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Femme Tales
Beast: Former hip-hop artist Ebony “The Beast” Trent has wrapped her persona around herself like a protective wall of bitterness. Belinda Jansen is confident, intelligent, sexy, and―to Ebony's fascination―not the least bit intimidated by Ebony’s beastly demeanor. Can Beauty truly tame The Beast?
Awaken: Local celebrity chef Chayse Carmichael has achieved a level of success she’d only imagined while learning to cook. But when free-spirited Georgia peach Serena Frasier walks into her restaurant, Chayse realizes that success doesn’t always bring happiness if you don’t have someone special to share it with. Does love at first sight truly exist?
Stiletto: Music mogul Cass Phillips barely has a moment to sleep, let alone build a relationship. But an unexpected encounter with shoe designer Faith Shaw leads her to believe that maybe fairy tales do come true. Can true love really conquer all?
Six women find themselves in their own real-life fairy tales, when true love finds them in the most unexpected ways.
Awaken: Local celebrity chef Chayse Carmichael has achieved a level of success she’d only imagined while learning to cook. But when free-spirited Georgia peach Serena Frasier walks into her restaurant, Chayse realizes that success doesn’t always bring happiness if you don’t have someone special to share it with. Does love at first sight truly exist?
Stiletto: Music mogul Cass Phillips barely has a moment to sleep, let alone build a relationship. But an unexpected encounter with shoe designer Faith Shaw leads her to believe that maybe fairy tales do come true. Can true love really conquer all?
Six women find themselves in their own real-life fairy tales, when true love finds them in the most unexpected ways.
242 pages, Paperback
First published March 10, 2020
13 people are currently reading
149 people want to read
About the author
Anne Shade
13 books33 followersAnne Shade loves writing romances about women who love women featuring strong, beautiful Characters of Color. Her dream is to retire and open a bed and breakfast so she can spend her days doing what she loves…providing wonderful hospitality, writing novels, and planning fabulous weddings.
Librarian note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.
Librarian note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.
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Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews
February 26, 2020
Femme Tales by Anne Shade is a sexy modern day fairy tale trilogy. Each novella is a modern romance but with elements of a classic fairy tale in the story.
‘Beast’ is a retelling of “Beauty and the Beast” with a music celebrity/producer and a stunningly beautiful nurse. ‘Awaken’ tells the story of a celebrity chef named Chayse and her “Sleeping Beauty” Serena.
In ‘Stiletto’ a music mogul finds her own “Cinderella” complete with not-so-nice step-father and step-sisters.
All three novellas are quick and easy reads with lovely characters, beautiful settings and some very steamy romances. They are the perfect stories if you want to sit and escape from the real world for a while, and enjoy a bit of fairy tale magic with your romance. I thoroughly enjoyed all three stories.
I received an ARC from NetGalley and Bold Strokes Books for an honest review.
‘Beast’ is a retelling of “Beauty and the Beast” with a music celebrity/producer and a stunningly beautiful nurse. ‘Awaken’ tells the story of a celebrity chef named Chayse and her “Sleeping Beauty” Serena.
In ‘Stiletto’ a music mogul finds her own “Cinderella” complete with not-so-nice step-father and step-sisters.
All three novellas are quick and easy reads with lovely characters, beautiful settings and some very steamy romances. They are the perfect stories if you want to sit and escape from the real world for a while, and enjoy a bit of fairy tale magic with your romance. I thoroughly enjoyed all three stories.
I received an ARC from NetGalley and Bold Strokes Books for an honest review.
November 9, 2021
5 stars. Loved this. I’m always on the lookout for Black lesbian love stories so when I saw this cover I knew that I needed to read it. The writing was good and I ended up loving the characters a lot.
