Bargain Book: A Long, Long Sleep by Anna Sheehan

Each month Amazon unveils a new list of 100 Kindle books for $3.99 or less where I always have fun perusing and usually find a few titles for my personal collection. (Have I mentioned that my leisure reading is almost entirely digital anymore?) And each month I think there is no way there will be a fairy tale related title on the list. Odds are against that. But March did not break the streak of the last several months. This month's title has been on my wishlist to purchase so I am particularly happy about this one.

A Long, Long Sleep by Anna Sheehan is the book on this month's list. It's $3.99 which is the upper range on the bargain list, but much less than it was a day or so ago. I've snatched it up to add to my reading list. I am always thrilled with fairy tale retellings with at least a touch of science fiction to them.

Book description:

Rosalinda Fitzroy has been asleep for sixty-two years when she is woken by a kiss.

Locked away in the chemically induced slumber of a stasis tube in a forgotten sub-basement, sixteen-year-old Rose slept straight through the Dark Times that killed millions and utterly changed the world she knew. Now her parents and her first love are long dead, and Rose -- hailed upon her awakening as the long-lost heir to an interplanetary empire -- is thrust alone into a future in which she is viewed as either a freak or a threat.

Desperate to put the past behind her and adapt to her new world, Rose finds herself drawn to the boy who kissed her awake, hoping that he can help her to start fresh. But when a deadly danger jeopardizes her fragile new existance, Rose must face the ghosts of her past with open eyes -- or be left without any future at all.

From the author:

This book came about when I realized that the world didn't stop when Sleeping Beauty was put to sleep. What would have happened while she slept? She would have had to come to terms with a whole new world the moment she opened her eyes. Once I had that concept, this particular book just fell out of me, almost whole. If only they were all so easy.

It was well-reviewed by Publishers Weekly, too:

In this intriguing first novel, Rose Fitzroy, biologically 16 years old, comes out of stasis to discover that her billionaire parents and the world she knew are long dead. Having survived the plague-ridden Dark Times, the Earth is doing quite well, with Rose's father's former company in charge of much of it. This puts Rose--the sickly, shy, and self-hating daughter of overbearing parents--in the unusual position of "waking up to discover she's the sole surviving heiress to an interplanetary empire." Before taking on any responsibilities, Rose simply wants to survive high school, make a few friends, and work on her art. Her plans are swiftly interrupted, though, when a strange, virtually unstoppable creature called a Plastine attempts to assassinate her. Aided by handsome Bren and blue-skinned alien hybrid Otto, schoolmates she develops crushes on, Rose must defeat the assassin, learn to live as an independent adult, and discover why her parents essentially abandoned her in stasis. With well-developed characters, a touch of romance, and a believable future that, for once, is not entirely dystopian, Sheehan's tale should please many readers.

If this interests you, don't wait until the end of the month to get it because sometimes books do disappear off the list, probably if they reach some quota. My other happy find was another Julia Spencer-Fleming novel, Out of the Deep I Cry: A Clare Fergusson and Russ Van Alstyne Mystery, making three of her titles currently $2.99 each. I've been adding them to my digital collection although I already own the hardcovers so I can't justify full price for the entire series. Nothing to do with fairy tales, but intriguing mysteries with interesting characters if you happen to be a mystery reader.