My top thoughts:
I didn’t hesitate for even a minute when I saw the chance to read and review The Better To See You for this blog tour. After reading and LOVING Red last month, I was excited. Not only was I not disappointed, I was pleasantly surprised. I would say I like it MORE but Red was already five stars so… yeah. But it’s a five star read for sure.

Note: Spoilers ahead for Red if you haven’t read it yet. While this COULD be read out of order/standalone I really don’t recommend it, you’ll miss too much of the way the story builds upon itself.

What I liked/didn’t like:
Where to start? I guess I’ll go with the characters. We met them both in Red. We’ve got Seth Wolf – the big bad wolf that Tess “Red” Little had loved once upon a time. I was so excited to get more of his story, as where things ended for him in Red, I was sad for him and felt Red’s anguish for him. Learning his full story was so exciting and also seeing him finding a slice of happiness was rewarding.

Then there’s Lavender, also known as Cinderella’s Fairy Godmother. If you have images of a sweet old grandmotherly type singing “bibbidi bobbidi boo” – banish that image immediately. Not only is Lavender the fairy responsible for casting the Tales into the Here and Now (aka, our Ordinary world) but she’s basically the most bad-ass, powerful fairy around. Well, she was before she colossal effed up (see the aforementioned casting into the Here and Now). Now she’s a fairy without her wings and some misbehaving, erratic magic. When we met her in Red she was a drunk, drowning her sorrows and mistakes in a bottle, unhappily living with Cindy and her prince.

I have to admit, I wasn’t super excited about Lavender initially. I was sad that I wasn’t going to continue to get the story for Red’s POV (don’t worry, we do still get a continuation of her & Nate’s story!) and didn’t know that I would really love her the same. But within the first chapter I was disabused of that notion. Y’all she’s so loveable! And if you like a character that grows – here you go! A lot of her growth has happened already but you’re getting to see it in the rearview which is also pretty great. And she’s really quite a badass.

Also the romance! Like I said, get rid of that “bibbidi bobbidi boo” fairy godmother notion or some of these scenes between Lavendar will be a bit disturbing. For me, that image was gone and instead they had me blushing. *fans self* they are an electric couple. Unlike Red and Nate who spent so much of their book fighting their attraction, these two are on fire pretty quick.

Last – but certainly not least – the plot/mystery. I found myself wishing I was buddy reading this (as I do frequently) because I was DYING to talk to someone about my guesses. Kate SeRine did an amazing job keeping me guessing. I had so many culprits at one point – sure I guessed the right one, but when you have THAT MANY people your considering, you’d be a really bad guesser to still be wrong. So many really good misdirections mixed in with the absolute correct info, I was on my toes the entire time.

Really looking forward to the next book!

Book source ~ Purchased and Tour

Lavender Seelie is the reason that Tales have been transplanted into the Ordinary world and there are many who are, let’s say, pretty peeved about it. Even though it’s been a very long time there are those who still haven’t adjusted and it makes them a tad cranky. Blaming herself (rightly so) she becomes an alcoholic, drowning herself in booze and self-loathing. Until one day, Tess “Red” Little tells her to pull up her big girl panties and get on with life. Maybe not exactly like that, but same difference. Lavender stops drinking and comes back to life. Only to piss off Prince Charming and have to relocate where he can’t easily exact his revenge. That’s how she ends up at The Refuge and falls straight into Self Wolf’s arms. A fairy and the Big Bad Wolf. Let’s hope this has a happy ending.

I wasn’t sure I was going to enjoy a book about the person who caused so much pain to so many people, but Lavender is a compelling character, full of flaws, but ready to do something with herself. What, she has no idea. When she gets to The Refuge though, murders start happening and she decides she (and Seth) need to figure out what in the hell is going on. But it’s dangerous. There is something going on in the shadows that remains hidden, her magic is all wonky, and Seth is a hot sexy man/wolf with plenty of his own baggage. But the heart wants what it wants and they muddle through while trying to avoid being killed.

The plot moves along at a good clip and I was not expecting where it went. The romance between Seth and Lavender is believable and swoon-worthy. I love the characters and the world. I’m looking forward to the next book in the series.

Can I just say I've been loving these new covers? The one for Red was amazing and book two - The Better To See You looks so good as well! It perfectly matches Lavender and the vibes in the book!

I honestly think that this is such an underrated series and I wish more people would read it! In this one - we've got two of the most misunderstood characters, who come with their own backstories and have made different choices after their lives changed. And it's their experiences that bring them together.

Lavender was a talented faerie godmother, till a series of events ends up bringing her and other fairy tale characters from the land of Make Believe to reality, and most people resent her for the spell that made this happen. And so she spends most of the time drunk and bumping around with her wonky magic while being alienated by other Tales, till she has a wake-up call one day!

She ends up going to The Refuge hoping for a second chance and this is where she meets Seth - the sexy, brooding werewolf who gets blamed for most of the murders or anything bad that happens lol. Poor guy! And if anyone can relate to making choices that one would regret, it's him. Both Lavender and Seth end up finding an unexpected partner in each other. But it's not easy for them to catch a break when a new string of brutal murders threatens to shatter the calm that they've been searching for.

I totally loved the relationship development between Lavender and Seth! They're both flawed and strong at the same time and you can't help but root for them. The trust and comfort that they find in each other along with the simmering attraction between them made the book so enjoyable. The author has put a new spin on these fairytale characters and that's my favorite thing about this series! In addition to all of this, there is an intriguing mystery with the murders along with many other twists and turns! I also loved meeting Red and Nate again! There are so many other interesting characters that we get to meet and I hope to see their stories as well!

I'd definitely recommend this series to everyone who's looking for something different - especially if you're a fan of Once Upon A Time or fairytales(especially retellings of them)!

*I was provided with an ARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review*

Requested and downloaded this book back in 2013 with every intention of reading it but then it expired on my device before I had the chance. Have felt bad about that and as a result haven't wanted to leave a review but with more and more publishers relying on Feedback ratings I need to clear out some of these older titles in my queue.

I requested The Better to See You by Kate Serine for review but didn't get a chance to read it. I had issues with my e-reader and lost all of my galleys. By the time the issue was resolved and I was able to transfer files, the book had been archived. I thank you for giving me access to the book and apologize for not being able to review it for you.

I didn't get a chance to read this before it expired on my nook. I'm sorry!