The first story ‘Beast’ is a Beauty and The Beast retelling following Ebony and Belinda. Story two ‘Awaken’ is a Sleeping Beauty retelling following Chayse and Serena. Story three ‘Stiletto’ is a Cinderella retelling following Cass and Faith. While Beast was a good story I wasn’t crazy about Ebony but I really liked Belinda. ’Awaken’ was definitely my favorite of the three as I loved the modern spin and the chemistry between Chayse and Serena and would’ve loved if their story had been just a little bit longer. ’Stiletto’ was also very good and I really enjoyed that Cass and Faith had a romantic little vacation together while in Turks and Caicos. Their chemistry was great and I loved the ending. This was a really quick but it was so enjoyable and swoon worthy. I cannot wait to read more by this author.
The first story ‘Beast’ is a Beauty and The Beast retelling following Ebony and Belinda. Story two ‘Awaken’ is a Sleeping Beauty retelling following Chayse and Serena. Story three ‘Stiletto’ is a Cinderella retelling following Cass and Faith. While Beast was a good story I wasn’t crazy about Ebony but I really liked Belinda. ’Awaken’ was definitely my favorite of the three as I loved the modern spin and the chemistry between Chayse and Serena and would’ve loved if their story had been just a little bit longer. ’Stiletto’ was also very good and I really enjoyed that Cass and Faith had a romantic little vacation together while in Turks and Caicos. Their chemistry was great and I loved the ending. This was a really quick but it was so enjoyable and swoon worthy. I cannot wait to read more by this author.
February 29, 2020
Beauty and the Beast, Cinderella, and Sleeping Beauty. Some of my favorite fairy tales growing up. Viewing them through a different lens is pretty awesome. The three stories were entertaining, some more than others. While reading I kept thinking of the original story and how this author presented. I really enjoyed Awaken. Chayse Carmichael and Serena Fraiser are both likable and kinda looking for someone to share their life with. Chayse is awesome as she spends time chatting with Serena.
ARC provided by Bold Strokes Books, Inc. via NetGalley.
ARC provided by Bold Strokes Books, Inc. via NetGalley.
March 2, 2020
This was a great twist to fairytale romances. I can’t wait for this author to do more with fairytale stories.
This is about three best friends and the women who came into their life.
Ebony aka The Beast had hard life but she made it and gave her sister a chance at a better life along with the woman who help her. Ebony never let anyone close but when she meets Belinda she realize sometimes taking a chance can turn out to be the best thing.
Chayse finally accomplish her dream of being Chef and opening her restaurant. She has everything she ever wanted but she realize having success is great but not having someone to share it makes it’s less great. When Serena comes in she realize she may have found the one if only she gets a chance to tell her.
Cass has made great life as music mogul but she has nothing else because she doesn’t take the time for herself because she always busy. When her assistant and best friend Ebony trick her into vacation she realize that work became her life. When she sees the woman from the train at the same place she at she introduce herself to Faith and they hit it off.
There was some angst with each story but they all had HEA.
I received an ARC copy of this book from the Publisher via Netgalley and voluntarily leaving my review.
This is about three best friends and the women who came into their life.
Ebony aka The Beast had hard life but she made it and gave her sister a chance at a better life along with the woman who help her. Ebony never let anyone close but when she meets Belinda she realize sometimes taking a chance can turn out to be the best thing.
Chayse finally accomplish her dream of being Chef and opening her restaurant. She has everything she ever wanted but she realize having success is great but not having someone to share it makes it’s less great. When Serena comes in she realize she may have found the one if only she gets a chance to tell her.
Cass has made great life as music mogul but she has nothing else because she doesn’t take the time for herself because she always busy. When her assistant and best friend Ebony trick her into vacation she realize that work became her life. When she sees the woman from the train at the same place she at she introduce herself to Faith and they hit it off.
There was some angst with each story but they all had HEA.
I received an ARC copy of this book from the Publisher via Netgalley and voluntarily leaving my review.
