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6 New Retellings for Fairy-Tale Fans
Everyone knows the popular fairytales, those stories of magical godmothers, evil stepmothers, rotten tricksters, and all the other icons who’ve been filling our shelves since our infancy. But what’s so awesome is how many ways there are to put spins on the classics with teenage protagonists, playing with everything from genres to genders in order to build a whole new story out of familiar elements. Who are really the heroes and who are the villains? What if Prince Charming weren’t a guy, or Cinderella weren’t a girl? If you’ve already fallen for YA greats like Ash, by Malinda Lo, and Beauty, by Robin McKinley, here are six new ones that need to jump onto your to-read list ASAP.
Forest of a Thousand Lanterns, by Julie C. Dao
Debut author Dao fuses Chinese inspiration with Snow White and the Huntsman in this Evil Queen-centric tale starring a peasant girl on a quest to become the empress her aunt foretold she would be. Xifeng’s beauty may help her get there, but it’s her cruelty she’ll really need to embrace; she’ll only be able to achieve the throne if she discards the boy who loves her and makes use of the dangerous magic in her possession—magic that can only be attained through the suffering of others. Xifeng has to choose between love and power, but will she be able to live with either choice? What will it mean for her own future if she doesn’t follow the stars?
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Hunted, by Meagan Spooner
Beauty and the Beast has seen many iterations in YA, but New York Times bestseller Spooner deftly proves there’s room for more, especially with Russian folktale-inspired influence. Beauty Yeva knows the forest well; it comes with being the youngest daughter of a hunter on a perpetual quest to find a mysterious Beast. But when her father disappears, Yeva will have to become more acquainted with the woods than she ever planned…and with the Beast who captures her. Of course, in captivity, she learns the Beast isn’t quite what anyone thought, and what might’ve once ended in a fight to the death veers in quite a different direction…
The Secrets of Eden, by Brandon Goode
Eden is a law-abider, despite his mother’s inexplicable disappearance from the castle in which she worked. But when he mistakenly receives an errant invitation to the ball, he can’t help using it out of a desire to spend time where his mother once did. Little does he know just how significant that ball will be, bringing him into Prince Jared’s arms on the very night the latter is expected to select a wife. But the beginning of their secret romance is also the beginning of the unraveling of the mystery behind Eden’s mother’s disappearance, unexpected magic, and possibly the end of Eden’s safety…especially if the only way to give his family the happy ending they need is to destroy his potential for having one with the prince. Yes, this is m/m YA Cinderella, and it’s about damn time.
Girls Made of Snow and Glass, by Melissa Bashardoust
Forget the dwarves, this version of Snow White is all about the women behind the tale, alternating points of view between Lynet, a princess made of snow, and Mina, her stepmother queen, whose heart is made of glass. Their fathers may play prominently in the story—King Nicholas is responsible for having Lynet created to be the spitting image of her dead mother, while Mina’s father, Gregory, is the magician behind both girls’ survival via the elements they’re composed of—but the relationship at the heart of this feminist fairy tale is that between the stepmother raised to believe she can neither love nor be loved and the stepdaughter who doesn’t understand why her love is rejected. It’s a beautiful take on the story, with high stakes involving a monarchy, poison, and a huntsman. But perhaps the best twist on the original of all? Prince Charming is reimagined as a lady surgeon.
The Wish Granter, by C.J. Redwine
Redwine’s Ravenspire series kicked off with the New York Times bestselling The Shadow Queen, inspired by Snow White, and continues with this companion inspired by none other than Rumpelstiltskin. Thad and Ari are bastard twins, the former forced to take the throne after the royal family is killed, and the latter having no desire to take his place, no matter how much he attempts to groom her for it. When Ari realizes the entire chain of events is the work of a manipulative Wish Granter named Teague, she knows her time is better spent working to take the trickster down. But if she fails, she might lose everyone and everything she has left…including her very soul.
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The Seafarer’s Kiss, by Julia Ember
If you grew up on the Disney movie version of “The Little Mermaid,” prepare to have your world rocked by a very different, delightfully clever version, based on Norse mythology and starring a bisexual mermaid who falls for a stranded Viking. Ersel is absolutely dreading the mer ritual that assesses her fertility and lands her with a mate, which in no way lines up with the free life she wants, even if it lands her with her best friend. And when she meets Ragna, a beautiful shield-maiden and the first live human she’s ever seen up close, her desire for something more burns brighter than ever. But after making a deal with the trickster god Loki that goes sour, she’ll need all her resources and cleverness to fix the mess.