Five Poisoned Apples

by Skye Hoffert, Jenelle Hovde, Cortney Manning

The strange dark circus is the only life she’s ever known—but is Snow a performer or a prisoner?

Taking her in could risk the lives of his rebel band—but how can Damien leave the young woman at the huntsman’s mercy?

Her people look for the prophesied Fairest One—but can Livna find courage to step out of the shadows and save her nation?

He’s been hired to assassinate the princess, no questions asked—but how can Zaig take the life of one so young, so innocent?

She longs to be worthy of the scholarship that changed her life—but can Jeong Hayan survive the bitter rivalry of a prestigious New York dance school?

The haunting tale of Snow White reimagined by five talented authors.

Falling Snow ~ Raven's Heir ~ The Fairest One ~ Red as Blood ~ Snowbird and the Red Slippers

Genres: Fantasy, Retellings, Romance, Fairy Tales, Anthologies, Young Adult, Fiction

484 pages, Paperback

First published November 25, 2018

Reviews

[Christine Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

HERE IT IS. AT LAST. The fourth and final fairytale collection from Rooglewood Press! And what a collection to end with! I’ve been waiting foreverrr for this one, and it is finally here and is gorgeous and I’ve read it and loved it and YES. I simply adore these anthologies and am so sad they’re over, but AWK. They’re just so beautiful.

FALLING SNOW by Skye Hoffert
Rating: 5 Stars

THIS. STORY.

If you're looking for a gritty circus setting, snappy writing, electric characters, a plot that keeps your adrenaline rushing as fast as Snow's on the tightrope, and a brilliantly unique take on Snow White, then this is it! I could seriously fangirl about this novella for days.

Our heroine, Snow, lives a miserable life as a clown and aspiring tightrope walker in a grungy circus. What she doesn't know is this is no ordinary circus, and her fellow performers are not ordinary people. They are fae, and she's in terrible danger.

Creepy circus run by magical fae? YES PLEASE.

I honest to goodness adored every single aspect of this story. The writing is quick and snappy and transports you so perfectly into the tale, you forget you're even reading. Not once did I have to pause to try to imagine the setting, but there were no over-the-top descriptions to be found. In a mere sentence or even a single word, this author managed to paint a perfect picture of the surroundings, the actions of the characters, even the tone, and tug at your heartstrings or quicken your heartbeat while she was at it. Then there was the fascinating plot that took the elements of the original Snow White story and flipped them on their head in such an original way.

But the true gold of this story is the CHARACTERS.

Let me just squeal for a minute! First we have Snow, who is anything but the emotionless, action girl we often see in stories like this these days. No, Snow has so much emotional depth. She is broken and soft, yet absolutely feisty when she needed to be. This girl made my heart swell. I just wanted to hug her okay?

Then there's Chayse, our male lead, who made my heart ache over all the burdens he bore and decisions he had to make. I don't want to say too much about him and spoil things but, trust me, you're going to fall in love.

And last but deeefinitely not least is Cynfael. Ah, Cyn. Our charming scoundrel who keeps you on your toes from the moment he enters the pages. If for no other reason, read this story for Cynfael. You'll thank me later.

Oh, and we can't forget the villain, the evil queen herself, who made my skin crawl. Just what you want in a fairytale!

I could go on and on and on about these characters. ALL the characters, because there are other players as well, and each and every one made the pages spark. They're the types that you forget are even fictional. They made me cry and squeal and hug the story, and when I was finished I already missed them.

Sometimes I'm not wild about novellas because the pacing can feel off or it's just too short to really get to know and care about the characters, but not so with this one. Skye Hoffert is a word genius and captured me from page one with this brilliant tale.

Content Cautions:
There was quite a lot of drinking and smoking, and it seems like some of the characters use a bit of crude language. It really fit the gritty setting and brought it to life, so I didn’t mind. But do be warned if that’s not your thing.


RAVEN'S HEIR by Jenelle Hovde
Rating: 3 stars

This one had such a beautiful writing style. It felt both historical and fairytale-like, at the same time, which was lovely.

There’s always one story in these collections that follows the closest to the original fairytale, and Raven’s Heir was that one for this anthology. But it took the events of the Snow White story and placed them in a rich, historical setting. Technically, it’s in a fantasy world, but you could tell this author knows her history, and it came out beautifully in the story.

The plot didn’t enrapture me quite as much with this one, as most of it was about the characters traveling, and then the ending was a little rushed. BUT our villain with her use of magic gave me chills (always the goal with a villain, especially when she’s the evil queen!) and Damien and Kara, our hero and heroine, were so kind and selfless, and their romance was one of the sweetest I’ve ever read. They were PRECIOUS! Also, the “dwarves” as a band of outlaws was clever, and had a very Robin Hoodish vibe which is ALWAYS a plus in my book.

Though a bit slow, the intriguing villain, sweet characters, and rich setting definitely made this a worthwhile read!

Content Cautions:
The villainess in this one uses some pretty dark magic, that involves chilling spirits. But the magic is definitely shown in a bad light.


THE FAIREST ONE by Cortney Manning
Rating: 5 stars

*clutches heart* What an epic, sweeping tale! Like I said, I’m not always the biggest fan of novellas because I never feel like there’s enough time to truly get to know the characters. Or the story is just too simple and straight forward. Well Cortney Manning threw that belief out the window.

The Fairest One feels like a great epic in the span of just a few chapters. I don’t know how she did it but wow! The rich Middle/Near Eastern-type world comes alive in this one. Seriously, I just wanted to crawl into the storyworld (and I loved how it wasn’t your average medieval European setting too!). Livna, our heroine, was a sweet cinnamon roll who just wanted her father’s love and attention and to see her land safe. It was a delight seeing her grow and find her courage to stand up for her people. I felt for her SO MUCH, and was sad when the story was over, because I already miss her.

And the way the dwarves were portrayed. YES. Magical beings, and slaves to the “evil queen” character. So much originality there! One of the main characters, Oren, is a dwarf himself, and grumpy and sarcastic and totally great. All the characters really popped off the pages.

I loved how unique this one was, while also, somehow, staying so true to the original Snow White story. The twists this author put on Snow White were pure genius, and there was even a hint of Cinderella vibes going on which I loved. The stakes were HIGH in this one, and then the PLOT TWIST. Whoa. I was not expecting it.

Everything about this story was beautiful and brilliant and I loved every single word.

Content Cautions:
Other than some heart-pounding high-stakes, I don’t recall there being anything to worry about with this one? Lots of magic, but that’s to be expected with a Snow White collection.


RED AS BLOOD by Maddie Morrow
Rating: 5 stars

This one may be my favorite after Falling Snow! (Though The Fairest One is fighting for second place as well.) Which is something because, erm, it involves vampires??? Nooottt my favorite subject. But but but THIS STORY!

The tale follows Zaig, an assassin, who is told by the queen herself to assassinate the princess, no questions ask. Well, you can imagine how well that goes.

It’s set in a gritty, Victorian-era-esque setting and oooooh it was deliciously chilling. I really enjoyed how the whole story was in the Huntsman’s POV and BE STILL MY BEATING HEART. Zaig was such an epic protagonist, I can’t even. His inner struggles felt so REAL, and he had a dash of snark to go with his charm. The perfect combination! All the side characters were just as intriguing as well.

Then the PLOT. Just wow. Part mystery, part thriller, part fairytale—this one had it all. I was hooked, and refused to put the book down until I had made it to the end. It surprised me in so many ways, and had my heart pumping from page one to the end.

Even if you’re not into vampires (I’m with you) still give this one a read! The writing style is beautiful, the characters come alive, and the twists are epic. Good grief, I loved it so much!

Content Cautions:
This one involves vampires so…it gets bloody. Very bloody, especially near the end. It’s also just pretty dark all the way around. If you’re squeamish, do be warned!


SNOWBIRD AND THE RED SLIPPERS by Rachael Wallen
Rating: 3 stars

For the final novella, we take a bit of a different turn, as it’s a contemporary. BUT, it does have a hint of magical realism to it, which was fun.

This follows Snowbird, or Jeong Hayan, her real name, as she takes on a scholarship in a New York dance school. Though I’ve never been part of the ballet world, I’ve LOVED watching ballet since I was teeny tiny, so I was excited about a setting in a ballet school.

I 100% understand why this won a place in the collection. This author’s writing is astounding. With that said…it wasn’t my favorite. I have so many thoughts on this little story, that I don’t know if I can put into words.

My biggest dislikes were that I was just confused all the way through. I think it was the shortest of the collection, not giving us much time to really grasp everything going on, or to get to know the characters as well as we liked. Not only that, but almost the majority of the book is told, and so much of it talks about ballet and the scholarship and, since I’ve never been part of that world, I didn’t really get what all was going on. It’s so loaded with telling and lush descriptions, I felt like the plot got set on the backburner. Which is sad, because WHOA. This was a unique story, let me tell you!

At first, it doesn’t seem like a Snow White retelling at all, but THEN it ended up having more Snow White elements than all the others, including things involving ribbon and a comb, which people tend to skip over in Snow White retellings. Yet it also seemed to be much more heavily a retelling of a fairytale called The Red Shoes. Which I was perfectly fine with. Huzzah for retellings of obscure fairytales! But the Snow White elements are still there. In fact, Snow White and The Red Shoes have a couple of similar plot threads at the end, so I totally see why this author combined them. It worked perfectly! (Sorry, fairytale nerd. XD)

As I mentioned earlier, this author’s style is so rich and beautiful and unique, I definitely believe she deserved a spot in this collection. I think many people will LOVE this story, even though the style didn’t click with me. Despite that, it was the type of story that stayed with me long after I had finished. It was both beautiful and chilling, dark but thoughtful, and original all around. It’s the type of story you really just have to experience for yourself, and I definitely recommend doing so!

