Banished for falling in love with the prince and attending the ball in Cinderella's place, ex-fairy godmother Lil finds solace in matchmaking her friend Veronica with her boss George; if she can make this match, she hopes the fairies will forgive her and allow her to return home. Carolyn Turgeon's retelling of Cinderella is both interesting and very dark, despite the cover; her retelling is perhaps more realistic for (view spoiler)[dealing with the darkness and damage that Cinderella would harbor after years of servitude. (hide spoiler)] 
 Main character Lil is developed but not complex. (view spoiler)[In the final chapter, Veronica tells Lil that her sister's rape and suicide weren't her fault. Deranged and living half in her fantasy fairy world, Lil pushes past her and "returns" to her fairy friends by jumping into a river. This is all well-thought out. (hide spoiler)] The issue stems from the lack of connection with Lil; her emotions are told to us instead of shown in many cases, and this emotional gap makes it hard to sympathize with her. 
 I couldn't shake the feeling that I was reading something part-Cinderella, part-The Little Mermaid, with Lil's desire to be human and live in their world, and then her unshakable desire to return to the water and her fairy friends (though Ariel's desire was to leave the water). Fairy tale bonus?