Three Fairy Tale Retellings (feat. Other Musical Nonsense)

       This past weekend was the last theatre production of my high school career. For my senior role, I was honored to portray the Lady Larken in Once Upon A Mattress. It has been fun, and I’m thankful for all the memories I’ve made with the cast. Since the show is a retelling of The Princess and The Pea, I thought it would be fun to tie in a few retellings this week, too. I’ve got three amazing books to share with you, so let’s get on with the show!

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Hunted
By: Meagan Spooner

       Beauty knows the Beast’s forest in her bones—and in her blood. Though she grew up with the city’s highest aristocrats, far from her father’s old lodge, she knows that the forest holds secrets and that her father is the only hunter who’s ever come close to discovering them. 
       So when her father loses his fortune and moves Yeva and her sisters back to the outskirts of town, Yeva is secretly relieved. Out in the wilderness, there’s no pressure to make idle chatter with vapid baronessas…or to submit to marrying a wealthy gentleman. But Yeva’s father’s misfortune may have cost him his mind, and when he goes missing in the 

woods, Yeva sets her sights on one prey: the creature he’d been obsessively tracking just before his disappearance. 
       Deaf to her sisters’ protests, Yeva hunts this strange Beast back into his own territory—a cursed valley, a ruined castle, and a world of creatures that Yeva’s only heard about in fairy tales. A world that can bring her ruin or salvation. Who will survive: the Beauty, or the Beast?

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       My all-time favorite fairy tale is Beauty and the Beast, so when I heard Meagan was coming out with a retelling, it was the combination of a lifetime. In this version, our Belle goes by the name of Yeva, and she is a fearless hunter whose father disappears. When he’s gone, she takes up his obsession: tracking a mysterious Beast. I liked how this version was a darker version of the story. I think it gave the original tale more depth and made the tale accessible to a broader audience than just the children who fell in love with the original princess. This is a great high fantasy read for all lovers of the forest and magic.

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Throne of Glass
By: Sarah J. Maas

"Nothing is a coincidence. Everything has a purpose. You were meant to come to this castle, just as you were meant to be an assassin."
       When magic has gone from the world, and a vicious king rules from his throne of glass, an assassin comes to the castle. She does not come to kill, but to win her freedom. If she can defeat twenty-three killers, thieves, and warriors in a competition to find the greatest assassin in the land, she will become the King's Champion and be released from prison.
       Her name is Celaena Sardothien.

​       The Crown Prince will provoke her. The Captain of the Guard will protect her.
       And a princess from a foreign land will become the one thing Celaena never thought she'd have again: a friend.
       But something evil dwells in the castle—and it's there to kill. When her competitors start dying, horribly, one by one, Celaena's fight for freedom becomes a fight for survival—and a desperate quest to root out the source of the evil before it destroys her world.

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       Ok, it’s true. I read this book three years ago, so my memories are pretty foggy. I remember liking this book, but I couldn’t give you an excellent synopsis of what happens. With that being said, I know this series has a huge fanbase, and everyone seems to love it, so it’s definitely on my list to reread. This story is loosely based on Cinderella, but this princess is a ruthless assassin who can take care of herself, thank you very much. Overall, I remember really liking this book, so if you haven’t already looked into this series, go check it out!

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Cinder
​By: Marissa Meyer

A forbidden romance.
A deadly plague.
Earth's fate hinges on one girl . . .
       CINDER, a gifted mechanic in New Beijing, is also a cyborg. She's reviled by her stepmother and blamed for her stepsister's sudden illness. But when her life becomes entwined with the handsome Prince Kai's, she finds herself at the centre of a violent struggle between the desires of an evil queen - and a dangerous temptation.
       Cinder is caught between duty and freedom, loyalty and 

betrayal. Now she must uncover secrets about her mysterious past in order to protect Earth's future.
       This is not the fairytale you remember. But it's one you won't forget.

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       If you clicked on this blog post to find your next epic retelling extravaganza, you have come to the right place. The Lunar Chronicles is one of my all-time favorite series, and every book is based on a different fairy tale. The series starts out with Linh Cinder, our cyborg rags-to-riches girl, who is a mechanic with no intention of falling for the Prince. As we make our way through the series, every book adds in characters to create a super cast of your favorite royals, creatures, and futuristic sidekicks. This series will make you laugh, cry, and fall in love all in one sitting because trust me, you will devour these books in one sitting. 

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       Those are three of my favorite retellings; if you have any you’d like to share, stick them in the comments! I love all retellings, so I’ll be sure to add them to my TBR.

Your Lady Larken,
Ashton
(P.S. Check out this quick video for a look into a weekend with my favorite theatre nerds. If you guys are reading this, thank you so much for being an amazing cast. I love you all!)