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One might read for many reasons, but one of the main reasons for me is to connect and relate to the character. Female voices are very underheard, and I feel incredibly passionate about changing that and creating and reading stories where the female protagonists have strong voices and are not afraid to be heard. I think it’s important that we continue to create female characters that are raw and real and that portray subjects and feelings that need to be heard more.
Gosh, I loved this book. I’ve re-read it countless times. It is one of my favorite protagonists. She’s fiery and strong, and she knows herself, but the book takes you through her journey, where she starts off as a very quiet but curious girl. Her character development is one of my favorites ever.
This story has a really descriptive and rich world that I could picture clearly in my head, which is why I never wanted to finish the book. As a mythology lover, this story also ticked so many boxes for me.
In the house of Helios, god of the sun and mightiest of the Titans, a daughter is born. Circe is a strange child - not powerful and terrible, like her father, nor gorgeous and mercenary like her mother. Scorned and rejected, Circe grows up in the shadows, at home in neither the world of gods or mortals. But Circe has a dark power of her own: witchcraft. When her gift threatens…
“All stories have two sides,” my fifth-grade teacher said to us one day. “Sometimes, they have more than that.” She told us to rewrite a scene from the book we were reading from the perspective of a different character. What was meant to be a quick writing exercise turned out to be the start of my lifelong fascination with retellings. I love that retold tales show the fundamental truth that everyone has a story, no matter how peripheral they might seem in the original. I’ve written two Pride and Prejudice continuations, and my forthcoming novel is a historical retelling of Beauty and the Beast.
Napoli is a master at rewriting fairy tales and other classic stories, and Zel might just be my favorite of her works. A young adult retelling of Rapunzel from three perspectives, it sticks to the original tale’s basic plot points but deeply expands the reader’s understanding of each character, particularly Rapunzel’s mother, whose feelings and motivations are written with exquisite nuance. Though it’s written for a YA audience, I still enjoy this story as much now as I did when I first read it at age 13, and now that I’m a mother myself, I experience it on an entirely different level. This is a deceptively simple book that really has layers upon layers to unwrap.
High in the mountains, Zel lives with her mother, who insists they have all they need -- for they have each other. Zel's life is peaceful and protected -- until a chance encounter changes everything. When she meets a beautiful young prince at the market one day, she is profoundly moved by new emotions. But Zel's mother sees the future unfolding -- and she will do the unspeakable to prevent Zel from leaving her..."Will leave readers spellbound."-- Publishers Weekly, starred review
“All stories have two sides,” my fifth-grade teacher said to us one day. “Sometimes, they have more than that.” She told us to rewrite a scene from the book we were reading from the perspective of a different character. What was meant to be a quick writing exercise turned out to be the start of my lifelong fascination with retellings. I love that retold tales show the fundamental truth that everyone has a story, no matter how peripheral they might seem in the original. I’ve written two Pride and Prejudice continuations, and my forthcoming novel is a historical retelling of Beauty and the Beast.
Fairy tales are often disturbing, and “Donkeyskin,” the Charles Perrault story upon which Robin McKinley based Deerskin, is no exception. And so, unlike many of McKinley’s novels—which retell fairy tales for a young adult audience—Deerskin is firmly an adult book. But though McKinley does not shy away from the dark themes in this story, which include incest, rape, miscarriage, and PTSD, she is respectful of them, and of the impact they have on Lissar, the story’s protagonist, and on the reader. Though this is often a difficult read, it’s also a hopeful one—a story not just of abuse, but of recovery, and proof that strength of character doesn’t always reveal itself through the swinging of swords or the slaying of dragons.
(There’s also a sweet romance. Oh, and there are dogs. Lots and lots of dogs. And they are delightful).
