Godmother: The Secret Cinderella Story by Carolyn Turgeon

What if the story we’ve all come to learn and love about Cinderella were not exactly true? What if our vision of the fairy godmother - all plump and rosy - was not accurate?

The story switches back and forth between present day New York and the days leading up to that fateful night where Lil (the Fairy Godmother) is to have Cinderella appear at the ball and have her prince fall madly in love with her, have plenty of children and live happily ever after. At least, that is what was supposed to happen. Lil had no idea that she would fall in love with the prince herself and usurp Cinderella’s place in the prince’s heart.

Lil is now an elderly woman living in New York, struggling to make ends meet, working at a local bookstore. She has been outcasted by her fairy-kin and has struggled to make a living as a human for years. One day at work she meets Victoria (a cool hairdresser with an old soul) and feels a connection with her. And when her boss, George, tells her that he needs a date for a charity ball that he is attending... Lil finds that these similarities could just be the opportunity that she has been waiting for in order to redeem herself.

Although I did not feel much of a connection with Lil, I felt I could relate much more with Victoria. I became intrigued a couple of chapters in and read this very quickly. Ms. Turgeon does a magnificent job describing Lil’s feelings (from falling in love to the depressive state she lives in while residing in NY). I found myself looking forward to the chapters on Cinderella and was surprised by the turns the story took. I really have to say that the ending took me by surprise and, call me cynical, but it somehow worked for me. It was sad, touching, and truly a unique story.

I picked this up thinking that it would be a light, fluffy read about one of my favorite fairytales. Boy was I mistaken. There was surprisingly nothing light in this tale - but don’t let that deter you from reading this darker (somewhat morbid) version of the classic fairytale.