Greymist Fair

by Francesca Zappia, Kelsey Navarro (Read by)

Overview

“Sharp and accessible.” —School Library Journal

“Illustrates the revolutionary power of love, kindness, and community.” —Publishers Weekly

“Fans of retellings will enjoy finding many hidden tropes in the warm, original fantasy.” —Kirkus Reviews

The villagers of Greymist Fair know that the woods are a dangerous and magical place, and that they should never set foot off the road. But when a young tailor discovers a body, her search for the culprit reveals even more strange and dark happenings around her town.

From acclaimed author Francesca Zappia, Greymist Fair is a suspenseful and inventive murder mystery infused with magic and inspired by the lesser-known fairy tales of the Brothers Grimm.

Two roads lead into a dark forest. They meet at Greymist Fair, the village hidden in the trees, a place kept alive by the families that never leave. The people of Greymist Fair know the woods are a dangerous and magical place, and to set foot off the road is to invite trouble.

When Heike, the village’s young tailor, discovers a body on the road, she goes looking for who is responsible. But her quest only leads to more strange happenings around Greymist Fair.

Inspired by the original, bloody, lesser-known fairy tales of the Brothers Grimm, acclaimed author Francesca Zappia crafts an enthralling murder mystery that will keep readers turning the pages. Told from multiple points of view, with each narrative building on the crime discovered by Heike, Greymist Fair examines the themes of childhood fears, growing into adult responsibilities, and finding a place to call home amid the trials of life and death.

Features chapter decorations by the author throughout, as well as a map.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9798212213080
Publisher:	HarperCollins Publishers
Publication date:	03/28/2023
Product dimensions:	5.75(w) x 5.59(h) x 1.10(d)
Age Range:	12 - 17 Years

About the Author

Francesca Zappia lives in central Indiana. When she is not writing, she’s drawing her characters, reading, or playing video games. She is also the author of Made You Up and Eliza Mirk’s favorite, The Children of Hypnos, a biweekly serial novel posted on Tumblr and Wattpad. She also blogs about writing at www.francescazappia.com

Kelsey Navarro grew up in Las Vegas with a background in film, singing, and acting. She narrates anything from self-help to erotica. In her spare time, she reads voraciously and enjoys listening to a good podcast or audiobook. She worked in management for over nine years and nerds out over personal development, superheroes, and really great food.

Editorial Reviews

01/23/2023

Incorporating elements from several Grimm Brothers’ fairy tales, Zappia (Katzenjammer) delivers a darkly enchanting collection of interconnected stories centering the insular village of Greymist Fair and the treacherous forest that surrounds it. Following an atmospheric introduction, opening story “The Girl Who Outran Death” follows teenage tailor Heike as she stumbles across the bloody boots and clothing of carpenter’s apprentice Tomas on the road leading out of town. She initially assumes he fell prey to—and became—a warg, one of the vicious spirits created when Greymist residents die violently. But wargs have never before ventured past the tree line or left behind traces of their victims, prompting Heike to brave the woods in search of answers from an enigmatic forest witch. The tales that follow are each told from a different individual’s perspective and shed light on a new piece of the puzzle surrounding the wargs and Tomas’s disappearance. This skillfully written and thoroughly cohesive narrative gratifies as a mystery while illustrating the revolutionary power of love, kindness, and community. Zappia’s ominous full-page b&w art, which features settings from each subsequent story, introduce the individual entries. Heike cues as white; secondary characters are racially diverse. Ages 13–up. Agent: Louise Fury, Bent Agency. (Mar.)

Publishers Weekly

Zappia nods at fairy-tale conventions before subverting and exceeding them. . . . The book’s nonlinear structure allows effects to be introduced long before their causes, creating revelatory moments as dots connect and wider pictures emerge. . . . Deeply satisfying.” — BookPage.com (starred review)

“Death is at the door of Greymist Fair, a town deep in the woods on a road most travelers never find. . . . Zappia has crafted eight interconnected stories that take place in Greymist Fair, though at different points in time, painting a vivid picture of life in a town where magic is real, but mostly unwanted. Zappia’s stories call back to the lessons classic fairy tales were meant to teach young children, while finding ways to subvert expectations and keep readers glued to the pages . . . Zappia’s writing is sharp and accessible.” — School Library Journal

“Incorporating elements from several Grimm Brothers’ fairy tales, Zappia (Katzenjammer) delivers a darkly enchanting collection of interconnected stories centering the insular village of Greymist Fair and the treacherous forest that surrounds it. . . . This skillfully written and thoroughly cohesive narrative gratifies as a mystery while illustrating the revolutionary power of love, kindness, and community.” — Publishers Weekly

“In this fairy-tale mashup, the witch’s daughter protects her village from both human and nonhuman monsters. . . . In the spirit of the Brothers Grimm, there’s rather a lot of death and suffering, but there’s also an extremely wholesome climax at Yule that could be taken from a classic Christmas story. Darkly atmospheric full-page art contributes to the sense of place. . . . Fans of retellings will enjoy finding many hidden tropes in the warm, original fantasy.” — Kirkus Reviews

From the Publisher

03/01/2023

Gr 7 Up—Death is at the door of Greymist Fair, a town deep in the woods on a road most travelers never find. The witch in the woods keeps Death and its wargs at bay, but that doesn't make the village safe, because sometimes the worst monsters are people. Zappia has crafted eight interconnected stories that take place in Greymist Fair, though at different points in time, painting a vivid picture of life in a town where magic is real, but mostly unwanted. Zappia's stories call back to the lessons classic fairy tales were meant to teach young children, while finding ways to subvert expectations and keep readers glued to the pages, including Red Riding Hood knocking on Death's door, a prince granting wishes, and the wolf living next door. Greymist Fair comes to life as an intricate knot of love and death, while touching on all the different ways people abuse power. Zappia's writing is sharp and accessible, populating a town with a large, unique cast and braiding together different fairy tales to create a world that prioritizes acceptance and love. The book is great fodder for book club discussion, while the short stories break the novel into manageable bites for less proficient readers. VERDICT Unique yet recognizable, these tales are a solid addition to any collection.—Emmy Neal

School Library Journal

2022-12-24
In this fairy-tale mashup, the witch’s daughter protects her village from both human and nonhuman monsters.

The village of Greymist Fair, surrounded by a magical forest, is safe enough as long as one never leaves the forest path. It was once a pleasant, joyful place, though children were often lost, never to be seen again. But in recent years it’s become much scarier: The wargs have been killing, Lord and Lady Greymist have died, and some of the villagers are open bullies. After Heike’s mother is killed by wargs, she learns that it was her mother who’d been the village witch all along and that Death themself lives in the woods. In a mélange of elements from Grimms’ fairy tales (including “Godfather Death,” “Hansel and Gretel,” and “The Fisherman and His Wife”), Heike and the other young people of Greymist Fair confront magic that seems to permeate the entire forest. Somehow, the patchwork of stories coalesces into a coherent whole, and a surprising number of side characters get satisfying character arcs. In the spirit of the Brothers Grimm, there’s rather a lot of death and suffering, but there’s also an extremely wholesome climax at Yule that could be taken from a classic Christmas story. Darkly atmospheric full-page art contributes to the sense of place. Most characters are White; both same-sex relationships and transness are common and unremarkable in Greymist Fair.

Fans of retellings will enjoy finding many hidden tropes in this warm, original fantasy. (map, cast of characters) (Fantasy. 12-16)

Kirkus Reviews