If you follow me, you know I'm a sucker for fairy tale retellings. This was a unique twist on that, and I absolutely loved each story. I'm not going to break down every story, but I thought the authors all did justice to the fairy tale they chose. I loved getting to see the stories I'm familiar with from the fairy godmother's side. Furthermore, I fell in love with each and every fairy presented in this anthology, and it's definitely going on my read again list!

This book has two of my favorite things, short stories and fairytales. This collection was so good. All of the stories were so different and I just loved them. Some stood out more than others. Wishes to Heaven, A Story of Soil and Stardust, Returning the Favor, Forgetful Frost and The Venetian Glass Girl are ones that come to mind. I loved the others too. If you love fairytales, this book is definitely for you. Thank you to NetGalley and Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America for the arc in exchange for my honest review.

I was sad not to enjoy this anthology as much as I'd hoped, but there were more stories I didn't like than ones I did. I felt a lot of them were more depressing than magical, and the twists on the old tales were fairly predictable!

With any anthology there's always a few shining stars that stand out, a few duds, and a whole bunch of stories that fall somewhere in between. Mothers of Enchantment had by far more good stories than bad, which is always a treat. I see lots of twists on fairy tales told from the villain's point of view, but seeing them from the role of a supporting side character is such a treat! The role of the godmother (or godfather, or mysterious benefactor) is so rampant in fairy tales, and they play such varying roles, there's a lot to play with here! My only issue is the blurb mentions fairy godfathers, and they are sadly absent from these stories. My favorites were "Wishes to Heaven" by Michelle Tang, "Real Boy" by Marshall J. Moore, and "Face in the Mirror" by Sonni de Soto (which I NEED to be a full novel!)

This is an anthology of fairy godmother tales. Some are familiar, some are not.
World Weaver Press and Net Galley let me read this book for review (thank you). It has been published and you can get a copy now.

The stories are good. The first one in the book was my favorite, but none were disappointing.

If you like magic, fairy tales, or fantasy, you'll enjoy this book. It gets you away from the real world...

As with most anthologies, this one is a mixed bag of great stories, "just okay" stories, and some that fall flat, but overall it's a decent collection. The standouts for me are “Wishes to Heaven” by Michelle Tang and “Of Wishes and Fairies” by Maxine Churchman, both of which are so good that they shine above all others in the book. I am a big fan of fairy tale retellings so this was right up my alley and I'd recommend it to other fans who like this kind of thing.

I was delighted by the grimdark and off-centre re-tellings of all the fairytales in this book. Pinocchio and Jack Frost's stories particularly pulled at the heart-strings and the uplifting tales of Cinderella and Sleeping Beauty were told with a feminist edge that ultimately allowed them to finish their stories as they pleased, owed to no man. Sad endings are rife with a classic twist, with the godmothers both positive and negative protagonists; in the Beauty and the Beast re-telling, the love story of the fairy for the prince is wholesome on a level that made me forget all about Belle, and Aurelia in the Rumpelstilskin tale is the kind of person you don't mind having your protag die for. There were a couple of modern retellings I didn't care for and which seemed out of sync with the tone of the book, but I would still purchase it after having read the ARC on NetGalley.

This is a charming collection of fairytales for anyone who is into fae themes, albeit not a book for children. I would rate it as YA and above.

“Wishes to Heaven” by Michelle Tang ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Protect all life (even a moth), and your wish for a child will come true.

“A Story of Soil and Stardust” by Kelly Jarvis
⭐️⭐️ Step daughter resorts to a curse for her step sister, but relents; finding that her step mother's ambition is more bloody and cruel than anyone knew.

“Real Boy” by Marshall J. Moore ⭐️ Some real boys aren't worth the trouble, until something truly drastic happens.

“Returning the Favor” by Lynden Wade ⭐️⭐️⭐️ Evil women thwart happiness. Unhappy woman takes over the fairy godmother's job, as another will do for her.

“My Last Curse” by Elise Forier Edie ⭐️ Anti-patriarchal fairies try for an independent maiden, but plans end badly. Crude content overshadows the mild twist on an old tale.

“Face in the Mirror” by Sonni de Soto ⭐️⭐️ Slow, sad redemption of a prince raised by parents royally lacking all things goodly.

“Forgetful Frost” by Vivica Reeves ⭐️⭐️ Confusing folk-tale of two people so blinded by grief that only a green-eyed golden-haired miracle can save them.

“Modern Magic” by Carter Lappin ⭐️⭐️⭐️
Laid-back fairy godmother in jeans helps her charge with a high school reunion.

“In the Name of Gold” by Claire N. Thomas ⭐️⭐️⭐️ Maiden needs straw spun into gold, but the fairy has a much better incentive to help than other stories you may have heard.

