The Falling of the Moon Review
By A. E. Decker

Series: Moonfall Mayhem, Book One
Contemporary Fantasy / Young Adult
Release Date: October 27, 2015

Falling of the Moon is a fantasy fairytale like nothing I have read before. Mystery and secrets take you to a fantastic mystical world sure to have a book two. It is pirates of the Caribbean meets Cinderella. Looking forward to Ascot’s next adventure. Strong and determined with her loyal friends she will certainly make the Moonfall Mayhem a great series of books. I am ecstatic that this is just the start to what will be a truly great trilogy.

This book starts out like a Cinderella story with a fairy godmother and a magic ring and ends with a battle against the dead to save the Castle. Ascot finds strength and determination along the way with true and loyal friends and a quest for another adventure in a new land.

The detail and humor make this an enjoyable fantasy. The author takes you directly to a vision of fantasy in your mind. Beautiful descriptive words describing the ghost in the orange doublet pumpkin breeches, the castle with dungeon decor and velvet curtains, and the gardens with a hidden crumbled wall. Descriptive characters such as Moony, the Vicardi cat with bat wings just large enough to allow him to flutter, Rag-n-Bones, the vagrant, with spider leggs, to Jerk, the headless ghost, and Catch, the panther like shape shifter creates a fairytale adventure with twists and mystery. This book keeps you wondering what secrets will be revealed next.

Humor is a big part of this book making it fun and enjoyable. “I could take him,” muttered Moony,scuffing his boots against the passage bricks.

“She developed a love of turning old stories upside-down to see what fell out of them.” Perfect words to describe this author.

Synopsis

In the gloomy mountains of Shadowvale, Ascot Abberdorf is expected to marry a lugubrious Count and settle down to a quiet life terrorizing the villagers. Instead, armed with a book of fairy tales, her faithful bat-winged cat, and whatever silverware she can pinch, Ascot heads east, to the mysterious Daylands, where her book promises she can find True Love and Happily Ever After, if she only follows her heart.

Determined to win the hand of Prince Parvanel, Ascot storms the Kingdom of Albright. With the book’s guidance, she’s confident she’ll overcome any obstacles the imperious Queen Bettina Anna throws in her way, be they witches, evil stepmothers, or Big Bad Wolves.

Unfortunately, the book doesn’t cover reluctant princes, wolves who read Dostoyevsky instead of blowing down houses, or a guild of Godmothers whose motivations may not be as pure as three drops of blood on a sweep of snow. Most annoying of all is the captain of the guard who swears he’ll see the moon fall before she weds Prince Parvanel.

There are stories . . . and then there are stories, and if this parade of shifty shenanigans continues, Ascot might have to rewrite her own tale lest she end most Unhappily Ever After!

Author

A.E. Decker hails from Pennsylvania. A former doll-maker and ESL tutor, she earned a master’s degree in history, where she developed a love of turning old stories upside-down to see what fell out of them. This led in turn to the writing of her YA novel, The Falling of the Moon. A graduate of Odyssey 2011, her short fiction has appeared in such venues as Beneath Ceaseless Skies, Fireside Magazine, and in World Weaver Press’s own Specter Spectacular. Like all writers, she is owned by three cats. Come visit her, her cats, and her fur Daleks at wordsmeetworld.com.