story and the magic. The romance sublet in the stories, as well as the overall writing style fits so well together with it being fairytales. Some of the short stories have more of an open ending and I would love to read a full book of some of these and get more info. Yet the open ending, also makes me think a lot more about the stories after finishing and I really like deciding myself what I would add on to them.
ranking of the stories:
The twelve Huntsmen: 5/5 (amazing romance, love triangle, a secret, strong women, magic)
The wish bridge: 5/5 (ghost type, soulmates, second chances, wishes)
Avalon: 4/5 (amazing concept honestly. The honesty in this story, the funny way he talked to some of the people, the open ending)
How to dispel and curse friends: 5/5 (built up out of poems that have funny undertones, falling in love with a witch, love letters, love confessions)
sucker for pain: 4/5 (vampire and witches, hunters, magic, falling for the enemy, obsessions, gory, death, interesting story telling with a open ending)
July 7, 2024
Olivie Blake can't write bad books
January 30, 2022
Olivie Blake is not simply an author, she's an artist of words.
I absolutely loved each and every one of these stories, and I will forever recommend Olivie's magical, wonderful and amazing short stories that are like a fresh breeze full of all emotions you can imagine.
The Wish Bridge might be my secret favorite, because this story was so new, made me think and feel so much and the characters are so easily lovable.
Avalon made me think about the world and how we are as humans.
The Twelve Huntsmen had that fairytale feel, made me laugh and gasp out loud.
How to Dispel Friends and Curse People has me begging for me poetry like this.
Sucker for Pain is the story I had the hardest time getting into, but it gripped me, exploring relationship concepts served with a splash of witches, murder and vampires.
If you want a collection of new fairytales, with wonderful writing and innovative ideas, with characters you relate to or love/hate, then pick this magical collection up and get lost in it.
I absolutely loved each and every one of these stories, and I will forever recommend Olivie's magical, wonderful and amazing short stories that are like a fresh breeze full of all emotions you can imagine.
The Wish Bridge might be my secret favorite, because this story was so new, made me think and feel so much and the characters are so easily lovable.
Avalon made me think about the world and how we are as humans.
The Twelve Huntsmen had that fairytale feel, made me laugh and gasp out loud.
How to Dispel Friends and Curse People has me begging for me poetry like this.
Sucker for Pain is the story I had the hardest time getting into, but it gripped me, exploring relationship concepts served with a splash of witches, murder and vampires.
If you want a collection of new fairytales, with wonderful writing and innovative ideas, with characters you relate to or love/hate, then pick this magical collection up and get lost in it.
December 1, 2022
3.5
My favorites were “The Wish Bridge” and “Sucker for Pain.”
My favorites were “The Wish Bridge” and “Sucker for Pain.”
February 3, 2023
3.5
favs: sucker for pain and the wish bridge
favs: sucker for pain and the wish bridge
July 8, 2023
Poems to the village witch: best enemies to lovers story since Princess Diaries 2
January 13, 2022
i absolutely loved them all. i’m a sucker for olivie blake’s writing style. my favourites being the wish bridge, the twelve huntsmen and sucker for pain. those three stories were amazing and enthralling to read.
June 27, 2022
AHHH I LOVED THIS COLLECTION!! So so so many good quotes that had me in awe (as always with Olivie).
“How to Dispel Friends and Curse People” (Letters from an aspiring poet to the village witch) was my favorite. The poetry is beautiful and I still can’t stop thinking about it. I swear I tabbed like every page of that story and I’ve already read it like 3 times. I’m in love with it.
Lila and Nile from “The Wish Bridge” was also one of my favorite pairings they were so cute and I love them to death.
Anyway loved this and highly recommend!!
“How to Dispel Friends and Curse People” (Letters from an aspiring poet to the village witch) was my favorite. The poetry is beautiful and I still can’t stop thinking about it. I swear I tabbed like every page of that story and I’ve already read it like 3 times. I’m in love with it.
Lila and Nile from “The Wish Bridge” was also one of my favorite pairings they were so cute and I love them to death.
Anyway loved this and highly recommend!!
