Under Your Spell: A Fairytale Retelling Anthology

by Zara M. Baily, Rebecca Conrad, Callie Fletcher

Your favorite fairy tales … with a twist. What happens when you can’t choose between Prince Charming and the Dragon? What if Goldilocks really wanted to stay? Was the Big Bad Wolf really that bad?

Thirteen titillating stories from USA Today best-selling and award-winning romance authors in a spicy collection curated by The New Romance Café. HEA guaranteed.
Authors:
Sofia Aves & Dove Priest, Rebecca Conrad, Chele MacCabe, Regan Rayne, Hannah McKee, K. Rea, Alyssa Lynn, Lara Herrera, Alexa Santi, Sofia Hahn, Callie Fletcher, Mikayla Rand, Zara M Baily, CC Lizabeth

Genres: Anthologies, Romance

1361 pages, Kindle Edition

Published October 4, 2022

About the author

Zara M Baily writes multicultural romance short stories that are erotic, paranormal, fantasy, and perhaps someday, historical. One thing is for certain: Zara doesn’t do, and won’t ever do, sweet. Or clean. Her sexytimes may be dirty at times, but they’re always, always consensual and responsible.

Zara is a Capricorn, confident and powerful. Her favorite outfit is a flirty sundress paired with cute sandals and a coordinating hat. Her favorite place depends upon where her characters are in her stories. Right now, it's Laguna, Philippines.

Reviews

[april ♡ probably reading smut - safety reviews]

I love fairytale retellings! ♡

I really wish some of these stated which fairytale it is... some are confusing lmao. Full review to come.

Impossible Tasks by Alexa Santi

Cinders by K. Rea Cinderella

The Vanity of Devils by Mikayla Rand "When the Devil Lived on St. Charles Avenue"

The Mango Tree by S.C. Principale

The Dragon Scale Princess by Cc Lizabeth The Paper Bag Princess

His Crimson Moon by Niki Trento Little Red Riding Hood

Grin and Bear It by Lara Herrera Goldilocks and the Three Bears

Golden Dreams and Unsettled Things by Colla Triti

Submissive Snow by Mia Z Staysails Snow White

The Robin’s Hood by Hannah McKee Robin Hood

A Dream So Lovely by Rebecca Conrad Sleeping Beauty

Arousing Beauty by Lily Kindall

Run to You by Chele MacCabe

The Dragon’s Pearl by Kat Parrish

Rose and Thorn by Sophia Hahn

Sweet Taboo by Zara M Baily Hansel and Gretel

[Jenni · Rating 5 out of 5]

A smashing collection of 13 fairy tale retelling that will captivate you imagination and beyond. A great selection of tales and authors, a good way to try out an authors style.

I received a free copy of this book via Sofia's Cowboy Romance Lovers and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[XxLaVampiresaAlexisxX · Rating 4 out of 5]

My review is for His Crimson Moon by Niki Trento
⭐⭐⭐⭐/5

What an excellent start to this new book. This was a fast paced, easy to read and follow. This was actually my first story by Niki Trento and definitely was hooked from the very beginning. It was a refreshing take on fated mates. We have a human male and alpha female instead of the normal formula. I am excited to continue this series.

[Kathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This anthology is a good read. There are 13 stories in this anthology. I didn’t read all of them but I read about half. These stories are new takes on fairy tales everyone has heard and some I haven’t. There is one for Cinderella, Snow White, Red Riding Hood, Robin Hood, Goldie locks, and more. These new takes were interesting. Some were set in modern times and some in the original time of the fairy tale. I think my favorite was the Goldie Locks retelling. I hadn’t read anything by any of these authors before. I look forward to reading more books by them in the future.

[Linda Whitacre · Rating 4 out of 5]

This mix of stories is for you if you LOVE altered fairy tales, demons & devils, succubus, witches and warlocks, and cuddly shifters. Most of the stories are complicated and dark and they are NOT quick reads. A few I especially liked are: Impossible Tasks-- is full of magic. In a bold move, Lady Mirade of Mochain kidnaps her enemy, Lord Sorcerer Lorien of Clan Brodhan. This is an interesting story with a strong female who steps up to the plate. Ends happily! Vanity of Devils-- Is very dark. An evil being is viciously murdering innocents. It must be stopped. Fallen angels and a low-level undercover demon take on the mission. Grin & Bear It-- is a sweet take on Goldilocks & the 3 bears. Bear shifter Barrett is a big lovable guy and he fell in love with a lady who has a past she is running from. Kim just wants to be safe. Sweet story! Cinders-- WOW! this is a complicated take on Cinderella. Vera (Cinder) just wants to run her family Tavern but her VERY EVIL murdering stepmother is constantly pulling her evil pranks. Stepmom is OTHER in a very bad way and the strangers who frequent the tavern, are not who they appear to be either. A Good story with some shocks and surprises. I received a free advanced copy of this anthology from Booksprout and this is my honest opinion of the book. Linda

[ButtonsMom2003 · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've only read one of the stories in this anthology so my rating and review is based only on Sweet Taboo by Zara M Baily.

I'm not usually a fan of taboo stories but this one was very good and I'd call it "pseudo taboo," not taboo. Ansel's and Ginger's families were very close and the two of them grew up together. It wasn't until after they were 18 that they became step-siblings.

This story is about so much more than a taboo relationship. I wasn't really expecting the twists this story took more than once and the one at the end really caught me by surprise. This was a really good short read and I enjoyed it a lot.

[Louise · Rating 2 out of 5]

The stories in this book are for very mature adults since they are erotic versions of well-known and lesser known fairy tales. These include Snow White, Sleeping Beauty, and Little Red Riding Hood, as well as When The Devil Lived on Charles Avenue and The Paper Bag Princess. I do not know which fairy tales inspired Impossible Tasks, Golden Dreams and Unsettled Things, Run To You, and Rose and Thorn.

These short stories are beautifully written, some written in a fantasy setting - such as Impossible Tasks and His Crimson Moon - while others are set in modern times - such as The Vanity of Devils and Run To You. The romance is very strong and at times unnecessary, such as in His Crimson Moon. I liked the premise of A Dream So Lovely so expected a story revolving around many dreams as opposed to just the one.


I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and Sofia's Cowboy Romance Lovers, and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[DeeDeeWReads · Rating 5 out of 5]

My review today is for Rose and Thorn by Sophia Hahn. A fairy retelling that will grab you by the heart and squeeze. I really enjoyed the plot twists of this one, the hmm moments, but most of all, the HEA of some characters leave you knowing love wins out... Most of the time.

I can't wait to continue through these stories and come back to share my thoughts on more of them real soon.

I received a free copy of this book via Sofia's Cowboy Romance Lovers and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Sassy Southern Book Blog · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you enjoy a good fairy tale then this collection is for you. This book contains 13 retellings filled with lots of twists. Some of the classics are here as well as some new to me stories. The settings are also varied, with some happening in current times and others set in the past. All of these authors were new to me and it was fun to see how they took the stories and made them their own.

By Alisa

[Listen with Precious · Rating 3 out of 5]

⚠️ Have only read impossible task!

H: Lorien h: Mirade A story between siblings could be expected upon 🤔 The night before he was to leave… Wish their were more interactions beforehand… Not sure how the entire anthology is… ⚠️ rating for just this story. But can’t rate until I say I read it 🤷🏽‍♀️

CW: kidnapping, captivity, imprisoned, feud

All new reads will be blogged 😉, found at https://listenwirhprecious.com/blog-p... https://listenwirhprecious.com/ but you already know that 😏😂😇

[Zenobia Neil · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've only read Impossible Tasks, which has a great magical world with two waring clans. I love enemies to lovers and despite-all-odds romance. I also love that the Lady Mirade captures her enemy to force him to teach her magic. They develop a great dynamic and share some very spicy magical dreams. It's a sweet at times sexy story and compelling read. I look forward to reading the rest of the anthology.

[Fran · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great anthology. Lots of stories, total 13 and some very good. I liked them all, but one was quite short. Great retelling of some fairytales I'm glad I didn't read when I was little. Not everyone will like it but you should at least try the book. Enjoyable read.

I received a free copy of this book via Sofia's Cowboy Romance Lovers and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Christinaraven · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoy fairytales and these twists on the original were rather fun and interesting to read. A lot more action, danger, intrigue and surprises were found along with twists and interesting characters to enjoy. Hard to pick one and enjoyed finding new authors to enjoy. Some very interesting twits found here. I find it hard to pick one that I liked the best as all had something fun about them.

[Merry Jelks-Emmanuel · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love fairytale retellings and this collection has sixteen stories that are amazing. I have read several of them and found them to be captivating and keeps close to the story line but with an adult liking.

I received a free copy of this book via Sofia's Cowboy Romance Lovers and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Leah]

I, like a lot of people, am a sucker for fairytale retellings. This was a good anthology. I don't know if the stories were new for the authors but they were all new to me. It felt like a good variety of tales and characters were included.


I received a free copy of this book via Sofia's Cowboy Romance Lovers and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[CJ · Rating 5 out of 5]

These amazing authors have come together to bring us a wonderful selection of stories. This collection will change the way you think about Fairytales.

I received a free copy of this book via Sofia's Cowboy Romance Lovers and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Maida · Rating 5 out of 5]

fantastic collection

A great mix of fairytale retellings. Some are unique takes on beloved stories.

The paperback of this is one of the best formatted books I’ve ever read. A collector’s item I’m proud to display in my home library.

[Vicky Coughlan · Rating 3 out of 5]

The problem with a multi author/multi stories book is that they’re not all at the same level. Thus my 3 stars. Some of the stories were really good, some were ok, and a few were really bad. So, the 3 star average rating.

[Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

I haven't read the entire anthology, but I loved the stories I've read so far. A few of my favorites were Impossible Tasks by Alexa Santi, The Vanity of Devils by Mikayla Rand, and The Mango Tree by S.C. Princapale.

[Jenny Tallent · Rating 5 out of 5]

Creative take on long loved folklore and fairytales is always exciting! I especially enjoyed Hannah McKee’s version of Robin Hood. This collection with its many authors is just delicious! Looking forward to reading more stories. Check out a modern fantasy for children called Unicorns Hate Cupcakes. Another delightful read from Hannah McKee. Thanks

[~TheBlasian~ · Rating 3 out of 5]

Decent anthology.

Honestly the only one I really liked was The Vanity of Devils by Mikayla Rand.

I’m in an RH mood, and this story hit the spot. It features an undercover lesser demon cop who attracts two powerful angels, her boss and his head of security.