“A fierce and beautiful story of rage and compassion, betrayal and loyalty, damage and love...A fairy tale for adults, one you'll never forget.”—Alice Hoffman, New York Times bestselling author of The Rules of Magic
The only daughter of a beloved king and queen, Princess Lissar has grown up in the shadow of her parent’s infinite adoration for each other—an infatuation so great that it could only be broken by the queen’s unexpected passing. As Lissar reaches womanhood, it becomes clear to everyone in the kingdom that she has inherited her late mother’s breathtaking beauty. But on the eve of her…
One summer night in a small prairie city, 18-year-old Gabriel Reece accidentally outs himself to his redneck brother Colin, flees on his motorcycle, and gets struck by lightning on his way out of town.
He’s strangely fine, walking away from his melted pile of bike without a scratch. There’s no time to consider his new inhuman durability before his brother disappears and his childhood home burns down. He’s become popular, too—local cops and a weird private eye are after him, wanting to know if his brother is behind a recent murder.
On Friday, Gabriel Reece gets struck by lightning while riding his motorcycle.
It's not the worst thing that happens to him that week.
Gabe walks away from a smoldering pile of metal without a scratch-or any clothes, which seem to have been vaporized. And that's weird, but he's more worried about the sudden disappearance of his brother, Colin, who ditched town the second Gabe accidentally outed himself as gay.
Gabe tries to sift through fragmented memories of his crummy childhood for clues to his sudden invincibility, but he barely has time to think before people around town start turning up…
When I lived in France as a youngster, museum portraits became friends. I could hear courtiers scheming in Versailles and gladiators clashing in coliseums. Naturally, decades later, when I learned Napoleon Bonaparte tried to write a novel of love and betrayal, I vowed to finish it for him. But to ghostwrite for Napoleon, I had to know him as personally as his great love Josephine did. I dove into research, translated his writing to capture his cadence, and became secretary of the Napoleonic Historical Society. Finally, on remote St. Helena Island in the ramshackle rooms where Napoleon died in exile, I found the intimate connection I demand from historical fiction.
Write about Abraham Lincoln’s intimate life? I wouldn’t dare, but I’m thrilled Louis Bayard did.Courting Mr. Lincoln catches America’s icon at his pivot from aw-shucks buffoon to fast-track politician. Joshua Speed, Lincoln’s roommate who’s in love with him, applies social veneer, teaching him to dress and dance, and where to rest those spidery arms during dinner. The friends’ touching love never crosses into sexual on the page. Yet, intimacy flows through Bayard’s extraordinary writing. We, too, inhabit Lincoln’s long torso, flailing elbows, and head crammed in a too-small top hat. Alas, a society matron pushes Lincoln “toward destiny,” requiring marriage with Mary Todd. Melancholy Lincoln, snared in grasping love, moves on to save our nation. Because of this book, I’ll always consider Abraham Lincoln a beautiful man.
When Mary Todd meets Abraham Lincoln in Springfield in the winter of 1840, he is on no one's short list to be president. A country lawyer living above a dry goods shop, he is lacking both money and manners, and his gift for oratory surprises those who meet him. Mary, a quick, self-possessed debutante with an interest in debates and elections, at first finds him an enigma. "I can only hope," she tells his roommate, the handsome, charming Joshua Speed, "that his waters being so very still, they also run deep."
It's not long, though, before she sees the Lincoln…
I’ve always been passionate about horses – in fact, I’ve adopted five wild mustangs over the years and ride often – so it’s no surprise that they often find their way into my stories. But birds and feathers tend to be important elements of my books, too. I live on a working family farm surrounded by hawks, bald eagles, blue herons, swans, owls, and countless others… but I suspect the true reason there are birds in my books has to do with the little sparrows who like to perch on my windowsill as I write!
When Princess Andaryn’s father gets lost in the woods and returns wed to a mysterious woman with magical power, her life is turned into a nightmare. To save the lives of her six brothers, she agrees to a bargain, swearing to remain silent for six years. In a cruel trick, the wicked queen transforms them into six black swans and Ryn discovers that protecting them will be far more difficult than she ever expected. But she doesn’t need a voice to fight for those she loves and seeing her courage and steadfast determination makes this a book I’ll never forget. This is a beautifully written, richly imagined retelling of the fairytale “Six Swans” or “The Wild Swans” and I loved it. Readers ready to bridge the gap between middle grade fantasy and young adult fantasy will appreciate following Ryn as she grows from powerless young girl to strong young woman.