Content Cautions:
This story was just…chilling. The original The Red Shoes story (or Snow White for that matter) is, erm, not exactly a happy, fluffy tale, and neither is this one. I liked the whole unnerving chill surrounding the story. It added a heart-stopping mystery to the whole thing. But if you’re expecting some fluffy contemporary fairytale retelling then…you’re going to be surprised. That’s all I’ll say. XD

~~~

Overall, I found this an absolutely wonderful collection to end these anthologies with. I’m so sad the excitement of the contests is over and that we won’t be getting new, beautiful fairytale anthologies every year anymore, but it’s been wonderful while it’s lasted!

CONCLUSION
With a wide range of settings, plots, and protagonists, this really does have something for all the types of fairytale-lovers. I was enraptured by each unique story, loved seeing the utter originality put into reimagining Snow White, and am so glad I gave this a read!

I give the collection as a whole 5 stars!

Review originally posted on my blog:
Musings of an Elf

[R.F. Gammon · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 stars overall to this collection.

FALLING SNOW: I thought this was probably the most faithful retelling, interestingly. It took a lot of elements and played with them, and it reversed a great many details, which I found remarkably compelling. Perhaps my favorite part of this story was the prose. It was gritty, atmospheric, and described everything so perfectly. I felt like I was THERE, within the story. Skye is a dear friend of mine, and to finally read her work...it was stunning. Absolutely stunning. I adored this story, especially the beautiful characters (Snow and Chayse in particular, although I'm very, very interested in knowing more about Cynfael...), and the setting was vivid and real and beautiful. 5 stars to this beautiful story.

RAVEN'S HEIR: I thought the atmosphere and beauty of this story were also very vivid and the description was beautifully done. The worldbuilding in particular felt very, very real. I didn't find myself able to connect to the characters as much as I'd hoped--I liked Damien but not as much as I might have expected. Oh well. :P The band of outlaws was an amazing take on the Dwarves, though. 4 stars.

THE FAIREST ONE: Oh, this story. I think this one ties with Falling Snow in terms of faithfulness to the original, but it's the characters in particular that made it so lovable to me. I adored Livna and found so much in her with which I could identify--she was REAL and I loved that. And Oren! Probably my favorite "prince" character in this collection. I didn't see a lot of the parallels to the actual story for a while, but once the elements started showing up, I fangirled very hard over them. A slow read that took a while to speed up, but worth it--so, so worth it. 5 stars.

RED AS BLOOD: What can I possibly say about this one? Zaig was such a strong, well-written character--I adored the conflict within him, his fury, his sense of justice, his love for doing right even when it cost him nearly everything. Minoa was such a marvelously done strong female character, and the idea of Snow White with vampires--WHY are there not more stories like this? I think my biggest complaint is that while there are definitely SOME elements of the original within this story, I felt like it was a very, /very/ loose retelling. Which is fine--I love loose fairy tale retellings! But there were definitely times where I forgot I was reading a retelling. 4 stars.

SNOWBIRD AND THE RED SLIPPERS: The PROOOOOOOOSE. THE PROSE. I cannot get over how beautiful and aesthetic this story was. And it brought all the elements of the original together in such a beautiful way, too. They weren't all straightforward and they definitely weren't all as clear-cut in their similarities, but man they were well-done. Hayan was a marvelous protagonist, so lovable and compelling, and the fact that she was Korean was PERFECT. I loved this whole retelling, although some details of the end felt a little...weird? 4.5 stars. <3

Overall, this was a beautiful end to the Rooglewood retelling collection era, and I can't wait to see more from all these authors. Bravo to each and every one of you. <3

[Katie Hanna]

I waited for this collection all year and I can happily say, I was not disappointed.

Now, I did not enjoy every story equally, but the stories I did enjoy . . . WOWWWWWWWWWWWW.

Without further ado, my individual reviews of each:

Falling Snow, by Skye Hoffert. Five stars.
Snow White in an enchanted fae circus.
Without question, the most delicious piece of writing I've read in a long, LONG time. And I do mean 'delicious.' This is one of those stories where you can literally taste each color as it's painted on the page, and I'll have you know they taste pretty dang good. Some are burnt and black like charcoal; others are light and sweet and tart like lemon candy; but they're all so so soooooooooooooooo yummy. Phenomenal description. Phenomenal atmosphere. 100/10 would recommend.
Not to mention, Snow herself is perfect: endearingly innocent, a little fragile, yet driven and purposeful when it comes to taking control of her own destiny. (Plus, she's a high-wire walker--how rad is that???) Her 'prince' is everything a conflicted, tortured, self-loathing, and oh-so-dreamy fae prince with fire powers should be. Her 'stepmother' is the quintessential black-hearted queen, and every right-thinking person will rejoice with me when . . . *coughs* never mind.
I'm sorry this is so short, but I truly can't put into words what "Falling Snow" means to me. I absolutely adored it and cannot wait to read more of Ms. Hoffert's writing <3333333


Raven's Heir, by Jenelle Hovde. Four stars.
Snow White in a quasi-medieval political power struggle.
OKAY. So anybody who knows me, knows I'm a sucker for history and politics; and "Raven's Heir" provided both in abundance, making me a very happy camper. :D Technically this story is fantasy, so the history wasn't "real," but Ms. Hovde painstakingly built up such a rich and realistic world and created the appearance of such a deep-layered past stretching back hundreds of years, I FELT like I was learning a real country's real history. The fact that the "magic" element was limited to the evil queen's witchcraft [an Actual Thing even in our world] helped ground me in a sense of historical reality. And I very much appreciated that the author clearly drew on actual Catholicism instead of creating a whole separate religion for her characters to practice; that gave an authentic medieval flavor which was lots of fun for me (a Catholic). She even mentioned Confession!!!! #winning
Young Kara Chaloner's struggle to wrest political control of Tiborne from her scheming regent-aka-stepmother was incredibly fascinating for me. Some medieval fantasy just goes "ehhhhhhhhhhhhhh, politics" and casually glosses over the details, assuming we "know" what's going on; but not here! Ms. Hovde was careful to explain each step Kara and her stepmother took, and what each step signified in this grand game of "kingdom chess" the two were playing. It was great.
The relationship between Kara and Damien was so very sweet, without being at all sappy. Yay for childhood friends building on a background of shared memories!!! This isn't a romance-heavy story, yet there were plenty of subtle little moments throughout that made me gush and squeal with happiness :D I loved Kara's forthright dignity and Damien's grim seriousness with his little sparks of mischief here and there. And he encourages her in her faith so YESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS.
A+ couple. A+ retelling.


The Fairest One, by Cortney Manning. Three and a half stars.
Snow White on an old-fashioned epic fantasy quest.
"The Fairest One" is two things at once: the epic-style story of a big, big, magical world (two worlds, really, if you count the Dwarven one as separate), and the personal journey of a neglected and diffident young woman from anxiety to self-confidence. Now, I'm not a fan of epic fantasy and I will freely admit I had a ton of trouble keeping the plot and backstory and magic straight in my mind; but I adored Livna's character arc. She was one of the most relatable heroines in the whole collection. Shy and sweet and gentle, she doesn't see herself as somebody who's cut out to "save the world," but she IS, and she DOES, and it's simply wonderful. <333
Plus:
SHE FALLS IN LOVE WITH A DWARF AND I'VE NEVER SEEN THAT DONE BEFORE AND I LOVED IT SO MUCH AND I'M FANGIRLING WAY TOO HARD HELP MEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE.
So that was pretty dang good.


Red as Blood, by Maddie Morrow. DNF, not rated.
Snow White and vampires.
I should preface this by saying . . . I hate vampires. I loathe vampires. I cannot abide vampires. Normally, you can't convince me to touch anything with the word "vampire" in the synopsis with a thirty-one-foot pole. So the fact that I read "Red as Blood" beyond the first page--the fact that I made it to the halfway point before deciding to call it quits--is a clear testament to the strength of Ms. Morrow's writing, and the vividness and complexity of her characters. Particularly her leading man and narrator, skilled-but-semi-reluctant assassin Zaig. (The dude is . . . real hot. Not gonna lie.)
In the end, though, this is still a story about vampires. In other words, a story about fangy individuals running about sucking blood from people's throats. And I am simply Not About That Life. Hence, my decision to quit.
Understand, this is nothing moral, for me. I don't think vampires are "bad" or what have you, I just find them inherently gross and therefore not enjoyable. But if you don't mind vampires, I think you'll really dig this story. Particularly my boy Zaig ;-)


Snowbird and the Red Slippers, by Rachael Wallen. Three stars.
Snow White in contemporary New York plus magic.
I AM VERY CONFLICTED ABOUT THIS ONE. I'm sorry. I just don't know what to think. Hence, the super unhelpful three-star rating.
First, I want to be very clear: the writing is strong. The descriptions are beautiful, delicate, and precise. The heroine, a professional ballerina and refugee from North Korea, is refreshingly unique yet still relatable. The tension and the emotions are palpable and gripping. And yet . . .
I suppose the quickest way I can sum up my feelings is this. This story takes what I always found the absolute creepiest image in the original Snow White story, the "dance yourself to death in enchanted shoes" part, and runs with it. And I did not enjoy going along for that journey. Because . . . well, that image creeps me out. Like the vampires in "Red as Blood," I think it's essentially a personal thing. I don't think most readers will find it as scary & unsettling as I did.


The point of an anthology is variety . . . offering "something for everyone," so each reader can pick out a favorite story. The Five Poisoned Apples anthology certainly fulfills this purpose, and I couldn't be more pleased with the new favorite stories I discovered here. To each and every person who worked so hard to make this anthology a success--THANK YOU. <3

[Marquise · Rating 4 out of 5]

My last read of the year, and so fitting for a great year of reads. This Rooglewood anthology is the fourth of their collection of retold fairy tales that a jury selects annually from their writing contest. The five winner stories introduced new authors I intend to follow, some of their stories impressed me with the creativity that went into twisting the original fairy tale, and some didn't quite work for me, as expected with multiple-author books.

FALLING SNOW by Skye Hoffert
4 stars
Making Snow White into a Fae story isn't new, I've seen a few retellings with such a premise 'round, but what's completely new is the circus setting. And not your average circus either, but a sinister one populated by Fae and other grotesques who use it as the perfect cover to mask their otherworldliness and not be detected, blending perfectly in human society. Who'd suspect a circus creature? By definition, they're supposed to be odd and grotesque; that's their job.

But, whilst the setting and premise are wonderfully original, the characterisation is more deficient. This Snow is such a hopeless pawn that she reads like a guest star in her own story rather than the main character, and that in spite of having a POV of her own. It think it's because she is a purely reactive character: she doesn't do anything, she reacts to something thrown at her. The prince overshadows her so totally, and even the side character of the bastard prince reads more of a main character and is more attractive, without a POV. I'm guessing the praise for this retelling is going to come primarily for the "prince" character, Chayse, because as a story it won't quite satisfying once you go past the originality of the setting.

RAVEN'S HEIR by Jenelle Hovde
2 stars
A princess escaping through a wood from the henchman sent by her ambitious stepmother to kill her to usurp the throne, rescued in the nick of time by a hot rebel who happens to be her childhood friend and former betrothed? How . . . trite.

My issues with this story were, firstly that it's so cliché a plot, and so interchangeable that you can move it in its entirety to practically any period of history and any kind of setting in any genre, merely change the names and a few details, and that's it. I've read this sort of plot in books that didn't purport to retell Snow White, with little variation it's even a staple of Historical Romance. The stepmother is interchangeable for an uncle, a grandfather, an aunt, a cousin, etc., and the plot premise is in itself an archetype: get rid of the rival so you can get your heart's wish, be it material or immaterial.

Secondly, it's not well structured. It starts when the princess is a child (and out of the picture), and then jumps in time to her late adolescence, dropping the reader in media res during her escape and is oh so conveniently rescued as she's about to be killed, and then again goes back in time for a flashback that's cut short to drop the reader back again to the escape, then again a little epilogue a time later. It's so jumpy, leaving holes and moving on the plot by means of quick waves of the hand. This retelling is another I see will be praised for reasons other than the storyline proper, in this case the romance between the princess and the rebel; though I think it's insta-love despite the attempt at covering it up with making him her former betrothed in childhood. She's not seen him in near a decade, and they didn't even recognise each other on meeting again, so . . . insta-love it is, I'm afraid. And finally, the entire story relies too much on near-escapes and Deus ex machina twists for an action-packed adventure pace it aims for.

THE FAIREST ONE by Cortney Manning
5 stars