August 2, 2022
happy salt air and rust on your door month to those that celebrate!! (im one of those ppl) we kicked off this month very fittingly i think with a little dark fantasy with the one and only miss olivie blake. my fav my queen she never misses and this was no exception. the last fairytale collection was nice but like not my favourite work by her so i wasnt expecting this to be like life changing or anything just more of like “ugh love her work the most this is me working through her discography especially considering i purchased all her books to make a shrine” HOWEVER i really loved this. i think my favourite story had to be the twelve huntsman or maybe suckers for pain. honourable mention to the wish bridge. i think all the character dynamics were so fun in this story and each of them had really satisfying endings. its hard to comfortably wrap up a bunch of stories in a 200 page book but i think olivie did it masterfully. i thought this was such a fun and cozy little read and i truly really enjoyed it. were gonna ignore how masters of death has been on my currently reading for like literally a year and were going to agree when i say they are next!!!
January 12, 2023
4.5⭐️
so soo good omg I can never get enough of Olivie Blakes' writing!!!
my fav stories were:
"the wish bridge"
"how to dispel friends and curse people"
&"sucker for pain"
<333
so soo good omg I can never get enough of Olivie Blakes' writing!!!
my fav stories were:
"the wish bridge"
"how to dispel friends and curse people"
&"sucker for pain"
<333
October 22, 2023
We love an Olivie Blake short story collection <3 The poetry letters one was my favorite and I need Olivie Blake to write more poetry omg
July 24, 2025
3.5⭐️ I thought this was a fun time. The escape i needed. “Sucker For Pain” was my fav tale in the book.
Read
August 10, 2018I am surely biased as one of the stories in this collection was written as a birthday present for me, but I think this book is just marvelous.
October 20, 2022
'The wish bridge' and 'the twelve huntsman' where amazing stories. I would have liked to read a whole book about these two tales.
August 24, 2021
olivie’s writing is just so enthralling, loved every each one of the tales and their meanings. the wish bridge, avalon and sucker for pain have my heart.
October 18, 2023
Wishing bridge : 4/5
Avalon : 2/5
The twelve Huntsmen : 4.5/5
How to dispel friends and curse People : 3.5/5
Sucker for pain : 3/5
Avalon : 2/5
The twelve Huntsmen : 4.5/5
How to dispel friends and curse People : 3.5/5
Sucker for pain : 3/5
December 26, 2022
5 Stars! (Read in 2021/2020)
“The Wish Bridge” 🌉- I love love love this story. It’s romantic and hopeful and dreamy. This story captivated me in this collection and is one of my favorites in it. Lila and Nile are perfect for one another and the effort they go through to see one another every time? It’s so beautiful 😌 The symbolism of Lila being a bridge that can’t really move once she appears and Nile being eternally adrift? Your honor they might be opposites YET they are each other’s missing pieces/soulmates. One of my fav quotes from this story: “While I never have more than a bit of money in my pockets, I have treasures of knowledge, and riches of stories.” I JUST —
“Avalon” -- This story might be short but it is really filled with great moments of dry humor and aching prose. I think Jack is such an interesting character and when he meets Morgan it definitely has an influence on what he ends up thinking about humanity 👀 I won’t spoil anything else here but I certainly didn’t see the little twist happening but Olivie is so good at that (Also, Mazoe’s monolgoue sounds a lot like Ezra’s and I am here for it 👀)
“The Twelve Huntsmen or A Queen’s Guide to Retribution” -- While this story seems to be a traditional retelling of a folktale, it is so much more!! It takes the folktale genre and adds humor, mistaken identities, feminism, and a talking, meddling lion into the mix. The princesses are much more than you think, and the prince is much less than you would think but this is done in such a funny (and annoyingly accurate?) way. I loved the feministic elements and quotes and especially loved the dynamic between the siblings!
