So this is Ever After, by F. T. Lukens (Audible, narrated by Kevin R. Free)

[Ulysses]

So This is Ever After (Audible)
By F.T. Lukens
Narrated by Kevin R. Free
Four stars

A funny and fresh LGBTQ spin on the fairytale story, “So This is Ever After” starts where most stories end. We enter at the moment seventeen-year-old Arek beheads the Evil One, a dark magician who has ruled over his home kingdom of Eyr in the Realm of Chickpea since before he was born.

Apparently, on Arek’s seventeenth birthday, a drunken old man delivered a prophecy naming Arek as “the chosen one,” who would overthrow the evil king. Arek and his best friend Matt set out on their quest, picking up four more plucky young people along the way.

What they don’t expect is that, when their quest is done, they can’t just leave.

Arek is sweetly bisexual and has a lifelong crush on his best friend. We know this from the start, and the author keeps us on the edge of our seats till the very end to find out if true love will win out. I confess that the typical teen lack-of-communication is extremely frustrating (for everybody); but the author keeps the tone light, the story’s verbiage uncannily like that of actual teenagers (I’ve been one and raised two, so I know). These kids – Arek, Matt, Ryan, Bethany, Shawna, and Lila – were just out to seek adventure and get away from lives that were less than perfect. They end up having to face adulthood, and, well, run a kingdom. They end up being a team.

Kevin R. Free is a wonderful narrator, catching the voice and personality of each character, and making Arek the lovable lunkhead farmboy who finds himself suddenly king. This is a fairytale made relevant without losing the sense of wonder and absurdity that makes it so familiar.