Fairy Tale Retellings! discussion

Post retellings of the Twelve Dancing Princesses here!
Also, does anyone know what the original story is and the author?

(as a side note, were any of you obsessed with the Barbie movie version of this story when you were younger?? I certainly was...)

Oooh, I LOVE this tale! The internet suggests it's (probably) the Grimm brothers, although, there are variants (fewer sisters, etc.) from all over the world!

My favorite so far and everyone, it's such a pretty, sweet book! Told from the eldest sister's perspective:
Entwined by Heather Dixon Wallwork
A high fantasy take that seems to mix in the Dracula legend:
Wildwood Dancing by Juliet Marillier
Set in the 20s, this one reimagines the sisters as flappers sneaking into speakeasys:
The Girls at the Kingfisher Club by Genevieve Valentine
Seems to be a grimdark YA version?:
House of Salt and Sorrows by Erin A. Craig
A gender-bent outing:
All The Queen's Sons by Elizabeth Kipps

Ella wrote: "(as a side note, were any of you obsessed with the Barbie movie version of this story when you were younger?? I certainly was...)"

I'm a little sad for little girl me because had I known about it, I bet I would feel the same! :)

Princess of the Midnight Ball

I really enjoyed this book and the rest in the series. It does continue with the other girls stories but their stories are blended with other's like Poppy's story in Princess of Glass which is an amazing retelling of Cinderella. It has enough Cinderella elements to the story that you know it was based on Cinderella but it isn't an exact retelling of it, which I enjoyed.

The last book in the series is based off of Petunia's story Princess of the Silver Woods her story was such a blend of a bunch of them that some people don't really have a list since in a way, it is it's own story.

This book is on my to read shelf. People say it is The Twelve Dancing Princesses and Hades and Persephone retelling.

The Dark King and the Eternal Dance

Nerdy Werewolf wrote: "Oooh, I LOVE this tale! The internet suggests it's (probably) the Grimm brothers, although, there are variants (fewer sisters, etc.) from all over the world!

My favorite so far and everyone, it's ..."

Huh, interesting!
I've heard that the Grimm brothers actually didn't make up a lot of the stories, but rather wrote down stories that were otherwise told orally. I wonder if that's true...

Ooh, the Twelve Dancing Princesses is one of my favorite fairytales! ☺️ Sisters… magical forests… dancing… invisible cloaks. What’s not to love?

@Nerdy Werewolf A gender-bent retelling of 12DP?? Sounds super interesting!

Still need to read Wildwood Dancing and Princess of the Midnight Ball… I’ve heard so many good things about them but haven’t gotten around to actually reading them yet.

A couple of books that haven’t been mentioned yet:

A Dance of Silver and Shadow: A Retelling of the Twelve Dancing Princesses by Melanie Cellier. My favorite part of this book was the competition aspect.

Poison's Dance: A Twelve Dancing Princesses Retelling by Tricia Mingerink. Third in a series, so it’s not a stand alone. But I really enjoyed it and highly recommend the series in general.

The Firethorn Crown by Lea Doué. I am going to admit that I am a terrible person and even though I read this book I really don’t remember it at all. (That’s what happens when I don’t write reviews. 😬) But I do think that if you liked Entwined (seconding recommendation for that one!) you’ll like this one too.

A Branch of Silver, a Branch of Gold by Anne Elisabeth Stengl. Quite possibly my favorite
12DP retelling. Beautiful writing, memorable characters, unique twists on the classic tale… 😍😍😍 (It does tie in somewhat with the author’s Tales of Goldstone Wood series, but works as a stand-alone too.)

I loved The Twelve Dancing Princesses from Barbie when I was a kid! It used to be one of my favorite movies. :)

I already see some of my absolute favorite retellings are recommended on this list which makes me so happy. Almost as happy as seeing so many new retellings for me to obsessively add to my to read list. Thanks everyone! All the suggestions sound amazing :D

Noonecansinkmyship wrote: "I loved The Twelve Dancing Princesses from Barbie when I was a kid! It used to be one of my favorite movies. :)

I already see some of my absolute favorite retellings are recommended on this list ..."

Yay I wasn't the only one!! :D

I LOVE these lists! 💙

I loved the Barbie Swan Lake movie, but I don't think I ever saw the 12 Dancing Princesses one!
It's funny because a church friend of mine and I were just talking about how much we enjoyed the Barbie Fairytale movies and how we should have a barbie movie marathon night. XD

Back to 12DP

I second The Firethorn Crown !
A good one for those who don't like the main focus to be on the romance. ;)
~and here is another one that I love!
The Twelve Dancing Princesses

I did watch the 12 Dancing Princesses movie but it wasn't my favorite Barbie movie. I agree with Winter I loved the Barbie Swan Lake movie!

Also here is a list with books that are retellings of the 12 Dancing Princesses.

https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/4...

Winter wrote: "I loved the Barbie Swan Lake movie, but I don't think I ever saw the 12 Dancing Princesses one!
It's funny because a church friend of mine and I were just talking about how much we enjoyed the Bar..."

I would absolutely love to do a Barbie movie night XD

Curious if anyone's come across a modern retelling. I've been on a mission to find one for a while.

Two recommendations with (hilariously) the same name:
- The Thirteenth Princess by Diane Zahler
- The Thirteenth Princess by Nina Clare

Another rec:
- Pirouette

There was another gender swapped retelling that I read a while back that I remember liking, but I absolutely cannot remember which one it was.

Lauren wrote: "Curious if anyone's come across a modern retelling. I've been on a mission to find one for a while.

