Hello everyone! Happy Holidays! Smugglivus is in full swing, and today we have a special announcement.
As you may know, we published six original short stories this year – all following the theme of Subversive Fairy Tales – online and as standalone ebooks. Today, we are thrilled to announce that we have collected each of these short stories in an anthology, so you can get ’em all in one sweet ebook package.
“When the Sultan has arrived and is at ease, ask that I tell you a story. Do you like stories?”
From Beauty and the Beast to Scheherazade, and Baba Yaga to the North Wind, fairy tales have inspired readers for generations. In Retold, six fables from across the globe are re-imagined–with a subversive twist. This anthology collects six short stories from diverse, feminist, and original perspectives.
- Hunting Monsters by S.L. Huang
- In Her Head, In Her Eyes by Yukimi Ogawa
- Mrs. Yaga by Michal Wojcik
- The Mussel Eater by Octavia Cade
- The Astronomer Who Met the North Wind by Kate Hall
- The Ninety-Ninth Bride by Catherine F. King
These aren’t your storybook fairy tales.
Get your copy of Retold by visiting any of the following retailers!
Buy the Book:
Kindle US | Kindle UK | Smashwords | Google Play | B&N | Kobo
Buy from The Book Smugglers
A Sale & A Giveaway:
In the full spirit of the holidays, we are happy to give you two more goodies:
1. First, all of our individual short story standalone ebooks are now $0.99 for a limited time from The Book Smugglers! Get your copy by visiting our direct store or Smashwords.
2. What are the holidays without a giveaway? We’re giving away a copy of our anthology PLUS a print, tote bag, wall clock, shirt, phone case, or pillow from our Society6 Store. The Giveaway is open to ALL and will run until Wednesday, December 31 at 11:59am EST. Use the form below to enter. Good luck!
132 Comments
Jessica Ho
December 25, 2014 at 1:00 amThese short stories sound great! I’m interested to read them. Thanks for the giveaway! Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!
Jessica Ho
December 25, 2014 at 1:02 amIn addition, to answer the question for the giveaway, my favourite retelling of a fairytale is Frozen the movie. Does a movie count? Haha. It’s a retelling of The Snow Queen. And what a meaningful retelling it is! For a book, my favourite retelling is indexing by Seanan McGuire. Super innovative way of retelling fairy tales in modern day terms and involving police procedural! Seanan McGuire is a genius!
Dina G.
December 25, 2014 at 3:17 amI loved, loved, loved “In Her Head, In Her Eyes” by Yukimi Ogawa.
Most people on the interwebs seem very taken with “Hunting Monsters” but the Ogawa story is what really did it for me.
Other than that, I enjoy fairy tale retellings that show the darkness of the original tale or turn it on its head (but remain dark). Margo Lanagan’s Tender Morsels comes to mind or Catherynne Valente’s Deathless – they are easily my favorite novel-length retellings.
Rachel Cotterill
December 25, 2014 at 4:15 amI’ve only recently discovered fairytale as a modern genre, but as well as your publications, I recently read Holly Black’s The Darkest Part of the Forest which was excellent.
Gerd D.
December 25, 2014 at 4:57 amFor favourite Fairy Tale I’d say The Snow Queen.
AS retellings go, I really loved reading “Ella Enchanted” from Gail Carson Levin.
Helle M. Larsen
December 25, 2014 at 5:08 amMy favourite fairytale retelling has to be the retelling of The Six Swans in Daughter of the Forest by Juliet Marillier. 🙂
Lan
December 25, 2014 at 9:28 amFavorite fairy tale? The Grimm Brothers’ version of Cinderella. Or The Snow Queen by HCA.
Maria Touet
December 25, 2014 at 10:05 amI enjoyed Entwined by Heather Dixon, a retelling of the Twelve Dancing Princesses.
Mari
December 25, 2014 at 11:01 amOooh, short stories and fairy tales? WANT! Those all sound great!
