Tag Archives: Retellings

Tattercoats by Midori Snyder

Book Review, , ,
Overview
Image result for black thorn white rose book cover

Title: Tattercoats
Author: Midori Snyder
In: Black Thorn, White Rose (Ellen Datlow & Terri Windling)
Rating Out of 5: 5 (I will read this again and again and again)
My Bookshelves: Fairy tales, Retellings
Dates read: 11th May 2020
Pace: Fast
Format: Short story
Publisher: Prime Books
Year: 1994
5th sentence, 74th page: I think I shall retire now.

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Synopsis

A fantastic retelling of a classic fairy tale… with a more adult spin.

Thoughts

This is one of those retellings that is reminiscent of a number of fairy tales that I’ve read. Which was a nice journey. It’s definitely a fairy tale / retelling that I have always enjoyed, so I was excited to read this. And, boy, I wasn’t disappointed by this retelling. Not only was it a great fantasy retelling, but it was also a great tale about rediscovering your love and your life after that initial honeymoon period is over… something that I think is often overlooked in many stories we read.

The story of the woman with the three dresses and the way in which she wins her loves’ heart is one that I seriously treasure. Especially after reading North Child. This isn’t quite that story, but it does have those great echoes, and it is the story about her daughter. The daughter who also found her own happily ever after. But, after childbirth and years being comfortable with your spouse, things are less romantic and infatuated. Which is kind of sad, but something I think that everyone who ahs been in a long term relationship experiences. The woman in this uses the gifts of the past that her mother gave her to set about recapturing her husbands’ attention and affections. Although, the responsibility for this is not just on her, she isn’t the only one who has let her relationship slip, and she’s not the only one who decides to fight to get it back.

At the beginning of this story, I loved the way in which the woman drew her husband back into her arms. Then, towards the middle I started to get a little worried. She was happy because she had her husband back, but then, he didn’t know it was her… but, the ending made all of this became obsolete and there was a happily ever after. And the awkward feelings went away.

<- The Goose GirlGranny Rumple ->

Image source: Goodreads

The Goose Girl by Tim Wynne-Jones

Book Review, , ,
Overview
Image result for black thorn white rose book cover

Title: The Goose Girl
Author: Tim Wynne-Jones
In: Black Thorn, White Rose (Ellen Datlow & Terri Windling)
Rating Out of 5: 4 (Really good read!)
My Bookshelves: Fairy tales, Retellings
Dates read: 7th May 2020
Pace: Slow
Format: Short story
Publisher: Prime Books
Year: 1994
5th sentence, 74th page: But I responded passionately.

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Synopsis

There’s always two sides to a story… including the one about the Goose Girl.

Thoughts

The Goose Girl is one of those fairy tales where I really, really loved the original story. The idea of the villain in the story pronouncing her own death… well, of course it intrigued me immediately. What I didn’t expect was that I would love a story in which the villain really wasn’t the villain… it was all just an accident of fate and an intriguing story. One that had a seriously tragic ending… but was still very, very good.

This was a very dark villain version of a classic fairy tale. Sometimes these retellings from the villains’ point of view make you feel sympathy… instead, this short story just made me feel uncomfortable and unsettled with all of the characters in the original. There was almost no sympathy for anyone. It was just a tale of tragedy after tragedy. One that never had a happy ending or a happily ever after. Which is somehow a lot more like real life…

Only in writing this review have I realised a few more things about this short story that really hadn’t jumped out at me before. But to write them in my review would be giving something away… so you’ll just have to read it and then see if you are quicker than me in realising what the extra layer of secrets are!!!

<- The Brown Bear of NorwayTattercoats ->

Image source: Goodreads

The Brown Bear of Norway by Isabel Cole

Book Review, , ,
Overview
Image result for black thorn white rose book cover

Title: The Brown Bear of Norway
Author: Isabel Cole
In: Black Thorn, White Rose (Ellen Datlow & Terri Windling)
Rating Out of 5: 4.5 (Amazing, but not quite perfect)
My Bookshelves: Fairy tales, Retellings
Dates read: 26th April 2020
Pace: Medium
Format: Short story
Publisher: Prime Books
Year: 1994
5th sentence, 74th page: Perhaps I only loved New York because there were so many people there from somewhere else.

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Synopsis

She had a penpal in Norway, but one night, when she betrayed his trust, everything disappeared. A long trip later, and she finally finds out what it means to be in love.

