What’s a girl to do when she has to choose between Prince Charming and Grumpy the Dwarf? Samantha Hogan’s life is not exactly a fairy tale, but she tries. Sam runs a garden shop called The Seven Dwarves and takes pride in irritating her investors – her older brother and his six close friends. She even has a little grotto in her shop where she has set up statues of the Seven Dwarves and has labeled them with each of “The Gang” as they’re known. After a long dry spell of no sex or romance, a handsome prince has just stepped into Sam’s life, and she thoroughly enjoys being swept off her feet by him. When mysterious occurrences begin to happen in her shop, however, it is not the prince that Sam turns to for help – Max Anderson, aka “Grumpy”, gets that honor.

Max has spent years perfecting the art of ignoring Sam, because he is convinced that the other members of The Gang are spoiling her rotten. However, when he receives a call from this damsel in distress, he finds himself rushing to her side. Max is a dedicated bachelor and avoids any long-term commitment, but when he sees Sam this time, he is ensnared by her pixie-like charm and decides that perhaps it is time to finally settle down. Max has little trouble coaxing Sam into his bed, but she refuses to believe that they could develop a serious relationship. Max must deal with the ghost in Sam’s store, her five-pound attack dog, and his princely rival before he can even try to convince Sam to give him a chance.

J. A. Clarke’s The Truth About Fairy Tales is a charming and well-written story that will keep its reader laughing and entertained for the duration. Set in the far away kingdom of the Pacific Northwest, this story gleefully pulls references from many different fairy tales, with “Snow White and the Seven Dwarves” being the main source. Characters include Snow White, Grumpy, Dopey (along with the other four dwarves), Prince Charming, and the Witch Queen, and while the storyline does not follow the Snow White tale, watching these characters interact while knowing who they are meant to represent is a lot of fun.

While it is at heart a romance story, The Truth About Fairy Tales throws in a healthy dose of suspense as well. Someone – a person? a ghost? – is invading Sam’s shop at night, and while they aren’t doing any damage, this mysterious visitor is freaking Sam out. Readers will love watching free-spirited Sam try to deal with this issue while Max in turn tries to deal with Sam. Prepare to fall in love with the characters, laugh a lot, and be thoroughly captivated by this tale.

Reviewed by: Whitney