Well Written Twists on Classic Fairy Tales

[RTA]

Can anyone suggest well written novels based off classic fairy tales. For instance I love the Five Hundred Kingdom and Elemental Masters book series by Mercedes Lackey. I love when authors take well known stories and give them their own twist. Any recommendations would be most welcome but please provide a synopsis for the book and not just the title. Thank you!

[Sarah Penney]

Oh goodness. I read so many of those types of books. However, I'm not going to copy and paste all of the synopsises. Mostly because this is going to be a very long list. So I'll write my own short little bits about them.

1. Glass Roses: A Victorian Fairytale by Britain Kalai Soderquist. Written in a style reminiscent of Jane Austen, Soderquist retells the story of Cinderella and Beauty and the Beast. The story is told in letter form between two cousins. I definitely enjoyed it, but if you don't like Jane Austen you might want to check out the rough draft first, which you can find on Wattpad by searching the title.

2. The Lunar Chronicles by Marissa Meyer. A series starting with the book, Cinder, a Cinderella retelling, Meyer retells the stories of Cinderella, Little Red Riding Hood, Rapunzel, and Snow White. The series takes place in a futuristic world that has cyborgs and many other technological plot details. Personally, I loved the series. I have all of the books in hard cover. That's how much I loved them. However, since I don't know your tastes, it may not be your cup of tea. Again, you can find the first five chapters of the first book, Cinder, by searching Marissa Meyer's name on Wattpad and then going to her profile page.

3. The Ugly Stepsister by Aya Ling. A retelling of Cinderella, The Ugly Stepsister is the first book in the Unfinished Fairy Tales series. While it's definitely aimed at young adults and teenagers, Ling tells an interesting story with a lot of different plot twists about a girl who gets thrown into a fairytale book and becomes one of the characters. If you want to read a little bit about it before buying it, there is a preview on Amazon.

4. Before Beauty: Becoming Beauty Trilogy Book One by Brittany Fichter. A retelling of Beauty and the Beast with lots of magic and twists, Fichter tells a story of girl who faces more than just the average struggles of a girl in the role of "Beauty". I found it to be a very well-written book that had lots and lots of fantasy aspects to it. That being said, as again, I don't really know your tastes, you can check out the first few chapters on Wattpad by searching the title.

5. Spelled (The Storymakers) by Betsy Schow. A retelling of the Wizard of Oz, Spelled is a very magical retelling with twists and turns that certainly kept me on my toes. Schow tells a story of a sassy princess who accidentally causes her entire world to turn on its head. If you want to read an excerpt before buying it, once again, by searching the title on Wattpad, you can read a handful of the first few chapters.

6. Dorothy Must Die by Danielle Paige. The first book in yet another series about the Wizard of Oz, Dorothy Must Die is a hilarious twist on the classic story. With an evil Dorothy and a protagonist who has a pet rat named Star for a sidekick, Paige tells a story that is very memorable and led me to buying the second book without hesitation. If you want to read an excerpt before getting it, you can find one on Amazon.

7. Alice in Zombieland (The White Rabbit Chronicles Book One) by Gena Showalter. This one is probably more of an acquired taste than the others, and honestly, I'm not sure if you'll like it. I liked it, but I'm not exactly the harshest critic. Anyway, it's an Alice in Wonderland retelling with, you guessed it, a zombie twist. Certainly a darker twist on the classic tale, Paige tells the story of a girl trying to survive in a world she once doubted the existence of. It is a series, however, I haven't read the other books in it yet so I can't vouch for them. If you want to read an excerpt before getting it, you can find one by searching the title on Amazon.


Alright. So that's my very long list. Once again, I don't know what your tastes are like since I have never read the stories you mentioned, but these are some very good retellings, at least in my opinion anyway. I hope this helps!

-- 29 Jan 2016, 13:02 --

I also have some others that I can think of, so let me know if you need anymore recommendations. Goodness knows I've read a lot of them.

[RTA]

Thank you so much!!! These sound wonderful! I am a huge fan of Pride and Prejudice and in extension Jane Austin. I will definitely check Glass Roses out. I'm not a robot fan but the lunar chronicles sounds interesting so will look into those as well. I think I've seen the Ugly Stepsister at BnN but never read it. Your summary makes it sound interesting though. Before Beauty, Spelled and Dorothy must Die sound good too. I read the Pride and Prejudice and Zombies book but wasn't so thrilled with it so may skip the Alice in Zombieland one...Thank you so much for the suggestions. I'll be checking my local library for these the next time I go! Hopefully they have a few a few of them if not all! Please do go ahead and give me the rest of your recommendations. I really like the list you provided so far!!!

