Hello everybody, my name is Cara, and today I am here with some fairytale retelling and
other retelling recommendations for the Retellathon. *pretty fairytale music* I will link my announcement
video that has all of the information about the dates and the cohosts and everything you
want to know for the readathon in the description. I have quite a few recommendations here because
obviously I love retellings, I have read a lot of ones that I would recommend, so I'm
gonna try and keep it as brief as possible for each book. So starting out with just the
general kind of retellings, so these are not for a particular challenge but depending on
which fairytale they retell you could maybe use it for reading a retelling that's your
favorite, or if you just want to get into reading more retellings! So the first one
I have is The Castle Behind Thorns by Merrie Haskell. This is a retelling of Sleeping Beauty.
Once you get into kind of the--the main plot and figuring out the mystery of this kind
of enchanted or cursed castle, it just--it's impossible to put this book down, at least
it was for me. The main female character is one of my favorite protagonists ever, I just--I
really really enjoy her. This book also has an amazing friendship in it between the 2
central characters. Next is The Goose Girl by Shannon Hale. This is a retelling of The
Goose Girl, and this book is really beautifully written; I think Shannon Hale is amazing at
worldbuilding and at really making you get a sense for the place where you are and kind
of the different cultures that interact in each of her stories. And we follow this princess
who through a combination of events ends up in a faraway kingdom and has to kind of take
up the disguise as the goose girl. And we kind of follow her through her adventures
as she meets other characters and makes allies. Next is Fire and Hemlock by Diana Wynne Jones.
This is a retelling of Tam Lin, kind of a classic ballad or story that I think is [originally]
Scottish. And this is such a strange and magical book. If you've read Diana Wynne Jones, you
know that there's just this very particular atmosphere to her stories and this one is
no exception. Polly is such an interesting main character. I wouldn't call her an unlikeable
protagonist, but she's definitely like frustrating and wonderful in the best way possible! It's
got some very divisive elements, like the love story in this book is--I could see it
being upsetting or problematic for a lot of people, and I honestly still don't really
know how I feel about it. And this has some great kind of dark fairytale or dark faerie
kind of folklore or mythology that is also interwoven with the modern world. Next I have
kind of a classic retelling and that is Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine. This is of
course a retelling of Cinderella, and I'm sure a lot of people have heard of this one
but if you haven't picked it up yet, I think it's a favorite for a reason. Ella is so spunky
and intelligent and clever and I love the kind of interconnecting fantasy worlds in
all of Gail Carson Levine's books. When Ella is a baby she is given the gift of obedience,
and as most of us could probably imagine that makes her life very difficult and complicated.
So we follow her through some of the classic Cinderella situations but with their own unique
twist. Another Gail Carson Levine book is Fairest. This is a retelling of Snow White,
and it takes place in the kingdom of Ayortha, which is very singing- and music-focused.
So we hear a little bit about that kingdom in Ella Enchanted. We follow our main character
Aza who actually lives in that kingdom, so it's so cool to get to explore that world
more. And although this book is I think not as much of a crowd-pleaser as Ella Enchanted,
at least I don't see it recommended as much as Ella Enchanted is, I really love it and
it really took me kind of the second or third time reading it to begin to appreciate it
as much as Ella Enchanted. Because Aza is just as strong as Ella in her own way, and
I just really enjoyed the directions this story took; it was kind of unexpected. Next
is Magnolia by Kristi Cook. This is actually a Romeo and Juliet retellling set in the American
South. It's sort of a reverse Romeo and Juliet story, actually, because their families--these
2 characters' respective families--would LOVE for them to get together but they hate each
other. And then one day there is a storm, and they begin to grow a lot closer to each
other. Next is Wildwood Dancing by Juliet Marillier. This is a retelling of the 12 Dancing
Princesses with some other fairytale or folklore elements as well, and it's actually set in
Romania, so there is a lot of that kind of folklore. It's just such a beautifully written
and atmospheric story. The sister relationships in this book are fantastic, this is definitely
a fantasy or fairytale book that just pulls you in and really envelops you in this world.