Based on the Brothers Grimm's fairy tale Six Swans, The Flight of Swans follows Ryn's journey to save her family and their kingdom.
Princess Andaryn's six older brothers have always been her protectors—until her father takes a new Queen, a frightening, mysterious woman who enchants the men in the royal family. When Ryn's attempt to break the enchantment fails, she makes a bargain: the Queen will spare her brothers' lives if Ryn remains silent for six years.
Ryn thinks she freed her brothers, but she never thought the Queen would turn her brothers into swans. And she never thought she'd…
I have been writing for years and reading forever. Fantasy books have always been my number one go to as far as genres. I loved how they would teleport me to a new world, allowing me to leave behind reality. The characters became my friends. The worlds became my homes. I couldn’t get enough and still can’t. As I got older, my imagination never stopped. I was constantly creating dreamworld and character plots in my head. Eventually, I started writing, needing the characters to stop talking. The only way to do that was to get them on paper. Since then, I haven’t been able to stop.
I am not a huge YA reader, but this one was super fun and kept me guessing around each page. The love story was intense, and you were constantly questioning if they were going to make it or not. The political side of the story was what really hooked me.
This book starts off with the FMC completely devastated and feeling like she’s lost everything. I loved watching her rebuild herself and her confidence while kicking some a** along the way as she conquered every fear and challenge, she came across.
Morally gray characters, plot twists, curses, and war created a captivating tale I couldn’t put down.
GOODREADS BEST FANTASY YA 2020. The intoxicating and bloodthirsty finale to the New York Times bestselling The Cruel Prince, nominated for the CARNEGIE MEDAL, and New York Times bestseller The Wicked King, Best YA Fantasy in the Goodreads Choice Awards 2019.
After being pronounced Queen of Faerie and then abruptly exiled by the Wicked King Cardan, Jude finds herself unmoored, the queen of nothing. She spends her time with Vivi and Oak, watching reality television, and doing odd jobs, including squaring up to a cannibalistic faerie.
When her twin sister Taryn shows up asking a favour, Jude jumps at the…
I developed an interest in classical literature while at university, folklore in particular. It’s fascinating how fairy tales originated in oral form before being written and rewritten all over the world for generations, and as such, many of them don’t have a single founding author. But each adaption generally maintains the basic plot points of the original tale, and it’s interesting to see how time, culture, and perspective affect a retelling. There’s always room for interpretation, especially when the traditional narratives often involve exhausted themes and stereotypes, and so with my latest novel, I didn’t hold back when it came to the creative possibilities of more than one fairy tale.
If you’ve ever wondered what it would be like if all the iconic fairy tale characters were friends and lived in the modern world, then this is the novel for you.Kill Me Softlyis the ultimate fairy tale mashup, with heroes and heroines—and of course, villains—from Sleeping Beauty, Snow White, Beauty and the Beast, and countless others, all living in one enchanted town where magic comes in two forms: blessings and curses. The reader follows a teenage orphan as she gradually comes to understand what it means to have the mark that brands her as an inevitable victim, though her stubborn determination to change her fate and go against the norm is a welcoming variation. With a plot chock-full of intrigue, love triangles, and dark twists, this YA novel is sure to charm.
Mirabelle's past is shrouded in secrecy, from her parents' tragic deaths to her guardians' half-truths about why she can't return to her birthplace, Beau Rivage. Desperate to see the town, Mira runs away—and discovers a world she never could have imagined.
In Beau Rivage, nothing is what it seems—the strangely pale girl with a morbid interest in apples, the obnoxious playboy who's a beast to everyone he meets, and the chivalrous guy who has a thing for damsels in distress. Here, fairy tales come to life, curses are awakened, and ancient stories are played out again and again.
