Tag: author Abigail Manning

Review:  Diamond Wishes: An Aladdin Retelling by Abigail Manning 

Rating: 4.5⭐️

Abigail Manning takes well known fairytales from our childhood and gives them her own unique twists and fabulous turns of character and plays on the themes. 

This is one of the “All That Glitters” series and is , as all of her stories are, a no-spice, clean romance. 

Diamond Wishes turns Aladdin into Kya, a female thief with a humorous, snarky parrot companion. 

All That Glitters- 12 books/different authors:

Tainted Beauty by Alesha Adamson

Stolen Magic by Camille Peters

Amphibian’s Kiss by Lichelle Slater

Rapunzel’s Gambit by Mary Mecham

Golden Goose by Lea Doué

Siren’s Treasure by Suzanna Fowers

Rose Crown by Nina Clare

Feathered Thief by J.M. Stengl

Snow Bound by C. J. Brightley

Gilded Locks by Julene Johnson 

Lost Starlight: A Peter Pan Retelling by Kayla Eshbaugh

Diamond Wishes: An Aladdin Retelling by Abigail Manning

Buy link

Amazon.comhttps://www.amazon.comDiamond Wishes: An Aladdin Retelling eBook : Manning, Abigail: Kindle Store

Blurb 

A mute guard, a chatty parrot, and a diamond ring that could change it all…

Few people have heard the legend of the wondrous wishing diamond, and even fewer have wasted their efforts searching for it. Kya couldn’t care less about jewels unless they can sell for enough money to feed her and her mouthy parrot. Her chronic fainting spells make it impossible to hold down a real job, and difficult to escape the guards when a charming stranger interrupts her heist.

Caught and caged, Kya admits defeat as she wastes away in the palace prison. Not even befriending a royal guard can get her out of her chains, but a deal with a smooth-talking nobleman might… It would seem that the boy from the market isn’t the only person on a diamond hunt.

If anyone can find a diamond ring in a cave full of treasures, it’s a jewel thief, but that doesn’t mean she knows how to use it. Wishes gone wrong and a power struggle between royals quickly trap Kya once again, but this time as a fake princess. Even a counterfeit diamond can sparkle, but can it fool a treasure hunter? Life as a royal sure does have a nice ring to it—if you can live long enough to wish for a crown.

Diamond Wishes is a standalone, no-spice, fairy retelling and is a part of the series “All That Glitters.” A collection of 12 treasure-themed fairy tale retellings full of adventure, romance, and glittering gold.

  • Publication date: July 19, 2025
  • Language: English
  • Print length: 208 pages
  • Part of series: All That Glitters

More Twists on Fairytales 

The Emerald Realm :

Poisoned Heart: A Retelling of Snow White 

Bearly Free: A Retelling of Goldilocks Framed in Florals: A Retelling of Cinderella 

Stolen Crown: A Retelling of Thumbelina 

Towering Future: A Retelling of Rapunzel 

The Ruby Realm series:

Crimson Claws: A Retelling of Little Red Riding Hood 

Wilting Captive: A Retelling of Beauty and the Beast 

Sole of Secrets: A Retelling of the 12 Dancing Princesses 

Insomniac’s Curse: A Retelling of Sleeping Beauty 

Forged Gold: A Retelling of Rumpelstiltskin 

Once Upon A Rhyme series:

The Itsy Bitsy Liar 

Little Bo Sneak 

Hush A Bye Lady 

Do You Know the Muffin Scam? 

Baa Baa Black Market 

Twinkle Twinkle Little Scars 

The Fairmyth Chronicles

The Soulless Slipper: A Retelling of Persephone and Cinderella The Serpent’s Tower: A Retelling of Medusa and Rapunzel 

The Beast’s Labyrinth: A Retelling of Beauty & the Beast and The Minotaur The Dozen Damsels: A Retelling of The 12 Dancing Princesses & The 12 Labors of Hercules 

Short Story Collections 

The Crystal Realm: A Collection of Retold Christmas Tales 

The Rose Realm: A Collection of Retold Flower Tales 

The Shadow Realm: A Collection of Retold Halloween Tales 

The Feather Realm: A Collection of Retold Bird Tales 

Fit For A Crown 

Fit For A Prince 

Standalone Novellas 

To Shatter A Slipper: A Retelling of Cinderella 

Charlotte and the Cozy Cottage: A Retelling of Rumpelstiltskin 

The Snowy Footprints: A Retelling of The Elves and the Shoemaker Diamond Wishes: A Retelling of Aladdin

Review: The Soulless Slipper (The Fairmyth Chronicles #1) by Abigail Manning 

Rating: 4.25⭐️

An excellent weaving of Greek mythology and fairy tale by Abigail Manning in her story, The Soulless Slipper , the first book of The Fairmyth Chronicles .

