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Diamond, a surprising twist on Rapunzel fairytale
Diamond is book 3 in the Once Upon a Twist Tales series, after The Rose and the Balloon and Spindle Dreams–and it’s great. Diamond follows a loose retelling of the Rapunzel fairytale. Being my favorite of all the fairytales, I came in with solid expectations and Fichter delivered! For reference, Diamond follows the life of…
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Spindle Dreams, Sleeping Beauty with a fiery surprise
After finishing The Rose and the Balloon, I rushed to pick up Spindle Dreams, book two in the Once Upon a Twist Tales series. Spindle Dreams is a loose retelling of Sleeping Beauty that follows a not-so-skilled spinner, Marita Kadlec, as she struggles to pull her family out of poverty. We also join Felix, a…
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The Rose and the Balloon, innovative twist on an old fairytale
The Rose and the Balloon by Kristen Fichter is a great twist on my favorite fairytale, Beauty and the Beast. It came out in 2016, so I’m a bit late here, but it was so worth the read. It is book 1 in a (currently) 5-book series, Once Upon a Twist Tales. For brief context,…
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Sugar Plum Princess, a beautiful Nutcracker retelling
I love the Nutcracker and anything Tchaikovsky, and when I heard Tayler Marie Brooks had published a Nutcracker retelling, I jumped on it! Sugar Plum Princess had everything and more than I expect. It even had some Barbie Nutcracker vibes (my favorite of classic Barbie), and it was light enough to read in a matter…
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Fatal Witness by Patricia Bradley, a high-stakes thriller
This is the third Christian thriller I’ve read, right after Fragile Designs by Colleen Coble, and it delivers. Fatal Witness follows Dani Collins as she discovers the truth about her parents’ murder, a truth that the perpetrator wants silenced. All in all, I loved the characters, the plot, the tension, and the mystery. Bradley has…
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The Black Rose Collection, a Stunning Reflection of Courage
Receiving a black rose is a death sentence. That is the gripping premise of The Black Rose Collection by seven Christian authors, Madisyn Carlin, Kristina Hall, Vanessa Hall, K.R. Mattson, M.L. Milligan, Kaytlin Phillips, and Saraina Whitney. I shared a quick rundown on my Instagram, but here’s a more detailed description of each amazing novella!…
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The Wings of Poppy Pendleton by Melanie Dobson
Wow, did I love the mystery and suspense for The Wings of Poppy Pendleton! This goes up in probably my favorite mystery/timeslip novel. I loved that Dobson let us figure it out and never told the reader anything that the reader didn’t already figure out a few chapters earlier. I love feeling like a detective…
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World of Silence by Kaytlin Phillips, a Quiet Debut
Knowing that World of Silence was Kaytlin Phillips’s debut novel, I see her writing was (and is) blessed! World of Silence is a wonderful, action-packed story of a deaf boy who wants to prove himself in the midst of a dragon war. This book had so many twists and so many themes but I was…
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The Love of a Princess, The Best Ruth Retelling I’ve Ever Read
Sequels are hard to pull off, but Dorow amazed me with The Love of a Princess. It follows Princess Adelaide, daughter of Queen Arabella and King Rowan, as she faces a plague that ravages her kingdom and her future. It’s a loose Ruth retelling to follow the previous Esther retelling, and I can’t stress enough…
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Lady of Disguise by Dickerson (Dericott Tales #6)
If you like cozy, sweet MG fiction, you’d like this series by Melanie Dickerson! Lady of Disguise is #6 in the Dericott Tales series following the lives of a dozen brothers as they sort out their lives after a massive plot against their family. Lady of Disguise This novel follows Louisa Lennon as she goes…
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Fragile Designs by Colleen Coble, a Heart-stopping Mystery Thriller
Fragile Designs is the second Christian thriller/mystery I’ve read, and I was hooked! Fragile Designs by Colleen Coble is an enjoyable read! It follows a twenty-something Carly Harris as she juggles raising her baby, quarrels with her sisters, and the ghosts of her past as she faces the danger that her husband’s killer could now…
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The Peasant Queen, A Beautiful Esther Retelling
I would give this 6 starts if I could. The Peasant Queen is the first book I’ve read since Provenance that absolutely stunned me to tears. For context, The Peasant Queen is a medieval retelling of Esther and it is spectacular. I knew the story would have some kind of “God placed you here for…