[Gravy]

I love the trend of fairy tale retelling/reimagining.
I've not read any of those suggestions, except Alice in Zombieland...while I enjoyed it, and plan to read the full series, I don't even see it as a retelling...more of an "inspired by"...? If that makes sense
Still a good read, though

I did recently read another Alice reimagining (other than Splintered, but I think everyone knows about Splintered ). It's an adult sci-fi with much twistiness
It's Alice by Christina Henry, and you can read my full thoughts on it here, where I opened a topic for it. I will warn that it is pretty dark, I don't mind that, but I know others might.

Also, while it isn't actually a retelling, The Fire Children by Lauren Roy reads like one.
The sun is Mother Sun, and she has children who are made of flame. When Mother Sun visits Sister Moon during eclipses her children visit the people.
But the Fire Children are taken and the main character, Yulla (a teen girl), has to save them.

[Sarah Penney]

I'll be checking my local library for these the next time I go! Hopefully they have a few a few of them if not all!

I'm happy to help! I will say that you may not find Glass Roses and Before Beauty at your library though. Glass Roses, if I am correct, is an ebook only type thing and I'm not sure if Before Beauty is selling hard copies or not. I know the author of Glass Roses might be planning to sell paperback copies in the future, but I was under the impression it wouldn't be for a while.

Regardless, I will probably be coming back to this since there are so many more retellings I could mention. And I agree with Graverobber, Alice in Zombieland is probably more of an inspired by than a retelling.

[Topcho]

Oh, I am bookmarking this topic! I love fairy tale retellings!

My persona favourite is Beauty by Robin MacKinley. It is not a twist exactly, as it follows the original tale step by step. But it is just so perfectly written. When I first read it, I felt as if I was reading Beauty and the Beast for a first time. I savoured every word, and laughed, and cried, and melted from happiness.

Cruel beauty by Rosamund Hodge is also quite interesting. It is again based on Beauty and the Beast. Here there really is a twist. A small kingdom has been torn away from the real world and they believe that their last hope is to kill the Prince/Beast in the castle who caused the curse. So next time they send him a bride, she is thought how to destroy the curse. But the girl will have to dig deeper and find out who to trust - the Beast or his Shadow. I personnally found the main heroine tad annoying, and I hated the names (lol) so this is why I keep calling them like this. Still this was very different type of annoying XD. I read it in a book club and everyone else adored the character and the book. I too agreed that the ideas were pretty good.

And right now I'm reading The Frog Prince by Jenni James. I'm still in the beginning, but it is light and cute for now.

[Sarah Penney]

I personnally found the main heroine tad annoying, and I hated the names (lol) so this is why I keep calling them like this. Still this was very different type of annoying XD.

I'm actually in the middle of reading Cruel Beauty at the moment and I completely second your statement about the main heroine being annoying. I don't like to give up on books, so I'll finish it, but it's becoming a close thing. Between the main character and the author's slight inability to explain things in a clear and precise manner when it comes to the lore within her book, the story itself has been definitely a bit trying on the patience. However, I definitely agree. There is a very interesting concept in the story with how the lore all lays out.

Also, same! Beauty by Robin MacKinley is quite possibly my favorite retelling of all time. I've read it so many times but it never gets old. I just didn't list it in my list because I always felt that so many people had read it. I mean, when I was in school, more than half of the girls I knew had read it at one point.

Topcho, have you read any of Jenni James's other books? I'll admit I've read some of her rough drafts since they're on Wattpad, but you'll have to let me know what you thought of the published version of the Frog Prince. I've been holding off on buying her books simply because I'm finding it hard to buy books when I can read the first/slightly edited second drafts entirely for free. The part of me that always looks for a bargain is warring with the part of me that wants to see how much James improved her final copies.

[Topcho]

This is my first book by Jenni James I'm reading, and I'll let you know on my thoughts when I finish it. It should be soon since it's tiny I'm reading the kindle copy. I found later on that she has works on Wattpad and when I'm finished with the Frog Prince I will decide on wether to spend money on the final vesions or to read the Wattpad copy. For now, I like what I read. It is light and sweet, and reasonably well written.

Have you read MacKinley's other retelling of The Beauty and the Beast? The Rose Daughter? I hear so many mixed opinions about it. I really want to check it, but I'm afraid it may ruin somehow my perfect impression of Beauty.

[Sarah Penney]

I have not read Rose Daughter. However, I have read Spindled, which was McKinley's retelling of Sleeping Beauty. Which is why I am also so conflicted about reading Rose Daughter. On the one hand, it makes you wonder why she wrote another retelling (did she feel she missed the mark on Beauty?) while on the other hand, I so severely disliked Spindled that I'm hesitant to read anything else by her. I honestly don't know what it was about Spindled that made me dislike it so much, but it has definitely stopped me from reading any of her other books with the exception of Beauty.