“How to Dispel Friends and Curse People” --THIS IS MY FAVORITE SHORT STORY! Seriously. If you read any short story from Olivie this is the story to read. It’s short, it’s in an easy to read verse format, and it’s the funniest thing I’ve perhaps ever read. We’re talking laugh out loud funny. It features a himbo bf and a girlboss gf. It’s from the perspective of a guy who is in love with the town witch and I just cannot recommend this story enough. This is my go to story to get me out of any reading slump! I wish this was a short movie because it certainly lives in my head rent free. Do yourself a favor AND READ THIS STORY!!!
“Sucker For Pain” -- This story really surprised me! It has all of #ACOMAF vibes and honestly I think that should only encourage people to read this one. I expected it to go one way and then it did a 180° (for a cool twist). Ives is amazing, Nora is badass, and Edmund is icky but the twist at the very end was awesome. This is another one of my favorites!
.... Read this collection!
“The Wish Bridge” 🌉- I love love love this story. It’s romantic and hopeful and dreamy. This story captivated me in this collection and is one of my favorites in it. Lila and Nile are perfect for one another and the effort they go through to see one another every time? It’s so beautiful 😌 The symbolism of Lila being a bridge that can’t really move once she appears and Nile being eternally adrift? Your honor they might be opposites YET they are each other’s missing pieces/soulmates. One of my fav quotes from this story: “While I never have more than a bit of money in my pockets, I have treasures of knowledge, and riches of stories.” I JUST —
“Avalon” -- This story might be short but it is really filled with great moments of dry humor and aching prose. I think Jack is such an interesting character and when he meets Morgan it definitely has an influence on what he ends up thinking about humanity 👀 I won’t spoil anything else here but I certainly didn’t see the little twist happening but Olivie is so good at that (Also, Mazoe’s monolgoue sounds a lot like Ezra’s and I am here for it 👀)
“The Twelve Huntsmen or A Queen’s Guide to Retribution” -- While this story seems to be a traditional retelling of a folktale, it is so much more!! It takes the folktale genre and adds humor, mistaken identities, feminism, and a talking, meddling lion into the mix. The princesses are much more than you think, and the prince is much less than you would think but this is done in such a funny (and annoyingly accurate?) way. I loved the feministic elements and quotes and especially loved the dynamic between the siblings!
“How to Dispel Friends and Curse People” --THIS IS MY FAVORITE SHORT STORY! Seriously. If you read any short story from Olivie this is the story to read. It’s short, it’s in an easy to read verse format, and it’s the funniest thing I’ve perhaps ever read. We’re talking laugh out loud funny. It features a himbo bf and a girlboss gf. It’s from the perspective of a guy who is in love with the town witch and I just cannot recommend this story enough. This is my go to story to get me out of any reading slump! I wish this was a short movie because it certainly lives in my head rent free. Do yourself a favor AND READ THIS STORY!!!
“Sucker For Pain” -- This story really surprised me! It has all of #ACOMAF vibes and honestly I think that should only encourage people to read this one. I expected it to go one way and then it did a 180° (for a cool twist). Ives is amazing, Nora is badass, and Edmund is icky but the twist at the very end was awesome. This is another one of my favorites!
.... Read this collection!
October 1, 2022
5 ⭐️
Out of all the three books in the collection, I have to say that this one was the best. I loved every single story. The plot was more fitting to the whole fairytale and still so very unique. I honestly loved all 5 of them but here are my top ones:
- The Wish Bridge (4.5/5): Very fairytale vibes! This was a fitting start to the book.
- Avalon (5/5): Avalon took me a while to understand after I had finished it but Olivie Blake's notes at the end of the book enlightened me and made me love the story so much more.
- The Twelve Huntsmen (4.9/5): If I had to choose which of the stories I would have wanted a whole book on it would be this! The plot had so much potential. I felt like it was rushed especially when the characters suddenly just fell in love, especially Soffia who seemed so in love with Stefan and suddenly fell out of love and moved on to the prince. I mean it is a fairytale so whatever.
The other two (How to Dispel Friends and Curse People and Sucker for Pain) were different and a little hard to get into. It was so worth it though, especially with their endings. Sucker for Pain would be another one of the stories I would love a whole book on! I mean who doesn't want to read about witches AND vampires?! The poetry in HTDF was a little hard to get into for me but it was still so beautifully written. It was simple.