My favourite retelling in the anthology. It has everything I could ask for: good worldbuilding, good characterisation, good romance, and good plot.

Is the author a Christian? I'm guessing she might be because the story has Biblical influence, and I mean it as in "source of inspiration," not in a preachy or religious sense. I believe people familiar with Christianity who also happen to be History buffs will see what I mean. Or perhaps it's just me who's seen it, but the plot and the world are reminiscent of Palestine during the Roman Empire. The emperor is obviously a Caesar, the tribes are like the Israelites struggling against Rome's iron fist, there's a bit of Herod and Salome in the king and queen who are the father & stepmother of our Snow, and the Fairest prophecy is like the Messiah prophecy. Mmm . . . yes, I bet my pet's firstborn that the author is a Christian who knows her history well.

If Manning is reading this review: please, do revisit this world in your future books! The Dwarven were left unexplored, and it's a promising world to set more stories in, retellings or no. You've made this little Rome fan's dream come true of seeing a retelling of a favourite tale set in Roman times. Yes, I know this is an "inspired" world and not actually Rome, but it counts!

RED AS BLOOD by Maddie Morrow
5 stars
Like with the opening story, the premise of this retelling isn't new to me. To be honest, I had huge reservations when I arrived to this and saw the premise had vampires in it. My inner voice went along the lines of "Pfft . . .! Vampires, ha. So original. I've already seen it done, and besides Tanith Lee and Neil Gaiman probably did it better with their vampiric Snow Whites." And on top, I don't like vampire fiction. I'm to date still studiously avoiding Bram Stoker, amongst others.

That made Morrow's story the Most Surprising of Them All, it shocked me off my socks that I liked it so much, and all of it is owed to the excellent, excellent characterisation. Plot-wise, it does follow the guidelines set up by Lee & Gaiman, in that the Stepmother is in reality well-meaning and it's Snow who's monstrous, a vampire the queen wants to either redeem or destroy. The difference is that the others with the same premise were told from the Stepmother's POV and this one is from the Huntsman's POV. And what a voice it is. The world isn't very detailed, but it is another that can be revisited or expanded on in the future; the story itself can be expanded on as well, seeing how it ended.

SNOWBIRD AND THE RED SLIPPERS by Rachael Wallen
2 stars
This retelling would likely get a higher rating as an independent story, it's well written and has a good prose after all. But as a Snow White retelling? I don't believe it fits.

Wallen's is the least Snow White-like story in an anthology where all stories have to retell this very tale. I'm somewhat surprised it was chosen, as it's not in the mould as I was saying. It's a The Red Shoes retelling plain and simple, not a Snow White one. I do see that the author tried to fit in elements from Snow White to make this be a retelling of this tale, but it wasn't more than a thin film and you've got to look hard, very hard, to spot what these elements are. If you haven't read the Grimms's original fairy tale, you're not even going to know what these elements are . . .

The plot is about a North Korean refugee girl who loves dancing and earns a scholarship to perfect her art at a New York ballet academy, where she suffers from the jealousy of another ballerina that turns out to have a dark and sinister past and tries to remove her from the corps de ballet so she can be GOAT. There's horror and dark curses involved in how this happens, and in the end all goes well for the Korean girl. Cute, I suppose. But not Snow White, and besides the lovely prose, there wasn't much for me to like about the story. It felt like the outlier story, the one that got in by forcing the gates. Really, the three elements (the comb, the lace and the apple) with which the Evil Queen tries to kill Snow White in the original tale feel forced into the plot of Snowbird to check the boxes. Most people only know the famous poisoned apple and wouldn't know of the other two attempts to murder Snow White, so it isn't like these three elements are a "must" to recognise the fairy tale in the first place.

Additionally, I'd also award a few other little prizes:

BEST SNOW WHITE: Cortney Manning
BEST PRINCE: Cortney Manning
BEST EVIL QUEEN: Maddie Morrow
BEST HUNSTMAN: Maddie Morrow
BEST SECONDARY CHARACTER: Skye Hoffert
BEST APPLE: Skye Hoffert
BEST TWIST: Skye Hoffert & Maddie Morrow
BEST WORLDBUILDING: Cortney Manning
BEST PROSE: Rachael Wallen

Five Poisoned Apples would be third in my ranking of the Rooglewood anthologies, with Five Magic Spindles being first, Five Enchanted Roses second, and Five Glass Slippers last. I have no knowledge of their reasons for stopping at four, but I find it sad that this should be the last because I think they could've gone at least for two more anthologies. They're leaving out three of the Big Seven classic fairy tales (that is, the most popular and well-known), and I would've loved it had they done Little Red Riding Hood and The Little Mermaid, the two from my top tales they've not done. Enfin! I'll have to be content with that they've done two other from my top, Beauty and the Beast and Snow White.

[deborah o'carroll (offline during 2026) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Note: Rating and review are for the first story in this collection, Falling Snow by Skye Hoffert. Originally posted on my book blog, here.

FALLING SNOW is a truly spectacular read. I’m utterly enchanted!

This review is going to be difficult to write, because how do I recover from something so amazing? MY FEELS. WHAT ARE WORDS. I’M PEN-SLAIN. I don’t know how to express how much I absolutely adored this story and how striking and thrilling it was and how it blew me away. But I’m going to give it a shot.

This tale is both mesmerizing and perilous, as a story about a circus run by fae should be. A deadly dance of deception and illusion and shadows. The first thing that comes to mind about this story is the feel, the atmosphere, the colors of it—the stark whites and blacks and reds and golds. It’s so vivid! There are so many contrasts—the grungy half of the circus performers versus the opulence of the queen’s side of things; the fire versus the cold (my favorite!); the calculated deception of the fae characters versus the pure innocence of Snow herself.

I love how you get this feeling where you hardly know where the magic ends and begins. I loved the fire-manipulating (and the character who does it!) but that’s the most obvious fantastical part—at least at first—and you’re sometimes left wondering about what is mere illusion and what is actual fantasy, which is just how a fae circus should be.

I really appreciated how perilous the fae characters were! Obviously, the evil queen character (this is, after all, a Snow White tale) who runs the circus was chilling and creepy. But the fae characters we like also had their edge of danger, which was fascinating, and I felt was totally true, somehow, to what a fae story should be. It was a natural part of what they’re like, but we, and Snow (the one human character), can see that it’s off a bit. But for the fae characters it’s part of their lives, a ruthless, deadly dance they live in—even if some of them wish for a way out.

The complete originality of a Snow White story set in a circus, and then the brilliant way that it wove in the different Snow White elements in unexpected ways, was so awesome! I can’t talk much about that here because of spoilers, but guys, it was genius. I love it so much. :D

The writing was also incredible. Aaahh! I kept wanting to quote things and hoping to one day be able to write like that. Every word is sharp and in just the right place to absolutely drag you completely into the story and into the minds and lives of these characters I fell in love with. It immerses the reader completely into this circus world. I’m pretty sure I forgot to breathe for the last half of the story. O_O It’s super intense, and a bit bloody at times, so younger readers might find it a bit dark, but I absolutely loved it and couldn’t stop reading—the story was so thrilling and I had no idea how things were going to turn out!

Speaking of writing, I loved the alternating viewpoints of our main characters, Snow and Chayse, and getting to see everything (including each other) from different perspectives, and all the raw emotion from both, tucked down under the illusions. Which brings me to the last but opposite of least aspect: the characters!

I loved Snow and how precious she was, and how as the only human she was something kind of nice in the middle of the scary deceptions. But she wasn’t helpless either, and her goals and dreams and determination—not to mention her stubbornness and commitment to learning to walk the wire—really had me rooting for her, and sometimes breathless on the edge of my seat.

Chayse was my favorite, and part of that was learning about him throughout the story bit by bit, so I almost don’t want to say much about him! But he’s got a couple of unexpected roles thrown together, which was great, and his interactions with Snow are my favorite. ^_^ His interactions with the queen... O_O I felt really bad for this guy—my poor precious Chayse! He’s super dangerous but he also wants out. I loved him so much. And the fire... Needless to say, Chayse is absolutely awesome. :D

And I can’t quite finish without mentioning Cynfael. This guy. O_O One of the most truly enigmatic characters I’ve read, ever. I kept changing my mind about his roles in the story, changing my feelings about him, and he kept me guessing. I can usually guess a character’s role but Cynfael defied conventions—the sneaky fae!—and I was genuinely blown away. (This writing, guys!) I’ll let you discover him yourself, because spoilers, but wow. Chayse and Cynfael also had some excellent scenes which I loved.

Oh, and (talking of Chayse and Cynfael) one final thing is the dialog. I LOVED IT SO MUCH. It’s so sharp. These characters are almost constantly exchanging either verbal duels or loads of snark or hidden meanings, and sometimes all three at once. It was absolutely fantastic. :D

If I keep writing, my review will get as long as this novella, but FALLING SNOW is an absolutely stunning, breath-taking, edge-of-your-seat read. I positively adored it and plan re-read it sometime!

I have yet to read the other tales in the FIVE POISONED APPLES collection because this one left me with a major book-hangover. I do look forward to trying them out, but even if you only get it for FALLING SNOW, it’s totally worth it.

You need Snow and Chayse and Cynfael and this gorgeous writing and super-aesthetic black-white-red-gold perilous-fae Snow White circus story in your life. YOU JUST DO. <3

I received a free e-ARC of this anthology from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review and all opinions are my own.

[Kendra Ardnek · Rating 5 out of 5]

HERE IT IS. THE LAST AND FINAL ROOGLEWOOD COLLECTION.

(And also let me preface that I have read soooooo much Snow White this year, between this and me picking up the leftovers for my own Magic Mirrors set. It was awesome, though.)

I jumped on at the last moment and secured the last influencer reader slot for this book, and was sent a review e-ARC in exchange for my honest review. So, let's get into it.

Falling Snow:
This is the only story that I really knew anything about before the winners were announced, as I saw the author's post about it during the November Beautiful People link-up, and of the stories that I read about, that was the one that stuck with me.
And it really was a gorgeous story, albeit one hidden under a thick layer of grime - sort of the way that the faerie reality was hidden under glamor. Snow shone through as a breath of innocence in a cast of characters where no one was a saint. Overall, I really loved the worldbuilding and feel of this world ... and yet, at the same time ... I don't know why I didn't love this book as much as I wanted to, but I think a lot of it is that most of the plot Snow was just reacting to what was thrown at her. Her character was feisty, reaching for goals that no one thinks that she can achieve, but to me, that only served to further highlight the fact that most of her decisions were reactions, not actions.
Also, there is a large caution about the amount of smoking and drinking in this story. Nearly every side character is shown partaking of one or the other vice.

Raven's Heir:
Okay, I confess, this one was not my favorite in the collection. It was supposed to be the "traditional" version of the tale, and ... yeah, I can see it? But, I don't know. It wasn't a bad story, and I know that some readers are going to love it, but it wasn't for me. And a lot of it was wrapped up in the fact that it's your typical "ashamed of its magic" Christain fantasy. A term that I use to refer to any Christian fantasy where magic is used solely by the villains and is overall touted as a Very Bad Thing. They're not out of hand bad books and it's a conflict that fits so perfectly with the tale of Snow White that it would have felt wrong if NONE of the Poison Apples dealt with it, but I've just read so many of them, and I just didn't feel that this rendition brought anything new to the table on this front. But most readers won't have read the sheer volume of Snow White (including two others that use this conflict) that I have this year and won't have this problem.
Also, the plot seemed to sag in the middle, which is why it took me so long to finish the collection.
However, that said, I did love Kara. She was a strong heroine who only wanted the best for her people, and risked her own life and gave up everything for them. Also, her romance falls into one of my favorite archetypes, and apart from wanting to shake them both and tell them to communicate in the middle, they were perhaps my favorite couple in the book.

The Fairest One:
I have come to the conclusion that if you set a fairy tale in the Near East, then I'm almost automatically going to love it. There's such a rich flavor to stories in this land, both in worldbuilding and in the writing style itself, and with this story, it showed from the first page.
Here we have a reluctant, but determined heroine - which sounds contradictory, but it somehow wasn't. Like Kara, Livna was determined to save her people, but her reluctance comes in the form of how she DOESN'T think herself worthy of the Fairest One prophecy. It can't possibly be her. She's so quiet and unassuming, unable to see her own worth and beauty, and it was beautiful. And, even despite knowing that there was a plot twist regarding this book's villain, I still didn't see it coming.
I think my only complaint on this one is in regards to the romance, in that Livna didn't end up with the fellow that I shipped her with. But that one's a me-thing, and everyone else seems pleased with it.

