Review: Fairy Tale by Cyn Balog

Fairy Tale by Cyn Balog
Release Date: 2009
Summary:
Morgan Sparks has always known that she and her boyfriend, Cam, are made for each other. But when Cam’s cousin Pip comes to stay with the family, Cam seems depressed. Finally Cam confesses to Morgan what’s going on: Cam is a fairy. The night he was born, fairies came down and switched him with a healthy human boy. Nobody expected Cam to live, and nobody expected his biological brother, heir to the fairy throne, to die. But both things happened, and now the fairies want Cam back to take his rightful place as Fairy King.

Even as Cam physically changes, becoming more miserable each day, he and Morgan pledge to fool the fairies and stay together forever. But by the time Cam has to decide once and for all what to do, Morgan’s no longer sure what’s best for everyone, or whether her and Cam’s love can weather an uncertain future.

Review:
I know I'm probably going to get pelted with tomatoes for what I'm about to say (or type?), but I have to be honest. I wasn't sucked in the first time I read the premise of Fairy Tale. Yes, it's very unique and fresh and all that other jazz, but only one thought formed in my mind.

I thought the premise was very, very gay. I mean, come on, a football player who discovers he's a fairy prince. Uh-huh. Originally, I thought, "This Cam kid is so going to get beaten up once his friends find out."

But I was wrong. Fairy Tale managed to change my mind by page 2. The book was like a breath of fresh air. The writing is snappy and there's nary a dull moment in the entire book. Even with all its fantasy elements, teenage readers, I for one, couldn't help but relate to it. The book reminds us what a roller coaster ride being a teenager can be, and that we can never tell what the future has in store for us.

Let me start by saying that Morgan, the protagonist, isn't another Bella Swan. Imagine expecting to spend the rest of your life with that person you consider your soul mate, and finding out that he's about to leave you forever. Yes, I know, heart-wrenchingly sad, right? Morgan manages to cope with all this, and doesn't only think about herself. She can still see, cheesy as it may sound, the light at the end of the tunnel.

I wasn't that impressed with the supporting characters though. They all fit into tiny molds, and lack the details that make them real for readers. Cam is the perfect boyfriend while Pip, the boy from the fairy world called Otherworld, is the freaky nerd.

There were also moments in the book, especially near the end, where the events felt rushed and a little out of place. Also, there are time when the characters' actions seem a little implausible.

And the ending?

I still haven't figured out whether I like it or not, but it does seem appropriate. When you close the book, you feel satisfied with how the author left the characters.

Overall, I give this book an 8.5.

Quote from the Book:
"We've been together since forever. He might be able to go on without me," I sob, "but I know I can't do it. I can't be without him. He says I'm brave, but the truth is, I'm not. Without him, I'm not."
- Morgan from Fairy Tale

Again, I'm probably going to get pelted with tomatoes for choosing this quote. It makes Morgan look weak, but this quote just tugged at my heartstrings. If you're a girl and you've lost someone you loved so much, then you might get my point.