Read on for an excerpt from the first book in the Grimm Academy series, Spindles And Spells! It follows Princess Briar as she begins her time at Grimm Academy, the place where fairy tale characters go in order to avoid their fate...
About Spindles And Spells
Briar doesn't believe in Once Upon A Time...
Her whole life, Briar has been told about her fate, but she doesn't believe a word. Now she's forced to go to Grimm Academy along with all the other fairy tale characters trying to avoid their tales.
When she finds a spindle in one of the tallest towers, she begins to believe, but is it already too late?
Welcome to Grimm Academy, where fairy tale characters go to escape their foretold fate.
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Please note: This is an unedited excerpt and is subject to change. Copyright 2019, Laura Greenwood.
Chapter 1
Grimm Academy. Otherwise known as the last place I want to be. Something my parents are well aware of. But that doesn't matter to them, not when their main focus is allegedly keeping me safe.
From where I'm standing, destroying all the spinning wheels and then letting me get on with my life seems like an easier thing to do. But what do I know? I'm just a lowly princess who does what she's told. One day, maybe I'll marry a prince, and then we can inherit father's throne together.
I grimace at the very idea of that. I don't want to play second fiddle to anyone. Especially not some prince who probably had no chance at ruling without me.
Which led to this. I didn't want to come to the academy, and yet, here I am. All because I want to be queen in my own right someday. Father promised that if I came here without a fuss, he would consider changing the law for me and calling me his heir.
I hope he sticks to that promise. While I don't want to be here on principle, they have an excellent record of diplomacy lessons, along with other things that could help a future ruler. I may be here under protest, but that doesn't mean I don't want to make the most of it.
I cough loudly to gain the attention of the receptionist. She doesn't seem to think it's worth paying attention.
"Good morning, dear, what can I do for you?" she asks, a bored sounding tone in her voice.
I want to correct her that I'm a your highness, not a dear, but I don't think it's a good idea. I'm not the only princess here. Pulling rank isn't likely to go down very well.
"I'm new here," I say instead.
She nods. "Not surprising, we seem to have had an influx of new students recently." She leans forward and cups her hand to the side of her mouth. "Lot's of people turning eighteen, I think."
A weak smile twists at my lips. That's me too. Eighteen and now having to come face to face with the reality of having a prophecy hanging over my head. Even if I don't personally believe in it, that doesn't mean others don't.
"What's your name?" she asks, looking over her glasses and looking me up and down as if it will reveal my name.
"Princess Briar," I respond, suddenly self-conscious about my title, as if I don't deserve it here.
"I'm sure you've read academy policy about titles?" she asks, scribbling a note on my file.
I bite my lip and nod. Maybe this is why I'm feeling so on edge. "I am."
"Alright then, Briar..."
I flinch. Only my parents ever call me by my given name alone, it's odd to have it coming from someone else.
"...Your room is on the third floor. This is your key. Your schedule, map, and welcome packet are all on the desk in there. Do you have any luggage with you?"
"Yes." I point over to the two neatly packed suitcases waiting by the door.
"Excellent. Can you manage them, or do you need someone to help?"
My mouth falls open. I have to lug them with me up three flights of stairs? As much as I don't want to, I also don't want to draw the wrong kind of attention to me by saying no.
"I'll manage."
"Good. There's an elevator at the end of the hall."
"Thank you." I wait for a moment, trying to work out if she has any more of an explanation about what I'm supposed to do here.
"Welcome to Grimm Academy." She grins, and I take that as my sign to leave.
I grab my cases, adjusting to the weight of them easier than I think I will. I glance over at the woman behind the desk, but she's not watching me any longer, having turned back to whatever task she'd been doing before I interrupted.
Let's just hope I got her instructions right.
I head over to the hallway to the left, the one that should have an elevator at the bottom. Sure enough, there it is. I press the button and wait, squeezing myself inside as soon as the doors open.
The ride feels like it takes no time at all, and an age. I have no idea if I'm going to be sharing a room or not, or what it's going to be like once I'm in there. For the first time, I regret not reading any of the information my parents gave me about Grimm. If I had, then maybe I'd be prepared for this.
I juggle my belongings down the corridor until I find a door with my name on it. Huh, I guess I'm not sharing then. That's good news at least. I'm used to having my own space, and I'm not keen to give up on that quite yet.
I slot the old fashioned key into the lock and wait until I hear a click. I quite like the feel of the heavy metal in my hand. It reminds me I'm in a castle.
The door opens into a medium-sized room. There's more space than I expect, with a double bed, and large comfortable looking desk. Plus, a small bathroom. I'm glad I don't have to share that, either.
I put my suitcases down. I know I have to unpack, but that can wait. My parents taught me the best way to look after all my clothes when I was younger. Well, not them exactly. But they made sure I spent time with various members of the staff in order for me to learn necessary life skills. I've always been grateful to them for doing that.
I flop back into the chair and move myself closer to the desk, examining the information in front of me. Most of it is what I expect. No passing notes in class, a certain level of dress is expected, show respect for my other students. None of it is anything less than I expected.
"Now what?" I ask myself, searching through everything in the hope of finding the promised timetable.
I pull it out and study it. Nothing unexpected there, either. Diplomacy, dancing, politics...dry, boring, and things I've been doing since I was old enough to walk. It doesn't mean there's not going to be anything interesting in the classes, but the thought of going to them doesn't excite me much.
I check the time. Alchemy starts in fifteen minutes. That one sounds interesting enough that I should go, even if I'm not expected to on my first day.
Rising to my feet, I dust off the skirt of my dress. If I want to go, then I don't have time to change. I think I look okay, though. Certainly enough for going to a class with lots of other people in my exact situation in.
