Ten Thousand Stitches (Regency Faerie Tales)

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Regency era servants often recommended family members for jobs in the same household, and it only made sense that Effie and George were related, given their interactions so far. Meaning that naturally he wants to help out our maid Effie, who happens to be a wizard (tee hee) with a stitch, and works for a thoughtless and irresponsible family who demand more of her, and the other staff, than they can give; but one that happens to be relatives of the man she’s in love with but with whom she can, of course, never be with. There’s also an interesting cast of characters, our feelings towards whom keep fluctuating as the story goes on and things are revealed. Ten Thousand Stitches is a Cinderella retelling with a twist of regency romance in the best way possible.

As such, at least one actual English noblewoman demanded that her English maids put on a fake accent and pretend to be French.As a reader with a brain like a sieve, not remembering the exact details wasn't a barrier to enjoying this one. Their relationship was charismatic and adorable, especially the moments where we begin to see the tingling feelings of suspicion that they may each be barking up the wrong tree in their original arrangement.

Yes, his help leads to some disasters but he is too endearing to be very angry at, and I know Effie will agree with me. There's definitely a little bit of right person, right time going on here, but this was a five star read for me.It dissipates when Blackthorn the faerie is about, or in the Lady Hollowvale scenes and the ones with the lovely neighbor guy- Mr Jessen I think his name was- that I wished we’d had a book about instead. Regency era servants (and servants as far back as the medieval era) often used nursery rhymes to time their tasks.

The author’s take on the story of Cinderella, telling it from the pov of a working class person and giving us some hope about the power of solidarity - it’s a very entertaining story, but also full of heart and many things to think and ponder about.

But this book focuses on Effie, a servant, and the constant anger and powerlessness she feels in the face of poor working standards and a lack of bargaining power. The Regency Faerie Tales are just delightfully whimsical, cozy, and entertaining fantasy historical romance! This being the kind of romance novel with a Happily Ever After, you will occasionally find yourself screaming at Effie to realize who her true love is, but any frustration is tempered by the fact that the two characters earn their relationship over the course of the novel.