Not That Fairytale - Michele Amitrani - ★★★★.½

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AUTHOR: Michele Amitrani
GENRE: Fairy Tale Retelling
PUBLICATION DATE: March 24, 2020
RATING: 4.5 stars.

I've tried many fairy tale retellings but this has to be among the darkest and quaintest! While most retellings choose the same protagonist and change the setting or vice versa, here we have a change in both. The story comes to us from the point of view of Red Riding Hood's grandmother and how she and her granddaughter try to escape from the wolf's stomach after being swallowed whole.

I loved the dark twist that the author incorporated in the original version. The entire back story he creates for the grandmother is amazing. I'll never look at her the same way again! 😄

This isn't my first Michele Amitrani book. I've read two of his mythological retellings earlier and loved them both. But it is because of this book that I discovered an astounding fact: his first language is Italian, he has never studied English formally, and has grasped the language only through reading and writing. I must appreciate the hard work he has put into this because in none of the three books was I able to detect any grammatical or spelling or usage error. To write in a language that isn't your primary thinking language is an admirable task, deserving an extra half star. And that's why this short story gets a 4.5 from me. Its ending is a bit abrupt, but considering that it has a sequel, this might have been a deliberate choice.

If you are interested in this novella, it is available for free on the author's website.

Once you enjoy this, don't forget to check out the sequel: 'Darker Than Night.'

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