Next I have another Shakespeare retelling or kind of retelling and that is Still Star-Crossed
by Melinda Taub. This is one of my all-time favorite books; I have mentioned it several
times on this channel. And this is not exactly a Romeo and Juliet retelling: it retells the
overarching story of the Montagues and the Capulets, because this takes place after the
death of Romeo and Juliet and we follow Benvolio and Rosaline, who are forced into this arranged
marriage. And basically neither of them want this, so they decide to work together to solve
a mystery that will enable them to not marry each other if they can solve it. I won't say
any more than that about the main kind of plot, but I love this book so much. It's incredibly
well-written, I feel like it really captures the flavor of Shakespeare's language without
feeling pretentious and without kind of bogging down the story. I definitely don't think you
need to be a Shakespeare fan to read and enjoy this book. I also really love the mystery
elements and the characters and honestly, Benvolio and Rosaline is--this is--they're
like one of my top OTPs of all time...like I'm talking top 5. Next is Bryony and Roses
by T. Kingfisher. This is a very short actually, um, retelling of Beauty and the Beast and
it's one of the best-done ones I think I've read. The writing again is very good; I feel
like T. Kingfisher is so good at balancing humor and beautiful kind of passages and description,
but it never feels too slow. And our main character Bryony is so much fun; she's so
stubborn and intelligent but not in an obnoxious way, where she's just like putting herself
in danger by arguing with people more powerful than her? (That's a pet peeve of mine, if
you can't tell!) But I think the relationship between Bryony and the Beast character is
so well-done which is obviously very important in a retelling of Beauty and the Beast. And
I also think that the ending of this one is surprisingly creepy, so that was a really
interesting element. So this is definitely I think a good kind of retelling for beginners
or you know for people who aren't used to reading them because it is so short, it's
so engaging, the characters are great, and it's got--it's got just a little bit of everything.
Next is Shadow Spinner by Susan Fletcher. This is kind of a retelling of 1001 Nights,
or the Princess Scheherezade story but with a twist. We're actually following a servant
girl named Marjani who is called in to help Scheherezade because Scheherezade is starting
to run out of stories. There is a ton of other like politics and court intrigue and some
really really interesting discussion of loving people and what...what you can forgive in
someone that you care about, and I just really enjoyed Marjani as a main character. And the
focus on storytelling is so wonderful and I just highly recommend this book if you want
kind of a different take on the 1001 Nights story. Next is Furthermore by Tahereh Mafi.
This is actually a retelling of Alice in Wonderland. I think Tahereh Mafi's whimsical writing style
is so well-suited to this kind of story; I really connected with Alice and with what
she wanted. And I think the entire world in this book, Furthermore and kind of the other
areas we see, is so...so vivid, so brilliant, and I really recommend this one if you can
enjoy kind of a whimsical magical story that doesn't have everything explained and laid
out for you. Like I mentioned in my wrap up, if you have to have like Brandon Sanderson-level
magic systems, like you need to know exactly how everything works, this might drive you
crazy, but otherwise I think you would love this book. Next I have Princess of the Midnight
Ball by Jessica Day George. This is a retelling of the 12 Dancing Princesses and this is another
one I think is really good for kind of beginners because it's not too heavy on any of the fairytale
elements, it's very accessible and I don't mean that in a like derogatory way, I really
enjoyed this book. I think the sister relationships, some of them are really really well-done.
I thought that the adventure or like mystery aspects of the story were also good. There
is a male main character who knits, and we need more of that!--we just need more characters
who knit in general, I think, but it was kind of especially refreshing to see a guy who
does that. But I really enjoyed this one, AND if you like this one...then I actually
enjoyed the sequel even more, and this is Princess of Glass. And this follows a different
sister, so it's kind of a companion sequel, and this is a retelling of Cinderella. And
this is I think one of the cleverest and most unexpected twists on the Cinderella fairytale.
