Once Upon a Time Today
Reviews!
This could have been reduced to a Disney-esque “Don’t judge people by their appearances!” and “What matters is what’s on the inside!” but it’s a lot more complicated than that. The story is really about examining beauty through Kerrin’s eyes, not as a simple dichotomy, but as a nuanced part of human experience.—Jimena Novaro, Fantasy and Science Fiction Author
I loved Kerrin’s character! I loved her independence, I loved her humor, and I loved her eye for beautiful things! Besides, who doesn’t want a pretty pair of shoes covered in rhinestones! This novella follows the story line of a child like fairly tale to Kerrin’s life in present time. This was a light fun read, and when I least expected it I was given a hint of suspense that really made the book!—Everything Marie
The story alternates between Kerrin telling her daughter the Beauty Beauty story, and following Kerrin through the actual events that inspired her fairy tale retelling. I thought the back and forth would be distracting but it wasn't. In some ways, it reminded me of The Princess Bride, but the scenes with Kerrin and Mirabella are sweet and much more frequent. Not only that, but it's hilarious to see Kerrin's fairy tale take on the events.—Kimber Leigh Writes
Heidi Garrett’s Beautiful Beautiful reminds me of the film, The Princess Bride, with main character Kerrin’s fairy tale to her daughter interspersed with her own story as Kerrin takes over for Peter Falk as storyteller. She tells her daughter the fairytale version of how she and her father met and married.
Kerrin is an award winning director, known for finding the beauty in a film but is unable to find that true beauty in a mate. I appreciated the fact the Kerrin isn’t looking to feel “whole.” Kerrin is proud of her ability to showcase strong female characters on the screen and Heidi has done just that with her character; Kerrin is a successful and accomplished woman on her own.
I also enjoyed the balance of the narrative. It isn’t easy to craft one story, let alone three. There’s Kerrin’s real life tale, the fairytale told to Mibi, her daughter and the subject for the film, Demion Glass. —Blissful Blog
When I was young my mother used to read to me almost every night, and I loved it. I was always proud when I understood the meaning of the story. It's great to see authors these days, that can write such a great book like Beautiful Beautiful. Heidi Garett really managed to make me fall in love with this story.—The Book Town
With its roots stuck in the fairytales of the Grim brothers and told in both the memories of past events and the present of stories told between a mother and daughter, Beautiful, Beautifuleasily captured my attention. The Dragon Pedestal
I love how Ms. Heidi Garrett wrote this book. Kerrin's life story was told as a fairytale . And Kerrin was quite a good storyteller herself... sharing this to her daughter , Mirbella each night. I find this scenario very touching as I remember my Mom reading me bedtime stories each night as a child. Every word feels like magic to me and I never grew tired of hearing it again and again. So, when Kerrin told her story, I am Mirabella.
This is the stuff that fairy tales and dreams are made of, after reading this book I closed my eyes, and I could still see the brilliant job that Heidi Garrett did with this story. The characters were so defined that you could put yourself into their shoes and feel all the suspense and the emotions play out as it happen. I am a lover of all books, but this one was special.—Dreamer
I loved Kerrin’s character! I loved her independence, I loved her humor, and I loved her eye for beautiful things! Besides, who doesn’t want a pretty pair of shoes covered in rhinestones! This novella follows the story line of a child like fairly tale to Kerrin’s life in present time. This was a light fun read, and when I least expected it I was given a hint of suspense that really made the book!—Everything Marie
The story alternates between Kerrin telling her daughter the Beauty Beauty story, and following Kerrin through the actual events that inspired her fairy tale retelling. I thought the back and forth would be distracting but it wasn't. In some ways, it reminded me of The Princess Bride, but the scenes with Kerrin and Mirabella are sweet and much more frequent. Not only that, but it's hilarious to see Kerrin's fairy tale take on the events.—Kimber Leigh Writes
Heidi Garrett’s Beautiful Beautiful reminds me of the film, The Princess Bride, with main character Kerrin’s fairy tale to her daughter interspersed with her own story as Kerrin takes over for Peter Falk as storyteller. She tells her daughter the fairytale version of how she and her father met and married.