March 25, 2020
Femme Tales by Anne Shade is a modern-day fairy tale trilogy with a protagonist who are African-American Lesbians. A refreshing change from the normal blonde and brunette white women that are in almost every lesbian novel. Each novella is a modern romance but spun as if a classic fairy tale.
Beast is a retelling of Beauty and the Beast with a music celebrity/producer and a stunningly beautiful nurse.
Awaken tells the story of a celebrity chef named Chayse and her Sleeping Beauty Serena.
In Stiletto a music mogul finds her own Cinderella complete with a cruel step-father and step-sisters.
Each novella is also linked to the previous one, with the main characters appearing.
They are all enjoyable, sexy, easy to read and a fun way to spend time while locked away in your house during these troubled times.
Looking forward to more from author Anne Shade.
Beast is a retelling of Beauty and the Beast with a music celebrity/producer and a stunningly beautiful nurse.
Awaken tells the story of a celebrity chef named Chayse and her Sleeping Beauty Serena.
In Stiletto a music mogul finds her own Cinderella complete with a cruel step-father and step-sisters.
Each novella is also linked to the previous one, with the main characters appearing.
They are all enjoyable, sexy, easy to read and a fun way to spend time while locked away in your house during these troubled times.
Looking forward to more from author Anne Shade.
March 1, 2020
A linked 3-pack of butch-femme romances. Modern retelling of fairy-tales (Beauty and the Beast; Sleeping Beauty; Cinderella).
Stories include three friends in NYC and the wonderful, powerful femmes that change their lives forever.
Stories include three friends in NYC and the wonderful, powerful femmes that change their lives forever.
June 5, 2020
I really enjoyed this book, the writing was solid and all three stories were interesting. What I liked most about the book was that it had only protagonist who were black. Nt just people of color, but African American women which you almost never see in lesbian fiction. It was nice to see representation of my people in a book that didn't make us out to be hood or ghetto.
The first story that I read was based on Beauty and the Beast. I thought this was a strong story to start out with Ebony "the beast" Trent has had a a rough upbringing. Her mother abandoned her and her sister after her fathers death. She works hard to raise the two of them and eventually becomes a wealthy music producer. After a tragic incident with the woman who helped raise her and her sister, she needs to hire a nurse. In walks Belinda. They are immediately attracted to each other and end up sleeping together. It gets award for a while after that with Ebony acting the part of the beast perfectly. The story was excellently done and I liked how in such a short story they manage to run through all the types of emotions.
The second story was a sleeping beauty story. This one did not have as strong a story as the first one but I thought the characters of Chayse and Serena were interesting and the story was compelling.
The final story was my favorite. I love a good Cinderella story and this one was so well done and non traditional, while also sticking to all of the traditional elements of a cinderella story. I thought the story starting on the train and ending on a beach in turks and Caicos was interesting There is a good twist in there which I won't give away, but it was excellently done and I did not see it coming.
The three stories were awesome and I will be looking forward to reading more from this author.
I received this book as an ARC in exchange for an honest review from Bold Strokes Books and NetGalley.
The first story that I read was based on Beauty and the Beast. I thought this was a strong story to start out with Ebony "the beast" Trent has had a a rough upbringing. Her mother abandoned her and her sister after her fathers death. She works hard to raise the two of them and eventually becomes a wealthy music producer. After a tragic incident with the woman who helped raise her and her sister, she needs to hire a nurse. In walks Belinda. They are immediately attracted to each other and end up sleeping together. It gets award for a while after that with Ebony acting the part of the beast perfectly. The story was excellently done and I liked how in such a short story they manage to run through all the types of emotions.
The second story was a sleeping beauty story. This one did not have as strong a story as the first one but I thought the characters of Chayse and Serena were interesting and the story was compelling.
The final story was my favorite. I love a good Cinderella story and this one was so well done and non traditional, while also sticking to all of the traditional elements of a cinderella story. I thought the story starting on the train and ending on a beach in turks and Caicos was interesting There is a good twist in there which I won't give away, but it was excellently done and I did not see it coming.
