The 7th Queen

Big Bad Magic #0.5

by Rose Sinclair

"We're all villains here..."
A sapphic fairy tale short story

A runaway mage apprentice. A girl lost in Wonderland. A magical journey that starts with sapphic love.

After running away from the cards the Queen of Hearts dealt, Claudia finds refuge in a strange antique shop hidden in timeless place. Stranger still, the store is run by a curiously mad hatter, who catches her fumbling attempts at thievery.
Instead of scolding the fledgling mage, the hatter gifts Claudia with a magic mirror capable of seeing the future, which might end up being punishing. Guided by white rabbits and blue caterpillars, Claudia learns of not just her future, but what’s in store for all of Wonderland.
Importantly she sees Alice, who counts herself among those plotting against the Queen. Alice is soft, sweet, and everything Claudia cherishes in the world. But the moment they will share is out of time. Can such tender love really change the course of fairy tales not yet told?

16 pages, ebook

First published January 1, 2021

About the author

Rose Sinclair is an trans bi community leader who started with a blog in 2013. The biggest noise maker they spearheaded was a protest in 2015 that made GLADD step up for the wider LGBTQIA+ community, paving the way for future acceptance of those communities and on-screen TV representation. Before becoming a full-time writer, they popularized several community terms, and set up a decentralized support system with a “Dear Abby” style approach. They are the author of HELLO WORLD, organizer of community projects such as UNBURIED FABLES, and now write a steamy BIG BAD MAGIC SERIES.

Reviews

[Shawna Finnigan · Rating 3 out of 5]

I got this prequel novella on BookFunnel a while ago and yesterday while I was looking for which book to read next, I saw that The 7th Queen was an Alice in Wonderland sapphic romance and I was sold. This story was very quick, so it had insta love and it never reached a satsifying end for this couple. This is a little frustrating because the next books in the series don’t focus on this couple, but I still enjoyed the brief time we got with these two characters. Rose Sinclair definitely knows how to write a romance with a lot of chemistry, so I will be reading the next books in the series at some point because I’d love to read a full length romance novel set in this universe that Sinclair has written.

[Bonnie · Rating 4 out of 5]

A tantalising glimpse into a magical world... enjoyable!

[SJ · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was very excited for this short sapphic Alice in Wonderland retelling and I really wanted to enjoy it, but it just didn’t hit the mark for me. It’s the prequel to the Big Bad Magic series, but the only sapphic book in the series. There was good world building for such a short story (16 pages) and the characters were intriguing. It just didn’t really pull me in like I hoped it would.