Chachic
December 25, 2014 at 11:20 amMerry Christmas, Ana and Thea! 🙂 My favorite fairy tale is Beauty and the Beast and my favorite retelling of it is Beauty by Robin McKinley.
Ella Zegarra
December 25, 2014 at 12:08 pmMerry christmas!
I love mythology, my favorite tale is “Orpheo & Euridice”. And my fav retelling… I don’t know, love them all
Sky Schneider
December 25, 2014 at 1:12 pmI’ve really been enjoying all the interpretations of Peter Pan that have been popping up recently. Not sure if Peter Pan really counts as a fairy tale, but it feels like it should. 🙂
Jeremy
December 25, 2014 at 1:12 pmThe Large and Terrible Frog (as told by Frog to Toad). Because my 5yo loves that story.
Jeff P
December 25, 2014 at 1:21 pmKind of torn when it comes to my favourite retelling: I agree with Chachic re Robin McKinley’s Beauty (although I preferred Spindle’s End), I also love Joan D. Vinge’s Snow Queen series. But I think my ultimate #1 best-beloved would be Roger Zelazny’s playing with the characters/attributes from the Hindu and Buddhist traditions in Lord of Light. That book is solid gold for me.
Kaja
December 25, 2014 at 1:44 pmOf those I read recently, I really liked Cruel Beauty by Rosamund Hodge. The artwork for your stories is amazing!
Thank you so much for hosting this giveaway and happy holidays!
Wolf Bogacz
December 25, 2014 at 1:53 pmI was always partial to Little Red Riding Hood.
Alexandra
December 25, 2014 at 2:44 pmI’ve been obsessed with fairytale retellings for years, so it’s so hard to pick! But a couple that I really love are Deerskin by Robin McKinley, and Wildwood Dancing by Juliet Marillier. I also just read a couple by Merrie Haskell that were fantastic – Castle Behind Thorns (retelling of Sleeping Beauty set in Medieval France), and The Princess Curse (retelling of the Twelve Dancing Princesses).
Sumayyah
December 25, 2014 at 4:02 pmThe 99th Bride was absolutely fantastic – I can’t wait to read the others.
Barbara Elness
December 25, 2014 at 4:03 pmI’ve always enjoyed Cinderella, and the many retellings on that theme. Nice girl goes through tough times and finds her prince in the end. 😀
Chelsea A
December 25, 2014 at 4:05 pmthe crane wife is probably my favorite fairy tale, if you want to call it one? i think it counts, haha. i really like beauty & the beast as well though. for retellings, i’m not sure! i’m really tempted to just wave my hand in the general direction of ‘hansel & gretel: witch hunters’ for its sheer absurdity, if that counts.
Maya S
December 25, 2014 at 4:43 pmI absolutely LOVED Hunting Monsters. So amazing
Suz_Glo
December 25, 2014 at 4:53 pmMy favorite fairy tale is Beauty and the Beast. And I recently read an excellent retelling/modernization of the story by Jax Garren. It’s a 3 book series — highly recommended!
RebeccaS
December 25, 2014 at 6:18 pmMy favorite core fairytale is still Beauty and the Beast; my favorite retelling of it is probably Tanith Lee’s “Beauty” from her Red as Blood, or Tales from The Sisters Grimmer collection.
Katharine
December 25, 2014 at 6:44 pmI loved all of these so much, having them in an anthology would be amazing! I think my favorite fairy tale retelling ever was one published in Cicada magazine a few years ago, “Rose Red, Rose White.” Love a good story about feminism and sisters. =) Don’t think I have a favorite fairy tale though… there are so many good ones!
Margo
December 25, 2014 at 7:58 pmThere are so many excellent retellings of Beauty & the Beast. Tanith Lee, Mercedes Lackey, Sheri Tepper & Sarah Pinborough more recently come to mind. Impossible to choose! Does this disqualify me?
Kirsten!