Priscilla Korinder, is the character who is the stand-in for both Cinderella and Persephone. She’s got an evil stepmother, selfish stepsisters and a cursed kingdom in a human realm. Shes becomes the obsession of a divine Prince and his Kingly father who have hidden agendas. Thats Zeus under another name and his son. 

But the other main character comes from the underworld, here called Underworth. King Hayden. Aka Hades. 

There’s an enchanted slipper. Several twists on both myths and god legends and a HEA. Well written, engaging characters and fast paced plotting.

It’s very imaginative and a highly entertaining mashup. Check this and the other’s out. 

Cover design by Lunaris Falcon Studio

The Fairymyth Chronicles: 

  • The Soulless Slipper: A Retelling of Persephone and Cinderella #1
  • The Serpent’s Tower: A Retelling of Medusa and Rapunzel #2
  • The Beast’s Labyrinth: A Retelling of The Minotaur and Beauty and the Beast #3
  • The Dozen Damsels: A Retelling of The 12 Labors of Hercules & The 12 Dancing Princesses #4

Buy link

 Book 1 of 4: The Fairmyth Chronicles 

Blurb

Cinderella meets Persephone and Hades.

Priscilla Korinder has been forced to work the fields of Mortalia ever since her mother disappeared when she was nine. Unfortunately for her, Mortalia is plagued with a curse that punishes any being who uses divine magic, leaving Priscilla covered in bruises at the end of each day. Despite her constant injuries, Priscilla’s stepmother is in disbelief that Priscilla could possibly be a divine one. She’s convinced her stepdaughter’s exhaustion is mere laziness…

King Hayden is the lone ruler of Underworth, a kingdom utilized only as a mass graveyard. He typically resides in solitude with his three-toed cat, until one day his peace is disrupted by his eager nephew. Prince Aaron of Olympia has grown infatuated with a nameless maiden in Mortalia and insists Hayden use his divine portal magic to deliver her to him. When he refuses, the prince decides to take matters into his own hands, and lure the girl out with an enchanting ball.

Will Hayden be able to stand by and do nothing as he watches his nephew draw the girl into a trap? He could always try to stop him, but how does one prevent a divine prince from getting what he wants? Hayden could always kidnap her first…

The Fairmyth Chronicles is a collection of clean interconnecting fantasy romance novels that can be read in any order.

Review:  Little Bo Sneak (Once Upon A Rhyme, #2) by Abigail Manning 

Rating: 4.5⭐️

Abigail Manning continues her excellent fantasy series with Little Bo Sneak, a tweak of an old classic nursery rhyme with a touch of an undercover spy thriller combined with a fairytale storyline. 

It works surprisingly well. Especially as it continues from the first tale, and reveals a new overall series thread that’s concerned with magic stones and sinister black markets within the Kingdom to obtain them.

It started with the first novel and how Lucy’s father was framed for the theft of several of important magical stones. And then she was subsequently cursed by one. That was  The Itsy Bitsy Liar. 

In Little Bo Sneak, Lady “Evie”Genevieve Rayelle Palleep, Lucy’s mistress and friend, is the main character here.  She’s also a very good spy. 

When some dangerous magical cloaks need to be traced and the culprits identified, Evie’s handlers decide she needs a partner. 

It’s a romantic thriller,a magical romp, and an all-around heroine to the rescue in another fabulous nursery rhyme tweaked for a new trope and grand adventure. 

I can’t recommend this and the series enough. Inventive, characters with depth and humor, and dialogue that conveys emotions and intelligence. 

Adore it.  And each story is interwoven into the next.

Beautiful lush covers are everything! Here’s another in a fabulous line of them. Each is from an important scene in the book. 