“Of Wishes and Fairies” by Maxine Churchman
⭐️⭐️⭐️ ⭐️ A fairy's spells don't always go well until she meets a girl who needs her help most. Then they both get surprises!

“Flick: The Fairy Godmother” by Kim Malinowski ⭐️ Fairy Godmother's apprentice is forced to step up early when her mentor leaves with Death. Belief in magic would help protect the children and maybe stop the human war. Too much mundane detail, not enough storyline; very jumbled.

“The Venetian Glass Girl” by Abi Marie Palmer
⭐️ A wild fairy gives a glass artist magic sand to bring his work to life. Jealous and fearful villagers menace and attack. The artist, his glass "daughter" and the fairy disappear. Overly depressing and predictable with plot mistakes. It's unfortunate they placed this one last.

An uneven collection of stories. Some humorous, some dark, some I would not have included.

2.6/5 Stars Total

Thanks to World Weaver Press and NetGalley for the preview of this anthology; the review is voluntary.

#MothersofEnchantment #NetGalley #WorldWeaverPress

Nicely done. Although for a niche audience, this should be a good choice that like this genre. Some very good talent here.

Thanks very much or the free review copy!!

I am a huge fan of fairy takes, derivatives, modern retellings, and all things fairy tale, so this title was definitely for me. A collection of stories exploring the different fairy godmothers in the world was a joy. As with any anthology, some I loved, some not as much, but never was there a single story that I disliked or wanted to skip past. This is a beautiful collection of such a variety of styles and stories! I thoroughly enjoyed reading it.

I’m a fan of reworked fairy tales and I really enjoyed this volume of stories told from the perspective of fairy godmothers. As is the case with most anthologies , I liked some of the stories more than others, but there were none I really considered to be duds. I’d recommend this book to anyone who enjoys this sort of thing.

Thanks to NetGalley for providing an ARC copy for my review.

Finally, an anthology of fairy tale retellings that tell it from the Fairy Godmother's side! I don't know why it isn't more mainstream in the subgenre, because retellings from the fairy tale villains' side are so common these days that the poor Fairy Godmother has been relegated to the background.

Not anymore, because these 12 stories aim to show you what the fairy godmothers go through in fulfilling the role's responsibilities, although not all of the stories are written in the Godmother's own voice, they all strive to make her the centrepiece and focus, paying well-earned homage to the creatures that have made the tales' happy endings possible, punished wickedness, and righted wrongs. And sometimes been wrong themselves, too.

The 12 stories are very varied in style, but thankfully the quality is consistent, which is rare in anthologies as they tend to mix good and bad in varying proportions. I enjoyed all of the stories save one, and my only complaint is that I'd have loved to see Fairy Godfathers included. Maybe in another anthology? Let's hope. I'd also have loved for some of the stories to be longer, minimum novella-length or even full novel, because they were so good they deserved their own book and further expansion of the story.

WISHES TO HEAVEN by Michelle Tang
5 stars
A sweet and heartwarming story, the sweetest and most pleasing in the book for me personally. It works on the Chinese mythology about paper boats guiding spirits to the afterlife and that wishing on them as you set them on the river will ensure your wish is granted. That happens to the character here, a lovely pregnant girl who asks for her yet unborn child to be happy, and is heard when a Godmoth (yes, a moth) is sent to grant all her wishes. it's beautifully written, and has all the requisite atmosphere of a true fairy tale.

A STORY OF SOIL AND STARDUST by Kelly Jarvis
3 stars
This one is a take on "Vasilisa the Beautiful and Baba Yaga" with a good dash of "Cinderella," set in what appears to be historical Russia in the time of the tsars. Elya, the main character, is interesting, strong, and incredibly forgiving, but the story is so short and told in a way that the ending reads as if it's been left unfinished, on a bitter tone that simply doesn't fit the Elya we came to know. And also, there's little explanation for why exactly she's treated so horribly by her entire family, especially her mother, who changes her attitude overnight. Seems like this is a case of baddies being one-dimensional and bad just because they can be. Oh, and the godmother here is plain creepy!

This is the first story I thought would really benefit from being longer. If the author decided to use this short story as an intro novelette and wrote a full book, I'd totally read it. I found Elya intriguing, and there's so few Slavic fairy tale retellings out there, especially of Vasilisa and Baba Yaga.

REAL BOY by Marshall J. Moore
5 stars
A retelling of "Pinocchio" whose opening line made me think it would be based on the Carlo Collodi original, which is dark and with a rather awful Pinocchio, but that turned out to be Disney's instead. But that doesn't mean it merely redid the Disney version, because it has one big difference by the end that made it all the sadder but also strangely hopeful, at least for me. It's the first story in the anthology that's told from the Fairy Godmother's POV, too, and a likable one that's so very aware of mishaps. The atmosphere is so on point, and the prose is lovely, too.

