Review: Redeeming the Stepbrother by Andrew Grey

Title: Redeeming the Stepbrother

Series: Tales from St. Giles: Book Two

Author: Andrew Grey

Length: 200 Pages

Category: Contemporary

At a Glance: Redeeming the Stepbrother is good. The story got a little convoluted and long-winded in the middle—it paces well in places and others not so much—but the storyline itself helps you through the rough spots.

Reviewed By: Carrie

Blurb: Family can be a blessing and a curse, but for artist Florian, it’s a nightmare he longs to escape.

As chief designer for Bartholomew Artist Porcelain, Florian specializes in painting birds. He also watches them in the wild to distract himself from his short-tempered mother, at least temporarily. Florian’s heart is too soft to leave his stepsister, Ella, to suffer alone. Still, he can’t help dreaming about one day finding happiness and love.

When Count Dieter von Hollenbach arrives in town to visit a friend and present an award, he isn’t looking for romance. Then again, he doesn’t expect someone as perfect as Florian to come into his life. To make sure Florian is all he seems and that their connection is genuine, Dieter keeps his title to himself.

But he isn’t the only one with a secret.

At a masquerade ball to celebrate the award, some of the masks fall away, but those that remain in place could destroy the love beginning to grow between them.

Review: Andrew Grey loves to write book series. His latest endeavor is one very loosely based on fairy tales and is set in St. Giles, Maryland. St. Giles is a fairytale land where the local wealthy businessman lives in a large mansion and employs most of the local townsfolk in his many endeavors. Among those is a porcelain studio which garners international acclaim for its hand painted works on both porcelain and glass. In book one of the series, Taming the Beast, we met Dante Bartholomew, the man who owns the studio. His book was based on Beauty and the Beast and set the stage for the series. Each of these “fairytales” is a standalone, but they do overlap as they are all set in the St. Giles backdrop. In book two, Redeeming the Stepbrother, we get a tale based on Cinderella—or Cinderfella as the case may be—only, this Cinderfella works as the point artist in this porcelain studio and is saved by a German Count, who comes to America to compliment and award his work and ends up falling in love.

Florian Cinderson is an artist. Painting birds on porcelain is a passion for him and appeals greatly to his soft-spoken nature. His home life is fraught with conflict. From his terrible step-sibling to his good-for-nothing stepmother, Florian spends many of his days behind the locked door to his bedroom so that he can paint in peace. Painting at the studio is his profession, painting at home is his passion—and each have very different subject matter. His life is not a happy one, and he’s just trying to make the most of the hand he was dealt after his step-father died. Florian went to work in the porcelain studio when he was sixteen and has carved out a niche as the best artist there. The studio has won many accolades over the years, all down to Florian’s works, so when Dante shows up in the studio to tell him that they have won another award due to his unique bird paintings, Florian is pleased. Florian has a feisty side, it keeps him from being a pushover despite his quiet nature, and it was awesome to see.

Count Dieter von Hollenbach has come to St. Giles to study the porcelain studio and see what makes it such a success. He’s also here to present the studio with a gold medal award for excellence in craftmanship and decoration. Unbeknownst to most is that he also has a reward for the artist who paints such exquisite birds on the face of the bisque vases. He never suspects that the shy man from a bog of mud and a failed birdwatching attempt will be the same painter of such renown. Falling for the painter was never his intention, and his life is complicated by his lineage and the expectations that come with it. But returning the favor and saving Florian becomes a mission for him when love takes over. In spite of that, I found Dieter a little stiff. I think he could have used some loosening up. I think it would have made him more relatable.

Ok, so here’s the deal. Redeeming the Stepbrother is good. The story got a little convoluted and long-winded in the middle—it paces well in places and others not so much—but the storyline itself helps you through the rough spots. Nothing is really unexpected; it’s an easy read with a little drama thrown in and a whole lotta romance. The fairytale references are plentiful and pretty obvious and for me added to the reading experience. It is a quirky take on Cinderella and while not a literal match to the original story, just enjoy each new reference as you find it. I appreciated the way Grey took snippets of the original and made them his own to create his story, not just regurgitating someone else’s work. It takes some liberties, crossing the line from believable to make-believe in some of the things Dieter manages to accomplish but, hey, fairytale! In the end, Florian is swept off his feet and goes to live in a castle in Germany with his Count, and they all live happily ever after.

I recommend this story to all those who love fairytales and literary works based on them. This series is a good one and I can’t wait to see which tale comes next. The end.

You can buy Redeeming the Stepbrother here:
[zilla_button url=”http://bit.ly/2Eyd8op” style=”blue” size=”medium” type=”round” target=”_blank”] Dreamspinner Press [/zilla_button][zilla_button url=”http://authl.it/B07BW1J5DX?d” style=”blue” size=”medium” type=”round” target=”_blank”] Amazon [/zilla_button][zilla_button url=”http://bit.ly/2ECpLPg” style=”blue” size=”medium” type=”round” target=”_blank”] Barnes & Noble [/zilla_button][zilla_button url=”https://apple.co/2EzyZMc” style=”blue” size=”medium” type=”round” target=”_blank”] iBooks [/zilla_button][zilla_button url=”http://bit.ly/2IEJDn6″ style=”blue” size=”medium” type=”round” target=”_blank”] Kobo [/zilla_button]