December 25, 2014 at 8:01 pmStill fangirling over Cinder over here 🙂
Margo
December 25, 2014 at 8:16 pmWhat really should disqualify me is cutting and pasting “Beauty & the Beast” instead of “Sleeping Beauty” – but all of the fairy tale retellings of all the authors I mention in my last post are twisty & excellent. And I’m reminded that they’re all stories meant to subvert the originals’ purpose of controlling women’s behavior.
erinf1
December 25, 2014 at 8:24 pmthanks for the fun spotlight and giveaway! I’d have to say the Disney version of the Little Mermaid 🙂 thanks for sharing!
Mary A
December 25, 2014 at 8:28 pmFavorite fairy tale: 12 Dancing Princesses
Favorite retelling: Beauty by Robin McKinley
Thanks for the giveaway.
Cynthia @ Afterwritten
December 25, 2014 at 8:30 pmNeil Gaiman’s Snow, Glass, Apples has always been one of my favourite retellings.
DebraG
December 25, 2014 at 9:07 pmThere are so many Beauty and the Beast re-tellings. I guess those would be my favorite.
Mary Preston
December 25, 2014 at 10:10 pmMy favorite is BEAUTY AND THE BEAST.
Emilia
December 25, 2014 at 10:59 pmMy favorite fairy tale is Little Red Riding Hood.
Llehn
December 26, 2014 at 12:10 amRapunzel.
Dovile
December 26, 2014 at 5:32 amMy favorite original fairy tale is Cinderella, and favorite retelling is the movie Ever After.
Alliah
December 26, 2014 at 6:38 amDoes Wicked counts? The book series The Wicked Years by Gregory Maguire is my favorite retelling of Oz. Everything about it is amazing: the beautiful language, the dense and well orchestrated plot, the complex politics, the multifaceted characters. And yeah, I totally fell in love with Elphaba & G(a)linda.
Stephanie Burgis
December 26, 2014 at 7:45 amYay! I loooooove these stories and their artwork.
My favorite fairy tale is East of the Sun, West of the Moon.
Joni Patterson
December 26, 2014 at 7:57 amFavorite retelling… My overall choice would probably have to be the Lunar Chronicles. I recently read “The Girls of Kingfisher Club”, though, and that was pretty good.
Thanks for an awesome blog- and the giveaway!
Stephanie
December 26, 2014 at 12:08 pmI loved the retelling of “Hunting Monsters” that ya’ll published. Also, “Breadcrumbs” by Anne Ursu is a really great retelling of a fairy tale.
Victoria Zumbrum
December 26, 2014 at 1:03 pmI love Beauty and the Beast and the Little Mermaid. Thanks for the giveaway.
Bruce Arthurs
December 26, 2014 at 4:46 pmRed Riding Hood, particularly the versions where Red is pro-active in saving herself.
Mayra Barrera
December 26, 2014 at 5:54 pmMy favorite fairytale is “the twelve dancing princess” 🙂
Jennifer
December 26, 2014 at 9:48 pmThe Little Mermaid.
Nicole R
December 27, 2014 at 3:00 amI love all fairy tales, but my fav would probably The Snow Queen. Current favourite retelling would be Into The Woods which I saw today and was fun!
katayoun
December 27, 2014 at 7:57 amlove Beauty and the Beast, and really like McKinley’s version, but my favorite version is the French movie “La Belle et la Bête” directed by Jean Cocteau
Justine
December 27, 2014 at 10:18 amElla Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine is my favorite — the book, NOT the movie!
Eden
December 27, 2014 at 3:08 pmMy favorite retelling is Of Beast & Beauty by Stacey Jay – it’s a YA novel and a fantastical retelling of Beauty and the Beast. It’s a lot like the Daughter of Smoke & Bone series by Laini Taylor!
Axie
December 27, 2014 at 4:35 pmObviously Juliet Marillier & Patricia Mckillip are goddesses of fairytale re-tellings.
For a Jane Austen sci-fi re-telling, I loved For Darkness Shows the Stars by Diana Peterfreund (a re-telling of Persuasion).
Great giveaway! The art designs are gorgeous.
