The Bearded Goose

The Stepsister Scheme by Jim C. Hines

Published by DAW (January 6, 2009)

ISBN-10: 0756405327
ISBN-13: 978-0756405328

At A Glance: What would happen if an author went back to the darker themes of the original fairy tales for his plots, and then crossed the Disney princesses with Charlie’s Angels? What’s delivered is The Stepsister Scheme—a whole new take on what happened to Cinderella and her prince after the wedding. And with Jim C. Hines penning the tale readers can bet it won’t be “and they lived happily ever after.”

What The Goose?: Let me start with this: I can’t wait to read the next book¹ in the series! This is the first yarn I’ve read by writer Jim Hines² . And if the rest of his books read anything like this, I’m going to be getting my hands on everything I can.

Now, as the synopsis says, mix Disney princesses with Charlie’s Angels³ . Now, you may perhaps be wondering which of the princesses, aside from Cinderella (Danielle), makes this titanic trio. First, we have Snow White, (Ermilina, though she preferes Snow.) She’s a master of mirror magic and flirting. And then, to round out the trio, we have Sleeping Beauty (Talia, don’t call her Sleeping Beauty). She doesn’t sleep anymore, and with her fairy gifts of beauty, grace and wit, she’s become an excellent assassin. Yes, you read that right.

Hines does a great job turning all these stories on their ears, adding a twist, and shaking well. I’d give examples, but I really don’t want to ruin your reading pleasure. But, wait until you see Snow White’s Seven Dwarves.

This is also very much a good-vs-evil type of story, so if you enjoy those, you’ll enjoy this.

Suck-O-Meter: This book Really Didn’t Suck.

1. Book 2, The Mermaid’s Madness is already out in your local bookstore and, probably, library. I’ll be grabbing mine, soon! [↩]
2. Thank you, @KJToo, for the loan [↩]
3. A reviewer on Goodreads suggested a mash-up of the Brothers Grimm and the Powerpuff Girls [↩]