Literature & Fiction
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When You Wish Upon a Star: A Twisted Tale
What if the Blue Fairy wasn't supposed to help Pinocchio? This New York Times best-selling series twists another Disney classic into a harrowing story in which the Blue Fairy defies fairy law, setting off a dramatic chain of events.
"Star light, star bright, first star I see tonight . . . " So begins the wish that changes everything-for Geppetto, for the Blue Fairy, and for a little puppet named Pinocchio. The Blue Fairy isn't supposed to grant wishes in the small village of Pariva, but something about this one awakens some long-buried flicker within. Perhaps it's the hope she senses beneath the old man's loneliness.
Or maybe it's the fact that long ago, before she was the Blue Fairy, she was a young woman named Chiara from this very village, one with a simple wish: to help others find happiness. Her sister, Ilaria, always teased her for this, for Ilaria had big dreams to leave their sleepy village and become a world-renowned opera singer. The two were close, despite their differences. While Ilaria would have given anything to have a fairy grant her wish, Chiara didn't believe in the lore for which their village was famous.
Forty years later, Chiara, now the Blue Fairy, defies the rules of magic to help an old friend. But she's discovered by the Scarlet Fairy, formerly Ilaria, who, amid a decades-long grudge, holds the transgression against her sister. They decide to settle things through a good old-fashioned bet, with Pinocchio and Geppetto's fate hanging in the balance.
Will the sisters find a way back to one another? Or is this, like many matters of the heart, a gamble that comes with strings?
Try the other books in the A TWISTED TALE series:
A Whole New World by Liz BraswellOnce Upon a Dream by Liz BraswellAs Old As Time by Liz BraswellReflection by Elizabeth LimPart of Your World by Liz BraswellMirror, Mirror by Jen CalonitaConceal, Don't Feel by Jen CalonitaStraight On Till Morning by Liz BraswellSo This is Love by Elizabeth LimUnbirthday by Liz BraswellGo the Distance by Jen CalonitaWhat Once Was Mine by Liz BraswellAlmost There by Farrah Rochon
"Star light, star bright, first star I see tonight . . . " So begins the wish that changes everything-for Geppetto, for the Blue Fairy, and for a little puppet named Pinocchio. The Blue Fairy isn't supposed to grant wishes in the small village of Pariva, but something about this one awakens some long-buried flicker within. Perhaps it's the hope she senses beneath the old man's loneliness.
Or maybe it's the fact that long ago, before she was the Blue Fairy, she was a young woman named Chiara from this very village, one with a simple wish: to help others find happiness. Her sister, Ilaria, always teased her for this, for Ilaria had big dreams to leave their sleepy village and become a world-renowned opera singer. The two were close, despite their differences. While Ilaria would have given anything to have a fairy grant her wish, Chiara didn't believe in the lore for which their village was famous.
Forty years later, Chiara, now the Blue Fairy, defies the rules of magic to help an old friend. But she's discovered by the Scarlet Fairy, formerly Ilaria, who, amid a decades-long grudge, holds the transgression against her sister. They decide to settle things through a good old-fashioned bet, with Pinocchio and Geppetto's fate hanging in the balance.
Will the sisters find a way back to one another? Or is this, like many matters of the heart, a gamble that comes with strings?
Try the other books in the A TWISTED TALE series:
A Whole New World by Liz BraswellOnce Upon a Dream by Liz BraswellAs Old As Time by Liz BraswellReflection by Elizabeth LimPart of Your World by Liz BraswellMirror, Mirror by Jen CalonitaConceal, Don't Feel by Jen CalonitaStraight On Till Morning by Liz BraswellSo This is Love by Elizabeth LimUnbirthday by Liz BraswellGo the Distance by Jen CalonitaWhat Once Was Mine by Liz BraswellAlmost There by Farrah Rochon
Readers Top Reviews
Alan W.Alan W.Joa
It's simple I open the book and saw this. Every page looks like crap.
theresahAlan W.Al
When You Wish Upon a Star by Elizabeth Lim I love this twist of the original story. The layers allowing the blue fairy to have more of the story is remarkable. I loved the twist and turns that the know characters were woven through. To see more of Geppetto's story and reasons for his loneliness add so much to the original story. Pinocchio has more to the original story with this stories. The twist makes the story as legendary as the original Disney retelling. The audio book is wonderful. The reader has a love for the material that just echoes into her voice. She does a great job adding to the story with her performance.
JamieJahntheresah
I’d give this four stars because the characterization is amazing and I love the moments between Chiara and Iliara as well as the moments between Geppetto and Iliara. Problem is, this is a Twisted Tales book. So while I do want this exposition for The Blue Fairy and how she came to be, that means there’s very little time to expound on the Pinocchio story. The book doesn’t even willingly accept of the movie’s events, either and treats the fact that foxes and cats (and talking crickets) are moderately normal and exist with non-talking animals. Which hey, I get it. But take that up with Carlo Collodi. Disney didn’t invent that one. Other than the siblings being believable and getting a glimpse into Geppetto’s past, the pacing is all over the place. You get halfway through the book and it’s still in the past. You haven’t hit the actual meat and potatoes of the main story yet. I’m confused at that point. So when do we meet back up with Pinocchio and Jiminy? When do we start seeing the Heartless fairies ruining Pinocchio’s chances at being a real boy? Uh. We don’t really get treated to that. We see Scarlet and her cohorts celebrating Treasure Island being a success but we never really see how the Blue Fairy and Pinocchio are doing. We don’t get the sense that she’s some worried, distant mother who just had her wooden child (nephew? Cousin?) threatened. Without Pinocchio popping in, we really just get Blue’s urgency to help her sister. And while it’s believable due to the backstory we read, after those forty years pass ad we’re told this animosity is supposedly there… I’d expect to see more. It’s a story that seems like it’s had too much cut from it and now we had to see it wrap up within three chapters. I feel like I got hyped up for something just to have the rug pulled out under me. It’s great for Pinocchio fans, especially if you really love the Blue Fairy. The problem is it’s just so short and spends all it’s time in the past getting you ready for something so amazing that unfortunately, arrives with a whimper. But hey, I’m probably the Blue Fairy’s only fan so I devoured this book in a single sitting. Enjoyable enough! Though I’d suggest this to those who were a bit older.