The three stories were awesome and I will be looking forward to reading more from this author.
I received this book as an ARC in exchange for an honest review from Bold Strokes Books and NetGalley.
December 19, 2022
This trilogy of short stories has as a common link that the protagonists are African American women, a butch and a femme in each couple and each story is based on a fairy tale. And all three have been entertaining with romantic moments. The stories are simple, without many complications and the author has achieved her purpose of assimilating them quite successfully and in a pretty amusing way with the respective tale.
And besides, as all women are somehow related to each other, once their chapter ends we can find them again in the new episode. That is a plus, even if they only appear in passing.
As the purpose of the book is basically to recreate fairy tales in today's world, there is not much more than that, but the result does not diminish. And the reading is very enjoyable and engaging
It has brought me a breath of fresh air very necessary and welcome.
An advanced reading copy has been sent to me by the publisher Bold Strokes Books through Netgalley for my honest review
And besides, as all women are somehow related to each other, once their chapter ends we can find them again in the new episode. That is a plus, even if they only appear in passing.
As the purpose of the book is basically to recreate fairy tales in today's world, there is not much more than that, but the result does not diminish. And the reading is very enjoyable and engaging
It has brought me a breath of fresh air very necessary and welcome.
An advanced reading copy has been sent to me by the publisher Bold Strokes Books through Netgalley for my honest review
April 8, 2020
Short and sweet, these three connected stories featuring black lesbians is great for readers who want something easy. It was compulsive, and if I hadn't had to go to bed, I would've finished in one night. I liked that Shade gave us diversity of age and presentation in the main characters. There were stylistic quirks that I could have done without, though. I also found myself thinking that each story had flashes of brilliance within otherwise average storytelling. I had a hard time dating the stories, though. Beyond knowing that they take place within months of each other, it was hard to discern what year it was within the story. The way the characters spoke and dressed felt very old school lesbian culture. Overall, I think it was a solid read that would appeal to someone who reads urban fiction, but doesn't like the violence that usually goes on in those books.
February 28, 2020
A great read, really. A set of 3 novellas, in the form of a fairy tale. The three are very short (too short), easy to read, well written and each time incorporates the characters from the one before.
I wish they were longer, to have more fun.
But I really liked all these novellas, without exception.
If I recommend it? Absolutely!
I wish they were longer, to have more fun.
But I really liked all these novellas, without exception.
If I recommend it? Absolutely!
February 20, 2020
I did not want the tales to end. Each story was beautifully crafted, a new age spin on classic fairy tales. There was Beauty and the Beast, Cinderella and Sleeping Beauty. The imagery was so intense if you closed your eyes you could see the words play just like a movie. Awesome read!!!!
April 26, 2020
Fairytales with a very modern twist. These stories we're great. They were well-written, romantic and steamy without being over the top. I love how all the stories tied together and stayed true to the theme of the fairytales while still being original.
September 3, 2023
queen of black girl romance
Enjoyed every story. Hooked on this author. Can’t wait to read more. Great character development and love characters from other stories being filled out more.
Enjoyed every story. Hooked on this author. Can’t wait to read more. Great character development and love characters from other stories being filled out more.
March 4, 2020
Really enjoyed that trilogy of novellas—the third might have been my favourite, but partly due to how by then I knew the characters from the first two so well.
February 25, 2021
Finally, the first book I've finished this year. It's got a fun concept and it's pretty sexy at times. All in all, a nice easy read!
May 7, 2023
Cute little romance novellas.
November 8, 2023
Excellent
This was a fantastic read I loved the way it was put together and turned out and kept in tune with the theme. This was very entertaining and hot 🔥🔥🔥
This was a fantastic read I loved the way it was put together and turned out and kept in tune with the theme. This was very entertaining and hot 🔥🔥🔥
February 21, 2024
Two of my favorite things: fairy-tale retelling and sapphic love!
Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews