The Evil Queen (The Forest of Good and Evil, #1)

by Gena Showalter

Seconds later, I lost my virginity. And maybe my heart, too.

“You are not Annica. You are Everly, my sweetling.”

Awww

“I want you to cling to me, sweetling, and never let go. Because I’ll be doing the same to you.”

I loved his strength. His wit. His intensity. Loved that we were both like pieces of the same puzzle and somehow fit together perfectly. Even when he’d hated me, he’d treated me well.

The reason none of us had figured out the one character we were supposed to be was because...we weren’t just one character. We had the potential to be any character we wanted to be. The sweet Snow White. The jealous Evil Queen. The conflicted Huntsman. The protective Dwarfs. Every day, our choices decided who and what we would be. Here, now, Farrah acted the part of Evil Queen. When Violet had tried to kill me, she’d played the part of Evil Queen, too. When Roth had judged me for my parentage, he had been the Evil Queen. At some point or another, evil had worn each of our faces.

But she did leave me. She had no pulse. No life. No future. No new beginning. For Hartly, death had been literal.

For most of my life, I’d had a single job: protect Hartly. I’d failed her today. I’d failed Aubrey, too.

As long as she remains in the troll dimension, she doesn’t just survive. She thrives.

My precious sister had exited to save me. Which meant she’d come to Enchantia to die. Which meant she would still be alive if I’d decided to stay home.

Mirror, mirror, on the wall. Who will perish when I call?

A truth I’d learned: love without strength equaled misery. Strength equaled security.

“Every hero is a villain, and every villain is a hero. It just depends on who you ask.”

Prophecy was fairy tale, and fairy tale was prophecy. While some parts were literal, other parts were symbolic. Oh, how I prayed my death and her victory were symbolic.

You are the one I crave more than breath, Everly.”

Everything always came back to strength.

“Evil isn’t born, it’s made. One thought and action at a time.”

“Take a good look at what you’ve made.”

“What you love, he plans to take. What you protect, he hopes to destroy.”

Time wasn’t what healed all wounds—love was. Love mended broken hearts.

“Every minute of every day is a test. With your actions, you prove who you are,”