And I absolutely LOVE Poppy, the main character, she's just--she's so funny and kick-ass and
just--everything, I really love her relationships with the other characters, I love kind of
the slow unfolding of the Cinderella fairytale and you can't really tell from the beginning
how it's going to go. So both of these books I highly recommend. And the last book in my
more general category--I know, there's a lot!--is The Princess Curse by Merrie Haskell. This
is another all-time favorite book of mine, it is another retelling of the 12 Dancing
Princesses, and this one is also set in kind of the Romania, Transylvania kind of area
of Europe, but it's set in a fictional country. So there is a lot of kind of Romanian influences
in the folklore, and I absolutely loved that aspect of it. I loved the worldbuilding, I
loved the writing, I loved all of the characters, and there's just something about this book
that has like the perfect...the perfect atmosphere for the story it's telling, if that makes
any sense, so I highly recommend this one. It's a very quick read, but I just--I wanted
it to go on forever, just about. Okay, so now moving into my recommendations for the
queer or genderflipped retelling challenge. I think all of these in my stack are genderflipped,
I don't think any of them are queer because I realized I have not actually read many queer
fairytale retellings, or [queer] retellings of any kind. So I do have one on my TBR for
sure, but [in this video] I'm only recommending books that I have read myself, so that's why
some of the ones that you might know of aren't on this list. So first off I have Touch by
Natalia Jaster. And this kind of a retelling or reimagining of the Cupid or Eros story.
So there is a personification of Love, like the god of love, and it's actually a girl
in this book and she falls in love with a human boy, and complications and romance kind
of ensue. This book is a New Adult, or I would say...it might be right on the border between
YA and New Adult, so just be aware of that going in, there is mature content in this
book. So I would recommend this if you're looking for more of a romantic-focused kind
of retelling. Next I have Crimson Bound by Rosamund Hodge. This is another of my all-time
favorite books that I have mentioned several times. This is a gender-flipped retelling
of The Girl With No Hands, which is a fairytale I don't think I had heard of before reading
this book and it's also a retelling kind of of Little Red Riding Hood. And this is a very
dark, strange, atmospheric story. It blends like this creepy forest atmosphere with 17th
or 18th century France in a really beautiful and surprisingly well-developed way. This
also could work for the dark fairytale challenge because this is definitely an intense book;
there are high stakes. And our main character Rachelle is definitely more of an antihero
than she is a protagonist. She's done some terrible things, and she's trying to come
to terms with that, and I absolutely just love this book so much. I love the writing
and the worldbuilding. Also the romantic relationship in this book is another just all-time OTP
that I still...it still gets me, just thinking about it now! Next is Of Beast and Beauty
by Stacey Jay. This of course retells the Beauty and the Beast story and it is sort
of genderflipped in that kinda the whole point of this book is that it's not immediately
obvious who is the Beauty and who is the Beast. And this is set in outer space. It doesn't
quite feel like science fiction; I feel like this would be a great book for people who
are used to reading EITHER fantasy OR sci-fi, because it sort of feels right in the middle
to me. And again, great writing, great characters, surprisingly like emotional and intense and
I just--I love this book so much. Next is The Forbidden Wish by Jessica Khoury. Let's
say half-genderflipped version of Aladdin because Aladdin is still a male character
but the genie is actually a female character and her name is Zahra and she is wonderful.
I know a lot of people really enjoyed the romantic relationship in this book. It didn't
actually do that much for me, but everything else about the book was SO good, including
the ending I thought was just amazing, that I still really loved this book. And if you
guys saw my discussion on like romantic relationships in books, you know that it's really really
rare for a book where I don't connect with the main relationship to be a favorite of
mine, and this one is. Next I have Beastkeeper by Cat Hellisen, and this is a genderflipped
version of Beauty and the Beast, again. And it's so gorgeously written. This is a book
I actually didn't like very much the first time I read it, almost unhauled it, read it
for the Rereadathon challenge and I loved it! I gave it 5 stars the second time. There's
all these interweaving curses, and these--these hard lessons that the characters have to learn
about sometimes bad things happen and you can't undo them, but there's still this message
of beauty and hope. And finally my last bunch of books are for the challenge to read a fairytale
with a dark twist, so maybe you follow the villain as the protagonist or it's an unhappily
ever after kind of story, just something about it is a dark take on a fairytale or other
kind of story. So first off I have Princess of Thorns by Stacey Jay. Now this is actually
NOT a retelling of Sleeping Beauty, I would say it's kind of a reimagining, because we
actually follow a character who is Sleeping Beauty's daughter. But it's definitely a dark
retelling: the book opens with her mother killing herself in front of her children.