Also, Jenni James has a ton of works on Wattpad and they're quite good, too, or at least the one or two I've read are, anyway. Although, I think in general, the fairytale retelling part of Wattpad has some pretty good stories in it to begin with. I mean, I may be a bit biased since I read so many of them, but I've been pleasantly surprised with what I've found there. That's where I found Glass Roses, actually. I read the first draft first on Wattpad and then loved it so much that I bought the final draft the second it came out.

[BrittanyFichter]

I'll be checking my local library for these the next time I go! Hopefully they have a few a few of them if not all!

I'm happy to help! I will say that you may not find Glass Roses and Before Beauty at your library though. Glass Roses, if I am correct, is an ebook only type thing and I'm not sure if Before Beauty is selling hard copies or not. I know the author of Glass Roses might be planning to sell paperback copies in the future, but I was under the impression it wouldn't be for a while.

Regardless, I will probably be coming back to this since there are so many more retellings I could mention. And I agree with Graverobber, Alice in Zombieland is probably more of an inspired by than a retelling.

What a wonderful surprise to find this thread! I'm always looking for more fairy tale retellings, so I'll be perusing these titles for later. That said, I don't want to be intrusive, but I happen to be the author of Before Beauty, and I'm friends with the author of Glass Roses. In answer to the question earlier, Before Beauty is in print on Amazon and Createspace, and I know Britain is working on the print version of Glass Roses right now. You can find the first rough draft chapters of my books, Before Beauty and Girl in the Red Hood on Wattpad, and you should totally check out Glass Roses on Wattpad, as well. Thanks so much for recommending the books! Finding this thread totally made my night!

[Topcho]

Oh, I already marked those there for future reading! And as a reader, it is so exciting to - kind of - meet the author, woot!

I want to add something else to the list - Once Upon A Fairy Tale: A Collection of 11 Fairy Tale Inspired Romances
by Danielle Monsch, Jeannie Lin, Ella Drake, Jennifer Lewis and others. It is a huge volume, and the fairy tales chosen are from classic ones like Cinderella to Nordic legends I haven't heard before. The genres they are retold into are also very different - from historical steam-punk, futuristic sci-fi to modern-day romance. I liked them all and loved some of them - my personal favourite was Jeannie Lin's work.

As for Robin MacKinley, it would seem that it is a love-it-or-hate-it case with each of her books. There is no in-between even with her hardcore fans. Apart from Beauty, I've read her Sunshine and I loved it too. I don't know when I'll get to the rest of her books, but I hope I won't be disappointed.

[Taylor Razzani]

I loved The Book of Lost Things by John Connolly. A young boy has to go through a "fairy tail" land to get his brother back. Along the way he runs into a woodsman, werewolves, Snow White and her seven dwarves, and many other creatures including the evil Crooked Man. It's a slightly darker book, so the characters in it that you think you know (like Snow White) are different. Super easy read but entertaining as well.

[BritainKalai]

Ooh... right up my alley. I love fairy tale retellings. I've seen a few that I have read and enjoyed listed here, but since I'm suffering from a semi-permanent case of Mommy Brain, I might forget and add them to my list anyway. Also, I'm going to list this by author first.

1. Robin McKinley
--- "Beauty" is a stunning enhancement of the original "Beauty and the Beast" tale. Third daughter of a merchant takes his place in the Beast's castle to save his life and ends up falling in love with the Beast and breaking his enchantment. The story is the classic, but McKinley's prose and descriptive narration is literally beautiful. Easily my favorite version of this ever.
--- "Spindle's End" is a retelling of "Sleeping Beauty." This one I had to read a second time before the ending made sense, but I liked it for the most part. A spell is placed on the infant princess in front of the whole kingdom, and a young, backwoods fairy who came to give the baby a gift with the fairies from other parts of the kingdom, whisks the baby away to grow up in her tiny village. In the end, it is the girl herself who manages to find a way to break her curse, but I can't say much about how they do it, or it will give the plot away.
--- "Rose Daughter" is another "B&B" retelling. I need to read this one again because I felt like the story was a bit obscure after the brilliance of "Beauty." I remember thinking it was at least worth the time I put into it, even though I don't remember much about it other than a vague memory of a glass greenhouse full of roses that featured prominently in the story.
--- "Chalice" is not a retelling, per se, but I LOVE this book. The land is divided into parcels that are owned by Masters (very feudal in structure). Every Master has a council that includes people who play special roles in keeping the land they live on bound together and working harmoniously. The Chalice is the second-most important person on the council, just behind the Master. She is the one who acts like the glue to hold things together. This book is about a Master who does damage to his land, his younger brother who has to overcome incredible odds to fix what his brother ruined, and the Chalice who helps this new master re-bind the land together. Gorgeous book and gorgeous writing.

