Well known novels

These recently released books, including some by local authors, feature twists on fairy tales and other well-known stories.

*****

"OUT OF THE ASHES, " by Alicia Buck, Sweetwater Books, $17.99, 288 pages (f) (ages 10 and up)

"Out of the Ashes" by Alicia Buck blends magic and the classic story of Cinderella. Ashelandra "Ashe" Enando Camery is full of spunk and livens up her life with pranks and forbidden magic. She is determined to take after her deceased mother and become a sorcerer. When Ashe's father suddenly becomes ill, she tries to save him with magic but fails. After his death, Ashe is forced under the care of her cruel uncle until she turns of age.

Ashe's uncle starts with extreme demands and control, but soon progresses to violence and turning Ashe into a servant in her own home. Ashe still finds a way to rebel and secretly learn more magic. On a wild whim, she attends a ball at the palace for a night out and some good food. While Ashe does not get the food, she does meet the prince, and that meeting changes the course of her family life.

Ashe and the reader go on a magical journey in search of true love and the truth. There are some scenes of violence but no bad language in this novel.

Buck was born in Utah and graduated with a degree in English from Brigham Young University.

— Jennifer Autry

Maxine "Max" Weber and her younger brother, Carter, have been dragged across the world yet again by their father. This time, they’re in the little town of Hamelin, Germany, famous for the centuries-old tale of the Pied Piper. They don't get to enjoy the quaint village, however; something terrifying and seemingly impossible happens, and Max and Carter find themselves transported to the Summer Isle in "The Secrets of the Pied Piper: The Peddler's Road."

The Summer Isle should be a place of fairy tales and happy endings. But instead, the enchanted island has as much magic as mayhem. It also houses the unaging, long-ago kidnapped children of Hamelin. All the children want to return home, but first they need to traverse the dangerous Peddler’s Road.

Author Matthew Cody has taken a well-known fairy tale and turned it into a marvelous modern-day retelling full of magic and adventure. This well-written book can captivate both children and adults as they are swept into the mythical world of the Pied Piper.