A practical book for couples
Beyond
Fairy Tales
A Couple’s Guide to Finding Clarity, Doing the Work, and Building a Lasting Relationship
You may love each other and still struggle to get along. This book offers practical ways to understand each other, handle difficult conversations, and feel closer.
Digital bundle: book PDF, audiobook, workbook, and couples reflection guide · $21.99
Dr. Mark Gregory Karris, LMFTCouples therapist · Author · San Diego
A PRACTICAL GUIDE FOR COUPLES
Inside the book
What you’ll find in the book
You may be struggling to get along or simply wanting to take better care of a relationship you value.
We’ll look at the arguments you keep having, the hurts underneath them, and what each of you can do differently.
For couples trying to get along and feel closer.
Rethink your expectations
Move beyond idealized expectations and make room for a more honest, compassionate relationship.
Work through hurt and rebuild trust
Understand old hurts and explore what it takes to feel safer with each other again.
Navigate the hard moments
Recognize the cycles that keep you stuck and discover new ways to respond.
Communicate with care
Learn to say what you’re feeling and listen to what your partner is trying to tell you.
Deepen your intimacy
Talk more openly about emotional closeness, sex, and what helps you feel connected.
Book PDF · Audiobook · Workbook PDF · Reflection guide PDF
The digital bundle
The Beyond Fairy Tales Bundle
Read or listen to the book, then use the workbook and reflection guide to try the exercises and talk through what you’re learning together.
The complete book PDF
Read on your device or print a copy for yourself.
The audiobook
Download the audio file through Google Drive.
The companion workbook PDF
Handouts, worksheets, and reflection exercises to put the book’s ideas into practice.
The couples reflection guide PDF
Questions for each chapter to reflect on your own and discuss together.
$21.99 USD · one-time purchase
After payment, your order and email will include all three PDF downloads and a Google Drive link to the audiobook. This is a digital bundle; the print book is sold separately.
All sales of this digital bundle are final and nonrefundable, except where required by law.
Praise for Beyond Fairy Tales
What fellow therapists
and authors are saying
Perspectives from therapists, authors, and educators on Beyond Fairy Tales.
“Karris offers an engaging, resource-rich book to bring life to stale or shaky relationships. In a practical, at-times humorous, and always-down-to earth style, he creates a roadmap for a rewarding journey towards love. You are certain to enrich yourself as a person and as a partner by reading this book!”
—Lorrie Brubacher
“I want to offer my enthusiastic support for Beyond Fairytales. I find the straightforward language, fresh ideas and practical solutions to be ones from which any couple can benefit.”
—David Mars
“Wondering what good couples therapy looks like? This book beautifully illuminates the process and possibilities…Filled with sage, practical advice, and understanding, this book is a gift to couples everywhere.”
—Michelle Becker
“In this comprehensive, well-written, and inspiring guide to revitalizing connection between partners in an intimate relationship, Mark covers everything from romance to the operating manual for different attachment styles to personal well-being. I highly recommend this book for couples who are suffering and therapists who are helping them.”
—Polly Young-Eisendrath
“There are many books about relationships with practical pointers and some based on solid science, but very few that truly have both. This book does both and is a huge gift to our culture, which is often quite disoriented about what actually makes relationships work. “Beyond Fairy Tales…” is a difference-maker, and I am excited to see its impact on readers!”
—Ryan Rana
“Beyond Fairy Tales provides readers with a quenching gulp from the deep wisdom well of attachment theory. Mark expertly guides partners through difficult conversations and delivers the practical and innovative tools necessary to take their relationship to the next level.”
—George Faller
“Karris’ humility and pragmatism, honed by years of experience as a couples’ therapist guides the reader in taking their relationship from distress to recovery. This is a gem of a book that will become a tender companion for anyone seeking to nurture their most precious bonds.”
—Clare Rosoman
“Beyond Fairy Tales is wonderful! In his clear and humorous way, Dr. Kerris presents some of the most valuable insights and tools from the world of couple therapy and research. The book is easy to read, practical, and will be immensely useful to anyone wanting to improve their relationship!”
—Scott R Woolley
“Beyond Fairy Tales delivers! It is a compassionately tailored guidebook for everyday couples who are in need of refreshment and change in their relationship.”
—Anabelle Bugatti 'Dr. Belle'
“Mark creates an approachable framework for harnessing and transforming emotional experience into forces for connection and relational satisfaction for any couple willing to do the work.”
—Michael Barnett
“Beyond Fairy Tales is a playful and invigorating exploration for couples, offering a powerful resource to strengthen relationships. Karris provides fresh insights, empathetic compassion for the challenges couples face, and practical strategies for growing stronger together.”
—Jim Thomas
“This book will give you the compassionate guidance and hope necessary to create lasting change.”
—Shane Birkel
Your next chapter
Choose the print book or digital bundle.
The print book is available on Amazon. The $21.99 digital bundle includes the book PDF, audiobook, workbook, and couples reflection guide.