Red as Blood:
Okay, now this one. THIS ONE. My word, but this one is hands-down my favorite. I've actually wanted to read a retelling where Snow White was a vampire for a long time - not something that I would ever write, but I've wanted to read one. But it would have to be one done right. Given Anne Elisabeth's high praise of this story, I was pretty sure it would be.
And boy howdy, was it done right.
From Zaig's strong voice, to the industrial revolution setting, to the surprising twists and turns that this story took, I was at the edge of my seat. It was awesome. Pure awesome. I am in awe.

Snowbird and the Red Shoes:
And now, finally, we come to the story that I had the most reservations about. I'm not a huge fan of Anderson's Red Shoes, which this retelling combined with the tale of Snow White, and while I was eager to see a retelling actually incorporate the evil queen dancing herself to death in a pair of red-hot shoes (I just realized, but I am morbid), I wasn't sure how well that the story of Snow White would shine through.
And, actually, what I found was a tale that perhaps stayed the most faithful to the plot of Snow White. The comb, laces, and apple are all here, and I must confess that I actually didn't realize that they were happening until halfway through the laces. And there are elements of this story that I still don't quite understand - but that didn't matter. Because this was a story that understood me. It understood my younger self that dreamed of being a ballerina so I could dance in the Nutcracker (I alas didn't have the money or commitment). And it understood my current self, starting my life on my own (though I've not gone to the extreme of living in another country), making sacrifices to achieve my dream (which is now writing). Maybe this won't resonate with other readers the way it did with me but .... boy, but it resonated with me.

So, on the whole, this was a gorgeous collection. Five Enchanted Roses remains my favorite collection, as it bears the honor of teaching me that a B&B retelling CAN reach deeper than the moral "Beauty is more than skin deep," but this is a fitting end for the legacy that is the Rooglewood collections.

As with each of these collections, I read this book searching for the story that Anne Elisabeth sought to tell with the chosen stories. And it wasn't until I sat down to write this review that I realize what this story was. This collection was about answering the question: Who is Snow White? Who is the girl caught in the middle of this power struggle, the focus of another woman's jealousy?

And each of these stories answered that question brilliantly. Some of them might overlap, but they're each unique and important, all the same. Snow is the hapless pawn with big dreams - the inspiration to the hero's valor as he achieves their freedom. Kara, however, is the brave and selfless queen, on the run from her tormentor, but determined to return with the means to free her people. Livna, like Kara, is brave and selfless, but there's another layer to her - she's unassuming. She would never have claimed the title of "Fairest One," and that's exactly why it's given to her. In Red as Blood, the only story not told from our Snow White's perspective, we're forced to see her as her stepmother does - as the enemy, the true villain of the tale. And finally, Snowbird, the is the girl far from home, at the mercy of strangers, the focus of a jealous rival, and who yet manages to keep ahold of her dreams and achieve them with her own, quiet strength.

I wish the best to each of these five authors, and thank them for their stories.

[E.F. Buckles · Rating 4 out of 5]

Review time! This came out way longer than I intended so buckle your seat belts. :p

"Five Poisoned Apples" is definitely the darkest fairytale retelling collection Rooglewood Press has put out. The tagline *is* "A Tale so Dark and Lovely" so I expected it would be darker in tone, I just couldn't know exactly what to expect until I read the collection myself. The following will be my thoughts on each individual story. I will give each story its own star rating and then rate the collection as a whole.

To start off with, every one of these stories was so unique and the quality of writing was impeccable. Even in the instances where I didn't like a story as much as I hoped to, I cannot say that the writing was not good. Just wanted to say that here so I don't need to repeat myself five times. ;)

Falling Snow by Skye Hoffert was one I was looking forward to since it was announced that it won the contest. The concept hooked me, and then the first sentence reeled me in. The way so many of the elements from the original story were twisted was positively brilliant. I also loved how the hidden danger of the circus where Snow worked saturated everything even before you knew what the secret behind it all was, making me constantly question which characters Snow should trust, while I also found myself liking some of those same characters and hoping they would make the right choices.
Tonally, this story was riiiiiiight on the edge of what I'm okay with as far as darkness/scaryness goes...the villain literally eats hearts, which had the potential to be really gross...however, I felt it was handled in a way that, while it was clear how extremely evil and unremorseful the villain was, it also didn't get to be too icky/scary for me personally and I never questioned whether I wanted to keep reading or not. The ending was also a little bit of a downer, but there was a glimmer of hope that maybe now these characters can move on and have a new life, and I hope that maybe we'll get to see that new life in later stories by this talented author. I give Falling Snow 4 out of 5 stars.

Raven's Heir by Jenelle Hovde appealed to me because of its traditional fantasy setting. While I love stories with new/inventive settings, I also still very much enjoy going back to the Medieval-esque settings. Again, it gripped me from the very start. The male and female leads were perfect together. I loved them immediately, and appreciated that they had history together on which to base their potential relationship. There was darkness once again and I did find the villain extremely creepy because of the evil she was choosing to interact with, but I loved the theme of both having faith and finding it anew, and how it so powerfully overcame that evil. The ending was a purely happy one, which I appreciated, and this is another author from which I would like to see more stories, whether they be set in the same world or a different one. I give Raven's Heir 4 stars.

Aah, The Fairest One by Cortney Manning . If this wasn't my favorite story in the collection then it's tied with first because I really, thoroughly enjoyed it. The desert setting was refreshingly different, and sweet little Livna had me cheering for her from the very beginning. All she wanted was attention and love from her father, but she already had so much love in her own heart to give others, even those no one else cared about. Her friendship with Oren was the best, and the twist the author put on the "prince" character was just... GAH! <33333 There was also a thing that happened near the end that I totally did not see coming and was honestly one of the few true surprises I experienced in the entire anthology, and I really enjoy surprises that make me literally jaw-drop and say, "Whaaaaaaaat!" XD The ending was wonderful, too. 5 stars.

Red as Blood by Maddie Morrow unfortunately, was one I had to skip. I gave it a chance, I really did. In fact, I got all the way through the first chapter, which is saying something given that I never touch anything that involves undead blood suckers. (Or undead anything, really...) However, Maddie Morrow is so skillful at creating an atmosphere that, even though no scary vampire action was even happening yet, I was already having flashbacks to every glimpse of every piece of vampire media that ever scared the crud out of me. Cue my anxiety shooting through the roof. :p So... Being able to create that powerful of an atmosphere that quickly (I literally felt the atmosphere from the very first page) is definitely an indication of talent on the author's part and, having skipped to the last chapter and skimmed part of it, I saw how it ended and, more importantly, WHO was a part of the ending, and therefore appreciated the highly creative twist she put on the Snow White story. But vampires and I simply do not mix, which meant that was where this story and I had to give each other a respectful tip of the hat and part ways. Because it was a DNF I am not going to give it a star rating.

Snowbird and the Red Slippers by Rachael Wallen took me some time to process because it made me feel so many things. Having had a full twenty-four hours to think about it, I think it might be the one that's tied as my favorite, which is interesting because the overall basis for the story was a tad chilling in someways, and that usually isn't my kind of thing. However, this story had two sides to it, and it was the sheer beauty of the writing combined with the other uplifting themes that saved it for me and made me love it.

To start with the reason a part of this story was chilling, the basis for the story comes from one of the original versions of Snow White in which the evil queen is punished for her deeds by being forced to wear red hot iron slippers and dance to her death. The author of this story took that concept and ran with it so that the titular pair of red ballet slippers can magically make someone dance to their death. Add to the fact that the shoes are almost like the the One Ring of Power from The Lord of the Rings in that they basically have a will of their own and WANT you to wear them and can also tempt YOU to want THEM? (They are mine... my own...my...precioussss.) *cough* Sorry, couldn't help it. :p All joking aside, that's pretty scary when you think about it. The story used this element to become something of a tragic morality tale, at least when you look at what happened to the antagonist of the story. (I wouldn't have liked the story if the tragedy was all their was to it, but like I said, there's more than one side to this, so bear with me and I'll talk about that momentarily.) Without spoiling anything, I feel that the ultimate moral of the story was, "Do not allow ambition to control you or it may destroy you." There is nothing wrong with wanting to be the best at what you do and striving for it, but when you become obsessed with that goal, as the villain did, to the point that you would do ANYTHING, including selling your own soul to stay the best, and the mere concept that someone else could be better than you turns you into a homicidal maniac...well, then you might just have a problem. Now that I'm typing this out, I realize that this moral echos the moral of the original Snow White, (the queen's obsession with beauty causing her to try to destroy others, only to end up being destroyed by it instead) without directly copying it as most of the other stories in the collection did. (I say "most of" becasue I don't know if Red as Blood did that or not.) Wow. I'm even more impressed with this story now than I was a few minutes ago!

To address the parts of this story that were not tragic, this was the first and only retelling in any of the four Rooglewood collections to have a contemporary setting, whether fantastical or not. I don't read a lot of contemporary fic at all, much less contemporary retellings, or contemporary fantasy, but I do enjoy the ones that are done well, which this story certainly well. Additionally, while I have never had the ability or particular interest in doing ballet myself, there has always been something about it, and stories featuring it that attracts me. It's art that people create through movement. It's beautiful, and I think part of what attracts me is the dedication those who do it pour into it. Literal blood, sweat, and tears goes into making every movement perfect and that kind of passion inspires me in my own artistic pursuits, so that was another thing that attracted me to this story and that I loved while reading it. However, had the main character, Jeong Hayan (aka "Snowbird") not been written as well as she was none of it would have mattered. Everything about her made me love her more, and helped make this story that much more amazing. Having spent part of her young life in North Korea before her mother defected and she got set on the road that finally took her to New York City, Hayan knew what it was like to struggle and overcome her circumstances to get to where she was. Because of that, she could have easily been sucked into the same trap that ultimately destroyed those who dared put on the red slippers. She had ambition. She wanted to be the best she could be, and the siren call of the red shoes told her they could help her get there, if only she was strong enough. So, what made the difference?

I believe it was love. To be specific, it was the love of a mother for her daughter. Now, here's the thing: Jeong Hayan's mother was never physically present with her during the entire story. They were separated when Hayan left for New York because of her scholarship, and what we know of her mother we know because of Hayan's memories of her. So, how is it that the love between them still permeated the story? Well, in the world in which this story is set, handmade objects take on qualities from the person who made them. As someone who makes things by hand myself, I adored this aspect of the story. When I make something, I do so hoping that it will improve the life of the person who will own it in some way, even if it be as simple as making them smile for a moment because they enjoy wearing it. This hope is amplified when I make something for someone I know and love because taking that much time and effort to make something unique just for them is one way I can express my love for them. That item is a part of my heart that they can keep with them always. In the same way, Hayan's mother lovingly took the time to make many things for her daughter, and because handmade objects in this setting take on qualities from the person who made them, they protected her. But when she wasn't wearing something of her mother's I think she was still protected because her mother's had taught her that there's more to life than chasing ambition. It's nice to be the best at what you do, but even when someone eventually comes along and is better than you, you'll still be okay, so long as you have love. Hayan was so filled with love that she even had compassion on the person who had tried to hurt her, to the point she was willing to try to help them. Whether she was able to help or not...well, you'll just have to read the story...but it meant a lot to me that she had every intention of trying, and that is what really sold the story for me.

