The Fairy Tale Fixers: Cinderella - Deborah Underwood - ★★★★.½

AUTHOR: Deborah Underwood

ILLUSTRATOR: Jorge Lacera

SERIES: Fairy Tale Fixers, #1

GENRE: Middle-grade Graphic Novel

PUBLICATION DATE: August 12, 2025.

RATING: 4.5 stars.

In a Nutshell: A children’s comic about a bumbling “fairy” forced to turn godmother for Cinderella. Whimsical, witty, and wonderful! Love how it adds its own twist to the Cinderella story. I had great fun reading this. Much recommended.

Plot Preview:

Fairy, a trenchcoat-wearing rat (or mouse – not sure), works as a fixer of fairy tales. When something goes wrong in stories, he steps into the book and sorts out the issue. Rather, he claims to do so. His latest client Mouse discovers, much to her surprise and dismay, that Fairy has no idea how to resolve most messes, and that he wings the solutions as he goes along. Mouse can see that he needs help, probably as much help as Cinderella does. Can Fairy and Mouse work together to fix Cinderella’s life without worsening the situation?

I enjoy fairy tale retellings. But this is the first time I have read a retelling aimed at children. It offers one heck of a ride!

The key characters in this story – Fairy and Mouse – are brilliant in various ways. You would think that Fairy, with his detective-like trenchcoat and magical powers, would find it easy to resolve the issue Mouse is facing in Cinderella’s house. You might also assume that Fairy is kind and sweet, like fictional fairies often are. So to see this Fairy—so sarcastic and selfish and short-sighted—bumble and stumble through the rescue is hilarious. Mouse acts as the perfect counterfoil to Fairy’s goofs. I love how she points out Fairy’s shortcomings without insulting him outright. That said, she also has a selfish agenda behind her request.

The retelling approach of this story is also wonderful. It contains all the usual suspects: Cinderella, the stepmother and the two stepsisters, and of course, Prince Charming. But it even adds two interesting new characters to the fairytale cast. The characters from the original tale reprise their roles but not their personalities. As such, the fundamental flaws of the fairy tale, especially with respect to Cinderella’s “rescue”, are mostly ironed out in this version. The new characters are outstanding. (This might be the first and last time I ever say this: the cockroach was adorable! I wish there had been more of him.) 

As with all retellings, the story will deliver better if you know the original, though it is a hoot even on its own. There were many scenes when my buddy reader and I burst out laughing. The humour is a nice mix of witty and silly and cheesy. Perfect for the target age group.

The plot leaves out a few key details. We don’t know Fairy’s background or how he began this business, or how he ventures into a book and alters its story. Given the amazing opening scene, with Fairy sitting at his table like a detective from a classic noir movie and answering his antiquated rotary phone, I wish we could have had more of his backstory. Then again, this isn't the kind of book to be read with the head. It promises sheer entertainment, and it delivers on this from start to end.

This is not to say that the book offers no learning points. Au contraire, it offers plenty of discussion fodder in terms of gender assumptions, predetermined roles in society, fulfilment of responsibilities, and helping others for one’s own benefit. Cinderella’s arc with its twist, though somewhat guessable, is perfect for this modern era, and one that kids and adults are sure to appreciate. Fairy’s cocky assumptions and half-baked ideas also offer much learning to children about not jumping to preconceived conclusions and preparing and planning better before beginning a task.

The vocabulary level is perfect for this age group. There are plenty of onomatopoeic effects to add to the fun. Font size variations are used to great effect.

The graphics might remind you of the Geronimo Stilton series, but this one is way better. The characters, their expressions, and the magical transitions all pop out amazingly due to the colour scheme. I love how Cinderella is not blonde and blue-eyed as is the usual depiction for fairytale FMCs.

All in all, I had a jolly good time with this children’s graphic novel. Anyone who loves smartly silly stories ought to give this a try. The ending indicates that this is the first of a planned series, and based on this experience, count me in for all further fairy-tale fixing adventures of Fairy and Mouse.

Definitely recommended to little fans of fractured fairy tales with modernised tropes. The official target audience is kids aged 6-10 years.

My thanks to HarperCollins Children's Books and Clarion Books for providing the DRC of “The Fairy Tale Fixers: Cinderella” via NetGalley. This review is voluntary and contains my honest opinion about the book.