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From tales of dashing knights to damsels not necessarily in distress, from Middle Earth to Hogwarts and beyond, we’ve been treated to the best kinds of stories out there. And just when we think it can’t get any better, more stories are created, some re-creating those well-loved tales we’ve grown up with, but giving them a life and breath of their own. Here are some awesome retellings of favourites like Cinderella, Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice, and more!
Geekerella (Once Upon a Con #1)
Author: Ashley Poston
Publish Date: April 4, 2017
Publisher: Quirk Books (Hardcover, 320 pages)
Literary Awards: Goodreads Choice Award for Young Adult Fiction (2017)
Nothing spells romance like the die-hard fan of a sci-fi TV series crossing paths with the actor chosen to play the hero, right? Well, that would be the case if Elle didn’t hate Darien Freeman’s guts so much. She’s upset by the fact that he can’t get all the answers to a trivia right and thinks his playing the role is an insult to Starfield fans around the world, and an insult to the memory of her dead father, who loved the series. Darien feels like he will never live up to his predecessor in the role of Prince Kai and true enough, loyal fans of Starfield make him feel that way because all they see is the image projected by the media, and never who Darien really is. It doesn’t help that he has to take part in a cosplay convention, something he’s avoided through the years.
Why We Love It: Nothing is further from the original story of Cinderella than one that tells of a cosplaying girl meeting the actor she hates. But that’s what makes Geekerella so good. You may know the story of Cinderella by heart, but you won’t always be able to guess what’s going to happen next in this story of cosplay, food trucks, and two unlikely people whose paths cross in the most unlikely way. Oh, and you’ll definitely want someone to call you “ah’blena” afterwards.
Get your copy of Geekerellla here.
Flame in the Mist (Flame in the Mist #1)
Author: Renée Ahdieh
Publish Date: May 16, 2017
Publisher: G.P. Putnam’s Sons (Hardcover, 392 pages)
Literary Awards: Goodreads Choice Award for Young Adult Fantasy & Science Fiction (2017)
All her life, Hattori Mariko has done the best she could to live up to what was expected of her, right up to an arranged marriage between her and the son of the emperor. But when her entourage is attacked by the so-called Black Clan, Mariko realises that she won’t be able to rest until she finds out who wants her dead. And the only way to find that out is to join the people responsible for the ambush and attack, the Black Clan. Knowing very well that she will not be able to gather the information she needs as herself, Mariko turns to the only option left: cut her hair and dress as a boy.
Why We Love It: This retelling of Mulan takes us deep into Japanese culture and history and the time of samurais and emperors. It weaves magic and courage between its lines that tell the story of honour, justice, and ambition, and how far some are willing to go to get what they want. You’ll find yourself drawn in, just as curious as Mariko, confused by how different the Black Clan is from the rumours that surround them. Plus, that plot twist in the end. Flame in the Mist ends with a cliffhanger so you’ll want to grab a copy of the sequel, Smoke in the Sun.
Get your copy of Flame in the Mist here.
Ayesha at Last
Author: Uzma Jalaluddin
Publish Date: June 4, 2019
Publisher: Berkley Books (Paperback, 368 pages)
Literary Awards: Goodreads Choice Award for Romance (2019)
If a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife, then a single woman living with her boisterous family and no prospects in sight must be agreeable to an arranged marriage, right? Well, not for Ayesha Shamsi. She’s a dreamer, a poet-in-the-making while working as a teacher in the meantime to pay off her debts to her uncle. When she takes the place of her cousin to volunteer for an event at the mosque her family goes to, she meets smart, handsome, irritatingly-attractive Khalid. When a surprise engagement to her cousin (yes, the one she was impersonating) is announced, Ayesha has to deal with the mess of mistaken identities, gossip about Khalid’s family, and her growing feelings.