Thoughts

The story of East of the Moon, West of the Sun is one of my favourite lesser known fairy tales. It’s what the story of North Child is based on. So finding another short story retelling of this was incredibly exciting and seriously beautiful. Especially when the journey starts in New York City with a teenager on the cusp of adulthood, and ends in Europe with two people who have finally found what it is to be an adult…

If the introduction to this story didn’t mention that it was a coming of age tale, then I possibly wouldn’t have noticed. However, as the story unfolds, you do begin to recognise the hints of what it truly means t grow up. What it means to understand what love actually is (instead of what we wished it was) and take responsibility for our own actions. Yet, this is done in such a subtle way that it does take a little bit before you truly notice it.

This was a great, sweet and easy read. One that I’m a little disappointed was over. But, it did work perfectly. There is just something so captivating about this modern day coming of age and travelling so very, very far to find the one that you love…

<- Journeybread RecipeThe Goose Girl ->

Image source: Goodreads

Can’t Catch Me by Michael Cadnum

Book Review, , , ,
Overview
Image result for black thorn white rose book cover

Title: Can’t Catch Me
Author: Michael Cadnum
In: Black Thorn, White Rose (Ellen Datlow & Terri Windling)
Rating Out of 5: 4.5 (Amazing, but not quite perfect)
My Bookshelves: Fairy tales, Fantasy, Retellings
Dates read: 6th April 2020
Pace: Fast
Format: Short story
Publisher: Prime Books
Year: 1994
5th sentence, 74th page: It was a shock, I can tell you, and I think I might have been a little bit more prepared, but I know everyone says Mom and Dad should have done a better job, and I get tired of people blaming someone else for their problems.

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Synopsis

Did you ever wonder why the gingerbread man ran? Or why they chased him? This story will answer all those questions…

Thoughts

I just finished reading this short story and I can’t get the rhyme “you can’t catch me, I’m the gingerbread man!” out of my head. There is something very lyrical and stuck-in-the head about it all. And now I’m going to spend the rest of the night chanting that to my dogs and just generally freaking them out…

I’ve never really thought about how the gingerbread man felt in the story. Or even why so many people were chasing a cookie… but this short story definitely gave a new spin to an old classic. There is something in the way it’s written and the intensity of the story that made me go “duh” of course that’s the way that it was.

My favourite aspect of this story though was the very beginning. Something about those very first words completely drew me in and made me absolutely fascinated by the world in which “hot” is the beginner. And parents are just trying to do what’s best for you… even if it is keeping you in the oven.

<- OgreJourneybread Recipe ->

Image source: Goodreads

Near-Beauty by M.E. Beckett

Book Review, , , ,
Overview
Image result for black thorn white rose book cover

Title: Near-Beauty
Author: M.E. Beckett
In: Black Thorn, White Rose (Ellen Datlow & Terri Windling)
Rating Out of 5: 4 (Really good read!)
My Bookshelves: Fairy tales, Retellings, Science fiction
Dates read: 9th March 2020
Pace: Medium
Format: Short story
Publisher: Prime Books
Year: 1994
5th sentence, 74th page: She became uneasy, at last, not because it was watching, but because it looked intent; if that stare had come from a human, she’d have called him horny.

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Synopsis

She’s not quite beautiful. She’s not quite ugly. But, when she meets the toad of her dreams, she finds out that near-beauty might just be enough.

Thoughts

One of the things that I love the most about this story is that it’s not about a stunningly beautiful woman. Or a frog that miraculously turns into a gorgeous prince. It’s about those that are almost beautiful. That almost make the cut. It’s a great way to retell a well-known fairy tale, but with a more relatable spin to it.

This is a great sci-fi spin on The Princess and the Frog. She doesn’t magically get whisked away and find her happily ever after. Rather, she makes a choice to join an alien species and make something more. Something different of her life.

Mostly, I love that this is all about two individuals who don’t quite make the beauty boat cut. They’re almost beautiful. They’re almost everything that they want to be. But they don’t quite make it… which is far more relatable and nice to read about than a stunning beauty. It’s also a great reminder that good things don’t just happen to the stunningly beautiful, but to us more ordinary folk too.

