The collection of Supernatural Fairy Tales has the subtitle Fairy Tale Inspired Paranormal Short Stories. And despite the fairy on the cover gazing at a mystical sky, most of these short stories are set in modern day with realistic characters. Half the fun is guessing which fairy tale inspired which short story. Not to worry if you’re unsure as the author tells you the source of inspiration at the end of each offering.
This collection has inspired this reviewer to review the book in two ways. The first is a standalone set of supernatural short stories. The second is how fun it is to guess the original tale. On the first point, the stories aren’t a retelling in a modern sense. They are a wonderful mixed bag of telepathic thieves, a lonely costume party-goer, a frustrated writer, a talking tree, and many other quirky characters. Some are beautiful (“The Kingdom of Pillars”), some are downright creepy (“Midnight”), but all evoke some type of reesponse. None of the tales are overly long, clocking in at about a standard short story (3-4K words). Each one has perceptive little insights into what happens when life detours into the Twilight Zone. Some tales assume the weirdness from the start, but most start normally and grow more and more bizarre as the pages turn. The slick turn of events makes the stories shine.
How does the collection rate as an homage to the original tales? First, some of the stories are really close to their source material, and some playfully dance around it. For a couple, the connection is somewhat distant from the original story. This reviewer truly enjoyed the snippet at the end of each explaining the fairy tale of inspiration. The attribution was a sweet dessert to the fine meal.
Most of the standard fairy tales you’d expect are included here. A few obscure tales are also presented, and one I didn’t think of normally as a fairy tale. All are worth a read, but the ones that stood out to me are The KIngdom of Pillars, Muse, Weeping Lake, Quiet on the Nightingale, and Midnight. Other reviewers with different interests would likely have a different top five.
As an added bonus, thirteen fairytale-inspired poems are included at the end.
From mysterious mermaids to magical muffins, from dismissive daughters to vain vampires and so much more, Supernatural Fairy Tales await the curious reader.