Ten Thousand Stitches

Atwater’s second Regency Faerie Tales fantasy (after Half a Soul) puts a sweet, humorous spin on “Cinderella.” Housemaid Euphemia “Effie” Reeves dreams of marrying Benedict Ashbrooke, the youngest adult son of the family for whom she works. Helping Effie to achieve this goal is a faerie named Juniper Jubilee, lord of the faerie forest of Blackthorn. Drawn in by Effie’s righteous anger and magnificent stitchwork, he decides to make her the subject of his own quest to be “kind to the powerless and cruel to the powerful.” Though Effie fears the worst in accepting deals with a faerie, the results of Juniper’s offers to help are mostly humorous misadventures, as when every attendee at a ball separately and unexpectedly turns to Effie for advice due to her magical gown. Meanwhile, Juniper’s persistent kindness and joy awakens Effie to the true unfairness of the power dynamics surrounding her life. Though the ending is a bit too tidy, the powerful message about wielding anger in response to abuses of power is well explored and all the misguided magic brings plenty of fun. New readers and Atwater fans alike are sure to enjoy this egalitarian twist on the classic tale. (July)