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Biography

Carolyn Turgeon authored Rain Village, Godmother: The Secret Cinderella Story, Mermaid: A Twist on the Classic Tale and the young adult novel The Next Full Moon. She is the editor of Mermaids, a special edition annual magazine, and teaches writing in the low-residency MFA program at the University of Alaska at Anchorage.

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The Fairest of Them All: A Novel

WhaWhat if Rapunzel was Snow White’s evil stepmother?

From the author of Godmother and Mermaid, The Fairest of Them All explores what happens when fairy tale heroines grow up and don’t live happily ever after.

Living in an enchanted forest, Rapunzel spends her days tending a mystical garden with her adoptive mother, Mathena, who is a witch. Mathena was banished from court because of her magic powers, though the women from the kingdom still seek her advice and herbal remedies. She waits, biding her time to exact revenge against those who betrayed her.

One day, Rapunzel’s beautiful voice and long golden locks captivate a young prince hunting in the nearby forest. Overcome, he climbs her hair up to her chamber and they fall into each other’s arms. But their afternoon of passion is fleeting—the prince must return to his kingdom, as he is betrothed to another.

Now king, he marries his intended to bring peace to his kingdom. They have a stunning daughter named Snow White. Yet the king is haunted by his memories of Rapunzel, and after the mysterious death of his wife, realizes he is free to marry the woman for whom he never stopped longing. In hopes of replacing the mother of his beloved daughter, the king makes Rapunzel his queen.

But when Mathena’s wedding gift of an ancient mirror begins speaking to her, Rapunzel falls under its evil spell. The king begins to realize that Rapunzel is not the beautiful, kind woman he dreamed of.