Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Fair Beginning, Excellent Ending, December 17, 2008
Janette Rallison has produced a wonderfully fractured fairy tale here with enough twists to surprise and delight even the most jaded and cynical of readers. The surprises begin with the choice of protagonists. You'd think it would be Jane Delano, the shy, studious older sister who has long loved Hunter Delmont from afar, not Savannah Delano, the flirtatious, air-head, shopaholic younger sister whom Hunter is dating and taking to the prom. But no, a furious Jane sets out to do a total makeover, with the help of a delighted and clueless Savannah, in order to punish Hunter for ignoring her. Instead Jane accidentally wins Hunter's heart, and a devastated Savannah is the one who gets a fairy godmother, one Chrysanthemum Everstar, Chrissy for short, to grant her three wishes ensuring that she AND Jane lived happily ever after....
Of course it isn't QUITE that simple.
Problem number one is that Chrissy is about as flighty and immature as Savannah is. As a result, two half heard wishes have Savannah experiencing the Middle Ages up close and personal in decidedly unromantic and disturbingly realistic versions of the Cinderella and Snow White stories, which feature Savannah learning how to cook and clean the peasant way. A sadder but wiser Savannah makes a very careful third and final wish, which results in a boy who had expressed some interest in dating her being sent back to the Middle Ages with orders to come back a prince... or not at all. So with the help of a disgruntled leprechaun a horrified Savannah must figure out a way to be sent back as well in order to help Tristan Hawkins complete his assignment.
Hilarity and chaos ensue.
The first half of the book with Savannah bemoaning her fate, then making a hash out of Cinderella and Snow White drags a bit because her whining, even accompanied as it is by considerable humor, begins to grate, but hang in there. Lessons are being learned, character is being built, and as Howard R. Garis would have put it, pipes are being laid. The last half, in which Savannah desperately tries to help Tristan, whether he wants her help or not, is much better. Besides a brilliant job of tying all the loose ends into a perfect bow, I also appreciated Rallison's delicate balancing act. This is neither the traditional male hero saves useless heroine nor the modern PC female hero saves useless male heroine. Rather, to their considerable surprise, the efforts of BOTH are needed to save the day.
This is Janette Rallison's first fantasy novel; I hope it isn't her last!
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
I couldn't put it down, December 15, 2008
I am a lover of all things fairy tale, so the cover of this book grabbed me from the get-go. I have to say that it started off a bit slow but after about the fourth chapter it became very interesting. In short, the story is about a high school sophomore, Savannah, whose boyfriend dumps her for her sister, who basically becomes her smarter look-alike after she gives her a makeover. Her "fair" (not fairy as this godmother didn't do well in fairy school) godmother comes along to grant her wishes, only she doesn't pay attention and Savannah's wishes become more like nightmares than happily ever afters. While they are not quite as awful as Grimm's fairy tales (there is no blood, no feet cutting, etc.) she learns some humbling lessons a bit like the epiphanies Ebeneezer Scrooge gets only without the ghosts. The story reads a bit like fairy tales, the Odyssey, Arthurian legend and A Christmas Carol all rolled into one.
The book is very well written and quite funny at times. If you enjoy fairy tales you will most certainly like this book. I actually want to give this book five stars but I cannot edit the review now. I would most definitely like to read more from this author.
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Fresh, bubble-gum poppy, and utterly delightful fairy tale, December 8, 2008
I can't help it; I have a weird addiction to fairy tales. Which is pretty much the only reason I got this book. While I loved fractured fairy tales, the entire teeny-bopper aura of this book was a little nauseating.
How happy I am to report that if one can put up with the nauesating sweetness she will be in love with this book! It's cutesy, it involves annoying teenagers, and it's a freakin' fairy tale on top of everything. If that is your thing, you will love this book and fortunately I was sucked in.
And all the aforementioned compliments are not to suggest Rallison isn't a gifted writer (I am aware that the aforementioned adjectives can be "bad".) On the contrary, Rallision has a gift with words. She has a fun, simple, and fluid style that is brimming with personality and charm. I'm sure some will complain that her characters are not the tragically three-dimensional heroes and heroines of drama, but for the nature of this adorable little romantic comedy, they were perfect.
I love the approach of the story. It's probably been done before, but I don't care and neither will readers. The "fair"y godmother is nothing but a might-as-well-be modern-day ditz who would rather shop than complete her education in magically assisting poor damsels. What I liked, however, is that this fairy happened to be a reflection of the main character Savannah, who upon observation of her disaster-causing godmother begins to change for the better. I like stuff like that.
And as a fairy tale fan, I love how Rallison knew her tales and was able to offer some hilarious-yet-keen insight into them (of course a poisoned apple would be tempting in the winter when no fresh fruit is available!). It does wonders for the plot.
"My Fair Godmother" is clever, fresh, and romantic with a great plot and endearing characters. I will recommend this to any girl I meet.
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