Because this will always keep playing in my head while we read the pup stories --

The first child will be a king.
The second child a pauper.
The third will do an evil thing.
The fourth will die to stop her.
The fifth will be a hero bold.
The sixth will judge the rest.
The seventh lives to ages old, and is by heaven blessed.

So children and fairytales will always be a big go to for me. Because there is something creepier about playing with innocence and horror, than is about adults/maturity and horror. There is always more to foreshadow and more to lose when it comes to children. This book, another follow up on the prophesy of Bigsby and Snow's children did not disappoint.

This is the story of Therese who is stolen by her magical Christmas toy that-is-not-for-girls, and her brother Dare, who comes to rescue her and makes a great sacrifice to do so. Given that we all know the whole story now, we can assume that Theres is child three and Dare is child four. The amazing mythology of the lost toys, of the swords, cup, sacrifice, the fisher king (as well as playing it off "Fisher Price" the toy brand for a reference in there, too) was brilliant.

The story is painful. The conclusion is even more painful. But it is so beautiful. It's harrowing beauty. About the loss of a spoiled child through hard work, sacrifice and mourning. I loved this one so much and I can't wait to see more and more of what happens to the children. Who all the other ones will be, since we know three of the seven now (Winter, Therese, and Dare).



The backdrop story of The Big Bad Wolf (and how we're intersecting the turtle with the tea cup, and how both of those intersected King Arthur) was brilliant as well. I loved the play with fates, and the way all three of these characters are learning and growing in completely different places on completely different timelines in completely different stories, but here they are intersecting and changing things for each other.

Which has to be one of my favorite things where it comes to the adult storylines.
( )

I still really like this series, and the quality hasn't suffered. It's getting a lower rating this time around because the plot he focused on for most of volume 18 wasn't my favorite because it was so brutal and sad , and some of the other plots didn't have a chance to progress much farther than they did in the last issue.

Still looking forward to the next. ( )

Strong storytelling in this volume. Doesn't mean I have to like it. (Though I did enjoy the short Bigby-focused story at the end.) ( )

Well this was a bizarre little story.



After one of the cubs becomes the new North Wind in [b:Fables, Vol. 17: Inherit the Wind|13228097|Fables, Vol. 17 Inherit the Wind|Bill Willingham|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1375405130l/13228097._SY75_.jpg|18419970], of course the rest are going to have to get in trouble all their own. So we have Fables take on the The Island of Misfit Toys, only far darker and more violent. There's a good(ish??) ending, but man that's a rough story. And for all that to happen to a kid, no matter how magical they may be.

Not my favorite Fables story, but it's interesting to see where it goes after the fall of the second Big Bad (third if you consider the Literals?). It really does make me wonder though... what's left? ( )

Fables takes a turn towards the darker side of fairytales as There's reign in Discardia is not as fun as it initially seems. In a land filled with toys, where everything is pretend, a mortal (though powerful) girl has to worry about basic needs - the most pressing in this case being food. Darien, being the type A leader of the pack, follows Therese in the hopes of rescuing her, but he ends up dying as an incarnation of the Fisher King in order to start the healing process in the land. By the time Therese can return to her family years have passed (for her at least), and she has grown far older than her siblings. Ozma's prophecy about the seven children is definitely starting to come true, so I'm sure that this will be the major plotline of the next few graohic novels alongside the Fables' return to the Mundy world. ( )