Overall, Olivie Blake's books NEVER disappoint. Her writing style is one of a kind and extremely addicting! Absolutely loved this one!
Out of all the three books in the collection, I have to say that this one was the best. I loved every single story. The plot was more fitting to the whole fairytale and still so very unique. I honestly loved all 5 of them but here are my top ones:
- The Wish Bridge (4.5/5): Very fairytale vibes! This was a fitting start to the book.
- Avalon (5/5): Avalon took me a while to understand after I had finished it but Olivie Blake's notes at the end of the book enlightened me and made me love the story so much more.
- The Twelve Huntsmen (4.9/5): If I had to choose which of the stories I would have wanted a whole book on it would be this! The plot had so much potential. I felt like it was rushed especially when the characters suddenly just fell in love, especially Soffia who seemed so in love with Stefan and suddenly fell out of love and moved on to the prince. I mean it is a fairytale so whatever.
The other two (How to Dispel Friends and Curse People and Sucker for Pain) were different and a little hard to get into. It was so worth it though, especially with their endings. Sucker for Pain would be another one of the stories I would love a whole book on! I mean who doesn't want to read about witches AND vampires?! The poetry in HTDF was a little hard to get into for me but it was still so beautifully written. It was simple.
Overall, Olivie Blake's books NEVER disappoint. Her writing style is one of a kind and extremely addicting! Absolutely loved this one!
April 2, 2022
The second volume of anthology fairytales from Olivie Blake. Another great selection of stories to read and I would definitely recommend it!
The Wish Bridge: A girl given the job of granting people’s wishes finally meets someone who doesn’t want something from her... but rather to grant her a wish. A sweet and romantic story (5/5)
Avalon: What it means to discover hope in humanity, various different attempts and the madness of it all ( 2/5).
The Twelve Huntsmen: A prince and a princess who are in love with each other but the prince is betrothed to another and has to kill a lion to claim his throne... except there is more going on here and maybe the prince isn’t much of a prince and the lion isn’t much of a villain but more of a cursed king and the princess isn’t just sone damsel in love but a warrior, a huntress. (5/5)
How to Dispel Friends and Curse People: Told in prose, a poet and the girl he’s in love with. (4/5)
Sucker for Pain: Pain, love, monsters, and debts. Twisted (2/5)
The Wish Bridge: A girl given the job of granting people’s wishes finally meets someone who doesn’t want something from her... but rather to grant her a wish. A sweet and romantic story (5/5)
Avalon: What it means to discover hope in humanity, various different attempts and the madness of it all ( 2/5).
The Twelve Huntsmen: A prince and a princess who are in love with each other but the prince is betrothed to another and has to kill a lion to claim his throne... except there is more going on here and maybe the prince isn’t much of a prince and the lion isn’t much of a villain but more of a cursed king and the princess isn’t just sone damsel in love but a warrior, a huntress. (5/5)
How to Dispel Friends and Curse People: Told in prose, a poet and the girl he’s in love with. (4/5)
Sucker for Pain: Pain, love, monsters, and debts. Twisted (2/5)
June 4, 2022
i, on the other hand, am a monster, but i am her monster, and so i wait patiently for her to choose me, whenever she does. however she does it.
this was such a wonderful collection of stories, and a set i enjoyed much better than fairytales of the macabre. it goes without saying that my favorite story of the five is sucker for pain, though the wish bridge, the twelve huntsmen, and how to dispel friends and curse people were also delightful. i had no idea what was going on in avalon.
the wish bridge — ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆.5
avalon — ☆.5 (additional half star for good writing)
the twelve huntsmen — ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆
how to dispel friends and curse people — ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆
sucker for pain — ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆
this was such a wonderful collection of stories, and a set i enjoyed much better than fairytales of the macabre. it goes without saying that my favorite story of the five is sucker for pain, though the wish bridge, the twelve huntsmen, and how to dispel friends and curse people were also delightful. i had no idea what was going on in avalon.
the wish bridge — ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆.5
avalon — ☆.5 (additional half star for good writing)
the twelve huntsmen — ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆
how to dispel friends and curse people — ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆
sucker for pain — ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆
June 14, 2022
I’ve never really been one for short stories as I either find myself not interested enough or super invested in whatever I’m absorbing. Seeing as I must continue to finish Olivie Blake’s backlist to feed my obsession, here we are with this lovely little book.