In spite of the tragic note I mentioned earlier in the review, I am also glad that the author gave one more chapter to bring the story to a more positive final conclusion that helped me to smile after the moment of sadness. An amazing, deep story by a highly talented author. 5 stars.

In Conclusion: While I don't think I can call Five Poisoned Apples my favorite of all the Five-something-something anthologies from Rooglewood Press, and not all of them were to my personal tastes, there were still some amazing stories in here by five incredibly skillful writers. Because I only read 4 of the 5 stories, and because I enjoyed those 4 stories, I am giving the collection as a whole a solid four stars, and a round of applause for all the authors. 🙂



Content Advisory for those who want to know, and possible SPOILERS for those who don't want to know, mainly in the violence section. I will, however, try to be vague about details when I can and will use spoiler code if I have to be more specific.

Due to some darkness, potentially disturbing concepts/descriptions, and some very scary villains and fantasy creatures, I cannot recommend this particular collection to younger readers. It is more suited for older teens and adults, depending on personal tastes.

Please note: As stated in my review, I read every story except for Red as Blood where I only read the first chapter, and part of the last chapter. I cannot account for content that may have been in the parts of that story that I did not read.

Romantic content: Every story in the collection features some romance/attraction between the main character and another character. All the romances develop over time. No insta-love. All but the last story featured a kiss. These kisses ranged from barely described at all, to only a little bit described. Nothing ever got hot and heavy.

Violence: This collection has more violence than the previous three Rooglewood collections. While none of the violence in the four stories I read beginning too end got too icky for me personally, the mere concept behind what is going on in some of the stories could be disturbing to some.

In "Falling Snow" it is implied for much of the story that the villain maintains her youthfulness by literally eating the hearts of young human women whom she keeps around until they reach a certain age, and then she has them killed. This never actually happens during the story, though she thinks it has occurred when she is presented with what is actually a pig's heart (the killing of the pig is not shown/described) and sees a person who has been made to look as though they are dead. Blood is mentioned a number of times, but mainly in the context of blood from the pig's heart. Some of this blood is dripped onto an unconscious person to make them look dead.

Two people are poisoned: one with the intention of rendering them unconscious, and the other with the purpose of killing a very evil individual who has killed many other people for the sake of vanity and cannot be defeated any other way. The scene in which the one person is rendered unconscious via poisoning could be creepy to some given the description in which the fey person oozes black poison from onto the person he's poisoning.

"Raven's Heir" has no graphic violence and very few mentions of blood, however, the main character is in peril for the majority of the story, and almost killed three times. The villain is rather fond of poisoning people via poisoned food and poisoned knives that send people into a comatose state with only one bite or one scratch. The villain also intentionally cuts their own hand once for magical purposes. This comatose state induced by the poisoned things can end in death if the poisoned person is not helped quickly enough. People are both injured and die via swords, knives, and being shot with arrows, none of which is described graphically, though, again, there are brief mentions of blood and blood-soaked clothing items.

"The Fairest One" also has no graphic violence and only very few, brief mentions of blood. An evil person has slaves (of the "Dwarven" race) who are treated unkindly, both by being forced to use their natural magic for the evil person's purposes and by being punished via whipping and other cruelty if they do not obey. One Dwarven character is whipped until his back bleeds and he is described as clearly being in pain. A young woman's life is threatened a number of times and she is nearly killed once (self-sacrifice for the sake of others). The evil villain cuts a Dwarven's hand for magic purposes. Some of the magic things the evil villain forces the Dwarven slaves to do causes them physical pain because of how much it drains them. A woman accidentally cuts her hand with mention of blood. A character is nearly strangled to death but rescued last minute.

"Red as Blood" revolves around blood-sucking vampires and an assassin who is hired to kill someone. In the few parts of this story that I read and skimmed: At the end of the first chapter the assassin was being asked to drive a steak through the heart of a young woman and bring that heart back to the person who hired him. While skimming, I saw mention of a dead body being discovered with two fang-sized holes in its neck. I also glimpsed the final showdown in which I saw the words "knife" and "spurt of blood", at which point I moved right along.

While not overly violent or descriptive, "Snowbird and the Red Slippers" revolves around the concept of a pair of enchanted shoes that can make the wearer dance themselves to death. In this story, they dance until they are completely spent and then disappear, leaving nothing behind but ash. There are a few brief mentions of blood stains on ballet slippers. Once character tries to physically harm the main character on three separate occasions via shoving a tiara onto the girl's head so hard the girl thinks blood may be trickling down her neck (she never looks to know for sure so it could have just been sweat), tightening the strings on her ballet dress until she ends up passing out whilst trying to dance, and finally, attempted poisoning.

Magic and Spiritual Content: This collection features magic in some form in every story.

"Falling Snow" features fantastical beings (dwarves and fey beings) who have inherent magical abilities. Included are the ability to put a glamour on themselves and others in order to make people see what they want them to see, the ability to magically poison apples, the ability to control fire, the ability to stay young forever via nefarious means, and the ability to ooze poison from their own bodies.

"Raven's Heir" is the reason I included spiritual content in this section. The characters in this story are all human. Only the evil queen is able to do anything "magical" and it would seem that this is only because she has formed an alliance with beings that...while it is never stated outright...seem quite demonic. (dark, shadowy beings that she summons to control things, and show her things she wants to see in a pool of water and/or any other body of water.) She considers her interaction with these beings her "religion" and thinks they are stronger than anything else. By contrast, the good characters speak of faith and praying, and while it is again not stated outright, it is implied that they believe in and pray to the Christian God. There is a cross on a monastery that the characters encounter in the story and the shadowy beings are unable to even show the evil queen the monastery at first and end up needing her to go try to destroy it for her because they are not allowed to touch it themselves. The shadowy beings are ultimately defeated in the end.

In a similar vein, it seems at first that "The Fairest One's" evil queen, who is also human, may be doing something similar to the "Raven's Heir" evil queen when it is discovered that she is summoning a dark, shadowy being in her mirror, however, it turns out that what she is summoning is something entirely different, but still has harmful intentions. Other magic in this story comes exclusively from the "Dwarven" who are dwarf-like characters with their own inherent magical abilities.

I don't know if there is anything magic in "Red as Blood" as none of the parts I read or skimmed indicated anything fantastical going on besides the existence of vampires.

"Snowbird

[Hayden · Rating 4 out of 5]

The stories in Rooglewood Press’s newest anthology run from traditional to imaginative, from historical to contemporary. Snow White has never been one of my favorite stories, so I was curious how I’d like this collection. The other collections had the advantage of being retellings of some of my favorite fairy tales, so this one had a little bit of an added hurdle. While I didn’t enjoy this one as much as Five Magic Spindles, it still had some wildly good stories!

I loved the atmosphere of Falling Snow- out of all of the tales, this is the one I could see most clearly as a movie. Raven’s Heir was the collection's most traditional take, with a bit of a Robin Hood aspect as well. The Fairest One had a Biblical feel that surprised me and completely won me over, with some Esther retelling elements thrown in for good measure. Red as Blood had a compelling protagonist and flipped the story in a way that I absolutely loved. To my surprise, I also really liked the contemporary retelling, Snowbird and the Red Slippers- I think that one had the prettiest writing, and I loved how the author actually involved some of the more obscure aspects of the Snow White story into her version.

These stories are a little darker than some of the other Rooglewood Press retellings. That’s not something I particularly mind, but it may be something other readers would wish to be aware of. Of course, my favorite stories were the last two, which are arguably the most dark, so….¯\_(ツ)_/¯

[Meredith Burton]

I cannot rate books on this site as my computer has a mind of its own, but this book gets five stars from me! Utterly amazing!

“Snow White” has always been my favorite fairy tale; the story of a young woman discovering her worth even if that discovery comes at a high cost. “Snow White” is a story about the loss of innocence and the ultimate finding of freedom.
Rooglewood Press has tackled this “tale so dark and lovely” for their final collection of fairy tale novellas. There are no words to describe how much I loved this collection. The stories are complex, and the characters are empathetic and relatable. Each story receives a five-star rating from me. Below are my opinions of each novella.

Falling Snow, by Skye Hoffert: Snow, a clown in a circus that is not what it seems, strives to become something greater. Two princes become entwined in Snow’s tale, a prince seeking power and a prince seeking his mother’s approval. What if Snow is not simply a circus performer but a pawn meant to be used for a nefarious purpose. Can pawns, in fact, become queens?
I loved the contrasts of the circus, the glitz and glamor on the surface that, like a poisonous veneer, hides the hidden gruesomeness beneath. The alternating perspectives were fun to read as was the intrigue and unraveling of the mystery of where tru loyalties lay. An exciting adventure that was impossible to put down.

Raven’s Heir, by Jenelle Hovde: A riveting tale of a young queen seeking to free her kingdom from her stepmother, who has seized power.
I loved the rich, historical detail of this story. The world, though not our own, has a fully realized history. I loved the heroine, who is courageous and kind. The romance is plausible, and I especially appreciated that the two leading characters knew each other as children, so no love-at-first-sight plot. The theme of spiritual warfare was particularly enthralling.

The Fairest One, by Cortney Manning: One of my favorites. A prophecy has foretold that one born during a snowfall in a desert land will free the land. But, is Livna worthy to fulfill such a prophecy? And, can an enslaved dwarven people find freedom?
The setting for this story is so vivid, and Livna and I are a lot alike. I loved the romance in this story and how things are not what they seem. The surprise reveal of the true evildoer was such fun, and the dwarven kingdom is described in beautiful detail.

Red as Blood, by Maddie Morrow: Snow White and vampires? The premise works wonderfully, and this story is gothic and chilling. I loved how every aspect of this story was turned on its head, and the villain is not whom you expect. Zaig, the huntsman character, was sympathetic while still a man of strength. I was completely enthralled by his narrative.

Snowbird and the Red Slippers, by Rachael Wallen: No words. Simply no possible way to describe how much I loved this contemporary but oddly ethereal take on the fairy tale. A talented ballerina has received a scholarship to attend a prestigious dance school in New York, but will she survive the jealousy of a fellow dancer who is more than she seems?
Mrs. Wallen writes with breathtaking prose that sings. The story has the marrow-chilling terror and breathtaking beauty that I seek in a fairy tale retelling. Jeong Hayan, (Snowbird,) is such a kind and endearing character. I loved how even objects that seem to have no significance are personified. Jeong Hayan’s relationship with her seamstress mother is so vivid. The nods to Hans Christian Andersen’s “The Red Shoes” was excellent. There may have also been a nod to The Phantom of the Opera as well. Utterly mesmerizing story that reminded me of one of my favorite books of all time, Bone Gap, by Laura Ruby.

Five Poisoned Apples is a fitting conclusion to a wonderful series. The authors put their hearts into these retellings and should be proud of their tremendous accomplishments. Rooglewood Press outdid themselves with this collection. Everyone, please do yourselves a favor and snatch up this delectable, beribboned box of dark but satisfying confections. Happy reading, and God bless you all.

[Tracey Dyck · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received a free e-book copy of the book in exchange for a review of the first story,Falling Snow. All opinions expressed are my own. A full review of the entire book is forthcoming.

FALLING SNOW by Skye Hoffert

Snow White at the circus--that was the first thing to grab my attention! And that grungy setting kept me entranced right to the final page. The author succeeds in painting the two faces of the circus with vibrant brushstrokes, both the glamorous veneer and the dank shadows beneath.

The next thing to hook me in was, of course . . .

The Characters (most of whom are fae!)

Snow: She's not the timid, cutesy thing of the Disney film. This Snow is guarded, capable, and wounded. If you've read the story, you know how much her emotions pop in the wire-walking scene!

Chayse: Easily my favorite character! Fiery abilities, a tortured relationship with his mother, and a tattered/hobo-like appearance make him a unique and lovable romantic interest.

