My Unfair Godmother

Originally posted on http://yearningtoread.blogspot.com/

When Tansy's father divorces her mother and moves away, Tansy does everything she can to anger her father. She answers his questions during their phone calls with monosyllables and stops reading novels, because that had been their "thing". When she has to move to Arizona to live with her father, she does the most rebellious thing yet - she starts dating high school's bad boy, Bo. Bo seems like a great catch, and Tansy believes he's just misunderstood. But when a date-turned-wrong (that wasn't actually her fault) ends in vandalism and a trip to the police station, Tansy is drowning in an ocean of trouble, and she doesn't know how to get out of it.
Enter Chrysanthemum Everstar. show more She's a fair godmother - not good enough to be a fairy godmother. She's been here before (taking care of the lives of pathetic mortals), and there are a whole lot of other places she'd rather be. She pushes Tansy to make her first wish - and everything goes wrong. It's the start of a chain reaction that may or may not be good for Tansy. There's Robin Hood and his Merry Men (a.k.a. runaway bandits and the city's most wanted criminals) and Rumpelstiltskin in the mix, as well as Hudson, the police chief's beautiful and smart son (who may or may not be into Tansy).
In this one heck of a fairytale, not everything is what it seems, and Tansy must learn the moral of her story before she can ever have hope of getting herself and her family safely home.

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My thoughts -
I wasn't quite sure if it was possible. I didn't know where Rallison was going to go with this book, and while I was sure it was going to be great, I didn't exactly know how great. My Fair Godmother was an exceptional piece of literature - serious, light, fluffy, adventurous, dangerous, funny, and romantic, all in one book - and I didn't think she could do it again.

HA! I laugh at my own stupidity. To think she couldn't do it again - and then to find that she has done it better. Yes. You read correctly - better.

My Unfair Godmother was a little darker, had a bit more action, just as much mystery, and a lot more emotion. It was packed. Never once was I bored or wishing it was more like My Fair Godmother. It was completely and utterly its own book, and I must say that while My Fair Godmother is still a favorite, this second addition to Chrissy's wish-granting adventures was even more memorable.

Character notes -
Tansy...oh, where to begin with this girl? I loved her from the start - cared for her, wanted her to succeed, winced when she got herself into trouble. She's trying to get back at her father for leaving them, but instead finds herself in a mess that could've been avoided. The amount of character change that happens to Tansy is realistic and wonderful.

And Hudson. Oh, Hudson. I have a thing for men in uniform, and while Hudson doesn't exactly work for the police, he does...in a way. And he is, without a doubt, the epitome of manliness (and he's a senior in high school - does it get any better for us young girls?). Strong, handsome, broad shoulders, smart, probably knows how to handle a gun... He's got his faults, too, and this only made me love him more, because what realistic guy is perfect? Hudson fit perfectly into this story - even his actions in the past had an impact on Tansy and the book's turnout. The way he and Tansy interact is perfect as well. Their fights are hilarious and the whole product of their friendship gave me butterflies.

Rumpelstiltskin. Let's just say, he had me shivering. I've always wanted to read more about his fairy tale, and I was not disappointed. He was evil, ruthless, and had a heart of stone.

I also liked Nick, Tansy's half brother. He is a sweet boy who cares about Tansy, even when she has a bad attitude. And this time around, Chrissy was altogether more likable (in my opinion) and she had a much greater impact on the story.

Story notes -
Like I said before, this story is darker than the last, and has its own fuel to keep it going. The way Rallison weaves in fairy tales with modern times and actual events in the Middle Ages is just genius. Everything fell together smoothly and with a grand finale at the end that had my jaw dropping.

There were so many scenes that stood out to me (such as when Robin Hood and his Merry Men first meet Tansy, or when Tansy receives the heart), but my absolute favorites include any of the scenes involving the baby. If there's one thing you should know about me, it's that my #1 goals in life are to be a wife and mother. So when a baby was brought into this story and it tugged at Tansy's heart, my own heart did a little dance and I giggled happily and squealed and just in general couldn't stop smiling. I can't tell you anything else, but just know that this was what made the book more amazing to me than the first one. (My favorite scene would have to be the "I'm not into you" flaming hair-do scene. Don't ask - just go read. It had me bursting with laughter.)

One word to sum it up (and final thoughts) -
Golden. This book is pure gold (considering its contents revolve around turning straw to gold, I'd say this is spot-on) and I don't want any of you to miss out on reading it, or its companion. Please, go buy this book. Right now. Read it (and the first one!) and then put it on your shelf and/or share it with your friends (if you can bear to let it go) and read it again and again and again. It really is one of the best. show less

I’ve tried writing articulate reviews for this book, but it’s just not happening. I have a hard time trying to sound smart and insightful when I just want to type in capitalized letters over and over again, “I LOVE THIS BOOK!”