A fantasy romance author myself, there's something comforting about seeing my favorite fairy tales retold in new ways. It's so much fun to see how authors can twist the tales into something new and totally unique. Maybe the handsome prince is no longer the prince, but a cursed ogre. Or that dragon flying through the night is a queen in disguise, waiting for that one special true love to unlock their curse. But no matter the journey, we know that true love will win, break the curse and save the day, and here are my recommendations for some of my very favorite books.
Once Again is actually a combined volume of two stories inspired by Snow White and Sleeping Beauty, but each easily stands out on their own. Snow was by far my favorite, introducing an evil stepmother who has a particular love for the science arts, and the dwarves were inspired into a combination of unforgettable human-animal hybrids that was perfectly brilliant. Raven and Jessica, or Snow as she is known to the Hybrids known as the Lonely Ones, were a cute pairing that made a very sweet ending together.
Two beloved and timeless tales—Snow White and Sleeping Beauty—find new life in these magical and imaginative retellings filled with romance and adventure.
Snow
After the tragic death of her mother, Jessica’s father finds love again. But as Jessica grows into a beautiful young woman, it becomes clear that her stepmother is wildly—and murderously—jealous of her.
With no choice, Jessica escapes to London and finds herself surrounded by an odd band of outcasts who accept her into their makeshift family. And when her stepmother—repentant and supposedly seeking forgiveness—appears in the city, Jessica must decide whom to trust.
As a reader, I have always been partial to fantasy—the sweeping worlds, the heroics, the adventures, and the characters. I grew up immersed in fantasy, and as I began my writing journey, I remained immersed in it. I love being transported to another world and escaping the mundane of life, exchanging it, if only briefly, for a life of excitement and magic. I am a fantasy romance writer at heart, and my writing personifies my love affair with both fantasy and romance. To me, romance is just as tantalizing as world-building. My books consist of powerful romances that weave perfectly with the magical world in which they bloom.
I don’t typically read fairytale-inspired books, but this one was so beautifully crafted that I couldn’t put it down. The fantasy world-building is reminiscent of a Tim Burton film with vivid imagery and characters.
Alyssa is the great-great-great granddaughter of Alice. She worries her fate will leave her in an institution like others in her family until she finds herself in Wonderland.
This series has two romances—one between Alyssa and Jeb, and one between Alyssa and Morpheus. Jeb is her love in the human world, but Morpheus offers his own temptation. As the series progresses, she is torn between the two men and their two worlds, both feeding different sides of her.
There is no shortage of fantasy creatures and happenings in this series, nor is there a shortage of romantic sparks.
A descendant of Alice Liddell, the real-life inspiration for Lewis Carroll's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, 16-year-old Alyssa Gardner fears she is mentally ill like her mother and predecessors until she discovers that Wonderland is real and, if she passes a series of tests to fix Alice's mistakes, she may be able to save her family from their age-old curse.
My debut novel is a Beauty and the Beast retelling because I’ve been obsessed with fairy tales all my life, and I’m thrilled to share some of my favorite retellings with you! When I was a child, my grandma gave me an illustrated collection of fairy tales. She had grown up reading stories from Hans Christian Andersen and the Grimm brothers, and she wanted to share that with me. It was an interest I gladly adopted. I love seeing my favorite fairy tales told with new twists and elements that bring the stories to life all over again and let me fall in love with them one more time.
This is a retelling of The Twelve Dancing Princesses which actually keeps all twelve princesses in the cast.
You would think so many characters would overwhelm the story (or the reader), but the author manages to balance them all gracefully and makes you hope they’ll each have their own stories in the future (two of them do).
This book made my heart pound repeatedly as I worried about the rising stakes, and the pages simply flew by. It was delightful from start to finish.
Rose is one of twelve princesses forced to dance through the night in an underground palace. The key to breaking the spell lies in magic knitting needles, an invisibility cloak, and-of course-true love. Inspired by "The Twelve Dancing Princesses,"this novel is as captivating as it is fresh. Enchanted readers are sure to clamor for the new companion, Princess of Glass, also publishing this season.
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