<- The Frog King, or Iron HenryOgre ->

Image source: Goodreads

The Frog King, or Iron Henry by Daniel Quinn

Book Review, ,
Overview
Image result for black thorn white rose book cover

Title: The Frog King, or Iron Henry
Author: Daniel Quinn
In: Black Thorn, White Rose (Ellen Datlow & Terri Windling)
Rating Out of 5: 5 (I will read this again and again and again)
My Bookshelves: Fairy tales, Retellings
Dates read: 6th March 2020
Pace: Slow
Format: Short story
Publisher: Prime Books
Year: 1994
5th sentence, 74th page: Yes.

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Synopsis

He might be the frog the princess rescued from her enchantment, but there was an extra curse. Sometimes, in the fairy tales, there isn’t a happily ever after. Or at least, not one that’s remembered.

Thoughts

It takes a little while to realise which fairy tale this story is based on. Mostly because the lead has amnesia and the fairy tale has already happened. And the same sentences are repeated again and again. But then there’s the mention of the ball… and it starts to fall into place again.

Happily ever afters are not something that I strongly believe in. I love the idea of them. But I don’t think that just because two people find each other and fall in love / get married, they’re going to live happily ever after. Especially considering the fact that there is a whole lot of life left to live. This story kind of echoes this feeling, but in a seriously insane way.

I love the repetition throughout. It’s a story about amnesia, but normally you would find such tales didn’t repeat the same phrases over and over again. This one does. It drives home the idea that there isn’t a happily ever after, and sometimes we don’t remember all of the things that have happened.

<- Somnus’s Fair MaidNear-Beauty ->

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Somnus’s Fair Maid by Ann Downer

Book Review, , ,
Overview
Image result for black thorn white rose book cover

Title: Somnus’s Fair Maid
Author: Ann Downer
In: Black Thorn, White Rose (Ellen Datlow & Terri Windling)
Rating Out of 5: 4 (Really good read!)
My Bookshelves: Fairy tales, Retellings
Dates read: 13th February 2020
Pace: Slow
Format: Short story
Publisher: Prime Books
Year: 1994
5th sentence, 74th page: Offer for her.

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Synopsis

A Victorian retelling of Sleeping Beauty, with a bit of a twist.

Thoughts

The combination of fairy tales and regency romances is absolutely perfect. I love the perfect Victorian setting. I loved the retelling of a great, traditional fairy tale. And I just loved the way that this story unfolded. The combination and the style wasn’t what I expected, but it was definitely one of my favourite short story retellings that I’ve read in a while.

One of the things I loved most about this is that it is ultimately the man who is asleep. In a completely different manner to what I was kind of anticipating… but, it was completely perfect and enjoyable. It was such a cute, sweet and easy read. One that I’m kind of sad wasn’t longer (isn’t that what I normally say about a great story?)

This is a great short story, a great take on Sleeping Beauty and the perfect fairy tale retelling. So much less dark than many of the stories which I read of a similar vein. And most of the stories in the Black Thorn, White Rose collection.

<- Stronger Than TimeThe Frog King, or Iron Henry ->

Image source: Goodreads

Ashputtle by Peter Straub

Book Review, , , , ,
Overview
Image result for the monstrous ellen datlow book cover

Title: Ashputtle
Author: Peter Straub
In: The Monstrous (Ellen Datlow) & Black Thorn, White Rose (Ellen Datlow & Terri Windling)
Rating Out of 5: 4.5 (Amazing, but not quite perfect)
My Bookshelves: Dark fantasy, Horror, Retellings
Dates read: 8th January 2020
Pace: Medium
Format: Short story
Publisher: Tachyon
Year: 2015
5th sentence, 74th page: She was loved.

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Synopsis

Ashputtle is the newest version of Cinderella. With a much darker, far more disturbing twist…

Thoughts

This is an incredibly insane version of Cinderella. Like, seriously insane. One that I absolutely adored. And couldn’t get enough of. And just seriously enjoyed… but it was dark, and made me think of Cinderella (or in this case Ashputtle) as more of a monster than a victim. Which is probably why I loved it so much. Nothing like a sick, disturbing story to make my crazy brain happy.

I found some of the points made about fat people really interesting. The idea that they’re presumed to be stupid or just plain ignored. It was painfully true. But also helped to create a cloak behind which Ashputtle could hide her atrocities. It’s a little bit scary how spot on these moments were and made me stop and think about how I deal with other people.

