Fairytale retellings have become insanely popular within the last decade and they are now considered a sub-genre of their own. Taking a well-known fairy tale and putting a fantasy or science fiction spin on it has produced great results for some authors, including Sarah J. Maas (A Court of Thorns and Roses), Marissa Meyer (The Lunar Chronicles), Brigid Kemmerer (A Curse So Dark and Lonely), and Sarah Henning (The Sea Witch) to name a few.
So why are reimagined fairy tales so enticing and what makes them so popular nowadays? Well, here’s four reasons to consider . . .
1. A Familiar Story With A Fantastical Twist
There’s something comforting about picking up a book and already being semi-familiar with the story and world. With fairytale retellings, the audience already knows the bare bones of the story but are ready to be surprised by new elements and a fantastical setting. Basically, retellings already have a target audience out there – people who love fairytales and want to consume more of their favourite stories.
For instance, take A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas. It’s a Beauty and the Beast retelling wrapped in faerie skin. The reader follows a young girl called Feyre (the ‘Belle’ equivalent in this take) who is kidnapped by ‘the Beast’ and held within the castle to hopefully break the curse. The major difference between the original and this retelling is the setting: Feyre is a human who crosses into the fae world, where there are different faerie courts, political jostling, and high lords. A fae take on Beauty and the Beast? Yes, please!
It comes down to the creativity of new elements introduced to an old, familiar story. The reader is already positioned to accept the retelling, and is ready to be entertained by the creative license the author takes to the story.
2. Challenges Old-School Standards & Highlights Different Values
Gone are the days of damsels in distress and two dimensional villains. These days, readers want strong, independent female protagonists who can get themselves out of trouble, and with fairytale retellings, they get just that.
In The Lunar Chronicles by Marissa Meyer, the reader is introduced to Cinder, a young cyborg mechanic from New Beijing. Cinder is a hands-on type of character who teaches the audience that being different isn’t a bad thing. Likewise, in A Court of Thorns and Roses, Feyre is a huntress who can defend herself and find a way to overcome any situation – she’s not just a girl stuck in a castle, waiting for something to happen. By changing up the morals and switching out archaic values, fairytale retellings give the reader a fresh look at an old tale, and make them more versatile for future readers.
3. They’re More Diverse
It used to be the standard practice to have a typically white female character in need of rescuing in fairy tales. Now, thanks to authors like Brigid Kemmerer, Marissa Meyer, and Sarah J. Maas, readers have access to more diverse characters from different backgrounds.
Who would have thought that readers would see a character with cerebral palsy take a fairy tale world head on, yet that’s what we see in A Curse So Dark and Lonely by Brigid Kemmerer. The main character Harper doesn’t let her condition define her, and portrays how strong she is in spite of her CP. Marissa Meyer includes characters from multiple ethnic backgrounds and social statuses within her series The Lunar Chronicles, and makes it normal to do so. Sarah J. Maas includes a similar diverse representation in her A Court of Thorns and Roses series, while also including characters with different sexual orientations and preferences.
These retellings aim to increase diversity and to be more inclusive than their prototypes, which in turn creates a safer space for more readers.
4. They Expand Upon The Original Story & Develop The Characters Further
The call for morally grey characters and anti-heroes has not been missed in the fairytale retelling genre, and more authors are flexing their creative writing muscles when it comes to exploring these types of characters. People want to know why the bad guys turned out the way they did, and through this genre, readers now have access to the villains of their favourite stories.
This is seen in The Sea Witch by Sarah Henning, which is a captivating origin story of villainess Ursula (known as Evie in this retelling) and recounts her life before she meets the Little Mermaid. The novel explores the villainess’s backstory of growing up with magic in a time when such a thing was feared, and what it means for her development as a person. Told through the perspective of an outcast, The Sea Witch is a great example of how one fairy tale retelling takes a deeper look into the motives and mind of a character previously over looked.
Similarly, Fairest by Marissa Meyer offers a look into the Evil Queen’s tragic backstory. While it doesn’t excuse her vile actions as a ruler, it does offer another perspective as to why she turned out how she did. Bittersweet and heart-wrenching, Fairest explores how Queen Levana was a victim who became something terrible in order to rise above her tormentors, and is an important addition to both The Lunar Chronicles and the fairy tale retelling genre. It shows how people’s actions have consequences, and how anyone can become a villain depending on their situation.
Those are just four out of many reasons why readers are loving fairytale retellings. In a nut shell, reimagined tales help tackle outdated values, create a more diverse reading experience, and expand upon existing characters, all through a semi-familiar storyline with a fantastical twist.
This reader thoroughly enjoys this genre, and encourages you to pick up The Lunar Chronicles by Marissa Meyer if you want a retelling of four classic fairy tale characters (Cinderella, Little Red Riding Hood, Rapunzel, and Snow White) set within a futuristic world where people have colonised the moon. Happy Reading!