 Cover design by Karri Klawitter

Once Upon a Rhythm:

The Itsy Bitsy Liar #1

Little Bo Sneak #2

Hush A Bye Lady #3

Do You Know The Muffin Scam? #4

Baa Baa Black Market #5

Twinkle Twinkle Little Scars #6 – Sept 26,2025

Buy link:

        Little Bo Sneak (Once Upon A Rhyme)

    

Blurb 

What if Little Bo Peep, had a skill for catching crooks?

Lady Genevieve Rayelle Palleep loves to point out what no one else notices, which makes it a tad difficult to get along with most suitors. While tracking down details may not be beneficial for her life as a lady, it certainly has uses in her more secretive life. Since being recruited as a crown agent as a child, Evie’s talents have never failed to hunt down black market goods, runaway convicts, or anything else one could imagine… That is, until her next mission bears an interesting request.

When eight magic-fused wool cloaks go missing from the black market, the agency doesn’t feel that Evie can handle the task alone. Much to Evie’s regret, she’s assigned her very first partner, an obnoxiously attractive agent by the name of Shepherd. He wouldn’t be so bad if they didn’t have to go undercover as courting lovers… or if he wasn’t so perfect.

With her new partner in tow, and a mysterious stack of cloaks ready to be found, Evie is determined to prove she never needed Shep’s help from the start. She’s worked too hard to let another man drag her around like a wandering sheep. Will Evie be able to track down the missing wools? Or will her distrust of her partner leave them both lost?

Once Upon A Rhyme is a collection of clean, intercepting stories, best enjoyed when read as a series.

  • Publication date: July 11, 2023
  • Language: English
  • Print length: 339 pages
  • Book 2 of 6: Once Upon A Rhyme

Review: The Itsy Bitsy Liar (Once Upon A Rhyme Book 1) by Abigail Manning

Rating: 4.5 ⭐️

Another fantastic new book, series and author! Starting with that great cover, The Itsy Bitsy Liar (Once Upon A Rhyme Book 1) by Abigail Manning is a fabulous read, a fairy tale story with a twist of a cursed young woman who can only tell lies but ends up with the prince, being a beloved Queen who saves the day. 

Manning’s characters, especially the young woman, Lacey Arachne, who was cursed to tell only lies as a child to prevent her from telling people her father was framed for a crime. Now an adult, we see how she (and her mother) have adapted to her curse in practice and how she’s been able to get through life with it. She’s intelligent and adaptable. And working as a Lady’s maid. 

Through a complex process, she and her Mistress end up together at the castle in a contest for the hand the Prince. But they’ve switched places and Lacy is pretending to be Evie with disastrous consequences. 

The story and romance that follows is smartly crafted. It involves one of friendships, communication, plotting and several wonderful twists. 

The characters are all very engaging and fully formed. And Evie, a terrific friend and character gets the next story. 

I’m thrilled to have found this and to be able to share it. 

Beautiful lush covers are everything!

 Cover design by Karri Klawitter

Once Upon a Rhythm:

The Itsy Bitsy Liar #1

Little Bo Sneak #2

Hush A Bye Lady #3

Do You Know The Muffin Scam? #4

Baa Baa Black Market #5

Twinkle Twinkle Little Scars #6 – Sept 26,2025

Buy link:

 Book 1 of 6: Once Upon A Rhyme 

Blurb:

What if the itsy bitsy spider could only weave a web of lies?

Lacey Arachne has been cursed since she was a child to only speak lies and wants nothing more than to keep it unknown. As a common handmaiden, she’s learned how to navigate her twisted words fairly well. But that all changes when her mistress makes her switch places with her in the prince’s bride competition.

Unable to refuse her mistress’s plans, Lacey is forced to play the role of a noble and compete in a competition she has no interest in winning. Well, at least that’s the lie she tells herself after she meets the charming Prince Carlex…

With the punishment for impersonating a noble being death, Lacey must blend in with the other competitors at all costs. But how does a bold-faced liar avoid standing out amongst scrutinizing eyes? Especially when her childhood enemy certainly doesn’t seem keen on letting her go unnoticed… Can Lacey untangle herself from the webs she’s crafted? Or will she be doomed to fall with the coming storm?