Fairest (Book Series)

"Fairest" is a fairy tale/fantasy book series created by Fabian De Sousa and illustrated by drachenmagier.

The series includes the main trilogy ("Fairest (Book One)", "Fairest II: East of the Sun & West of the Moon", and "Fairest III: Rise of the Snow Queen"), a companion short story collection ("Fairest Tales: A Collection of Short Stories" available in three different cover designs), and a spin-off instalment ("Fairest Witch-Hunters: The Hunt for Baba Yaga").

Fairest (Book One)
Set directly after the "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs" fairy tale, Prince Charming and Snow White host a royal marriage ceremony that is crashed by the Evil Queen (Snow White's wicked stepmother) intending to kill the two of them with her black magic. However, Snow White reveals her own mysterious white magic and uses it to banish the Evil Queen to the darkest edges of the Enchanted Forest so she won't hurt anyone else.

Fearful of this mysterious magic, Snow White consults her stepmother's Magic Mirror, who reveals the existence of the 'Fairest', a powerful magic that chooses one in every generation to rule the Enchanted Forest. However, the Magic Mirror also reveals that the Evil Queen has not yet given up, and is now searching for the greatest fairy tale villains of other stories to destroy happy endings once and for all.

With the Magic Mirror as her guide, Snow White and Prince Charming set out to recruit their own team of fairy tale heroes to stop the Evil Queen and save their fairy tale world, have several adventures along the way, and Snow White learns far more about herself than she ever bargained for...

Fairest II: East of the Sun & West of the Moon
Set shortly after the end of Fairest (Book One), Red Riding Hood learns that the Bear Prince she and Snow White encountered when they were children is still under Rumpelstiltskin's curse and being forced to marry the hideous daughter of an Evil Ogress, and Rose Red sets out on a quest to rescue him. Advised by the Magic Mirror to collect three golden items along the way to help break the Bear Prince's curse, Red Riding Hood encounters several other animal bride/groom fairy tales, including "Beauty & the Beast", "The Frog Prince", "The Little Mermaid", "Sleeping Beauty", and "The Swan Princess".

Fairest III: Rise of the Snow Queen
When a mysterious curse shatters Snow White's Magic Mirror and freezes her heart, Snow White is transformed into the wicked Snow Queen and plunges the Enchanted Forest into an eternal winter. With Prince Charming and the rest of the fairy tale heroes nowhere to be found, who will save the lands from the wrath of the cold-hearted Snow Queen?

In a village in the middle of the snow-covered Enchanted Forest, there lives a special little girl named Gerda, but when the Snow Queen kidnaps her beloved brother Kai and takes him to her ice palace in the far north, Gerda sets out on a dangerous quest to rescue her brother from the Snow Queen, and along the way she meets the other three Princesses of the Seasons.

Fairest Tales: A Collection of Short Stories
Available with the choice of three different cover designs and one limited edition gold cover design, Fairest Tales features nine short stories that greatly expands the Fairest World, fleshes out established characters (such as Red Riding Hood and the Frog Prince), and introduces brand new characters (such as Cinderella and Rapunzel).

Snow White & the Glass Coffin
Set shortly after Snow White is separated from her mother and sister and forced to live with her father, the Good King, and her stepmother, the Evil Queen. This short story fleshes out Snow White's complex relationship with her father, has several references to the fairy tales "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs", "Snow-White & Rose-Red", and "The Glass Coffin", and acts as a bookend alongside the last short story of the collection: "The Evil Queen & the Magic Mirror".

Jack & the Sea Giant
Set shortly after the "Jack and the Beanstalk" fairy tale, this short story details Jack's first adventure as 'Jack the Giant Killer '. Having grown a second giant beanstalk, Jack sets out to explore the land above the clouds and discovers villages of regular humans completely unaware that their realm is located on top of clouds with the Enchanted Forest below. These humans are regularly persecuted by giants who often capture and eat them, and Jack sets out to slay his second giant: Cormoran the Sea Giant.

Rapunzel & the Star Flowers
Set shortly after Rapunzel's hair is cut off and she's banished from the door-less tower by Dame Gothel, a now lost and alone Rapunzel wanders the dangerous Enchanted Forest looking for food, shelter and her beloved prince, but instead learns how harsh the outside world can really be. This short story features many references to the fairy tales "Rapunzel" and "The Star Money".

The Frog Prince & Faithful Henry
Set long before the Frog Prince first drank from the magical Well of the World's End and transformed into a frog, this short story details the Frog Prince's dangerous quest to the Land of Rus (home of the Russian fairy tales) to find Vasilisa the Frog Princess, and Faithful Henry's many challenges to save his beloved Frog Prince from certain death. This short story features many references to the German fairy tales "The Frog Prince" and "Faithful John", and the Russian fairy tale "The Frog Tsarevna" ("The Frog Princess").

