Bargain Ebook: Roses by G. R. Mannering on Sale for $1.99

Roses by G. R. Mannering is another surprise bargain ebook today. It was closer to $10 and is now $1.99 for a short time.

This is a Beauty and the Beast retelling, catnip for so many us, yes?

Book description:

"As the gates clicked shut behind them, she heard the distant roar of a beast."

She bears no name. Her silvery appearance is freakish to the numerous inhabitants of Sago, the cosmopolitan capital of Pevorocco in a fantasy realm. With her mother vanishing at the instance of her birth, she is regrettably sent to live with the nouveau riche Ma Dane, where she is punished daily for something, though she knows not what. Tauntingly named Beauty, she flees Sago in a violent uprising that sets out to massacre all Magics and journeys to the furthest point of the country.

But Beauty cannot hide in the grassy Hillands forever. Before long, the State officials find her and threaten to take her back to war-torn Sago where death surely awaits. In a midnight blizzard she escapes them, running into a deep, enchanted forest to a great and terrible beast who will bargain for her life. But can Beauty accept Beast? Eternity is a long time.

G. R. Mannering's eloquent style and creative retelling of a timeless classic illuminates the plight of Beauty and the Beast and is sure to captivate fans of Cinder, Beauty, and others.

Bargain Ebook: Waterfire Saga, Book One: Deep Blue by Jennifer Donnelly

Waterfire Saga, Book One: Deep Blue by Jennifer Donnelly is on sale for 99 cents for ebook format for a very short time. It was $9.99 before the sale and the sale may be ending today, but I don't know for sure.

In other words, don't hesitate if you want it. I didn't--it was requested by one of the teenagers in my life, so she lucked out and now gets to read it on her Kindle.

Book description:

Deep in the ocean, in a world not so different from our own, live the merpeople. Their communities are spread throughout the oceans, seas, and freshwaters all over the globe. When Serafina, a mermaid of the Mediterranean Sea, awakens on the morning of her betrothal, her biggest worry should be winning the love of handsome Prince Mahdi. And yet Sera finds herself haunted by strange dreams that foretell the return of an ancient evil. Her dark premonitions are confirmed when an assassin's arrow poisons Sera's mother. Now, Serafina must embark on a quest to find the assassin's master and prevent a war between the Mer nations. Led only by her shadowy dreams, Sera searches for five other mermaid heroines who are scattered across the six seas. Together, they will form an unbreakable bond of sisterhood and uncover a conspiracy that threatens their world's very existence.

New Release: Tear You Apart by Sarah Cross

(US/UK Link)

Tear You Apart by Sarah Cross is released tomorrow in the US. It is also released on the same date in the UK at Tear You Apart (UK Link). This book is a companion to Cross' Kill Me Softly, which drew from multiple fairy tales, including Cinderella and Hansel and Gretel.

Book description:

If you want to live happily ever after, first you have to stay alive.

Viv knows there's no escaping her fairy-tale curse. One day her beautiful stepmother will feed her a poison apple or convince her on-again-off-again boyfriend, Henley, to hunt her down and cut out her heart before she breaks his. In the city of Beau Rivage, some princesses are destined to be prey.

But then Viv receives an invitation to the exclusive club where the Twelve Dancing Princess twirl away their nights. There she meets Jasper, an underworld prince who seems to have everything--but what he really wants is her. He vows to save her from her dark fate if she'll join him and be his queen.

All Viv has to do is tear herself away from the huntsman boy who still holds her heart. Then she might live to see if happily ever after is a promise the prince can keep. But is life as an underworld queen worth sacrificing the true love that might kill her?

New Release: Grimmtastic Girls #5: Sleeping Beauty Dreams Big

(US/UK Links)

Grimmtastic Girls #5: Sleeping Beauty Dreams Big by Joan Holub and Suzanne Williams is released this week in the US and UK. See Grimmtastic Girls #5: Sleeping Beauty Dreams Big (UK Link).

Book description:

Once upon a time, in faraway Grimmlandia . . .

Sleeping Beauty -- who just goes by her middle name, Rose -- has always been a daredevil. But according to her fairy tale, after her twelfth birthday Rose must avoid all sharp objects. That isn't easy at Grimm Academy, where enchanted items can also be dangerous. Rose will have to stay wide awake to keep out of trouble-and to find her magic charm!

