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Pages: 84
Goes Well With: A big, juicy burger and fries at your hometown diner
For most of us, the thought of a high school reunion comes with mixed emotions: the excitement of seeing old friends, the eagerness to see what’s changed, the dread that nothing really has. But when Alex London returns home for her class reunion in Fairy Tales Can Come True—the latest short e-book in the Class of ’85 series—she reconnects with more than just a few old friends.
It’s been 25 years since Alex left Summerville High—and her old self—behind. Once a military brat with wild red hair, “Dizzy” Dorothy Reagan eventually transformed herself into a world-famous fashion photographer. She took on a new persona and—thanks to her late husband—a new name, and she hasn’t looked back.
When Alex’s meddling assistant secretly puts her on a flight back to Summerville for her 25th class reunion, she’s not exactly eager to face her former classmates—though she’s definitely anxious to see former basketball star Martin Keegan. But instead of hooking up with a hot jock, she finds herself reconnecting with Deke Carpenter, a successful news correspondent who’s carried the same torch for Alex that she has for Marty Keegan.
If you’ve got a class reunion of your own coming up, you’ll definitely enjoy this short and sweet little class reunion fairy tale. Here, everything is exactly as it should be—and everyone gets exactly what he or she deserves in the end.
Though they sometimes resort to chick lit clichés, the likeable characters (and even the not-so-likeable characters) make Fairy Tales Can Come True an enjoyable read. Unless you were the most popular girl in school, you’ll have no problem relating to Alex. She was once a perfectly average teenage girl—awkward, uncomfortable, and pining for the star basketball player. Since then, however, she’s managed to make a name for herself as a successful photographer—even if it’s a name that she borrowed from her late husband. She’s happy with her life—and she’s not exactly excited about being forced to relive those awkward high school days. Anyone who’s returned home for a reunion (or even just considered it) will be able to understand Alex’s feelings of anxiety. As you read, you’ll hope that she’ll be able to overcome her insecurity (as well as her silly high school crush) in the end.
While Alex is easily relatable, though, Deke suffers slightly from the constraints of the book’s short format. Alex gets the majority of the character development, while Deke is simply sketched in. He doesn’t have a whole lot of personality, but you’ll soon realize that he’s Alex’s male counterpart: another awkward teenager who managed to make something of his life after escaping his tiny hometown. He’s a little stronger than she is, though—and encourages her to find her own identity and her own strength.
Like any good characters, Alex and Deke both have their share of flaws and obstacles to overcome. And although their story is simple and the outcome is predictable (not to mention rather abrupt), it still makes a light and fluffy way to spend a lunch break—or the flight back home.
Ed. Note: For more on Fairy Tales Can Come True, visit TheWildRosePress.com.
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