For Sabrina and Daphne Grimm, life has not been a fairy tale. After the mysterious disappearance of their parents, the sisters are sent to live with their grandmother--a woman they believed was dead! Granny Relda reveals that the girls have two famous ancestors, the Brothers Grimm, whose classic book of fairy tales is actually a collection of case files of magical mischief. Now the girls must take on the family responsibility of being fairy tale detectives. Their first case? A roller-coaster ride of an adventure to stop a giant from destroying their new hometown.
My Review:
I LOVE fairy tales as well as twists to the original stories, but this fell short of my expectations. It felt like a set up book for the rest of the series. It took 100 pages for the story to even pick up. Afterwards, the story went by too quickly.
The following paragraph contains spoilers:
The characters and the plot were WAY too similar to Bill Willingham’s Fables series: Prince Charming as a crooked mayor, Jack as the bad boy, Big Bad Wolf as the good guy protecting others, the fairy-tale land in New York with a spell warding outsiders (just to name a few). I just prefer Willingham’s story. If I had read Sisters Grimm first, I might have felt differently.
Sabrina’s know-it-all attitude comes in handy for slipping in definitions of harder words (think Fancy Nancy). This was a nice touch since larger words are often thrown into tween books and feel out of place. There are also two pictures per chapter to keep younger audiences visually stimulated.
This popular series already has 8 books! Book 9, The Council of Mirrors, comes out May 8, 2012.
The Bottom Line:
This fairy-tale mystery sprinkled with action would appeal to a wide audience with a general interest in fables. Those with a more comprehensive knowledge of fables might find it less rewarding. 3/5
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