Howard Iske’s Reviews > A Twisted Tale Anthology > Status Update

I decided to read an extra story in the anthology this month. The one I just finished was “What if Madame Mim and Merlin (from The Sword in the Stone) went to school together?

Plain and simple, this story needs to be a full novel! I absolutely loved how it leaned into the romantasy, and it took both Mim and Merlin and made them fantastic, fully developed characters. I would rate this story 4.75 stars.

The story I read in the anthology this month was “What if the triplets (from Brave) visited the witch?”

I really enjoyed this! It was a fun continuation, set about 10 or so years after the end of the movie. The story focused on the bond of the now-teenaged brothers, and their visit to the witch from the movie. I would probably give this 4.5 stars, only because the end, while sweet, felt anticlimactic.

The story I read in the anthology this month was “What if Naveen had to get home to Maldonia?”

Maybe I’m biased because “The Princess and the Frog” is one of my favorite Disney animated movies, but this Twisted Tale couldn’t capture the magic of the film. The story is overly simple and the lack of a villain made for very low stakes. I’m going to rate this 2.5 out of 5 stars.

The story I read in the anthology this month was “What if Tinker Bell was working for Captain Hook?”

I wanted to like this so much, but unfortunately, I was underwhelmed. The idea itself is interesting enough, but it lacked the originality that I’ve come to expect from a Twisted Tale story. I think I would give this 2.5 out of 5 stars.

The story I read in the anthology this month was “What if Eric met Ariel after she rescued him?”

Unfortunately, this was one of my least favorite Twisted Tales. The idea is interesting, but the story itself couldn’t compare with the film. Everything seemed very anticlimactic, and even Ursula, one of Disney’s best villains, paled in comparison to her role in the film. I’d say this is 3 stars for me.

The story I read in the anthology this month was “What if history wasn’t quite right about the legend of Robin Hood?” This was so much fun!

I don’t want to give away the twist for this story, because it was very clever! This is one of those times that I wish this was a full-length book. I’m going to say 4.5 out of five stars!

The story I read in the anthology this month was “What if Jim Hawkins joined the pirates?” It’s a twist on a Disney movie I love - Treasure Planet.

I will say that it helps to have seen the movie before reading this story because you’re really thrown right into the middle of the action. I really enjoyed this Twisted Tale and only wish that the story had kept going. I’m giving it four of out of five stars!

The story I read in the anthology this month was “What if Mufasa gave up his throne?” I found the premise interesting because it takes place 2 years after Mufasa actually surviving Scar trying to kill him in the stampede in the movie. While I find that idea and the events of this story interesting, it felt a little predictable and uneventful to me. While not a bad story, I’d still only give it 3 out of 5 stars.

The story I read in the anthology for this month is “what if Anastasia had a change of heart? It’s actually a continuation of Cinderella, but told from the POV of one of the stepsisters.

I really enjoy this! The story did a fantastic job of taking someone who is typically seen as an evil character, and giving them a redemption that felt real. She understood her flaws and how she needed to move on. Easy 5 stars!

The story I read in the anthology for this month was “What if Remy had met Colette first?” It took the movie Ratatouille and switched it up.

This story was an easy five out of five stars for me! I loved seeing the connection between Remy and Colette, dare I say, enjoying it more at times than I did the movie.