Char is a foundling, raised in the palace kitchens. When he falls in love with the Prince, he decides to show his love, using a lifetime of knowledge gleaned from watching the cooks and bakers around him, to create the perfect cake. Raoul, the head baker, takes credit for the confection, until Char wins the chance to prove himself, and his love.
This story is short enough to be read in a single sitting, and it’s as sweet as the concept implies.
I always love a good retold fairy tale, and Cinderella happens to be one of my favorites because it’s so versatile. It translates well to a variety of settings. I’m especially pleased to find good reimaginings with LGBTQ+ characters and situations. What makes fairy tales ideal is that they can do exactly what Char does: make the story, not the LGBTQ+ themes, central.
All around, this is a simply lovely story. Char himself is plucky and irresistible, observant of the world around him and so full of love it spills over into his baking. Raoul is an excellent foil with his temperamental jealousy and his desire for accolades rather than friendship or love. It’s very well-written, which is no surprise given what I’ve come to expect from the author.
I’m also always on the lookout for good stories featuring diverse characters I can share with my kids. I read this first, then I read it out loud to my kids. There are a couple (and by that I mean literally two) words I probably would have censored if I were reading it to a five-year-old. However, my kids are 10 and 12, so I felt no need to alter the text for them. Parents should preview, but I would not have hesitated to share this with them even at younger ages. It’s absolutely no different from fairy tales with heterosexual characters and romance.
I’ve included my kids’ reviews, but they contain spoilers. If you wish to read the text, just highlight it to make it magically appear.
He: I liked the part where Raoul got so frustrated he left the kingdom. Also, Char bakes way better than I do, but I’m not that great at baking. I liked when they got their daughter from the rotting turnips. That was awesome.
She: I liked that there wasn’t a fancy dress, like every other Cinderella story. Cake is better than dresses. I liked when they adopted their baby, but I think there’s more to life than husbands, babies, and baking.
For terrific writing, a story for all ages, and a sweet happy-ever-after, 10/10 fountain pens.
Char was a foundling. He had been left on a pile of kitchen refuse bound for the hogs, and only his own hearty movement and the sharp eyes of a kitchen maid had spared him from an early and ignominious death. There were those who were in favor of putting him right back on the pile, the kitchen being no place for a babe, and besides, who had time or energy to care for him? But Maud, who had long yearned for a child of her own, but had no husband, took pity on the tiny boy and named him her son. With the filth washed away, the tiny child was revealed to be a fine, healthy boy. He was named Char for the spot he came to occupy in the kitchen, close to the ovens where he could stay warm, if a little sooty, and also for a large, dark birthmark on one of his thighs.
The kitchen was Char’s world: his nursery, his playroom, his school. As soon as he was large enough to be useful, Char was set to work, repaying his debt to the kitchen for saving his life and caring for him. He began with simple tasks; washing and peeling turnips and other vegetables, minding the ever-burning fires through the night while most of the others slept, and cleaning. There was always cleaning to do in the palace kitchens. Char worked without complaint, doing many of the jobs that no one else wanted. He seemed content enough with his life of toil and drudgery.
No one knew it, but Char was watching. As he swept, he watched the king’s chefs sprinkle pinches of precious spice–cinnamon, saffron, and pepper–over steaming plates of food, breathing deeply to memorize their odors. As he scrubbed sauce pans, he tasted each dish to learn its secrets. On the rare occasions he left the kitchen, to help at banquets when there weren’t enough regular servants, he noticed which foods were given the highest praise, and which were eaten without comment. He watched, and he remembered.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/28524692-char
What inspired you to write this story?
Because Torquere Press publishes an anthology every month, there are twelve built-in prompts each year! When the next year’s anthologies are announced, I always go through them to see which ones inspire me. Some will trigger a story in my mind right away. With others, I know I want to write a story for that anthology, but I have to wait a while for the story to appear. In Char’s case, I actually wrote it for Torquere’s fairytale anthology two years ago, but I got busy and didn’t have enough time to edit it to my satisfaction. I was thrilled to see that Torquere had another fairytale anthology this year, and that Char was accepted for it!
Is there a character you feel especially connected to? Why?
I suppose the character I feel most connected to is Char, though one huge difference between us is that I can’t do dishes. They give me the heebie-jeebies. One way we are similar: the first time I ever met the person I married, I fell in love right away. There were a few obstacles in our way—she was dating someone else, and the friend we met through didn’t like friends dating each other. Not exactly the same as a kitchen boy wooing a prince, but both Char and I are determined when it comes to love.
What was the hardest part of writing this?
This story makes my wife cry (mostly with happiness, but still…) almost every time she reads it. While it’s a compliment, I also always feel bad for making her cry!
Choose a favorite line or short passage. What do you like about it?
Raoul was not a refined man, for all that he worked in the palace kitchens. He had no use for music or paintings or sculpture. He knew bread, and pastries, and sweet delicacies to tempt a king’s appetite, and that was enough for him.
Or so he had thought, until he tasted the mysterious cake. Symphonies, whorls of sound and color, burst through his tongue, down his throat, leaving a warm glow in his stomach when he finally, reluctantly, swallowed.
He didn’t like it.
I like this passage because it suits my sense of humour—something appears to be going one way, and then takes an abrupt turn the other way! I also like the descriptive imagery I use, if I may say so myself.
Tell us a little about any upcoming projects.
*cracks knuckles* Well, the second novel in the Undead Canadian series, My Zombie Fiancé (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/28386926-my-zombie-fianc), comes out this July, so that’s very exciting for me! My next two projects that are closest to completion are a Western novelette and a sci-fi novel…but I don’t want to give away too much about those just yet!
Are there any types of scene you find hard to write (action, love, death, etc.)?
I sometimes have trouble picturing how bodies work or what position people are in. I frequently have to act out what the characters are doing, or enlist my wife to help. So, not a particular type of scene, but it does make sex or action scenes more difficult!
What do you do when you feel stuck (writer’s block)?
I like to have multiple works in progress for that reason—if I’m stuck on one story, I go to work on another. I also don’t set myself a daily writing goal, so if I don’t write for a while, I don’t feel guilty. I write when I need to, and wait for the problem to resolve itself. I also do a lot of written roleplay/fanfic, so I’m still writing something, even if it’s not sellable.
How do you handle a story that doesn’t go as you planned?
I mentally (or sometimes out loud) yell at my characters for doing this to me, momentarily pretend I was ever in control, sigh, and go along with whatever they want.
Word Sprints!
- What’s your favorite ice cream? Roses and honey
- What’s your favorite of your published works? As much as this is like picking a favourite child, I’d have to go with Amber.
- What genre (other than your own) do you like to read? Urban fantasy
- Do the people in your life know about your writing? Most of them, yes
- Do you have any pets? So many pets