At least, I hope so.
I check my bag to make sure I have all the paper, pens and everything else that I need. Maybe there's something else I require for Alchemy, but I hope not. My parents whisked me off here the moment I said yes, I haven't had time to do any shopping or preparing.
I stand up straight. I'm Briar, Princess and heir to my father's throne. I'm not going to let myself chicken out of going to class. With that, I head for the door, ready to face whatever Grimm Academy throws at me.
From where I'm standing, destroying all the spinning wheels and then letting me get on with my life seems like an easier thing to do. But what do I know? I'm just a lowly princess who does what she's told. One day, maybe I'll marry a prince, and then we can inherit father's throne together.
I grimace at the very idea of that. I don't want to play second fiddle to anyone. Especially not some prince who probably had no chance at ruling without me.
Which led to this. I didn't want to come to the academy, and yet, here I am. All because I want to be queen in my own right someday. Father promised that if I came here without a fuss, he would consider changing the law for me and calling me his heir.
I hope he sticks to that promise. While I don't want to be here on principle, they have an excellent record of diplomacy lessons, along with other things that could help a future ruler. I may be here under protest, but that doesn't mean I don't want to make the most of it.
I cough loudly to gain the attention of the receptionist. She doesn't seem to think it's worth paying attention.
"Good morning, dear, what can I do for you?" she asks, a bored sounding tone in her voice.
I want to correct her that I'm a your highness, not a dear, but I don't think it's a good idea. I'm not the only princess here. Pulling rank isn't likely to go down very well.
"I'm new here," I say instead.
She nods. "Not surprising, we seem to have had an influx of new students recently." She leans forward and cups her hand to the side of her mouth. "Lot's of people turning eighteen, I think."
A weak smile twists at my lips. That's me too. Eighteen and now having to come face to face with the reality of having a prophecy hanging over my head. Even if I don't personally believe in it, that doesn't mean others don't.
"What's your name?" she asks, looking over her glasses and looking me up and down as if it will reveal my name.
"Princess Briar," I respond, suddenly self-conscious about my title, as if I don't deserve it here.
"I'm sure you've read academy policy about titles?" she asks, scribbling a note on my file.
I bite my lip and nod. Maybe this is why I'm feeling so on edge. "I am."
"Alright then, Briar..."
I flinch. Only my parents ever call me by my given name alone, it's odd to have it coming from someone else.
"...Your room is on the third floor. This is your key. Your schedule, map, and welcome packet are all on the desk in there. Do you have any luggage with you?"
"Yes." I point over to the two neatly packed suitcases waiting by the door.
"Excellent. Can you manage them, or do you need someone to help?"
My mouth falls open. I have to lug them with me up three flights of stairs? As much as I don't want to, I also don't want to draw the wrong kind of attention to me by saying no.
"I'll manage."
"Good. There's an elevator at the end of the hall."
"Thank you." I wait for a moment, trying to work out if she has any more of an explanation about what I'm supposed to do here.
"Welcome to Grimm Academy." She grins, and I take that as my sign to leave.
I grab my cases, adjusting to the weight of them easier than I think I will. I glance over at the woman behind the desk, but she's not watching me any longer, having turned back to whatever task she'd been doing before I interrupted.
Let's just hope I got her instructions right.
I head over to the hallway to the left, the one that should have an elevator at the bottom. Sure enough, there it is. I press the button and wait, squeezing myself inside as soon as the doors open.
The ride feels like it takes no time at all, and an age. I have no idea if I'm going to be sharing a room or not, or what it's going to be like once I'm in there. For the first time, I regret not reading any of the information my parents gave me about Grimm. If I had, then maybe I'd be prepared for this.
I juggle my belongings down the corridor until I find a door with my name on it. Huh, I guess I'm not sharing then. That's good news at least. I'm used to having my own space, and I'm not keen to give up on that quite yet.
I slot the old fashioned key into the lock and wait until I hear a click. I quite like the feel of the heavy metal in my hand. It reminds me I'm in a castle.
The door opens into a medium-sized room. There's more space than I expect, with a double bed, and large comfortable looking desk. Plus, a small bathroom. I'm glad I don't have to share that, either.
I put my suitcases down. I know I have to unpack, but that can wait. My parents taught me the best way to look after all my clothes when I was younger. Well, not them exactly. But they made sure I spent time with various members of the staff in order for me to learn necessary life skills. I've always been grateful to them for doing that.
I flop back into the chair and move myself closer to the desk, examining the information in front of me. Most of it is what I expect. No passing notes in class, a certain level of dress is expected, show respect for my other students. None of it is anything less than I expected.
"Now what?" I ask myself, searching through everything in the hope of finding the promised timetable.
I pull it out and study it. Nothing unexpected there, either. Diplomacy, dancing, politics...dry, boring, and things I've been doing since I was old enough to walk. It doesn't mean there's not going to be anything interesting in the classes, but the thought of going to them doesn't excite me much.
I check the time. Alchemy starts in fifteen minutes. That one sounds interesting enough that I should go, even if I'm not expected to on my first day.
Rising to my feet, I dust off the skirt of my dress. If I want to go, then I don't have time to change. I think I look okay, though. Certainly enough for going to a class with lots of other people in my exact situation in.
At least, I hope so.
I check my bag to make sure I have all the paper, pens and everything else that I need. Maybe there's something else I require for Alchemy, but I hope not. My parents whisked me off here the moment I said yes, I haven't had time to do any shopping or preparing.
I stand up straight. I'm Briar, Princess and heir to my father's throne. I'm not going to let myself chicken out of going to class. With that, I head for the door, ready to face whatever Grimm Academy throws at me.