Cynfael: He's everything you expect a fae prince to be, with a healthy helping of snark added to his cunning personality. He and Chayse sort of share the roles of prince and huntsman . . . but I shan't say more. Spoilers, sweetie.

The dwarves: They're a ragtag group of clowns who, in their own gruff way, look after Snow. Goodness knows she needs it.

The queen: She's the sort of villainess I love to hate, and she personifies the circus itself with her glittering mask hiding a heart of rot.

Alilion: He doesn't show up much, but he seems to play a minor role as the mirror. Also detestable, as one might expect.

So what about the plot?

Trust me, if you think you know the tired old "Mirror, mirror, on the wall," set up, you'll get a pleasant surprise here. The classic pieces have been rearranged on the chessboard, with some very clever twists to keep you on your toes.

Plot is my biggest struggle in novellas because it's hard to contain within such a small word limit. But this author ratchets up the suspense and advances the game so deftly, I nearly forgot I wasn't reading a full novel. My heart was pounding at all the right moments! And there's just enough time before reaching The End to breathe a sigh of relief.

A dark blend of Once Upon a Time and The Greatest Showman, Falling Snow is a riveting start to the Five Poisoned Apples collection! I can't wait to see what Skye Hoffert writes next.

Like I said, full review to come once I get my hands on a physical copy! I won't be marking this book as Read until then.

[MK · Rating 5 out of 5]

So...technically I only read Falling Snow
But it was the most amazing Snow White retelling I've ever read. She has a way of writing her characters where you can just see them standing in a dark ally with a cigarette, their gangster hat pulled over their eyes and a bottle of bootleg whiskey in their pocket.

[Kirsten · Rating 5 out of 5]

https://kiribeth.blogspot.com/2019/01...

[Becca · Rating 4 out of 5]

This collection is exceptional. First we have a story about Snow White and the circus, fantastically dark and bloody and well-written. Then there's Snow White with a faithful-to-the-original plot set in a rather generic fantasy world. This is followed by timidly heroic Snow White, a twisty plot, and dwarves – actually they're dwarven and, yes, there's a significant and spoilery difference between the two. Next is a personal favorite of mine: Snow White and vampires, which really is better than it sounds. Last comes Snow White the ballerina, and it is a stunning story. I'm still recovering from the shock of so much "dark and lovely" packed into one short tale. It reminded me a little of WR Gingell's Lady of Dreams, so try that if you desperately want to read something similar and are depressed because the author apparently stopped writing after the publication of her one and only story.

Here are my "ratings" for the individual stories in case you're curious.
Falling Snow by Skye Hoffert: 4 out of 5 stars
Raven's Heir by Jenelle Hovde: 3 out of 5 stars
The Fairest One by Cortney Manning: 3.5 out of 5 stars
Red as Blood by Maddie Morrow: 4.5 out of 5 stars
Snowbird and the Red Slippers by Rachael Wallen: 5 out of 5 stars (!)

Random fact: This morning as I read about Snowbird and a New York City snowfall, last night's rare and precious flakes were melting just outside my window. How's that for a bit of fairy-tale magic?

[Victoria · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received a free e-ARC copy of this book in exchange for my honest review [which is a few months late in the coming! my sincerest apologies!]. All opinions expressed are my own.

Falling Snow
two stars

This story began with an interesting setting and premise. I really like the circus setting and aesthetic, and the writer did a good job of vividly describing the different atmospheres and the contrast between the sparkly, lit ring and performers and the gritty, dirty world outside. I thought that was a cool contrast.
However, I was rather disappointed in realizing that the story was in a fantasy setting. I have nothing against fantasy, but I think a historical fiction setting would have felt less cheap and challenged the writer to create a more engaging and unique story.
I also found the characters rather flat and stereotypical, and there was very little chemistry between the two main characters. The dialogue was uninteresting and the writing style felt rather juvenile. I was prepared to enjoy this circus-themed retelling, but unfortunately the choice of genre and the poor writing had me skimming through this story.

Raven’s Heir
four stars

Fortunately this next story restored my hope in this collection. The writing style was solid and it felt almost cinematic. I could clearly visualize the setting and the action and the characters and I felt immersed in the atmosphere. There was strong romantic tension between the lead characters as well. I like the historical-fiction aesthetic and the religious imagery and plot devices were a solid choice.
My only issue with this one is the climax. It felt a little rushed and a bit too easy. In fact, most of the stories had rather weak climaxes that felt too easy, but in this story I found myself actually rooting for the characters and relieved when they had a happy ending.

The Fairest One
three stars

I really enjoyed the setting of this story. I love the desert and the tribes and the palace and the customs and traditions of the characters; everything had the potential to create a wonderfully complex and vivid world. The first chapter hooked me in, and while the twists were a little predictable, I enjoyed the characters’ journeys and struggles.
I think this story should have been a full-length novel instead of a short story/novella, however. As I said, the world has potential to be so much more, but the word-count limit restrained it and it felt underdeveloped and rushed. The plot would have also been better in a full-length novel. The journey the character goes on was only a very small part of the plot when it should have been much more significant. Also I found the writing style a little bland and the dialogue a little cheesy and forced.

Red As Blood
three stars

I really liked the twists in this one! I had no idea it had that one genre element so it was great to start to slowly realize what was going on. The writer has a good control over the plot, and there were good surprises at every turn. I enjoyed the story and the romance was well-done. I felt the chemistry between the two main characters in some scenes, and I ended up rooting for their romance.
I thought the setting and world were bland and uninspired, though. It felt like any other medieval-based fantasy with nothing new to offer. Choosing a historical-fiction fantasy setting or anything other than fantasy would have turned this story from good to great.

Snowbird and the Rest Slippers
five stars

This story was absolutely the most brilliant story of the entire collection. It’s so intentionally crafted, and it almost flows like an artistic indie film. The writer has obviously done her research and/or drawn from experience to create vibrant atmospheres, an engaging character, and an excellent conflict. I loved the setting of New York City and the ballet element, and the little bit of myth and magic interwoven into the whole thing added a tasteful and artistic flair. I wouldn’t mind going back and rereading this story over and over again. Very well-told and definitely makes the collection worth it.

Overall, I found this collection a little disappointing. My problem isn’t with the writers or their stories; they all did their best to spin a retelling of the classic fairytale. I think my problem was with the choice of genres. There was very little variety, and by the fourth fantasy retelling I was feeling fatigued and disinterested in whatever underdeveloped fantasy world was coming next. I haven’t read the other collections, but looking at the synopsises I can see that they had a lot more variety in their choice of genre, and I would have liked to see that variety here as well. Anyone can write a fantasy fairy-tale retelling, and I wish the editors had chosen to showcase more writers who made the extra effort to pick another genre. However if you’re a fan of fantasy, this is a collection for you. There’s something for every fantasy lover here.

[allison riera :) · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 stars overall.

and Falling Snow by Skye Hoffert is hands-down my favorite out of the five novellas.

FIVE STARS. Falling Snow is a gorgeously dark retelling, set in a magical fae circus where all the members are bound to the owner. all the members, except Snow, who's unaware of the dark magic around her. basically, it's amazing. <3 <3 and Chayse and Cynfael are such charmingly dangerous, secretive characters. and i can't wait for Skye's Fool's Bet .

4.5 STARS Raven's Heir is my second favorite of the novellas. i love the Robin Hood vibes, and how historical and unique it is. there's so much background to this story, and it just seems like there's so much to this story. < if that make sense, xD.

3 STARS Red as Blood and The Fairest One ....weren't my favorites, mainly because i was confused as to what was happening and why? there was just so many details to each story, and i found it hard to follow the storylines. especially in The Fairest One , and i really didn't like Livna and Oren together. mainly bc i thought that Oren was so much older? idk, it just was a little...unexpected.

4 STARS Snowbird and the Red Slippers was dark and eerie, yet i still enjoyed it. although not as much as the first two stories. similar to the middle two, i found Snowbird a little hard to follow, mainly bc i found it hard to picture the magic, since it was set in contemporary NY. tho Ken is utterly adorable, and definitely one of my favorite characters from the anthology, along with Chayse, Damien, & Snow.

all in all, i thoroughly enjoyed this gorgeous anthology of Snow White retellings.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Alas, we come to the end of the "Five ____ _____" collections. This was the last contest Anne Elisabeth will run, and the last collection she'll release. But at least, if it must end, it ends well.

Falling Snow
Sadly, this was my least favorite story in the collection, but not for lack of a good concept. Just the opposite; the idea of the story — a magical, but failing circus of indentured fae and a single human girl kept for dark purpose — is fascinating. In the same way, the idea of the characters — innocent Snow, deadly but trapped Chayse, manipulative Cynfael, cunning Madame — is intriguing. However, the actual execution fell short of what it could have been. The story felt rushed, the dialogue is awkward at times, and character motivations are unclear. I began the story feeling confused about what was happening, and I remained confused almost until the end. In summary: this was a great idea, and if it had time and space to expand and develop, it could've been one of my favorite things I've read this year. But as things stand, the story just disappointed me.

Raven's Heir
This is the most straightforward retelling of the set, but that doesn't mean it's not good. The plot flows well and maintains a steady tension throughout. The characters, both good and evil, minor and major, are well drawn and developed. Kara and Damien are a wonderful, shippable couple; each good on their own but better together. Damien's band of rebels was also great; loyal and courteous despite their rough state. As for the villain, she wasn't anything spectacular, but I do applaud the author for writing a decidedly evil demon-powered queen without making it cheesy. My only real quibble with the story is that certain worldbuilding elements could've been fleshed out a little more.

Fairest One
These stories just keep getting better and better, and I love it! This is an absolutely delightful Middle/Near Eastern fantasy featuring friendship, magic, and some delightful plot twists. Again, I enjoyed the characters, and I liked that the villain wasn't as obvious as it might have seemed. Livna was sweet and relatable — she wants to do good and protect the helpless, and is willing to do what she can to accomplish it, but she's uncertain of her own capabilities. Oren is another fun character: a bit grumpy, very wise, and willing to sacrifice when necessary. And, oddly, I quite liked Vandrus as well, even though he's fairly minor. Full disclosure: I really wanted Livna and Vandrus to end up together and have Oren and Livna stay just as friends. But I'm ok with how it ended. I also enjoyed the inclusion of the prophecy, and that ending? Magnificent.

Red as Blood
This is, hands down, the best story in this collection. I am so incredibly glad that someone actually pursued this particular twist on Snow White, and I'm doubly happy that the author pulled it off so well. It's tense and exciting and quite suspenseful in places, but it also has some nice touches of humor speckled throughout. Zaig and Minoa are both excellent characters: they're quite sensible, intelligent, patient, and cunning, willing to do what's necessary to protect others even when it's hard or might result in people considering them evil. They aren't perfect people, but their mistakes come as often from their good qualities as their bad ones. (I totally ship them, for the record.) So, yeah. This is awesome.

Snowbird and the Red Shoes
This one isn't quite as good as Red as Blood, but it's definitely on par with Fairest One for how much I enjoyed it. I'm not sure if it's urban fantasy or magical realism — for most of the book, it seems more like magical realism, but then it becomes more overtly magicy at the end, which is more urban fantasy? Either way, I enjoyed the setting very much, especially the way the author wove Korean and ballet cultures into the story. I was also impressed by how well the author used elements of the original Snow White story, including some that are often overlooked. Snowbird/Hayan herself is an excellent character: sweet and determined and soft and strong all at once. The rest of the characters are a little less developed, but the whole story is so introspective that it's ok. Plus, it's set at Christmastime, which I appreciated. Overall, a beautiful story and a beautiful end to the collection.

[Hannah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved it! Each one was unique and exciting. I have to say the the first installment, Falling Snow was my favorite. I would have loved a full length book with those characters and in that setting.
Such fun!

