No Happily Ever After (The Fairytale Diaries #1)

by Amanda Gatton

  * The only person who is ever kind to him is his mother

  * He goes to live with the Dark family (foster mother) who also give him cruel treatment, just like the old woman and her jerky pets in the original tale

  * He runs away on his own

  * In the original tale, he sees a flock of beautiful swans and throws himself on their mercy, just as he meets the beautiful circus performers who rescue him from his ill fate

  Section Eight: Adrift (The Little Mermaid)

  * Jennifer's last name is "Tide," which of course, refers to the ocean in Little Mermaid

  * She lives with a grandma and five sisters in both the original tale and mine, as well as a "king" for a father

  * Grandma has an ear piercing rite of passage ritual, as in the original tale where her fins are pierced with jewelry

  * Jennifer loves a boy named Eric, which is a nod to the Disney telling of Little Mermaid

  * In the original story, the little mermaid is suicidal over her prince marrying someone else. Similarly, in my tale Jennifer becomes suicidal because she cannot have him, since he has disappeared

  Section Nine: Lost (Hansel and Gretel)

  * The names "Hanley and Giselle" closely relate to the names Hansel and Gretel, and the characters are twin siblings

  * Their stepmother is an abusive witch who tries to get rid of them by sending them alone into the woods

  * In the end, Giselle cuts Mrs. Bar's throat, just as she sliced off the head of their evil witch captor in the original tale

  Section Ten: Coat of Many Colors (The Pied Piper)

  * The Pied Piper wears a coat of many colors, as does my character, Detective Piper

  * In both tellings, the character plays a magical flute

  * In both tellings, the character is drafted to rescue children from a plague on the town. In the case of my tale, the plague is a family of psychopathic serial killers

  * In both tellings, the town stiffs the character after he performs the job he says he'll do, so he recaptures the children. In my telling he is unsuccessful in killing them, whereas in the original tale he murders them

  Part Eleven: Spinning (Rumpelstiltskin)

  * Benjamin Bar, who also plays the part of Baby Bear from Goldilocks, plays the role of Rumpelstiltskin here, he is a childish, impish weirdo

  * In the original tale he makes a princess spin straw into gold all night long. In my telling, he makes Ella Cinder spin in circles until she vomits

  * In both tellings, the character plays senseless games with his victim/s

  * In the original tale, he throws a violent tantrum in which he breaks in half from stomping his feet so hard. In my telling, he breaks his leg from stomping his feet, and then one of his captives rips his face practically in half

  Amanda Gatton is an Ohio author of young adult suspenseful fiction. She spends her time with husband Adam (the guitar player), son Jacob (the inquisitive), daughter Carmen (the jokester), and Sophie (the moody cat.) In addition to writing, Amanda loves art, singing, bicycle riding, and sunshine.

  Gatton also writes adult fiction under the pen name M Jet.

  About the Artwork

  All the artwork for this book was created by the author, Amanda Gatton. Gatton is a mixed media artist and graphic designer. Coloring pages of some of the artworks accompanying each section can be printed from Amanda's website. "The Fairytale Diaries Art Journal" is also available on Amazon. The digital coloring book can also be obtained free of charge by subscribing to Gatton's newsletter. In addition, you can find art prints of Amanda Gatton's for sale on Art Pal and Deviantart.

  For More of Amanda Gatton's colorful and fanciful arts follow here:

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