So this book doesn't shy away from some really upsetting moments. This is such a strange
kind of story but I love the way that she brought in the like magical elements of this
book. Aurora is just such an interesting character: even when she makes decisions that you know
are gonna be bad down the line, it's like you can't help rooting for her. And I really
loved the development of her kind of alliance that turns into something more with the character
Niklaas, because I hated him when we first met him, but by the end of the book I really
really loved him. And also this book has a like girl has to dress as a boy in disguise
kind of trope and I actually still really enjoyed it, even though I feel like that's
a trope that can get overdone very easily. Next is A Face Like Glass by Frances Hardinge.
Of course I had to have a Frances Hardinge book on this list. This is a dark reimagining
of the Alice in Wonderland story, because it's sort of set up as if Alice had been born
in Wonderland and she was trying to get out. The writing is so gorgeous and magical and
just wraps you up in the story. I absolutely love the world that Neverfell lives in, she
is the Alice in Wonderland character, and just the really powerful things this book
has to say about like classism and all of these other complicated issues that are done
so well in this book. Next is A Thousand Nights by E. K. Johnston. This is another retelling
of 1001 Nights, but it focuses very much on the power of women and on the power of storytelling.
It doesn't reframe the Scheherezade story as a romance, and I really really appreciated
that, so I feel like this would be a great book if you really love that fairytale or
if you love books that talk about storytelling, or maybe you read some other retellings of
this story and you just felt like--you felt like you wanted something kind of darker or
more mysterious [or less romantic], I really enjoyed this one. Next is Hunted by Meagan
Spooner. This is a Beauty and the Beast retelling that is definitely in my top...top 3 or top
5. This is again, so gorgeously written, I feel like I'm saying that for a lot of these
but it's true! You feel the winter atmosphere of this book. I really really love our main
character; I love the entire cast of characters actually, even kind of the analogue character
to Gaston. This is such a gorgeous story, it really incorporates Russian folklore elements
and kind of elements of the Firebird story. And I just--I love this book so much, I feel
like it is so underhyped. Next is Cruel Beauty by Rosamund Hodge. And this is a dark fairytale
retelling of Beauty and the Beast because the Beauty character [has] actually been training
her whole life to kill the Beast character. That's all I'm really gonna say except that
there are some--some unusual kind of Greek mythology elements in this book? It's hard
to explain, but I know that that kind of mix-and-match of kind of worldbuilding can throw some people;
I personally really enjoyed it. If you like kind of strange fantasy books, I think this
might be one you enjoy as well. Next is Vassa in the Night by Sarah Porter. And this is
a retelling of the Vasalisa the Beautiful fairytale, and it is set in kind of an urban
fantasy New York. And it's super creepy, super strange, this might be one of the most bizarre
books on this list if not THE most bizarre. And even though I didn't--it's not one of
my favorite books, I think about it a lot, and I just--I was so surprised at some of
the directions the story took. And that's hard for a book to do for me, so this is another
one that is just like, it's very strange but if you've been tempted by the synopsis, I
would give it a try because even if you don't love it, I feel like you're gonna be glad
you read it. And finally, the last book on this very long list is Deathless by Catherynne
M. Valente. This is a very dark retelling of the Koschei the Deathless story, and it's
very heavily based in other Russian mythology and folklore as well. Catherynne M. Valente
definitely did her research, and this book also incorporates a lot of Russian history.
The writing in this is just incredibly good, the worldbuilding is masterful, some of the
characters are just--even the ones you don't like, you like! Because you care about what
happens to them, or they're so interesting that you sort of want to see them, even if
you don't like them. So this is another one where it's like if you are really wanting
something dark and strange and where not everything about it is explained to you, or you just
want that old world kind of classic fairytale atmosphere and darkness, this would be the
book for you. Okay everybody, so those are my recommendations for retellings of fairytales
and other stories. I know there were SO many, but I didn't really want to take any of them
off the list because I do enjoy and recommend all of those, and I wanted to give you guys
options! *laughs* Please let me know if you guys have read any of these what you thought,
or if you're gonna pick them up for the Retellathon. Thank you guys so much for watching, I will
see you soon with another video, and I hope you love the next book you read. Bye!
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