Today Only: Fairy Tale and Fantasy Puzzles on Sale

You can save up to 50% on select Puzzles during Amazon's Gold Box Deal of the Day. I am sharing some of the fairy tale and fantasy related puzzles but there are several more available, hence the link to the entire sale. Once the quotas sell out, these will not be available at the sale prices. The Gold Box puzzles tend to sell out in my experience.

First up and pictured above is the Ravensburger College of Magical Knowledge - 500 Piece Puzzle which I admit I ordered myself. It is $6.99 today. I already own Sunsout Fairy Tales James Christensen 1500 Piece Jigsaw Puzzle, which is my favorite Christensen painting for obvious reasons. After all, I devoted an entire week to it five years ago this week, see Christensen's Faery Tales Week: Day 1. But the College of Magics is another favorite and with a lower piece count, this is better for the younger members of the family.

Next up is the Melissa & Doug Wooden Bear Family Dress-Up Puzzle. I intended to share this at Christmas and now it is a lower price than it ever was during the holidays. No Goldilocks here, but those are the three bears. It is $8.99 today.

Finally, my youngest niece will be turning five in a few weeks and will soon be graduating to larger puzzles. Ravensburger Castle Fantasy - 200 Piece Puzzle is for her. She is sincerely convinced she will live in a castle when she grows up. Today it is $6.49.

Fairy Tales in Advertising: Corre Cutia Bookstore: Snow White

Corre Cutia Bookstore: Nobody Resists a Good Story, Snow white

Nobody Resists a Good Story

I never get sick of the bookstore ads using fairy tales. There are several. Just search the archives here. True confessions: It is September 2014 as I prepare this for publishing and John (AKA The Hubby) walked into my office and fell in love with that Dragon below. I agree. I'd love to see a picture book from the artist, Francisco Valle.

Campaign info from Ads of the World:

Advertising Agency: Lápisraro Comunicação, Belo Horizonte, Brazil
Creative Directors: Carla Madeira, Cristina Cortez
Art Director: Francisco Valle
Copywriter: Flavio Chubes
Illustrator: Francisco Valle
Published: December 2011

Art Thursday: Beauty and the Beast by William Morris and Edward Burne-Jones

Time for Art Thursday! Today I have an offering from fairy tale favorite Edward Burne-Jones. He is best known for his Sleeping Beauties, but he collaborated with Willliam Morris to make these tiles for Beauty and the Beast. I found these on Art.com and went searching for more since the images don't entirely match the one above I found on the William Morris Gallery site. I shared some Cinderella decorative tiles several years ago that I saw in person at the Huntington Museum--and took my own pictures--but we are limited to watermarked images here.

From the William Morris Gallery:

Morris’s friend, Edward Burne-Jones, designed these tiles to go above a bedroom fireplace in the Surrey home of watercolourist Miles Birket Foster. They tell the story of Beauty and the Beast or, as it says on the scroll beneath the scenes: ‘How a Prince who by enchantment was under the form of a beast became a man again by the love of a certain maiden.’ Burne-Jones decided to make the Beast a bear when he saw a sketch by his friend, the architect Philip Webb, of a bear in London zoo.

The tiles were a collaborative effort: Morris designed the blue-and-white ‘swan’ tiles that form the borders, and Lucy Faulkner, sister of one of Morris’s business partners, did the painting. Burne-Jones also designed tiles illustrating Sleeping Beauty and Cinderella for other bedrooms in Birket Foster’s house (now in the V&A in London, and the Walker Art Gallery in Liverpool).

An International Seminar on Fairy-tale Therapy Schedule Available

An International Seminar on Fairy-tale Therapy

10-13 March 2015, Hotel Tivoli Sintra, Portugal

It is with great pleasure that we send the preliminary programme of I International Seminar on Fairy-tale Therapy to be held from 10th till 13th of March 2015 in Sintra. This Seminar aims to highlight and delve more deeply into Fairy-tale Therapy, a method gaining more and more recognition worldwide. Sintra will be a stage for exchanging experiences, ideas, research, points of view and of inspiration.

We do hope the our Seminar will deserve your interest and you will join us in Portugal!

With kindest regards,

Adriana Jurczyk Duarte
Organizing Comittee
Moonluza, Unipessoal, Lda.

You can read about the seminar on the official website.