[Karen Martin · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’ve enjoyed every collection in this series, and this final one did not disappoint. Each story was expertly crafted, and completely unique. Skye Hoffert’s “Falling Snow” is a great circus tale, filled with lots of mystery, and mixes a beautiful blend of beautiful lightness, and gritty darkness. “Raven’s Heir” by Jenelle Hovde is probably the most ‘traditional’ of the tales, but it is also a great medieval tale mixed with spiritual warfare and a daring plan to take back a kingdom. The third tale, “The Fairest One” by Cortney Manning, is also rather traditional but with some major twists and turns, some I never saw coming which is rare and made me enjoy it even more. “Red as Blood” by Maddie Morrow decides to take Snow White and throw in vampires, and it does not disappoint, especially as It's told with such limited focus and keeps the mystery in suspense throughout the tale until the very end. And the final tale, Rachael Wallen’s “Snowbird and the Red Slippers”, was a beautiful mix of Snow White and The Red Shoes, focusing on a ballerina with such exquisite description and wonderful mix of Korean culture into the New York ballet scene. All together, these five tales were delightful, intriguing, and surprising, and while I am disappointed there won’t be more of this series, it is still a book I highly recommend for anyone who enjoys a good fairy tale.


I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher, but was under no obligation to post a positive review.

[Rachel · Rating 4 out of 5]

"A tale so Dark and Lovely" The by line wasn't joking. Each story was wonderous and unique in its own way with some terrible darkness underlying each tale. I haven't felt so much dread, horror, or fear reading one of these collections before. Each one had their moments amid wonderful, charming, and beautiful heroines, dreams, and romances. My favorites of the collection are Falling Snow, Raven's Heir, and Snowbird and the Red Slippers. If the collection had one fault as a whole it was there was the occasional formatting or grammatical/spelling error. I ran into a few actually that I was surprised. But for the beauty and haunting of this collection, it is well worth recommending if you love fairy tale retellings, Snow White, and unique twist on well known stories.

[Nicole Dust · Rating 5 out of 5]

Okay, WOW. This anthology blew me away. I’m still stunned at the talent of all these writers.

My condensed thoughts (because I’ll probably never stop talking otherwise)

FALLING SNOW: I never thought I would like a circus fantasy story. I have been proven wrong. This story was PHENOMENAL. The characters were so deep, especially Chayse (<3333) and Cynfael (<3), and Snow was a perfect protagonist. If I could visit this world in real life, I would, just so I could meet these three. 5/5

RAVEN'S HEIR: My favorite part of this one would have to be the worldbuilding. The history felt so rich, and I loved the Catholic references and themes throughout. (But my second favorite part was Damien. I love this guy.) 5/5

THE FAIREST ONE: Sadly, I think this was my least favorite of the anthology - not that it wasn’t still good! I just found Livna the tiniest bit annoying, and I couldn’t really get a deep connection to her. However, I think a reread of this one will be more enjoyable. 4/5

RED AS BLOOD: Snow White plus vampires? I. Want. More. I LOVED Zaig (one of my favorite characters from this entire anthology) and the Queen's character development was perfect. So, so good. 5/5

SNOWBIRD AND THE RED SLIPPERS: This was definitely the most unique out of the five stories, just because it was contemporary with a hint of magical realism. I loved Hayan and her character development so so much, and the Korean references sprinkled throughout made me very happy. (I’m not Korean, but I’m trying to learn more about their language and culture, and I have several Korean friends.) 4.5/5 stars (I was a little confused during the end)


Overall, I clearly need to read the other anthologies, because if they’re anything like this one, they’re bound to be amazing. All the featured authors in this one outdid themselves, and I can’t wait to see what they all do.

[Sarah Ryder · Rating 4 out of 5]

While Snow White isn’t my favorite fairy tale I like retellings of it and this collection of novellas was no exception! All were very well written and unique in their own ways while holding and representing the various aspects and themes of the original tale. Since these are novellas as opposed to short stories I’m going to give brief thoughts, content, and ratings for each story.


🎪Falling Snow by Skye Hoffert—4 stars🎪

A creepy fae circus and questionable motives of our hero surround our innocent heroine, Snow, as she struggles to make a life for herself among the danger she’s unaware of stalking her. I enjoyed this story and liked how we flipped back and forth between Snow and Chayse’s POVs which gave a broader look at what was going on and at stake. This one seems to be most people’s favorite and although I can see why I would personally rank this one as my third favorite.


‼️Content‼️

Language: hellish; bastard (in referencing a character of illegitimate birth, not as a swear word); bloody; hell

Violence: talk about cutting out a girl’s heart; a punch on the jaw; a woman throws a man into a table and flings another; a girl is choked; injuries and blood (not detailed)

Sexual: a forced kiss; a kiss (not detailed)

Drug/Alcohol: smoking cigarettes; people drink and get drunk; characters are poisoned

Other: magic; fae and other magical beings; an illegitimate child; parental mental and emotional abuse; a dead body



🏹Raven’s Heir by Jenelle Hovde—4.5 stars🏹

My favorite out of the entire collection is a traditional non magical adventure with an escaped princess, a hint of a forbidden romance, a surprisingly strong Christian message that’s not preachy in the slightest, wonderful characters, and even spiritual warfare to boot! I honestly didn’t expect such a small story to do so much and yet it does it all and so much more in spades. Highly recommend reading this collection for this story about brave, sweet Kara and strong Damien alone!


‼️Content‼️

Language: hell (as a place)

Violence: a man attacks and tries to kill a girl; injuries and blood (not detailed); fighting with weapons (not detailed); a character cuts her hand to talk to dark spirits; a character is choked; a man is stabbed in the leg and shot with arrows (not detailed)

Sexual: a kiss (not detailed)

Drug/Alcohol: a man is murdered by poison; poisoned daggers and apple

Other: practice of dark magic/witchcraft (not shown in a good light); a scrying bowl is used



🏔️The Fairest One by Cortney Manning—3 stars🏔️

Sadly this one is my least favorite though I like the desert setting the author set this tale in with the quest elements being a unique twist with likable characters. There was nothing wrong with the story or characters as a whole, it just didn’t hold my interest like the others did and was just okay.


‼️Content‼️

Violence: a man is whipped until bloody (not shown); injuries and blood (not detailed); fighting with magic (not detailed); a character is choked; a vase is smashed over a person’s head

Sexual: a kiss (not detailed)

Drug/Alcohol: people drink wine

Other: magic; slavery



🩸Red as Blood by Maddie Morrow—4.5 stars🩸

My second favorite story combines Snow White with…vampires? It sounds super odd but it actually works amazingly well! Our main character, Zaig, is also unique in the fact that he’s the huntsman character and the story is told entirely from his POV which really highlights his struggle with his conscience in this strange situation he’s thrust into. Who’s truly the villain here? The queen? The princess? Something else entirely? I was kept guessing as to who and what was going on the whole way through which made for a very intriguing and exciting tale. My only thing I would say is don’t read this before bed as the vampires are truly monsters here and if you’re anything like me you don’t want those images in your dreams. 👀


‼️Content‼️

Violence: a bloody pig’s heart has a stake run through it; fighting with weapons (not detailed); a phrase of “blood sprayed”; injuries and blood (not detailed)

Sexual: a kiss (not detailed)

Drug/Alcohol: a character drinks ale

Other: a character is an assassin; bodies are found in the woods; death and grief; vampires; a character is imprisoned



🩰Snowbird and the Red Slippers by Rachael Wallen—4 stars🩰

My fourth favorite story is a contemporary mashup of Snow White and The Red Shoes set in the beautiful yet cut throat world of ballet and a Korean girl who’s struggling to navigate it all. The setting of New York City isn’t new but the way the author wrote it as a magical place all its own which makes it different from a normal contemporary. Not to mention I loved how she made the shoes and clothes be alive to mix the magical with the real in a truly beautiful way.


‼️Content‼️

Violence: a story of a dancer who danced so much she turned to ash and her shoes were bloody

Other: magic


A truly wonderful and great collection of stories I would recommend to those who love Snow White and fairy tale retellings as a whole.

[Madeline J. Rose · Rating 5 out of 5]

Initial Response
That was a really wonderful conclusion to this epic series!

FALLING SNOW
High Lights
- AGH. THE SETTING. SO. GORGEOUS. I loved the dark, whimsical circus!
- I loved all the characters SO MUCH. Snow was such a sweet little cinnamon roll, and Chayse was dark but also still precious, and Cynfael was SO TWISTED BUT I LOVE HIM, and Madame was DISGUSTING and I loved to hate her, and Teddy and his gang, ACK I just loved all the characters to bits. ^_^
- The whole story was fabulously done, really. The plot, the characters, the setting, everything was so aesthetically pleasing! The romance was really interesting too, it was a big part of the story, but it didn't overpower it. There were cute moments next to horrible, mind-bending twists, and I LOVED it.
- I loved how it kept to the original story so well! It was definitely a retelling of the classic, but I really liked how Skye took liberties and made it her own unique story!

Low Lights
- My only complaint...IT WAS TOO SHORT. I WANT MOOOORE.

Conclusion
I never thought I would read a story quite like this. Snow White in a fantastical circus? With dangerous fae beasts and magic around every turn? I loved this story so much, and I would definitely recommend picking this collection up just for this one story!
5/5.

RAVEN'S HEIR
High Lights
- I reeeally loved the characters in this one! They felt well-rounded and were so relatable. Kara was a beautiful, strong heroine, while still being a feminine princess, which I SO appreciate. Damien was my FAVORITE THING. Their romance is AGH. SO MUCH YES.
- The setting was such an interesting choice! A fantasy world in the 1100s, with a sinister tyrant of a woman using dark forces of evil to overtake the throne...it was a setting I had never seen before, and I really loved it.
- This story had perhaps the most inspiring theme out of the stories. That even when you're afraid, terrified, even when you think all is lost, there is always hope and a loving God who will not leave you. It was such a powerful message and it left me feeling so satisfied.

Low Lights
- I maybe would have preferred a bit more characterization of Marius. We were hinted at that there was maybe more to him than simply being Ava's puppet, but I felt there could have been more explained about his motives and backstory.
- There were parts that I felt dragged on a bit, where more story could have been happening instead of just characterization, but overall, it was really well-written.

Conclusion
This was a very nice addition to the collection! Though there wasn't quite enough fantasy element for me, given that it takes place in a world with magic, it was still a riveting, fascinating story.
4/5.

THE FAIREST ONE
High Lights
- I loved the setting in this one! A Middle-Eastern-esque world with sandy desert mixed with snowy mountains far in the distance. It was a really gorgeous landscape and the descriptions were so beautiful.
- Livna was a very sweet main character. She clearly loves her father very much, but she doesn't quite know how to get his attention. Her motives were understandable; we all want acceptance, crave love and attention.
- Oren was a great secondary character, with a strong personality and lovable attitude. I was a bit confused as to what his age was, though, until later in the book.
- The descriptions of the Dwarvene Mountains were FANTASTIC. I wanted to BE there, with the Dwarven. The descriptions of the Dwarvens' true forms sounded magical and I think that's one of the only times I've ever wished for pictures to accompany the words. I would have loved to get a clearer picture of what exactly they looked like.
- I really liked how Livna ended up with Oren, I thought that was a nice little twist. They are so adorable together. :)

Low Lights
- I personally thought Livna was a bit weak as the main character. She was easily put down and even cowardly at times. Of course, that was part of her story arc, she definitely grew stronger toward the end of the story, but it she almost felt a bit whiny at times, bemoaning about how she could get her father, the king's, attention. She went along easily with Emperor Vandrus, only hesitating a bit about leaving Oren behind (when he CLEARLY LIKES HER AND SHE LIKES HIM). She was CONSTANTLY doubting herself about being the Fairest One, even when it was perfectly clear that she was I guess I just felt her personality wasn't very suited to the main character.
- It was the longest story in the collection, and I, unfortunately, felt like it dragged along at some parts. There was much introspection and not enough action mixed in with it for my taste.
- I didn't much care for Nava as a villain even though she is betrayed by her dark magic by the end , she felt a bit weak in her role. I didn't really understand why she wanted to be Empress so badly, except for the fact that she was just power-hungry. At least in the original, the queen was bothered by Snow White's beauty. She had a REASON to dislike Snow specifically.

Conclusion
Though not my favorite of the collection, it was still a very fun, interesting story with a beautiful setting and a lovely romance that left me with a happy feeling in my heart. :)
3/5.

RED AS BLOOD
High Lights
- Oh man.
- Oh goodness.
- Where to begin? XD
- I really, REALLY liked this story, guys. VAMPIRES. AND SNOW WHITE. I. AM. SO. SHOCKED. but happy.
- Zaig was a WONDERFUL CHARACTER. I could shout about his awesomeness from the hilltops, but you can trust me when I say that he was possibly one of my favorite characters in this entire collection. He was so well-rounded, he knew how to fight (he's an ASSASSIN I LOVE IT), but he was also human. ALSO HIM AND MINOA ARE ADORABLE.
- Ailda...ooh man. OKAY but lemme just say, I called waaaay early on that something was weird about that chick. I didn't...realize she would be a vampire, and I was TOTALLY SHOCKED AND DELIGHTED by this turn of events, but...I knew something was fishy. Nava was too nice! Too epic of a queen! She couldn't have been the bad guy. BUT LIKE SERIOUSLY. AILDA. YOU LITTLE JERK.