Summer
December 27, 2014 at 8:35 pmI love Robin McKinley’s “Beauty” for its lush descriptions
superbwg
December 27, 2014 at 11:26 pmI love Sleeping Beauty, which is odd, ’cause I usually hate a passive heroine…but I love it anyways. Enchantment by Orson Scott Card and Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine are my favorite retellings 🙂
Lori
December 27, 2014 at 11:36 pmI love fairy tales of all kinds, but I was absolutely blown away by “In Her Head, In Her Eyes” by Yukimi Ogawa. It was so engrossing and then that ending! I loved it!
Lexi
December 28, 2014 at 12:49 amI love Princess Curse by Haskell. Though it is newer, it is one of my all time favorites.
Catherine King
December 28, 2014 at 1:28 amWell, all of the stories were fantastic. My personal favorite out of this colllection was Hunting Monsters… so atmospheric!
When it comes to other fairy tale retellings, I adore anything by Donna Jo Napoli (Sirena, Zel, The Magic Circle, Beast) and I also dig Mercedes Lackey’s Tales of the Five Hundred Kingdoms.
Layla
December 28, 2014 at 5:56 pmI’ve always liked Little Red Riding Hood… with a few.. um… twists.
Courtney W
December 28, 2014 at 9:14 pmMy favorite retelling is Entwined by Heather Dixon. It is a retelling of the Twelve Dancing Princesses 🙂
Elisquared
December 28, 2014 at 11:03 pmI love the tale of Little Red Riding Hood. I therefore, LOVE all retellings/reimaginings of the story. A couple of my favorites are Sisters Red by Jackson Pearce, Scarlet by Marissa Meyer, and Princess of the Silver Woods by Jessica Day George.
Thanks for the chance to win! Sounds like an amazing book!
Dena
December 29, 2014 at 11:59 amReading Anne Ursu’s fairytale retelling Breadcrumbs made her a must-read author for me.
Amanda
December 29, 2014 at 12:16 pmRetold fairy tales are a really big hit this year. I can’t wait to read this!
Pamela
December 29, 2014 at 12:17 pmI love The Twelve Dancing Princesses (and Heather Dixon’s Entwined)
Claire
December 29, 2014 at 2:54 pmMy favorite fairytale retelling?!? It’s so hard to decide! I think it’s tied between Tam Lin by Pamela Dean and Redemption in Indigo by Karen Lord. But I was lucky to read an ARC of Holly Black’s newest, The Darkest Part of the Forest, and it is possibly her best work yet. So that’s got to go on the list too.
hapax
December 29, 2014 at 4:12 pmHUGE fan of fairy tales and retellings. My favorite fairy tale is one nobody has heard of, the bizarre and surreal “Felicia and the Pot of Pinks”; close second is the one that kicked off my (unpublished) series of retellings, “The Brave Little Tailor”.
Favorite retellings? Anything by Robin McKinley, especially the superlative DEERSKIN; and Pat Wrede’s SNOW WHITE AND ROSE RED — heckopete, anything in the astonishing “Fairy Tales” series Teri Windling put together for Tor Books (http://www.surlalunefairytales.com/bookstore/windlingseries.html)
Ana Cristina Alves
December 29, 2014 at 4:53 pmGregory Maguire’s Oz Series ! A lovely twist in the traditional story.
Katie M
December 29, 2014 at 6:57 pmI’m quite fond of Wildwood Dancing, by Juliet Marillier.
Sabrina
December 29, 2014 at 9:25 pmWhen I was a kid, my grandparents gifted me with The Illustrated Book of Fairy Tales retold by Neil Phillip. It was one of my favorite books ever. It had different versions of classic fairy tales from around the world, as well as historical notes in the margins and beautiful illustrations. I still have the book today.
Yun-a
December 30, 2014 at 1:25 amFor fairytales, I love The Weaving Maid and the Cowherd, and Beauty and the Beast.
Becky C.
December 30, 2014 at 10:32 amIn love with Once Upon a Time right now~!