Don’t Miss This Charming Retelling of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs!

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If you love fairy tales, you’ll love this inspirational retelling of Snow White and Seven Dwarfs!

Who Wouldn’t Love an Inspirational Retelling of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs?

When the Grimm brothers published their book of folklore and fairy tales in 1812, the story of Snow White caught readers’ attention. Snow White received international attention in 1937 when Disney produced a feature-length silent retelling of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. In the past decade, I’ve read one other inspirational retelling of Snow White and her cohorts, The Fairest Beauty (Fairy Tale Romance Series) by Melanie Dickerson, a YA author. Today’s episode of Book Talk Tuesday features a sweet retelling for grownups.

Fairest of Heart (Texas Ever After)

By Karen Witemeyer, Bethany House, June 6, 2023, 352 pages.

The Heroine

Although an orphan, Penelope Snow grew up knowing an adopted mother who taught her about God and provided an education for her. Her first attempt at independence, working as a maid in a wealthy Chicago household, ended in disaster. Penelope takes her chances by hiring on as a lady’s maid to a famous actress heading west with her theatre troupe. This time, Penelope makes sure to disguise her natural charms.

But things look dark when Madame LaBelle explodes in a fit of rage and orders her henchman to ‘deal’ with Penelope. Tied to a tree in the middle of nowhere and dressed in nothing by her undergarments, Penelope manages to free herself and sleep beneath the tree. The next morning, she wakes up to find seven men surrounding her.

She only recognizes one of the men—a handsome stranger she startled on her walk the previous day, and the rest look elderly and harmless. But a defenseless woman can never know what the future will bring. Will this encounter bring her the one thing she’s always longed for?

The Hero

Titus Kingsley knows firsthand the evil power of a beautiful woman. His older brother fell victim to such a schemer and lost his life. So, when he crosses paths with a beautiful woman in the middle of nowhere, his inquiring Texas Ranger mind starts churning. He vows to investigate when he finds the same woman sleeping beneath a tree near his grandpa’s Diamond D ranch. He’d do anything to protect men (even if the ranch’s residents have all passed their 60th year) from the wiles of deceptive beauty.

But the more he learns about Miss Snow, the more he rethinks his views of beautiful women, for Penelope’s beauty wells from deep within. Just when he starts to trust Penelope’s integrity, evidence points to Miss Snow as the perpetrator of a string of robberies.

With the help of seven old men, Penelope and Titus have a chance at true love. But only if they can figure out the villain behind the thefts.

What I Loved About This Book

Readers will love this grown-up retelling of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Witemeyer turns it into a rollicking melodrama set in the 1890s in Texas. Unlike the run-of-the-mill melodrama, the author creates a cast of well-rounded characters on a journey to understand the destructive power of self-blame and the power of faith to face the tribulations of life.

Fans of Regina Jennings and Kathy Marie Hake will love Fairest of Heart.