Have I ever mentioned how much I love fairytale retellings? Rumpelstiltskin is a common fairytale but perhaps not so much a common retelling. All you have to do is say his name…(huh kind of like Beetlejuice)
- Spinning Silver by Naomi Novik
Genre: Fantasy
Average Goodreads Rating: 4.21
In an attempt to pay off her family’s debts, Miryem gains a reputation for being able to turn silver into gold. When she draws attention of the king of the Staryk, a fey world, Miryem must rise to an impossible challenge. She spins a web that draws in a peasant girl, Wanda, and the unhappy daughter of a local lord who plots to wed his child to the dashing young tsar. But Tsar Mirnatius hides that could destroy kingdoms.
- Gilded by Marissa Meyer
Genre: YA Fantasy
Average Goodreads Rating: 3.94
A poor miller’s daughter is cursed with the ability to tell the most fantastical stories that are wholly untrue. Or so everyone believes. When one of Serlida’s stories draws attention from Erkling and his undead hunters, she is drawn to a ghostly world. The king orders Serlida to weave straw into gold or she shall be put to death for her falsehoods. Serida summons a mysterious boy for help who agrees…for a price.
- The Book of Lost Things by John Connolly
Genre: YA Fantasy
Average Goodreads Rating: 3.94
12-year-old David mourns the death of his mother and at night, his books start whispering to him. Suddenly, he’s thrust into a fantasy world that is a reflection of his own, where a faded king rules and keeps his secret in The Book of Lost Things.
- The Crimson Thread by Suzanne Weyn
Genre: Fantasy
Average Goodreads Rating: 3.78
In 1880, Bertie is grateful to have the job as seamstress for J.P Wellington. When the Wellingtom family fortune is threatened, Bertie’s father brags that she will save the buisness because she is so skillful she can “practicually spin straw into gold.” In one night, with the help of Ray Stalls who uses a wheel with crimson thread, they make amazing dresses that look they are weaved with gold. Indebted to Ray, Bertie asks how she can repay him. When Ray asks for her firstborn child, Bertie agrees, never dreaming that he is serious.
Living For Literature 