If You Love 'OUAT's Red, You'll Love This Book

While it's safe to say that there are several things I would change about Once Upon A Time if I was one of the series' writers (seriously, guys, I'm waiting for my job offer), generally speaking, I think the showrunners have done a pretty impressive job in terms of storytelling and character inclusion. There aren't too many big time storybook characters that haven't graced the screen sometime during Once's four — soon to be five, ahh! — seasons. In any case, I think we can all agree that there's one character who appeared in the first couple of seasons and then all but disappeared, much to our collective chagrin: Ruby AKA Red Riding Hood. Thankfully, we can all get our fix in print form, at least, with the new novel, Once Upon A Time: Red's Untold Tale .

The book, due out Sept. 22, follows Red's life back in the Enchanted Forest. In particular, it's Red as a teenager during Wolfstime. Granny has given Red a red cloak to protect her from the wolves, but now that she's got a new crush on a boy named Peter and the mean girls are intent on sabotaging the burgeoning romance, Red could go down the wrong path and end up letting the wolves in for good. That sounds so good, doesn't it? I don't know about you, but I'm excited! And, if you can't wait for the real thing, ABC was nice enough to upload the first chapter of Red's Untold Tale now. Yesssss.

"I'm not afraid because I sense that I'm not alone. I don't see anyone, but I hear a familiar voice. Though it sounds like it's coming from far, far away, being carried by the wind, I hear it clearly. The voice reminds me to breathe. I inhale, and the darkness enters my lungs, spreading throughout my body, filling me with energy."

Right, so I seriously have to wait another three weeks to read this?! That's seriously not fair. The rest of the chapter features Red having some serious teen angst as she discusses her crush with Granny (who, unsurprisingly, doesn't approve) and also Red daydreaming about leaving her small village to find her happy ending in the big wide world. It's so precociously true to life that reading it did make me laugh a bit, and I can see this will be a big hit to young Once fans.

While the available chapter gives us an idea of the novel's storyline, it also reveals that it's written in first person in what seems like a journal format, with dates headlining each section of Red's journey. Obviously this book is geared towards adolescents and teenagers, but I have no shame and will for sure read this like it's my job as soon as it hits shelves.

Images: ABC