Hey, all! Today, I’m here with the recently released anthology (which contains two new stories from the incredible and thought-provoking Ke...

Review: The Clarion Call, Vol. 4: Fairytale Riot: All-You-Can-Read Fairy Tale Retellings

Alexa Mintah

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Hey, all! Today, I’m here with the recently released anthology (which contains two new stories from the incredible and thought-provoking Keturah Lamb!!), The Clarion Call, Vol 4: Fairytale Riot.

Purchase Link

Description from Publisher’s Website:

In this fourth volume of The Clarion Call, twenty-seven authors capture and retell the stories of our shared past – the fables we are told as children, the lore that continues to guide us through adulthood.

Within this collection of liberty-themed folklore, fables, and fairytales, these short stories:

Grow beyond the bounds of their first tellers, gaining in wisdom and power;

Break free from the borders of their homelands, crossing deserts, forests, mountains, and seas;

Evolve to challenge the mores and moods of this age—

While maintaining the timeless and enduring charm, insight, and guidance that made them classics.

All the stories in this book are so vastly different: there are fantasies with fates and fairies, magic and pixies. There are contemporaries, set in the dangers of an Alaskan winter or current Washington politics. There are action-packed paranormal plots and a story where the entire tale takes place within a shopping mall. Some of the lessons were rather heavy-handed; others were so subtle, I barely realized it was meant to be about politics or philosophy. While I did not enjoy all of the stories, there is such a variety of retellings here that it seems one should be able to find quite a few to love no matter what your preference is.  

A few of my favorites:

• Ashley by Lynne Lumden Green: less of a lesson in this one, but the premise was quite unexpected and an amusing take on the Cinderella tale. I liked it, especially the ending!  
• The Piper’s Last Song by Keturah Lamb: I got chills. Again, how the story turned out was totally unexpected, but it was still so good! The premise drew me in right quick, and towards the end, I was all tense, hunched over my kindle, devouring the words to finally uncover what would happen at the end. Amazing.
• The Bremen Town Musicians by John M. Olsen: this one was just super cool! Exciting and gripping, you’re immediately interested in the characters, and it was just so neat to follow them on their impromptu spy mission. Unexpected (that seems to be a theme for these, lol), but super fun to see the surprising skills this motley, accidental crew possessed.
• The Fairy Mothers by DonnaRae Menard: Too cute!! I adored!
• Frogs by Marie Anderson: The ending was not part of the deal, lol, but the main character was 100% relatable for me.
• The Big Bad Elephant by Andrew Bundy: Probably my favorite. I laughed out loud, this one was so clever, creative, and absolutely hysterical.
• Artie the Millenial by Alexandra Faye Carrich: HIT ME RIGHT IN THE HEART I TELL YOU. I loved the Medieval references, I loved Merlin as a preteen, I loved Arthur as a lost twenty-something, just GOODNESS THIS WHOLE STORY. The quick character journey, the interaction between the brothers, gosh, it was adorable. And super funny too!
• Prince Perfect by Keturah Lamb: Interesting, amusing, and full of her classic tongue-in-cheek sarcasm with that vital point.

So, what do you guys think of the anthology so far? Which kind of story do you think you'd be most interested in? Head over to Keturah’s blog and give her a hearty congratulations if you haven’t already! Can’t wait to hear from you all, and I will see you in the comment section!

Content Warnings: varied: some stories were completely clean, others contained quite a bit of language and/or violence.

Note: I honestly and voluntarily reviewed a free ecopy of this book.

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