New Book: Stray (Four Sisters) by Elissa Sussman

Tomorrow, October 7th, is one of the biggest fairy tale release days of 2014. When I say "big," I mean that there are several fairy tale related titles released tomorrow. So expect a lot of book posts this week. I thought I would start with one of the more unusual and thus intriguing to me titles: Stray (Four Sisters) by Elissa Sussman. It's intriguing because it is about fairy godmothers. I've mentioned trends in Prince Charming and Baba Yaga and I'm all for a fairy godmother trend if that is starting.

Book description from Amazon, comparison heavy for marketing:

A cross between The Handmaid's Tale and Wicked, with a dash of Grimm and Disney thrown in, Stray is part coming-of-age story, part fairy tale, part adventure, part sweet romance.

Stray tells the story of Aislynn, a princess who misbehaves and must give up her royal trappings and enter a life of service as a fairy godmother. Will Aislynn remain true to her vows and her royal family, and turn away from everything she longs for? Or will she stray from The Path and discover her own way? Epic, rewarding, and provocative, Stray will appeal to readers of Entwined, by Heather Dixon; to those who grew up watching the Disney princess movies; and to fans of the acclaimed musicals Into the Woods and Wicked.

I'm also curious to know if other fairy tales make an appearance, say those with a fairy godmother in them. And the real question is which Wicked are they referencing there? The musical or the book? Cause that's a wide range of atmosphere. And then throw in Handmaid's Tale and I think the powers that be may be overmarketing this one as dark and dreary without realizing it to savvy readers who know their books because the book flap description below is much less dark in tone. I have a feeling TPTB mean Wicked the Musical which is more appealing to a wider audience in my experience.

And from the book cover which is more helpful:

Princess Aislynn has long dreamed about attending her Introduction Ball, about dancing with the handsome suitors her adviser has chosen for her, about meeting her true love and starting her happily ever after.

When the night of the ball finally arrives and Nerine Academy is awash with roses and royalty, Aislynn wants nothing more than to dance the night away, dutifully following the Path that has been laid out for her. She does not intend to stray.

But try as she might, Aislynn has never quite managed to control the magic that burns within her—magic brought on by wicked, terrible desires that threaten the Path she has vowed to take.

After all, it is wrong to want what you do not need. Isn't it?

About the Author

Elissa Sussman received her BA from Sarah Lawrence College and in a previous life managed animators and organized spreadsheets at some of the best animation studios in the world, including Nickelodeon, Disney, DreamWorks, and Sony Imageworks. You can find her name in the credits of The Croods, Hotel Transylvania, The Princess and the Frog, and Tangled. She lives in Los Angeles with her boyfriend and their rescue dog, Basil. Stray is her first novel.