10 Story Re-Tellings You Need To Read (And A Few To Leave Behind)

Last updated on 1 November 2019

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I love a good re-telling.

Whether that be of a fairy tale, a myth, an ancient story passed down through the generations. There’s something about taking what’s already well know (and perhaps popular) and playing with it a little; having the characters shift their perspectives, throw in the supernatural, reverse the plot, create tension, draw characters together who weren’t together in the original story. The art of re-telling and re-imagining of these tales is a wonderful thing, and can really re-ignite your love of fairy tales. But only if done well.

I’ve read a lot of re-tellings and re-imaginings of stories over the years, and there have been quite a few that I really enjoyed, as well as a few which I wish I hadn’t read. We won’t go into the latter too much today, because I believe that one should read books and decide for one’s self. But I will let you know about 10 re-telling/re-imaginings that I did really enjoy.

Fairy tales

Stepsister, by Jennifer Donnelly

A recent read for me (and the world, as it was only released this year) Stepsister tells the tale of Isabelle, one of Cinderella’s ‘ugly’ stepsisters, and her journey with discovering who she is after Ella gets whisked away by the prince. It was a magical re-imagining, the telling of a tale that we don’t get at all in the classic fairy tale, and one was beautiful written. I could just hear the Disney voice over begin “Once upon a time…”.

Cinder, by Marissa Meyer

And the rest of the Luna Chronicles (which I haven’t read yet). Cinder is a re-imagining of, surprise surprise, Cinderella. The catch is the Cinder herself is a cyborg in a city called New Beijing. The following books in the series are Scarlet (Little Red Riding hood), Cress (Rapunzel), Winter (Snow White) and a bunch of 0.5 side stories too. Meyer has the ability to not only bring you the story you know so well and recognise it in the tale, but also spin it so far out of orbit that you wonder if you’re reading a fairy tale at all.

Heartless, by Marrssa Meyer

Speaking of Meyer, Heartless is a prequel to Alice in Wonderland (but not a part of the Luna Chronicles; it’s a stand alone. I love Alice in Wonderland, so much so that I have about seven different editions of the book. In Heartless you’ll meet characters you already know like the Mad Hatter, the March Hare, the White Rabbit, and, of course, the Cheshire cat, but then there’s a raft of others thrown in, too.

The Shadow Queen, by C.J Redwine | The Wish Granter, by C. J Redwine

The Shadow Queen, my friends, is one of the more excellent Snow White re-tellings. How, pray tell, does one re-tell the the story of the original Disney Princess? Probably with dragons. I loved the ways it was similar to Snow White, and the ways that it was different, and both aspects play out as we follow Lorelai through the story.

The second in Redwine’s Ravenspire series of fairy tale re-tellings (a series that aren’t so much interconnected, but set in the same world), The Wish Granter is the story of Rumpelstiltskin. Although the story line I’ve just tried to outline in my review doesn’t really have the Rumpelstiltskin-feel we might be use to, Teague’s character is definitely evil, cunning, and everything you expect a Rumpelstiltskin-like character to be. Think The Dark One/Mr.Gold when he’s evil from Once Upon A Time. I quite enjoyed this re-telling.

There are two more in the Ravenspire series: The Traitor Prince which is based on an old Arabian tale called The False Prince along with a little bit of The Prince and the Pauper, and The Blood Spell, a re-telling of Cinderella.

Flame in the Mist, by Renne Ahdieh

This was one of the re-tellings which remind me of a Disney movie; reading Flame in the Mist was like reading Mulan. It’s definitely Japanese, and she’s not out to save China, but some of the concepts were very similar. But other than that, it’s unlike anything I’ve read before. I love Japanese culture and myth , but I hadn’t ever read a young adult novel in which it’s the main theme. It was really refreshing to read, therefore, and highly enjoyable.

Dorothy Must Die, by Danielle Paige

I don’t know if you’d include The Wizard of Oz in the fairy tale section, but it’s along those similar lines. The whole Dorothy Must Die series tells the story of Amy Gumm, the ‘other girl from Kansas’. She arrives in Oz after the events in The Wizard of Oz, and she’s on a mission from the Revolutionary Order of the Wicked … to kill Dorothy. There are more in this series of Oz re-tellings, but I haven’t read them all.

Tiger Lily, by Jodi Lynn Anderson

This story of Tiger Lily and her life in the background of Peter Pan’s world, is told from Tinkerbell’s perspective and is a really unique spin on this tale. While there were the original elements throughout it – Captain Hook, the clock-eating crocodile, Wendy showing up – there were many more bits and pieces thrown in and it was really cool to see more of Neverland and it’s people, rather than just Peter and Wendy’s story.

Mythology

The Percy Jackson Series, by Rick Riordan

Aka Uncle Rick. I haven’t read all of these books yet (just one and two, actually) but already I love this re-telling of the Greek myths. If you haven’t read these books already then I highly recommend picking them up.

Mythos, by Stephen Fry

Speaking of Greek myths, while I yet to finish this book, Stephen Fry’s re-telling of Greek myths is so superb I think everyone should give it a go, especially if you love Classics. His comedic re-telling and explanation of the gods, Titans, and mythological creatures is a joy to read, and you retain the information a lot more, I’ve found, in story form.

Norse Mythology, by Neil Gaiman

On a similar note, Neil Gaiman does a Norse re-telling of the myths that you might be more familiar with than you think – Marvel and The Avengers, anyone? The Thor movies? Loki (*swoon*)? While I haven’t read read this book, per se, I listened to the dramatised audiobook version that BBC 4 Radio did and it’s excellent. You can actually find it here if you’re interested.

Bonus: A few I didn’t enjoy

When I write book reviews I always try to be as honest as I can be, whether they’ve been given to me by publishing companies or I’l bought them myself. That’s why you’ll still find book reviews on the blog of titles that I didn’t really enjoy. Over the years there have been a few re-tellings and re-imaginings of fairy tales and myths that haven’t really impressed me, for various reasons.

Beast: A Tale of Love and Revenge, by Lisa Jensen

If you’ve read my review or listened to Rants and Reviews Podcast then you might recall my gripe with this book. But in short, it was alarming, harsh, needed a trigger warning and it was just not my jam.

Legacy of Kings, by Eleanor Herman

This was a historic re-imagining of Alexander the Great, and I was thoroughly disappointed. Why? All the reasons listed in my review.

Other shout-outs

And the Ocean Was Our Sky, by Patrick Ness – A beautifully illustrated, flipped version of Moby Dick
Sea Witch, by Sarah Hanning – Another flipped/alternative view point and storyline to The Little Mermaid, from the perspective of the Ursula equivalent.
Riders, by Veronica Rossi – A story about the four horsemen of the apocalypse
Atlantia, by Ally Condie – Not strictly speaking a re-telling but taking the idea of the City of Atlanta and expanding on it
Puppet, by Pauline C. Harris – A Pinochhio-esque re-telling
UnEnchanted by Chanda Hahn – Mina is a Grime, and she has to break the curse of the Grimm Brothers
The Looking Glass Wars, by Frank Beddor – A spin on Alice in Wonderland
Ella Enchanted, by Gail Carson Levine – Another Cinderella re-telling