- ZAIG'S ADOPTED FAMILY IS PRECIOUS and i may or may not have died a little inside when Zehlam and Pell were killed. Okay, I did. I won't lie.
- As horrible as Ailda turning people into zombie-like vampires was, it was still a really cool concept! I never would have thought to put the two together, but Snow White + vampires is actually really awesome. Go figure.
- There are so many spoilers. XD You just have to read the story. PLEASE. It was amazing.
- Also, Minoa is low-key. Like I like her so much?? She's so epic??? Her and Zaig JUST AGHH IT'S TOO MUCH CUTE. I loved how everything was explained by her and all the little puzzle pieces were clicked into place and I was just sitting there like 'ooooh...that makes total SENSE'. It was such a great feeling.

Low Lights
- I...really don't think I have anything to say about this one. It was just a really awesome story with a CRAZY twist.

Conclusion
If you like Snow White and crazy twists that you never expected, DEFINITELY look into this story. You might be shocked, but you won't be disappointed!
5/5.

SNOWBIRD AND THE RED SLIPPERS
High Lights
- For a contemporary...I actually, really, really loved this story!
- Hayan was a great main character, she was sweet and innocent, but she still knew how to handle herself pretty well. Ken was an adorable little bean. And the ladies at the Barczak dance school were just... so wonderful. I loved them. I loved how real all the characters were.
- Moira. Oh. my. word. SHE WAS A FAE CREATURE? I'm still kind of reeling. This is my favorite kind of contemporary. You're reading along, unsuspecting, and then BAM immortal fairy girl. GAH, it was so good.
- The setting was very familiar, the streets of New York, but it was told in such a magical, compelling way, it felt almost like a fantasy world. The wintry snow, the warm, inviting shops with warm, inviting food, the cold, but somehow lively bustle of the Central School of Ballet, it was all so lovely.
- I also really liked the representation of Korean culture in Hayan and her family. It just added to the already wonderful setting.
- I was picking up some Red Shoes vibes while reading, and then at the end I was so delighted that my theory had been at least somewhat correct, when Hayan went to the shoe shop and bought those enticing ruby red slippers. It was a nice touch.

Low Lights
- I can't think of hardly anything. It was simply a heartwarming story.

Conclusion
This was such a wonderful little story! With unexpected twists, set in the magical world of New York, and memorable characters, it was the perfect story to end on. <3
5/5.

CONCLUSION
I would say this was such a great way to end the much-loved fairytale collections. There were so many suprise twists, lovely characters, amazing settings, and epic stories. I loved each one of the tales in their special ways. It saddens me that these wonderful books won't be continued, but I can't think of a better way they could have ended.
5/5.

[Rachel Tettleton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Anyone reading this let me say if you get your hands on a copy of this book do yourself a favor and read at least the first story: Falling Snow by Skye Hoffert.

I apologize to the other writers because I ran out of time to read your stories. Snow White is my favorite fairy tale so if I get the chance to borrow my friends book again I’ll be sure to read the rest!!!

This is a review specifically for Falling Snow by Skye Hoffert. My first comment is I NEED A WHOLE BOOK! HELLO YES PLEASE GIVE ME MORE! I loved this story and you captured the essence of the original tale while transporting me to an entirely new world with fascinating characters ALL in 106 pages. I guess I’ll forgive you for taking these characters away so soon because you did it so beautifully but in exchange I’ll need a longer fairytale retelling with a different fairy tale. I believe in you!!!!!!!!
*waits for new book*

While I’m waiting... let me say this: there were of course small things here and there I could take exception to if I wish. I personally hoped Snow would have been more developed than Chayse but by the end I felt more involved in his life than hers. I understand that in short stories decisions have to be made that structure your story to make the ending come together logically and that developing Chayse was essential to the plot but I began reading your story to hear about Snow. Just to beg for a full novel one more time haha this is something you could’ve absolutely worked out in a longer format so I really only begrudge you half a star for it but it’s whole or not at all. I do want to be clear that your use of the traditional elements found in the Snow White story make me SO. FREAKIN. HAPPY. You did it well and did not make it feel forced or cheesey which apparently is hard for people who make blockbuster movies for a living to accomplish so bravo!

Anyway Skye if you read this I loved it. Other readers, find a way to read it!!!!! - @LetRachelRead

[Rachel · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Falling Snow" by Skye Hoffert sets the Snow White story in a magical circus where all the performers and circus workers are magical beings... except one young girl. She works as a clown but aspires to be a tightrope walker, and she has no idea that everyone else is magical. And she has no idea she's in mortal danger. But with the help of the circus owner's son and a mysterious newcomer, she almost could have a chance to overcome the evil forces surrounding her. This story is so sharp and pointy, but also sweet and soft, and altogether dark and delicious... I love it dearly.

"Raven's Heir" by Jenelle Hovde is more what I think of as straight-up fantasy, and it has this little tinge of Robin Hood flavor that I dig. An orphaned princess seeks to unite her kingdome against her step-mother, who has been ruling as regent ever since the king's mysterious death. She escapes the castle and finds help from a band of rangers, one of whom turns out to be the boy she was betrothed to when they were both very young. I liked this one a lot, especially the heroine who disguises herself as a boy, as that's a favorite trope of mine.

"The Fairest One" by Cortney Manning is also straight-up fantasy, but with a very different texture. Here, humans enslave dwarves and use their magic for their own purposes. But a young princess befriends a dwarf when she's but a child, and as they grow up, she comes to rely on his friendship and wisdom more and more. Eventually, he helps her escape her greedy stepmother and seek assistance from the dwarven council to overthrow the evil queen and free the enslaved dwarves. It's kind of got a bit of the story of Queen Esther from the Bible woven in as well, because there's an emperor seeking a queen who holds a beauty contest that figures into the story as well. Also a really fun twist on the story.

"Red as Blood" by Maddie Morrow is my other favorite in this collection. It involves vampires, and I really like vampires. This story is told from the point of the view of an assassin who's tasked with hunting down and killing a member of the royal family, but not told why, and the near-disastrous results. It really takes the familiar parts of the Snow White story and twists them in new and fascinating ways. But it does definitely get dark and a little bit scary.

"Snowbird and the Red Slippers" by Rachael Wallen is the eeriest of these five stories. It mixes the fairy tale The Red Shoes with Snow White and sets the whole story in a prestigious ballet school in New York City, with a poor North Korean dancer at the center. Passion, obsession, culture clashes, and envy all play a part, and I found it to be a stunning conclusion not only to this collection, but to this series as a whole.

[Payton · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have read every single anthology from Rooglewood and I must admit this is probably by far the best collection. Generally, when I read these anthologies, I am able to rank them from most favorite to least favorite with little difficulty. However, with this anthology, that was not the case. Each story was completely unique in its own way while still staying true to the source material and I can see myself going back and re-reading every single one of these. For the sake of this review, I will try to rate each one (subjectively of course):

Falling Snow by Skye Hoffert: 3 1/2 stars
I loved the circus setting of this story and it reminded me of The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern. However, I found the character of Snow to be rather passive. She is considered a pawn in the story and she never breaks free from that role even when she is made aware of her "pawn" status. The Hunter character, on the other hand, was much more complex and in some ways, the story seems to focus more on him and his motivations (which wasn't a bad thing). I did like the 2 POVs as we get to see two different sides to the story. The reason the rating is so low is mainly due to Snow's characterization. I felt like there was a lot potential that just never came to fruition.

Raven's Heir by Jenelle Hovde: 4 stars
I enjoyed how active the Snow White character, Kara, was in attempting to stop the Evil Queen and in some ways reminded me of the characterization of Snow White in the ABC show Once. I also enjoyed the conclusion and it seemed the most like historical fiction (which is a favorite genre of mine).

The Fairest One by Courtney Manning: 5 stars
I was actually shocked that this one ended up becoming a favorite of mine. When I originally started it, I didn't think I would like it mainly due to the characterization of Livna and due to my belief that I would likely find it forgettable. It is far from forgettable! This story actually had me guessing about what was going to happen next which is very rare in fairy tale retellings (in my opinion). And while I at first found Livna's constant doubts to be annoying, I realized that it reminded me a lot of my social anxiety and the constant fears of failure and isolation (which likely wasn't the author's intention). I also enjoyed that Livna both questioned some of the fairy tale troupes (like prophecies) and was completely aware of the consequences of eating the apple. I felt she grew the most and was the most realistic and I quickly came to love this story!

Red as Blood by Maddie Morrow: 4 stars
This was probably the most interesting interpretation of the retellings with Snow White character being a vampire (although you must admit her physical description does sound like a vampire). I found it quite enjoyable and I enjoyed the hero/villain reversal in the story. But, I felt like the ending was rather ambiguous and open-ended where it hinted at a "happily-ever-after" but I wish I knew more. And in some ways, I found it to be the least like the story of Snow White which wasn't a bad thing just...odd.

Snowbird and the Red Slippers by Rachael Wallen: 4 to 4.5 stars
For me, I found this story rather clever. It drew on little details in the Grimm's original Snow White story many people ignore (i.e. the two other attempts on Snow White's life aside from the poisoned apple). It also seemed to have a fairy tale within the retold fairy tale. I think my biggest complaint is that I almost wish it was longer! It seemed to me there was a lot that could be built on so it left me with a feeling of disappointment but I stilled loved the story as a whole! And it holds a special place my ultimate favorites.

All in all, if you haven't read this anthology yet, you need to do so now! Trust me, you won't regret it! ;)

[Hannah Cook · Rating 5 out of 5]

Being picked as an influence reader for this beautiful book was an honor, but an honor I didn't feel I was giving enough honor to! The holidays, homeschooling, and the like: these lovely stories deserved to be read in one sitting as they were all beautiful in their own special way.

I loved each of these stories! From the tightropes of the Circus, fleeing on horseback, falling in love with two amazing men(this was me, not the MC), fighting vampires, and be-witched slippers, my adventurous spirit felt fed with these Snow White re-tellings. I've been craving darker tales lately, but with such themes, other nastiness follows. These dark and lovely tales were not so. They were truly dark at times (some of them), but also lovely. The endings were all satisfying, minus the vampire story. I did NOT get enough from those two characters. I WANT a sequel, and I will not yield about this!;D


All involved in the production of this book should be proud. From the judges, to Anne, to the writers... it was a stunning read, and one I plan to own in paperback; I enjoyed it this much.

I'll be watching for these authors' future books!


~ Ariel ~

[Sydney Mann · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed each of the five stories in this collection and their varied interpretations on a classic tale. All of them were quite good, but my favorites were the first two—Falling Snow by Skye Hoffert and Raven’s Heir by Jenelle Hovde. The first has what I would describe as a modern gothic style, if that’s even a thing. The second is a lovely twist on the classic Snow White tale that still manages to maintain a traditional feel. What’s great is that you get five really good stories in one book!

[Rebecca D. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Highly Imaginative Collection
These stories were far from predictable! I was never certain which direction the authors would go in retelling the classic tale of Snow White. The traditional elements of the story were recast and woven together in ways that were highly original and imaginative.

[Caroline Knightley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Each tale had it's own amazing story to tell. I'm sorry to see that this was the last Rooglewood Competition for fairy tale retellings.

[Rachelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Raven’s Heir is a romantic Snow White retelling with a few chills and a beautiful message about hope. Kara Chaloner escapes the Raven Court, hoping to meet with trusted couriers to take her message to the neighboring country, Vallhane. The Marshall is hot on her trail and the country’s best tracker. When a band of seven rugged men intervene to help her in the wild, she realizes she’s found her couriers, including one man she thought she would never see again. With the Regent and Marshall hunting her, Kara has to stay alive and the men with her. I loved the writing style and it kept me on the edge of my seat to find out what would happen to Kara and Damien. Damien is an amazing hero! Like most Snow White stories, Raven’s Heir has some darkness to it, but the romance balances it. I gravitate to biographies and historical novels. The novella's world felt real to me. Highly recommend.