Kerrin is an award winning director, known for finding the beauty in a film but is unable to find that true beauty in a mate. I appreciated the fact the Kerrin isn’t looking to feel “whole.” Kerrin is proud of her ability to showcase strong female characters on the screen and Heidi has done just that with her character; Kerrin is a successful and accomplished woman on her own.
I also enjoyed the balance of the narrative. It isn’t easy to craft one story, let alone three. There’s Kerrin’s real life tale, the fairytale told to Mibi, her daughter and the subject for the film, Demion Glass. —Blissful Blog
When I was young my mother used to read to me almost every night, and I loved it. I was always proud when I understood the meaning of the story. It's great to see authors these days, that can write such a great book like Beautiful Beautiful. Heidi Garett really managed to make me fall in love with this story.—The Book Town
With its roots stuck in the fairytales of the Grim brothers and told in both the memories of past events and the present of stories told between a mother and daughter, Beautiful, Beautifuleasily captured my attention. The Dragon Pedestal
I love how Ms. Heidi Garrett wrote this book. Kerrin's life story was told as a fairytale . And Kerrin was quite a good storyteller herself... sharing this to her daughter , Mirbella each night. I find this scenario very touching as I remember my Mom reading me bedtime stories each night as a child. Every word feels like magic to me and I never grew tired of hearing it again and again. So, when Kerrin told her story, I am Mirabella.
The way Ms. Garrett interweave both reality and faerytale was a wonderful surprise.I never read anything like this... and it was really refreshing.—Billie's Pink Review
This is the stuff that fairy tales and dreams are made of, after reading this book I closed my eyes, and I could still see the brilliant job that Heidi Garrett did with this story. The characters were so defined that you could put yourself into their shoes and feel all the suspense and the emotions play out as it happen. I am a lover of all books, but this one was special.—Dreamer
I have read other books by Heidi and I love her stories. She is a fabulous writer with a wonderful imagination which allows her to create beautiful and exciting worlds for her characters to live in. I was entranced with her Queen of the Realm of Faerie series so was super excited to see that she was putting her spin on the fairy tales of old.
I love how, in Beautiful Beautiful, a fairy tale is woven into a story from the present so that the reader gets a sense of how the fairy tales relate to what is happening now. Kerrin tells her daughter bedtime stories which mirror her life stories as a way to teach her daughter life lessons.—The Book Bag
More Reviews:
Fanciful Fictions
Not a Lost Wanderer Includes Cool Playlist & Interview
Interviews!
You don't want to miss these!
"Why not?" you ask!
BECAUSE: The book bloggers on the IFB Tour have gotten me to reveal all sorts of deep and dark secrets, that on a normal day, I would never confess to.
Maybe I've been bewitched;) Or inhaled too much pixie dust! But you want to read these interviews!
Kimber Leigh Writes Kimber Leigh has me getting philosophical when it comes to writing advice!
Billie's Pink Reviews! Part 1 (FUNNY) Billie has me putting my husband in an awkward position, and, yes, telling those secrets, when I fail her One Word Interview!
Billie's Pink Reviews! Part 2 (SERIOUSLY SERIOUS) Billie has me talking all about writing the Once Upon a Time Today collection. But it's not so serious that we can't talk about a little Magic. SNAP. Joy. CRACKLE. Faith. POP!
Curling Up With a Good Book Beth has me confiding about who I really write my books for, and making an embarrassing confession about those 2014 releases… Uhm… That aren't mine!
Laurie's Thoughts & Reviews Laurie has me answering who Heidi Garrett really is… Sort of!
Guest Posts!
How I retold the Hans Christian Andersen fairy tale "Beautiful" at Drugs Called Books
What about that first book you wrote? at Angee's After Thoughts
The LUV'NV has an Excerpt wrapped up in a beautiful post!
Plus, an awesome giveaway will be at all the tour stops!
And what's this all for?
To celebrate the release of the first novella in my Once Upon A Time Today collection, Beautiful Beautiful!
Genre: Contemporary Adult Fairy Tale
Publisher: Half-Faerie Publishing
Synposis:
Every night, Kerrin tells her daughter a fairy tale. Mirabella's favorite is "Beauty Beauty"—the story of when her mother met her father. As Kerrin spins the tale wrapped around the most dark, and equally light, period in her life, she considers these questions:
What is beauty? When is it nourishing... And when is it treacherous?
