I am a fairy tale adaptation kind of girl. They are probably among my favorite kind of book to read -- which is good, because there are a lot of them out there.
Since I read them in such volume, it's difficult to pin down a favorite, though I may have to go with Spindle's End. I've read that book more times than I can count. But I do read a lot that are at least good. I decided to go through my books from the last 3 years (since I started keeping track) and pulled out the fairy tale adaptations I particularly enjoyed, and will list them here. Be grateful that I did not go forward with my original plan to include all 30+ fairy tale adaptations I've read in the last 3 years.
C4 recommends:
Daughter of the Forest by Juliet Marillier -- Based on ... I don't know what it's called. The brothers into swans fairy tale. She has continued the series at length but this may be my favorite because of its basis in a fairy tale.
A Curse Dark as Gold by Elizabeth C. Bunce -- A Rumpelstiltskin adaptation, and I remember just relishing it. I should read it again.
Wildwood Dancing by Juliet Marillier -- Well, actually, this might be one of those Fairyland tales, but there is certainly an aspect of 12 Dancing Princesses as well as some Frog Prince.
The Five Hundred Kingdoms Series by Mercedes Lackey -- They call these fractured fairy tales, I think. I have a lot of fun with them, though there's often a page or two the more scrupulous of us will skip.
Entwined by Heather Dixon -- Another 12 Dancing Princesses adaptation. I enjoyed the twists in this story (can't remember them, but I know I liked). Shout-out to a Mormon author, too.
My Unfair Godmother by Janette Rallison -- I like this one better than its predecessor, My Fair Godmother. Rumpelstiltskin is in it but I can't remember what other fairy tales make appearances. Another Mormon author shout-out.
Dragon Castle by Joseph Bruchac -- I don't know exactly which adaptation this is, just that it's a Slovakian fairy tale. I was into Slovakian-speaking boy at the time.
Cinder by Marissa Meyer -- I loved this book. It's a Cinderella adaptation, but set in the future where Cinder is a CYBORG! I thought it was well done.
Enchanted by Alethea Kontis -- There were soooo many fairy tales in this book! The main story was good, but it was extra fun to pick out all the fairy tale references.
The Princess Curse by Merrie Haskell -- I found myself really enjoying this one. I didn't start it with the best attitude ever because it's another 12 Dancing adaptation (and there are SO MANY), but I really liked the author's take, as well as the transition into another fairy tale or two (Persephone + Beauty&Beast).
Apparently I'm passionate about this.
(I did enjoy books by Jessica Day George, Shannon Hale, and Robin McKinley in the past 3 years. I just ... didn't include rereads in my list.)