My biggest question about this short story is – what was done to the children? I know the culprit. I know that they went missing. And I even know why they were the selected victims. But what I don’t know is what was done with them? And my imagination is not leading me to nice, happy places with that…

<- A Natural History of AutumnGiants in the Earth ->

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Wolfed by Tanith Lee

Book Review, , , ,
Overview
Image result for sirens and other daemon lovers book cover

Title: Wolfed
Author: Tanith Lee
In: Sirens and Other Daemon Lovers (Ellen Datlow & Terri Windling) & Redder Than Blood (Tanith Lee)
Rating Out of 5: 4.5 (Amazing, but not quite perfect)
My Bookshelves: Fairy tales, Lust, Retellings
Dates read: 6th January 2020
Pace: Fast
Format: Short story
Publisher: EOS
Year: 1998
5th sentence, 74th page: But then, anyway, the elevator was a private one and this was the penthouse suite, so it would be kind of unlikely he had taken the wrong route, or made any mistake at all.

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Synopsis

Wolf is a man of the night. Then he runs into Rose, a gorgeous young woman who just wants to buy her “grandmother” a present…

Thoughts

I’ve just finished reading Lee’s Red as Blood collection. So I was kind of expecting something much, much darker than this story. It was incredibly lustful and intense in some ways, but it definitely wasn’t something I would call dark. There was also a point at the end which hints that they could, in fact, live happily ever after.

Actually this story didn’t just have a hint about happy endings, it had multiple. And pushed the boundaries of what I enjoy in a romance. This is the second story I’ve read which features a threesome, but, unlike the first one, I found this non-confronting. Actually, I found it kind of cute, funny and sweet in moments. Which was a very interesting reaction.

This was a fantastic short story. One that I will probably revisit in the future. There is just something fun about it, even when it’s dealing with a lot of sexuality. Maybe it’s because I’m reading a collection that deals with sexuality, but not in the truly intense way of Alien Sex.

<- Broke Heart BluesAshes on Her Lips ->

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Red as Blood Collection by Tanith Lee

Book Review, , , , , ,
Overview
Image result for red as blood tanith lee book cover

Title: Red as Blood Collection
Author: Tanith Lee
In: Red as Blood (Tanith Lee)
Rating Out of 5: 5 (I will read this again and again and again)
My Bookshelves: Dark fantasy, Fairy tales, Feminism, Retellings, Short story collections
Dates read: 23rd October – 17th December 2019
Pace: Medium
Format: Short story
Publisher: Wildside
Year: 1983
5th sentence, 74th page: There were carvings in the sides of the tower, the magic symbols from the chamber as it had been, the zodiac, the Crown, the Sword, the Chalice – she knew such seals must hold the spire safely.

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Synopsis

Here are ten devilishly twisted fairy tales as the Brothers Grimm never dared to tell them. With her brilliantly macabre pen, Tanith Lee retells some familiar tales, and concocts some new and unusual ones, as she asks us to consider the possibility that things may not work as our fairy tales have them… In the title story, Lee shows us a perfectly good stepmother, whose Princess stepdaughter reeks of evil. Then there is Ashella, the Cinderella-like girl who, “When the Clock Strikes”, intends to give her Prince Charming a deadly surprise. In “Wolfland”, Lisel takes a trip through the woods to visit her grandmother – who bears little resemblance to the loving old woman we expect. And in “Thorns” you’ll find the haunting answer to the question, “What if awakening the Sleeping Beauty turns out to be the mistake of a lifetime – of several lifetimes, in fact?”

Populated with demons and devils, vengeful gods and not-so-innocent young girls, the ten tales of Red as Blood weave a tapestry of chilling visions, spun by the incomparably fiendish imagination of Tanith Lee!

Thoughts

This is the second feminist collection of fairy tales I’ve ever read. And I don’t know if I like this or Angela Carter’s version better. What I do know is that I love both of them and I will read them again and again. They’re fun, kind of brilliant and super dark. Much more likely in our lives than the pretty Disney-versions that I grew up with.

There wasn’t one story in this collection that I didn’t absolutely adore. Normally I’ll find one or two that just aren’t as good… but that most certainly wasn’t the case. This was brilliant! Honestly, as I turned the last page, I could have quite happily turned around and just started this all over again. I didn’t, because I have a whole stack of other books I want to read by the end of the year… but I don’t often have that desire in the first place.

Now I need to find some more Tanith Lee books. I have one other sitting in my shelf, but I want so much more now! There is no way that I won’t love it after this. Especially when you’re looking at a story which has a beautiful wordplay on the Brothers Grimm… equally dark versions, but with a focus on the women and the battles that they face.

 <- The Waters of Sorrow ReviewPaid Piper Review ->
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