Are you ready for a Snow White retelling? If so, then dive
in to BEGUILED, the second book of my Fairest Maidens series! It’s now available in both paperback and
ebook!
To be honest, Snow White is one of my least favorite fairy tales, particularly the Disney version, mainly because the romance feels underdeveloped. After all, Snow White barely meets the prince at the beginning and then doesn’t see him again until he gives her true love’s kiss at the end.
The brief interactions just aren’t enough. Their relationship is too shallow. I never understand why they like each other and what qualities draw them together. They don’t have enough time together to get to know each other much less fall in love. And at the end, I’m left feeling like the prince is attracted to her primarily because of her beauty.
So, in rethinking the Snow White story, I wanted to give the hero and heroine plenty of time to get to know each other, develop a friendship, and learn to appreciate each other’s inner qualities more than the outer.
Here’s what a few readers said about how those things play out in BEGUILED:
Friendship: “Romantic novels that include a solid foundation of friendship between the two main characters are elevated stories in my eyes, and Pearl and Mikkel’s friendship is strong and deep.”
Friendship: “The notion that you should marry your best friend is very appealing to me and so the fact that Mikkel and Pearl are friends first then later become romantically interested in each other is very sweet and fulfilling.”
Beauty: “I loved the underlying message that the beauty on the inside of a person is what truly matters and not outward appearances.”
Beauty: “The theme of looking past outward appearances and finding a person’s worth in their heart and character is both timeless and timely. Pearl’s hope that her veil would cause others to love her for her heart and not her beauty, and Mikkel’s growing hope to see her as she was, even though he expected her to be scarred or damaged, were beautifully portrayed.”
I invite you to give this retelling of Snow White a try! To find out more about BEGUILED head over to my website page here: http://jodyhedlund.com/books/beguiled/