I have also uploaded PDFs for the programme and info on the workshops and speakers for your convenience:

Seminar on Fairy-Tale Therapy Programme

Seminar on Fairy-Tale Therapy Workshops

Seminar on Fairy-Tale Therapy Speakers

Wish the SurLaLune coffers could afford a trip to Portugal! It's in my top ten list of places I want to explore next. I unexpectedly fell in love with Spain when I was there in 2008 and it is the hubby's top choice for that dream retirement location. (My list is too long to contemplate--I don't want to settle down then, I want to explore.) I now have every expectation to fall in love with Portugal someday, too.

Bargain Ebook: Wonders of the Invisible World by Patricia A. McKillip for $1.99 TODAY ONLY

Wonders of the Invisible World by Patricia A. McKillip is $1.99 today only in ebook format as a Kindle Daily Deal. This is a collection of McKillip's short stories, gathered from previously published sources. While McKillip usually lets folklore and fairy tales influence her work, some of the stories are specifically fairy tale and folklore driven, like "Twelve Dancing Princesses" and "Undine."

This was on sale previously last May, but is usually in the $10 range.

One Amazon review by Arthur W. Jordin provides an excellent summary of the table of contents:

"Introduction" (2012) by Charles de Lint describes his experiences with the author.

- "Wonders of the Invisible World" (Full Spectrum, 1995) takes a researcher to meet and record fanatics.

- "Out of the Woods" (Flights, 2004) follows a woman who becomes aware of faery.

- "The Kelpie" (The Fair Folk, 2005) draws a talented -- but self-centered -- artist into one final imposition.

- "Hunter's Moon" (Green Man Tales, 2002) exposes the Chase family to a surprise.

- "Oak Hill" (The Essential Borderlands, 1998) teaches a girl that her mother is right.

- "The Fortune Teller" (The Coyote Road, 2007) convinces a thief to change her ways.

- "Jack O'Lantern" (Firebirds Rising, 2006) presents questions on the nature of fox fire.

- "Knight of the Well" (Book of Wizards, 2012) brings a knight to Luminum for the dedication of a foundation.

- "Naming Day" (Wizards, 2007) takes a young magician out chasing an imp on her special day.

- "Byndley" (Firebirds, 2003) returns a wizard to the boundaries of Faery with a task.

- "The Twelve Dancing Princesses" (Wolf at the Door, 2000) solves a problem for the king.

- "Undine" (Faery Reel, 2004) inserts a water sprite into an ecological conflict.

- "Xmas Cruise" (Christmas Forever, 1993) involves two couples in an ecology themed cruise to Antarctic waters.

- "A Gift To Be Simple" (Not of Woman Born, 1999) divulges the innovative way a Shaker community recovers their energy.

- "The Old Woman and the Storm" (Imaginary Lands, 1990) traces the thoughts of a man taking a walk.

- "The Doorkeeper of Khaat" (Full Spectrum, 1990) concerns a man looking for a means to relieve his father's pain.

- "What Inspires Me" (2004) is the Guest of Honor Speech at WinCon 28. It spends most of the time answering another question.

New Book: A Bean, a Stalk and a Boy Named Jack by William Joyce and Kenny Callicutt

(US/UK Links)

A Bean, a Stalk and a Boy Named Jack by William Joyce (Author, Illustrator) and Kenny Callicutt (Illustrator) was released late last year. It's also available in the UK, see A Bean, a Stalk and a Boy Named Jack (UK Link). I've always enjoyed Joyce's sleek retro illustration style, so this is a fun one for me. The reviews are really strong on this one--the UK link's star rating is glitched--there are several 5 star ratings and 1 single star for an audio version that didn't work for someone and it is overriding all of the others. I saw this in the bookstore during the holidays and found it quite charming.

Book description:

When a king’s pinky grows stinky, it is up to a smallish boy and a smallish pea to come up with a GIANT plan to save the kingdom—a fractured fairy tale from William Joyce and Moonbot Studios, the masterminds who brought you The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore.

You might think you know the story of Jack and the Beanstalk, but you might want to think again. In this fairy tale with a twist, it hasn’t rained in days and the king has dictated that something must be done—his royal pinky is getting stinky! With a little magic from a wizard, young Jack, paired with his pea pod pal, will find a GIANT reason as to why there’s no water left in the kingdom...and prove that size doesn’t prevent anyone from doing something BIG.

You can click on these images to see them larger, too.