2. Gail Carson Levine
--- "Ella Enchanted" is easily her best book, and the one she is best known for as well. This is a Cinderella retelling. Ella is given a "gift" by a fairy at birth to always be obedient. She must obey any order she is given, even if it means she must do something horrible to herself or someone else. This causes problems when she falls in love with the Prince of her homeland. Ella is spunky and unique, and Levine's writing is simple and lovely.
--- "The Two Princesses of Bamarre" is a fairy tale of Levine's own creation. She came up with it while trying to re-write "The Twelve Dancing Princesses." It tells the story of two sisters, one who is brave and one who is shy. One of them falls ill with a disease that has no cure, and the other must go on an adventure to find the cure and save her sister. This is my second favorite book by Levine, after "Ella Enchanted."
--- "Fairest" is a Snow White retelling, set in the neighboring country to "Ella Enchanted." This version of Snow White is considered ugly by those who only see her face, but she has the most beautiful singing voice in the country. Her beautiful voice is what attracts the attention of the physically beautiful but weak-voiced queen, who is trying to find a way to fake a true singing voice of her own. It is a story about finding beauty in yourself. I think it is a good book, but not as compelling as Levine's other works.
--- "Ever" is based on ancient cultures that used to offer human sacrifices. It is the story of how a God and a Girl fall in love and go through a series of trials to become a Hero and a Heroine to save the Girl from being sacrificed. I really like this one because it is unique and different.
--- "For Biddle's Sake" and a series of other short stories that are all retellings of classic fairy tales. It would take a long time to summarize them all, but some of the stories that Levine retells are "Cinderlad," the tale with the sisters who produce jewels and snakes when they talk, Rapunzel, and The Frog Prince.

She has other books too, but those are the ones that come to mind at the moment.

3. Shannon Hale
--- "Princess Academy" and its two sequels are unique stories about a village of people who quarry stone from the mountain, the unique way in which they communicate through the stone, and how their lives change when it is announced that for the first time, the priests have divined that the next princess will be chosen from their mountain village. An academy is set up to teach the girls the skills they will need to be a royal princess, and Miri, the main character, goes on a voyage of learning and self-discovery that gives her the confidence to help her village prosper. I've read the first two books, and I like the first one best.

--- "The Goose Girl," "Enna Burning," "Forest Born," and "River Secrets" are all part of a series that starts with GG. I didn't really care for the series very much. I don't think it is her best work. But some people really like reading stories that are either new tales or based on tales that are less well-known, so it might be one you want to check out.

--- "The Book of a Thousand Days" is a retelling of the "Maid Maleen" tale. I remember liking this one, but I don't remember much about it, so I can't give a real synopsis.

4. Cameron Dokey wrote several little novella-style retellings for the "Once Upon A Time" book series. It is NOT connected to the television show on ABC that goes by the same name. Some of the titles she wrote include "Beauty Sleep," "Before Midnight," "Wild Orchid" (a Mulan retelling), "The Storyteller's Daughter" (a 1,001 Nights retelling), "Belle," "Sunlight and Shadow" (a Magic Flute retelling), and lots of others. There are a few other authors who were part of this series and who wrote some good retellings as well, but Dokey is the one who wrote the most books for the series.

5. Jessica Day George has three books in a series that starts with "Princess of the Midnight Ball," a 12 Dancing Princesses retelling. The other two are Cinderella and Red Riding Hood stories that tie in with the characters from the first book. I really like these a lot. The first book is a pretty faithful retelling of the original tale, and the next two have their own twists that would give away too much if I talked about them. But I liked these ones a lot.

In addition, if you like Wattpad as a reading platform, you should check out the fairy tale community that is being run by the user Pennywithaney. They are collecting fairy tale retellings from all over Wattpad into reading lists that make it really easy to find new versions of the stories you like best. The community's Wattpad profile name is FairytaleCommunity, if you want to look them up directly.

If you managed to read this to the end, congratulations! Your prize is to find out that I'm the other indie author who was mentioned in the first reply to this discussion. Thanks a bunch for recommending my book, Sarahstarp10! It seriously made my day. And yes, I am working on a print version of it, but I am a mom of two little kids and it can be hard to find time to write, let alone reformat a 110,000 word book. Hopefully saying this much won't count against me with the mods here, especially since I didn't actually mention the name of my own book and because I posted a significantly sized contribution to this topic.

[Sarah Penney]

Woah, BritainKalai! That is one large list! It looks like I have some books to add to my reading list!

[Gravy]

There's also an ongoing list on this thread as well, not sure about synopsis, but I'm sure there are some