Genre: Fairy Tales
LGBTQ+ Category: Gay
Reviewer: Madison Davis, Paranormal Romance Guild
Get It On Amazon
About The Book
What really happened when Theseus met the Minotaur? How did demon-slaying Momotarō come to be raised by two daddies? Will Scheherazade’s hapless Ma’aruf ever find love and prosperity after his freeloading boyfriend kicks him out on the street? Classic lore gets a bold remodeling with stories from light-hearted and absurd, earnestly romantic, daring and adventurous, to darkly surreal.
The collection includes: Theseus and the Minotaur, Károly, Who Kept a Secret, The Peach Boy, The Vain Prince, The Jaguar of the Backward Glance, Ma’aruf the Street Vendor, and A Rabbit Grows in Brooklyn.
Award-winning fantasy author Andrew J. Peters (The City of Seven Gods) takes on classical mythology, Hungarian folklore, Japanese legend, The Arabian Nights, and more, in a collection of gayly subverted stories from around the world.
The Review
I’m not the biggest fan of short-story-or novelette-collections. It’s not because I don’t think they can be great entertaining stories, but I love to dive into a book and story and dwell. However, Andrew J. Peters’ Slashed & Mashed book is a wild fairy tale mix of stories that go from mythology to Grimm’s tales, to the Japanese saga of ‘The Peach Boy.’ Another fairy tale story was ‘The Vain Prince,’ which I found a bit odd, and it was on the bottom of my favorite list, but still, there was sensitive darkness to it, the way Andrew Peters used the characters and mixed them up with something new, goth-like. I didn’t love it, but I was still fascinated.
The Jaguar of Backward Glance was another story that took me in and held my full attention. I enjoyed the story, even though I admit, I had to read several passages more than once. The play with words, the descriptions, It was, once again, an intriguing mix of fascination and horror.
‘Ma’aruf the Street Vendor’ was another story that held my fascination, but that one, only for a while. The story of a refugee from Africa in New York caught me at first, but then, for some reason, my interest ceased. That has nothing to do with the author; his writing was as virtuous as it was at the beginning. Maybe I got a particular dislike for the character.
My second favorite was definitely ‘Karoly, who held a secret,’ a well-written fairy tale, set up in the old Magyar country (Hungary), where a poor boy founds his way to wealth and happiness.
And, without a doubt, my favorite story, Andrew Peters’ interpretation of Theseus and the Minotaur, a fresh, exciting, thrilling version of the old saga.
Andrew Peters’ quill has penned an enjoyable, impressive, and magnificent collection of stories, fairy tales, and sagas, new interpreted, re-written, and skillfully interwoven with the gay love-interests of the respective protagonists of each story. The author delivered a masterful demonstration of his craftsmanship.
The Reviewer
Madison Davis is a fantasy and paranormal romance author. She also works as a graphic designer and business strategy consultant. But her dream is to become a full-time writer. She enjoys the support of her friends and family and loves reading, traveling, and dancing. Madison lives in the South East with her husband, three cats, and a Rottweiler.
The Paranormal Romance Guild was established in 2009 by 8 Indie Authors and one Reviewer to be a constant help for authors. You can be a free author member, submitting your work for review OR become a Premium Author Member for a small yearly fee and enjoy many extra services including Free Beta Reads, Author Giveaways and many others. Your reviews are posted on our 3 FB Sites, Amazon, Goodreads, Twitter and Instagram. WE REVIEW ALL GENRES LGBTQ+ welcome.
Check out our website: https://www.paranormalromanceguild.com/
