Enchanting retellings and folkloric fantasies— find out which four magical novels that reimagine classic tales with rich world-building, lyrical prose, and unforgettable heroines, are amongst Georgia Leighton’s favourites!
Beauty by Robin McKinley
I’ve read this novel many times. McKinley is a master of retellings, weaving detail and characterization into well-known tales with her signature lyrical narrative voice and sublime world-building. I’ve enjoyed all of her novels, but Beauty is my favourite. It’s a perfect, slow-burn retelling of Beauty and the Beast, full of mystery, intrigue and adventure.
Uprooted by Naomi Novik
This novel is such a fun, action-packed tale, drawing upon Polish folklore. Novik is constantly twisting the reader’s expectations, inverting tropes about fairy tale villains and heroes. There’s magic, monsters, wizards and sorcery, but things are never as they first appear. It’s a novel with strong characters and brilliantly original variations on ancient stories.
Daughter of the Forest by Juliet Marillier
A retelling of Grimm’s Six Swans, this is a brutal yet beautiful novel. Marillier keeps the structure of the original tale and expands it into a vast, detailed narrative set in medieval Ireland, following the lengths to which one girl will go to save her six brothers from a terrible curse. It’s descriptive, evocative and gorgeous; I love it.
The Bear and the Nightingale by Katherine Arden
Set in medieval Russia, this novel draws on Russian folklore and tells the tale of Vasilisa, a young girl with extraordinary gifts. The atmosphere Arden’s writing conjures is so compelling and evocative, and together with the beautiful world-building it creates a truly enchanting novel. While reading it, you can almost feel snowflakes brushing your cheeks . . .