Two recommendations with (hilariously) the same name:
- The Thirteenth Princess b..."

The only one I've seen so far for gender-swapped is All The Queen's Sons

Winter wrote: "I loved the Barbie Swan Lake movie, but I don't think I ever saw the 12 Dancing Princesses one!
It's funny because a church friend of mine and I were just talking about how much we enjoyed the Bar..."

Ohh a Barbie movie marathon sounds great! I want to go on one now too haha. You should watch the 12 dancing princess one when you have the chance. It's great. But I love how sarcastic those two are in Barbie Swan Lake. It was priceless. XD

Lauren wrote: "Curious if anyone's come across a modern retelling. I've been on a mission to find one for a while.

Two recommendations with (hilariously) the same name:
- The Thirteenth Princess b..."

A modern retelling sounds fascinating. I'll definitely keep my eye out for one now. Hope you let us know if you find one. I'll definitely be interested in seeing a modern 12 Dancing Princesses.

Noonecansinkmyship wrote: "Winter wrote: "I loved the Barbie Swan Lake movie, but I don't think I ever saw the 12 Dancing Princesses one!
It's funny because a church friend of mine and I were just talking about how much we ..."

I'll definitely be adding it to the movie night roster! XD

Tiggywinkles wrote: "This book is on my to read shelf. People say it is The Twelve Dancing Princesses and Hades and Persephone retelling.

The Dark King and the Eternal Dance"

I've read this one so I'll give a short blurb because I love it so much.

The Dark King and the Eternal Dance by Alesha Adamson is one of my favorite retellings because Rayna is so spunky it's hilarious. I laughed so hard at this novella and was happy to see that although it was a short story, there was still playful banter and solid communication in the book.

Lauren wrote: "Curious if anyone's come across a modern retelling. I've been on a mission to find one for a while."

The closest I've come is that one about the flappers in the 20s (The Girls at the Kingfisher Club

I couldn't find anything else, either. Put me on the list, too!

Noonecansinkmyship wrote: "Tiggywinkles wrote: "This book is on my to read shelf. People say it is The Twelve Dancing Princesses and Hades and Persephone retelling.

The Dark King and the Eternal Dance"."

Everyone keeps recommending that series! I keep looking the other way because I'm a binge-reader. Is most of the series worth it?

Noonecansinkmyship wrote: "Tiggywinkles wrote: "This book is on my to read shelf. People say it is The Twelve Dancing Princesses and Hades and Persephone retelling.

The Dark King and the Eternal Dance"

I've..."

Great to know!

A fun little side note: there was a Little Golden Book version that had wonderful illustrations--swoony ball gowns and hair that's better than Ariel's, LOL. The illustrator was Sheilah Beckett.

My best female friend and I realized just a few years ago that we both owned that version and reread it obsessively, and that the movement and color and sweetness of the illustrations influenced our career work a great deal (I've directed lots of children's theater, and she's a dancer/choreographer).

Susan wrote: "A fun little side note: there was a Little Golden Book version that had wonderful illustrations--swoony ball gowns and hair that's better than Ariel's, LOL. The illustrator was [author:Sheilah Beck..."

That's so sweet and beautiful. Thanks for sharing!!

Nerdy Werewolf wrote: "Noonecansinkmyship wrote: "Tiggywinkles wrote: "This book is on my to read shelf. People say it is The Twelve Dancing Princesses and Hades and Persephone retelling.

[book:The Dark King and the Ete..."

I definitely think the series is worth it, but from the types of books and fairytales you typically recommend (from what I've seen) I don't think they're your type of books. But you can always give it a try when you're in the mood for a fluffy short read that still has action. :)

Susan wrote: "A fun little side note: there was a Little Golden Book version that had wonderful illustrations--swoony ball gowns and hair that's better than Ariel's, LOL. The illustrator was [author:Sheilah Beck..."

That's so cool. I definitely want to check out the book now. It's interesting how something so trivial in our childhoods can impact the rest of our lives. Don't you think?

But the illustrations sound lovely and it's so cool how it even impacted both you and your friend's work in performances! I would've loved to see a play with such pretty costumes. Could be just me being picky, but the costumes goes a long way for me so it's great to hear people taking such care in choosing them for performances. Thank you so much for sharing!

@Noonecansinkmyship, thank you! We all have different tastes, right?

Just discovered this one, a mix of Cinderella and the 12 Dancing Princesses. Curse of the Midnight King by Yakira Goldsberry.

Nerdy Werewolf wrote: "@Noonecansinkmyship, thank you! We all have different tastes, right?"

Yup definitely! I think a fairy tale retelling that you would like might be These Violent Delights maybe? It's more of the new ruthless YA that's incredibly popular, but it's also a retelling of Romeo and Juliet. Not my cup of tea, but I think it's more up your alley. Hope you like/liked it!

OoooOOh. That does sound up my alley! Thank you!

Nerdy Werewolf wrote: "OoooOOh. That does sound up my alley! Thank you!"

I'm so happy I got to recommend you a book for once! I thought for sure you would've already read it and just replied telling me it's one of your favorites haha. Hope you enjoy it!

Always appreciated!!

Nerdy Werewolf wrote: "Oooh, I LOVE this tale! The internet suggests it's (probably) the Grimm brothers, although, there are variants (fewer sisters, etc.) from all over the world!

My favorite so far and everyone, it's ..."

OMG, _The Girls at the Kingfisher Club_ is sooooo good! SO GOOD! I didn't want it to end.