5 Fairytale Re-tellings You Need to Check Out
One of my guilty pleasures is reading fairytale re-tellings. Even though I pretty much know the ending, I can't help but enjoy re-reading them and discovering how the author has re-imagined and reinterpreted the original stories. The really good re-tellings also keep you guessing even if you know the main points of the story, and always have a twist. Here are 5 I think you should check out (in no particular order):
1. The A Court of Thorns and Roses- ACOTAR Series (Beauty and the Beast)
Let's just this one out of the way. If you haven't read it, DO IT. Honestly the series is amazing, and the twist of the original fairytale is one of the most spectacular I've yet encountered. There are three books, so this is also good if you're looking for a bit more of a commitment by following up and reading all of them. Honestly though, it's worth it. This is a relationship I guarantee you won't regret!
2. Crimson Bound (Little Red Riding Hood)
Rosamund Hodge has a few re-tellings, and I love all of them! Her Red retelling is really well done, and it is also one book, so if you're looking for a novel to read on vacation, or throughout the week, this is a great choice. It follows the story of a girl who, despite knowing not to talk to the monsters in the forest, can't help but be intrigued. When her interactions with one 'Big Bad Wolf' lead her to be marked as a killer, her role and everything she knows about her world is suddenly changed.
3. Cinder- The Lunar Chronicles (Cinderella)
The Lunar Chronicles is another fairytale series that plays on the classic story of Cinderella. What also makes this series interesting is that it includes a different retelling in each book as the series progresses. Other books include re-tellings of Red Riding Hood, Rapunzel, and Snow White. The books are also relatively quick and easy reads, but the story and world is anything but. In a post-World War IV Earth, Lunars (humans who had previously colonized the moon and have since become a country) have special abilities that make it hard for human and lunar relations. Relations are made more challenging by a particularly cruel monarch in charge of the Moon. If only there was another successor to the throne...
4. After Hamelin (The Pied Piper)
This is a book I read wayyyyy back in my childhood, so it's been a while, but I always loved the story. It expands on the tale of the Pied Piper, who freed a town of a rat infestation. When he returns for his payment, it is something the town did not expect, and a price they do not want to pay. Enter 11 year old Penelope, who was not affected by the Piper's payment. She embarks on a journey to try and regain what the town has lost that is magical and will lead her to the Piper himself. While written for younger audiences, it is a quick read and a retelling I think you'll enjoy. It also won a Silver Birch award in 2001.
5. Hunted (Beauty and the Beast)
This book is a fairly recent release and I finished it in a weekend. It is a more traditional re-telling than that of ACOTAR, but it does have its own twists and turns. Beauty, the main character, is fearless and brave, and would do anything to help her family. When her father goes missing while hunting in the woods, she discovers there is something deep in the heart of the forest that no one has ever seen before. She is launched into a mystery that will take determination, intelligence, and her heart to solve.
Have other fairytale re-tellings you've enjoyed and would recommend? Share them in the comments below!