Just like the fabulousness that was My Fair Godmother, My Unfair Godmother mixes some of our favorite childhood fairytales and folklores with modern characters and unleashes complete chaos that makes for a hilarious, action-packed thrill ride. This book made me laugh so hard, but it was serious when it needed to be. Janette Rallison balances humor with emotion and seriousness and it sounds pretty unlikely, but it all comes together for literary brilliance.

Another thing I love is how authentic Rallison’s show more teenage characters are. Tansy is snarky and immature at times, but not overbearing to the point where you want to close the book. And after she makes her catastrophic wishes, as the page count grows, so does her personality. Those are my favorite kinds of characters. Real humans with real human emotions.

Overall, My Unfair Godmother has taken a spot on my all-time favorite list, right beside My Fair Godmother. This one has new characters, new wishes, and new fairytale/folklore calamity but with all the same awesomeness and hilarity as the first book. If you haven’t read these books yet, I STRONGLY urge you to pick these up! And you know when I write in capitals that I mean business. show less

Chrissy! You got some splainin' to do. Miss Everstar has been given another extra credit project. Read; another life to screw up. And, if you think she would learn from the last time......Guess again. Hilarity and mild terror ensue. What would you do to avoid a loveless marriage? Tansy is having none of that, when she and her family get dropped into the middle ages by a wish, many lessons are learned. The moral of this story is; fairies can be cruel, some are vindictive, and others are just idiots. Stay away from them all.

Yet again, I have accidentally read book two in a series first. Ack! The last time I did it, it was also with a book about a teen girl making wishes (odd that). Neither one was a series where the order really matters, but I still hate doing that. Sigh.

To begin with, I have to say that I hated pretty much everything about the author's decisions in this book. The main character is obnoxious and her decisions both stupid and rather absurd. Nonetheless, I enjoyed reading it. Why is a total mystery to me. I yelled at it several times, but at no point did I want to stop reading. The rest of the review will consist of some examples of what I did not like about the book.

The rebellious teen, who is quite smart, but dating a creepy bad boy to show more prove a point to her dad is a bit old, but I can deal. What annoyed me was that, much as she loved to read, she stopped to anger her father and stepmother, both librarians (holla!). Rebel, if you want, but don't give up things you like to spite someone. Guess who you're really spiting!

When Chrissy arrives, Tansy thinks about her first wish and is quite logical about how easy it is to have a wish go wrong. Then, I swear to Jane Austen, Tansy wished, under her breath, for something completely and entirely stupid, and not something she really wanted even. Ugh. I mean, really? Does this pass for plot these days. On her third wish, she does try really hard, but then the fairy interprets it differently, but not in the usual clever twisting your words way, just in a here's a completely off the wall way to get it way. Not pleased.
B
Worst of all, Tansy acquires a baby in the midst of her quest. I won't explain why, because that would be a spoiler. But, baby there is. And I do not like reading books about a girl who wants a baby so much. Well, I did like Bumped, but I would prefer to keep this to a minimum. I won't mention yet the fact that Rallison could not choose which of two fairy tales to use, so she combined them, or any of the other concerns.

So, a good, yet terrible read. Take what you can from that, because I cannot quantify this any better. Despite my various protestations and frustrations, I do intend to read the first book in the series, and likely the third. Oh, and, if you were curious, the cover art is not unrealistic, because Chrysanthemum totally looks and dresses like that! show less

If you ever see a fairy that looks like a teenager and offers you three wishes... RUN!

Like the first one, the story was funny and quirky though it did take me time to warm up to Hudson but, in the end they still lived happily ever after... They so deserved it after everything Chrissie put them through.

2nd reread: Good fun. You have to go into these stories prepared to give up the rules. Rallison (or perhaps Chrissy) doesn't believe in them.

1st review: Not as good as her others. Funny and I like that all of her work includes morals, however the ending (with Mrs. Gardner) didn't quite work. Still I loved the idea of Baby Stetson/Junior. She missed a lot of opportunities for good humor there. And Hudson's description of Prince John was good.
To sum it up in a nutshell... it's a nice idea. I just feel like there were mounds of missed opportunities for a fantastically hilarious story. But it wasn't bad.

I cannot express how much I loved this book. It is definitely a favorite of mine.

I didn't expect to love this more than I did with it's companion, My Fair Godmother, but I did. I loved all the characters and was fully invested in their story that I couldn't stop reading.

This book takes on a new set of fairy tales and flips them on their heads. It is such a fun read, to see how the wishes get interpreted by Chrissy and all the crap Tansy has to go through because her Godmother is only fair.

I have to mention the potential love interest, Hudson. Tansy and Hudson's relationship was so refreshing to read, I couldn't get enough of it.

I borrowed this book from the library, but I loved it so much I have to buy my own copy so I can read it show more again and again. show less