Years of struggling on the indie film circuit are about to pay off for Kerrin Mayham. She's the frontrunner for the Golden Pinnacle's "Director of the Year." Winning will mean generous financial backing for her next project, and the most beautiful men in the industry will compete for the leading role.
Her integrity and sense of self will be challenged, because when it comes to casting Demion Glass, Kerrin will have to confront her personal demons--and an emptiness that has haunted her for years. (Adult language & situations, no explicit sex)
~~~
The core story Beautiful Beautiful is a retelling of the Hans Christian Andersen tale "Beautiful," and the first release in Heidi Garrett's Once Upon a Time Today In these stand-alone retellings of popular and obscure fairy tales, adult characters navigate the deep woods of the modern landscape to find their Happily Ever Afters.
~ Excerpt ~
At 10:00 pm on the dot, someone knocked on Kerrin’s door. Her pulse pounded in her ears. It had to be Anthony. She wasn’t expecting anyone else. Still in jeans, but now wearing a sweat shirt, and socks, she padded through the entryway, slow and ambivalent, her body, mind, and soul a conflicted triangle.
It had been a long evening of taking stock, her conclusion: The greater the public acclaim for her professional achievements, the more treacherous the need-sucking undertow to be cherished and loved for no particular reason at all.
Unfortunately, acknowledging that vulnerability did nothing to temper her curiosity—or her desire. If anything, it heightened the craving to relinquish control.
Just for the night.
She stopped.
One night. That’s all it would take to bring her world crashing down around her again.
Kerrin leaned against the wall.
The doorbell chimed.
Why hadn’t she called Norah or Joanie?
She pushed a stray hair behind her ears and wiped at her eyes with the back of her hand.
She hadn’t called her friends because Kerrin didn’t confess her sins, she buried them deep, and Tom had been, if not her greatest sin, then one of the top three.
And what was there to talk about? Really? A young woman’s misguided search for a father figure over fifteen years ago?
Kerrin glanced at herself in the mirror. Her makeup was gone. Pink tinged her eyelids.
She admitted careless grooming was a flimsy barrier against self-destruction, but it was the best she could manage on short notice.
She checked the peep hole.
He was so goddamned beautiful.
What game was she playing?
Anthony Zorr was dangerous.
The knowing pulsed through her entire body.
It wouldn’t be long before the tabs were paying thousands of dollars for photos of him and every secret he’d ever wanted to hide. The paparazzi would sniff him out like bitches in heat. If she became his secret, could she survive another detonation?
Feeling reckless she unlocked the door.
He waved a bottle of wine. “Evening, ma’am.”
She opened the door wider. “Punctual.”
He had on jeans, a jacket, and those flip flops. His shaggy-blond hair half-covered his eyes. The night air shimmered around him. His very presence on her doorstep seemed untrustworthy.
“You gonna’ keep me standing out here all night?”
Kerrin shook her head. “Come in.” She got a whiff of leather, aftershave, and pot. Hormones pounded her blood. She closed the door and shoved her hands deep into the pockets of her jeans. A physical reminder to keep them to herself.
He didn’t wait for her as he walked down the hall towards the brightest source of light, the kitchen, adjacent to her informal screening room. A large flat screen TV hooked up to her computer.
Kerrin padded after him, tingling from head to toe. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d felt such intense physical attraction to someone.
He set the wine bottle on the table. “Thirsty?”
“I wouldn’t mind a glass of—”
“Cabernet Sauvignon.”
She opened a cabinet and reached for two wine glasses. His arms circled her waist. Kerrin froze. If she said nothing, he’d interpret that as a yes. If she pulled away, pushed him away, the familiar easiness he took for granted would evaporate.
He nuzzled the back of her neck.
Wine glasses in hand, Kerrin steadied her wrists against the counter. Every cell in her body was aware of him. It had been so long since anyone had touched her like this, too long.
He pulled her body closer to him.
That was too familiar. She ducked beneath his arm and hurried to the table and the bottle of wine. Damn. She needed the wine opener. Could she make it to the drawer without another awkward dance?
Awkward because she was so uncertain about what she wanted.
Or was she?
Why had she agreed to let a man she hardly knew come over to her home at 10:00 at night? What had she expected they would do?
