Nerdy Werewolf

Fairest, Volume 2: The Hidden Kingdom by Lauren Beukes My rating: 3 of 5 stars "You can't see the path in front of you. Only the one behind. You need to own it. Seize the future with both hands and eyes wide open." This story features an agony-torn Rapunzel in the search for her lost children that people have been trying to convince her are fictional for years. Switching back and forth between a modern, present-day timeline and flashbacks from feudal Japan, this story features many yokai, including kappas, kirin, tengu and tanuki. We also get Frau Totenkinder (the wicked witch from both the Rapunzel and Hansel & Gretel stories), a kitsune with hidden foxfire named Tokomo, Jack of the Fables universe, Mayumi, the slit-mouthed woman, and a whole lot of war. At the end, there's a short featuring Reynard the Fox at the Farm and a pretty Dryad named Princess Alder. Then, it ties into the Fables story in a really big way! View all my reviews...

Fairest, Volume 1: Wide Awake by Bill Willingham My rating: 4 of 5 stars Original Review January 2013: It's like the 'Gotham City Sirens' of the Fables universe. Loved it. Re-Read July 2018: "Okay, help me out here. I'm running out of metaphors for crafty skulduggery." It was just as much fun to read the second time around. I love Bill Willingham's take on fairy tales. This particular volume ties a vulgar 'bottle imp' (aka Jonah), Sleeping Beauty (aka Briar Rose), the Evil Fairy (aka Hadeon the Destroyer), the Snow Queen (aka Lumi) and the legendary Ali Baba together in a new story following all of their previous original endings. After that, we get a nice little short set in the 40s featuring a noir-ish take on Beauty & the Beast in which Beast is a classic gumshoes on the case of a mysterious murdering woman. Genius. View all my reviews