Cinderella & the Twelve Brothers
Set shortly after the "Cinderella" fairy tale, this short story reveals Cinderella's discovery that she has twelve older brothers that were transformed into birds when she was born thanks to a curse from Rumpelstiltskin. Cinderella sets out to find her brothers, only be tricked by Rumpelstiltskin into sending her brothers away. The only way to undo this mistake is by staying silent for seven years; never speaking, laughing or crying.

Unfortunately, this leads Cinderella's stepmother to spread a rumour that the real Cinderella died in the Enchanted Forest and was replaced with a witch who never speaks so she won't be discovered, and this prompts Cinderella to be burnt at the stake unless she speaks to defend herself.

This short story features many references to the fairy tales "Cinderella", "The Twelve Brothers" and "Rumpelstiltskin".

Red Riding Hood & the Iron Monster
Set long after the fairy tale "Little Red Riding Hood", a now adult Red Riding Hood (an infamous monster-hunter armed with an enchanted red hooded cloak) is summoned to a nameless kingdom in the Enchanted Forest to hunt down a monster in a nearby river named 'Iron John'. At first, Red Riding Hood succeeds, but because Iron John has impenetrable iron-skin, he cannot be slain and instead is caged in the middle of the royal courtyard.

Three years later, Red Riding Hood is summoned to the same kingdom where she learns the king's son has released Iron John and been carried off by the monster back to the river. Red Riding Hood leads the kingdom's army to rescue the kidnapped prince, only to face an army of iron monsters led by Iron John.

This short story features many references to the fairy tales "Little Red Riding Hood" and "Iron John", and is directly followed by Red Riding Hood's first appearance in Fairest (Book One).

Allerleirauh & the Golden Key
Set shortly after the "Allerleirauh" fairy tale, a now pregnant Allerleirauh is escaping from her stepfather (The Wicked King) into the Enchanted Forest with her husband the Bronze Prince, when their carriage is attacked by the Goblin Queen and her small army of goblins. Forced to escape into the woods alone with her thousand furs mantle to camouflage her, Allerleirauh is given a magic Golden Key by a talking bird which allows her to sleep in comfort for the night, and then the talking bird helps her retrieve a ring from the Goblin Queen that will help her rescue the Bronze Prince.

This short story features many references to the fairy tales "Allerleirauh", "The Old Woman in the Wood", "The Golden Key", and "Simeli Mountain".

The Sun, the Moon, and the Sleeping Beauty
Set shortly after Sleeping Beauty is awakened in Fairest II: East of the Sun & West of the Moon, Princess Talia has hired Three Spinners to make her wedding dress (because she cannot stand to touch another spinning wheel) and the Three Spinners reveal they can see the future and foretell a great disaster will befall the Enchanted Forest and destroy Sleeping Beauty's kingdom. Unfortunately, they cannot tell her what the danger is or how to stop it.

Talia then sets out on a quest to meet Aurora the White Fairy (the personification of light and the Sun) in the east at sunrise before she begins her journey across the sky. Talia also encounters Aurora's twin sister, Carabosse the Black Fairy (the personification of darkness who carries the moon across the sky) and learns why she was first cursed as a baby. And Talia also reunites with her twelve fairy godmothers.

This short story features many references to the fairy tales "Sleeping Beauty" (and its variant "Sun, Moon, and Talia"), "The Three Spinners", "The Seven Ravens", and "Snow White".

The Evil Queen & the Magic Mirror
The unofficial second-part of the short story "Snow White & the Glass Coffin", and bookend for the Fairest Tales short story collection, this short story reveals Snow White's first meeting with Prince Charming, the evolution of Snow White's relationship with her father, and the first seeds of the Evil Queen's hatred of her stepdaughter and vow to kill Snow White as soon as the Magic Mirror calls her the 'Fairest of them all '.

This short story features many references to the fairy tales "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs" and "The Princess and the Pea".

Fairest Witch-Hunters: The Hunt for Baba Yaga
Set between "Fairest II: East of the Sun & West of the Moon" and "Fairest III: Rise of the Snow Queen", this spin-off features Hansel & Gretel travelling to the Land of Rus (home of the Russian fairy tales) in their quest to hunt down and slay the most powerful fairy tale witch of them all: Baba Yaga. Along the way, Hansel & Gretel encounter many Russian fairy tale characters, including the Fairest princess Vasilisa the Beautiful, the valiant prince Ivan Tsarevitch, the mythic Firebird, the wicked Sea Tsar, and the evil immortal sorcerer Koschei the Deathless.