Why We Love It: It’s Pride and Prejudice in a different time, a different setting, and a different place, and that is exactly what makes it such a refreshing read. When you step into Ayesha’s shoes, you’ll feel her frustration towards her cousin Hafsa, her confusion where Khalid is concerned, her loyalty and love for her family, and more.
Get your copy of Ayesha at Last here.
Olivia Twist
Author: Lorie Langdon
Publish Date: March 6, 2018
Publisher: Blink/HarperCollins (Hardcover, 331 pages)
Literary Awards: INSPY for Literature for Young Adults (2019)
What if Oliver Twist had actually been born as a girl but was forced to live as a boy due to her too-pretty looks? Olivia Twist takes us into a delightful spin of events when Olivia is now a grown-up young lady living in her grandfather’s house. During the day, she makes calls and entertains visitors, but at night, she roams the streets in her usual disguise as Oliver. Enter a few shady characters who are seeking mischief and even some familiar faces, like the Artful Dodger, and you’ll have this book keeping you at the edge of your seat!
Why We Love It: Fun, mischief, mistaken identities, and the possibility of a romance. What’s not to love, really? Olivia Brownlow (aka, Twist) takes this story we know and very well loved for its “Please, sir, may I have some more, please” into a time capsule of a few years down the road. The encounters between Jack MacCarron (aka the Artful Dodger) and Olivia will leave you on the edge of your seat, always, always wanting “more”.
For Darkness Shows the Stars
Author: Diana Peterfreund
Publish Date: June 12, 2012
Publisher: Balzer + Bray (Hardcover, 407 pages)
Elliot North broke Kai’s heart when she refused to run away with him. Back then, the choice of duty to family over her first love was something necessary, and now it is something that she’s always regretted since then. It’s been four years, and Kai is back. No longer as the servant boy as she remembered him, but as the Captain of Cloud Fleet, a group of shipbuilders who seem to carry with them a secret that could change the world she’s known all her life. Once again, she’s left with another choice: hold on to what she was raised to believe in all these years or trust the boy she once trusted with her own heart.
Why We Love It: No matter how retellings shine a familiar light on well-known and much-loved favourites, perhaps by simply giving us a different perspective, you want them to have a life and voice of their own. Diana Peterfreund does that in her retelling of Jane Austen’s Persuasion. Never mind that the hero’s name is Captain Wentforth which is a pretty obvious rip-off of the original Captain Wentworth. The setting, its underlying plots, and the details that come with this dystopian/science fiction novel are enough to make you realise that this is a story of its own.
Get your copy of For Darkness Shows the Stars here.
Dear Mr. Knightley
Author: Katherine Reay
Publish Date: November 12, 2013
Publisher: Thomas Nelson, (Paperback, 317 pages)
Literary Awards: Christy Award for Debut (2014), ACFW Carol Award for Contemporary and Debut (2014), INSPY for Debut Fiction (2014), Bookworm Best Award (2014)
Sam is an aspiring writer, taking a graduate degree in the prestigious Medill School of Journalism. It’s all thanks to “Mr. Knightley” an anonymous benefactor who is paying her way. His only condition is that she writes to him to update her on her progress. Bit by bit, Sam reveals herself through letters, telling about her years in foster care, how she hides behind fictional characters, using them to protect her from pain. She tells of her classmates at Medill, a wonderful couple she met, and successful novelist, Alex Powell who is starting to mean a lot more to Sam than she’d care to admit.
Why We Love It: In this retelling, you get not one, but two classic novels merged into one! Katherine Reay does a wonderful job of taking the most wonderful scenes from Jane Austen’s Emma and Jean Webster’s Daddy-Long-Legs and letting them cross paths in this unforgettable book. If you’ve read both Emma and Daddy-Long-Legs, you’ll remember what was going on, but the book doesn’t rip off from the classic novels in a predictable, boring sort of way. Rather, it takes the moments we remember and creates them into something we treasure equally, yet in a different way.
Get your copy of Dear Mr. Knightley here.
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