Suing Cinderella

By: Stephanie Mack

Narrated by: Christina Porter, Dallin Bradford

Length: 9 hrs and 36 mins

Publisher's summary

All’s fair in love and lawsuits...

With equal parts gavel and magic wand, Suing Cinderella explores the laws of love, the meaning of fairy tales, and the hope of imagination. Don't miss this romantic, redemptive, and magical second novel from Stephanie Mack, author of When We Blinked.

Jilted at the altar, heartbroken Scotland "Scottie" Holiday feels utterly conned by her supposed Prince Charming. In reflecting on her ethos of love, however, Scottie determines the real villain is the Kingston Company: the children's entertainment and amusement park conglomerate responsible for all those glittery fairy tales she watched on a loop growing up. With her best friend and ruthless corporate litigator Peyton by her side, Scottie decides to sue Kingston for false advertising and emotional distress, claiming she has been duped by their magical, misleading stories of happily-never-after.

Enter Harrison Hayes, Kingston's dashing defense attorney. A Kingston loyalist and brilliant mind, Harrison proves to be a formidable adversary, with his deep knowledge of the law (and even deeper brown eyes). Soon, there are more sparks flying in Scottie's case of a lifetime than in Kingston's nightly fireworks show—and staying away from each other proves a trial in more ways than one. As the gavel comes down, and their connection heats up, Scottie is forced to face the evidence and the truth. She must summon her past, cross-examine her heart, and reach her verdict on one final question: do fairy tales exist after all?

©2024 Stephanie Mack (P)2024 Stephanie Mack

Critic reviews

“This book will permeate your thoughts—I simply couldn’t put it down!” — Shannon Leyko, Author of You’re Completely Normal

“Chapter after chapter, this book will keep surprising you in the best way, ultimately leaving you feeling full of fairy-tale magic." — Natasha Burton, Author + Relationships Expert

"The verdict is in: Mack’s smart sophomore release is nothing short of enchanting." — Jenn McBride, Former Managing Editor, CBS Los Angeles (CBSLA.com)

Sweet courtroom romcom

🏰 What’s it about?
When Scottie is left at the altar, she spirals. And as she struggles with her dentist career she comes to the conclusion that all her woes began with her infatuation with the fairy tale princes of her childhood movies. And thus, the creator of those movies, Kingston Company (ala Disney) is the true villain for setting up unrealistic expectations. And so, with the help of her lawyer friend, they pursue a case against the company.

When Harrison, a lawyer for Kingston, is assigned the case he is irritated that he’s been handed a throwaway lawsuit… until it’s not. And when Harrison shows up to court he’s greeted by the plaintiff: Scottie, the woman he connected with in running club.

Over the course of hearings and time in the court room (and outside run ins), these two get to know more about one another and slowly adversity turns to attraction.

♥️ My thoughts:

🎧 I listened to this one on audio and both narrators did a great job of performing this story!

This one is super sweet. I enjoyed reading how Scottie compared all of her past doomed romances to fairy tale princes, some hilariously so. I also enjoyed the deep dive into the original fairy tales and how they were altered to be more palatable.

At first I lifted an eyebrow at someone suing a movie company for her personal relationship pain, but I appreciated how many characters called this out as ludicrous. And yet, it still worked!

Harrison’s backstory tugs at the heart and I loved watching his character growth throughout the story. I also adored Scottie’s dad.

😍 Also, we all need a best friend who will champion us during life’s tough times, and Payton is most certainly that.

💎 I wish we got a bit more romance page time, but overall a sweet, heart tugging romcom perfect for Disney lovers!

This played like movie is my ears

Listen, I’m picky when it comes to audiobooks because, let’s be honest…some just aren’t it. That wasn’t the problem here. This audiobook ATE. I have had the written copy for a few months in my room, but being dyslexic…reading actual books just isn’t my jam. This though, this is what I was waiting for! The voice / characters and the way it was written reads like a movie. I was able to watch this movie in my head as I drove down the coastline. Obsessed. Also, so many fun twists & turns in this one. So good!

Someone’s a Disney Fan

Some parts of this were cute and I enjoyed the audio, I enjoyed that there was a strong focus on family and friends. The characters have all had major heartbreaks and struggles but persevered to find their happy ending and the magic in their lives.
The legal drama was very similar to the pageantry of the Legally Blonde movies and Drop Dead Diva. The entertainment conglomerate that the MC wanted to sue was called Kensington but was very clearly the big mouse, that no one is ever allowed to name directly without forking over the big bucks. It’s very clear that the author is pro-Disney and Disney magic and goes on to sing the praises of the company in her author’s note, so if you’re a fan of the company I’m sure you will find this book very pleasant and entertaining.
There were references to real court cases, but they aren't accurately represented, namely the reference to the woman that sued McDonald’s for hot coffee. I don’t fully blame the author for that one, instead I chalk it up to one of the most successful uses of propaganda from a conglomerate. However, the propitiation of the propaganda was quite irksome to me and did negatively affect my thoughts on the book. There’s a very clear stance that Disney, God, and the power of belief are wonderful things. And the author seems to be a very positive person in general. So if those are things that you believe in as well then I’m sure you will enjoy this book.

Stats
💙💙💙💙🎧🎧🎧🎧🎧
Clean RomCom: left at the altar, courtroom drama, forbidden crush, rivals to lovers, emotional scars, redemption, female friendship, WF + RomCom crossover
First Person, Past Tense, Dual POV

⚠️There are tidbits of church talk and scriptures with religious/ salvation talk at the very end. She basically delivers a sermon.

Cute and fun no-spice romance

This was a cute, no spice romance! The dual POV narration was fantastic. In terms of the story itself, it was very amusing and entertaining the idea of suing the book’s version of Disney! I was the kind of child that never saw herself in the Disney princesses but I can see how that can influence hopes and dreams. And expectations of future relationships. I think books did this for me 😂.

I had issues with the comparison of a previous love interest with the Beast being that the former was unattractive because of acne scars? Not vibing with that take. This might not be what the author was intending, but this is how it came across to me.

I have to say, Harrison fell fast and hard for Scottie. Poor guy is trying to fight a case against her but is so hopelessly in love 😂. I just feel like there weren’t enough interactions between them for him to fall so hard. I get insta-attraction but out of the courtroom they met like twice? I do appreciate that neither let their feelings get in the way of how they handled the case though. And we get a fairytale happy ending!

For full transparency, there are mentions of faith and religion as being important factors in the FMC’s life, however, this is not the focus of the story.