RETURNING THE FAVOR by Lynden Wade
5 stars
Another story where the Godmother isn't in a human body, which I'm sensing has become a pattern in this anthology. This story takes the plot of the Grimms' "The Iron Stove," an obscure fairy tale that probably only tale connoisseurs will know, but fortunately you don't need to be familiar with it to understand this retelling. It also has elements from "The Six Swans," with a revelation about the Godmother herself and the role Godmothers play that is surprising. This one is also atmospheric, has lovely writing, and is so bittersweet.

MY LAST CURSE by Elise Forier Edie
1 star
Oh, boy, did I dislike this one. A bunch of airheaded fairy godmothers decide to fight the Patriarchy, that is preserved by the cavemen fairy godfathers, by cursing the princess so she'll never find love or marry but are thwarted by the marriage-obsessed queen. I get that it's satire and meant to be humorous, but for me it was so annoying and had the subtlety of a hammer to the forehead.

FACE IN THE MIRROR by Sonni de Soto
5 stars
I'm so tempted to hound Sonni de Soto and pester her till I convince her to make this "Beauty and the Beast" short story into a full novel! Anyone want to help?

I really do want more of this story, it's the first B&B retelling I've found (and I've read hundreds, honestly) that is told from the witch's point of view that doesn't make her the poor misunderstood innocent, the vile hag futilely trying to justify her draconian curse, or, goodness forbid, the prince's love interest. The way it ends leaves the possibility open for a continuation, so I'm hopeful, but even if there were none, simply expanding this one a bit would be wonderful. The prince here is one of the best Beasts I've seen, and there's no Beauty that redeems him here, he redeems himself on his own, a premise I can vouch is hard to pull out given the fairy tale's theme. So, please, Ms. de Soto, if you're reading this, do consider a full novel! I'll take a sequel instead as well.

FORGETFUL FROST by Vivica Reeves
4 stars
I often forget that Morozko, the King of Winter in Russian mythology, isn't the hot and sexy chap Katherine Arden sold us in her wonderful trilogy, and this story reminded me how he's really like in the original folktales. In this story, we're told the origins of Morozko, now so old that he's starting to have memory lapses and unsuccessfully trying to keep up with the new girl he's made to look after. It's a melancholy story, it will hurt if you have elderly relatives that are losing their memories, but it ends on a bright note.

MODERN MAGIC by Carter Lappin
5 stars
I'm rating this one so highly because it updates "Cinderella" for the modern times in such a hilarious and believable manner. The Fairy Godmother here is a hippie that drinks Starbucks and eats two Big Mac burgers like it's going out of the market, and has her own opinionated opinions on glass slippers and princes charming that made me laugh out loud as I was reading.

IN THE NAME OF GOLD by Claire Noelle Thomas
4.5 stars
A sad "Rumpelstiltskin" retelling that makes you wish the little man had cursed the stupid greedy hog of a king into high heavens and helped the miller's daughter have a better life. This Rumpelstiltskin is so self-sacrificing, so selfless and caring you can't help but feel for him and get angry at the injustice of it all. Kudos for making him sympathetic without trashing the miller's girl, too, because some retellings seem to forget that the real villain here is the king.

OF WISHES AND FAIRIES by Maxine Churchman
4 stars
Another "Cinderella" story, told from the Fairy Godmother's POV again. Only that this Fairy Godmother is... awfully clumsy. You see, she's a young fairy just starting her training for the position, and she is prone to goofing it up so often there's serious doubts about her suitability for the role. One day, she's sent out into the wide world to learn and practice, and as expected, she makes mistakes every single time and her earnest offers for help always turn out more of an hindrance. But then she meets the girl she's destined to become Fairy Godmother to, and things change for the better, her mistakes are revealed to have had unexpectedly good consequences in spite of the clumsiness.

FLICK: THE FAIRY GODMOTHER by Kim Malinowski
3.5 stars
Also a Fairy Godmother-in-training story, it has one very original fairy that has mental health issues. No, not the psychotic type of mental issues but the anxiety disorder type. And she takes medication, too! I wouldn't have imagined to see such a fairy, but it's nice to see such diversity of characterisation. I only wish the Fairy Godmother/Death love story had been shown more, because that concept is catchy.

THE VENETIAN GLASS GIRL by Abi Marie Palmer
5 stars
Another "Pinocchio"-style story, although this one is only inspired by and not a retelling proper. As the title implies, the woodcarved marionette from the original is here a glass girl lovingly sculpted by an elderly and solitary genius Murano glassblower who longs for family and love. A sea fairy hears the longing of his heart and gifts him the means to bring his glass creations into life, which wins him the favour of the ruling Venetian nobility and the awe of the populace, but also the envy of competitors and brings tragedy into his life and his little girl's. It was sad, but very beautiful.