The Godmother

Elizabeth Ann Scarborough's The Godmother puts a new twist in contemporary fantasy with the assertion that fairy godmothers exist here-and-now and they have magical power that allow them to intervene in real-world problems. The story is grounded by being set in and around a social-services agency in Seattle and by making her central character sympathetic and realistic but the author still manages to have a lot of fun with idea. Rose Samson is neither fashion-model beautiful nor a twit and she happily joins forces with Felicity Fortune, a "Godmother" who demonstrates that the basic situations in Grimm's fairy tales are still relevant in our humdrum modern world. The two work with many people including a sweet and smart pair of Hansel and Gretel-like abandoned children named Hank and Gigi, a Snow White ("Sno") who is royal if you count her father's rock-star status and "Cindy," who is suing her stepmother for control of her trust fund. In all their encounters, Rose and Felicity try to blend their magical aid with realistic human initiative and social responsibility. Scarborough's fully-realized settings and the humor built into the mix of magical solutions and grim reality make this work an entertaining and compelling read.