My absolute favorite stories in this were How to Dispel Friends and Curse People & Sucker for Pain (honorable mention: The Wish Bridge).
How to Dispel Friends and Curse People was so freaking cute I love a man who is absolutely all for his lady. Also loved how that story ended. Super cute
Sucker for Pain had a lot more emotions but in the end I loved how things turned out
My absolute favorite stories in this were How to Dispel Friends and Curse People & Sucker for Pain (honorable mention: The Wish Bridge).
How to Dispel Friends and Curse People was so freaking cute I love a man who is absolutely all for his lady. Also loved how that story ended. Super cute
Sucker for Pain had a lot more emotions but in the end I loved how things turned out
June 28, 2018
This book is a complete mix of a love story, a study in human behaviour, classic fairytale but spiced up to make sense in modern times where people are finally acknowledging that women do have brains and care about things other than men (wild right?), some funny poetry and finally a love triangle with a character I loved to hate and some cool vampires. This book really has it all, making me laugh, cry and reflect on human behaviour. An amazing work and can't wait for her next book!
July 13, 2018
This collection of fairytales is wonderfully varied, with each story bearing its own unique, lasting impression on the imagination. Light and shadow; hope and fear; love and betrayal; and life and death are the uncanny roots of this collection. I anticipate that I will re-read these stories many times, with “the Wish Bridge” being my favorite of all.
September 4, 2018
As always, I love everything Olivie writes. I loved each short story but I especially loved the two longer pieces, "The Twelve Huntsmen" and "Sucker for Pain." This installment of her fairytales really shows off her prowess of all things mystical. It's a must read for anyone who loves fairytales and wants something new. And a great read in general.
April 4, 2021
it’s always delightful to read Olivie’s writing. I loved the bridge story a lot and the “terrible poet”. the others were well done and interesting, a little macabre and creepy but great as well. I love getting lost in her books and stories, there are many unexpected twists and simply gorgeous writing.
September 4, 2022
Truthfully, this is more of a 4.8 only because I resonated with the stories in the first volume more but you truly can never go wrong with Olivie Blake. Her writing is so poetic and beautiful and has a sense of fantasy and nostalgia yet can also be modern? Each short story was enjoyable and the writing is unmatched however nothing in this book compares to The Animation games from volume one.
November 3, 2019
This collection of fairytales were just so lovely. Olivie Blake truly has an amazing skill at story telling. I never wanted the stories to end. I loved The Twelve Huntsmen!! As well as A Sucker for Pain. I have read this book twice already and still can’t get over how great it is ♥️
May 18, 2021
I do this weird thing where I read on the treadmill and lets just say I’ve never felt done so much walking without taking a break. I was completely absorbed in Olivie Blake’s collection of stories.
Beyond beautiful tales. 5/5.
Beyond beautiful tales. 5/5.
May 16, 2022
Read 16th March - 16th May 2022: Individual ratings below
- The Wish Bridge 9/10
- Avalon 5 or 6/10
- The Twelve Huntsmen or A Queen’s Guide To Retribution 5 or 6/10
- How To Dispel Friends and Curse People 6/10
- Sucker For Pain 8/10
- The Wish Bridge 9/10
- Avalon 5 or 6/10
- The Twelve Huntsmen or A Queen’s Guide To Retribution 5 or 6/10
- How To Dispel Friends and Curse People 6/10
- Sucker For Pain 8/10
September 1, 2022
Quiet literally the last book of the summer! The first and last short story were my faves. The fact that it’s painful loving someone together or apart. Ugh I truly don’t know how she comes up with these stories. Soo hauntingly beautiful…
Displaying 1 - 30 of 61 reviews