Once Upon A Fairy Tale discussion

Recommend a great book you've read based on mythology - Greek, Roman, Norse, Irish...

oooh percy jackson was good i loved the greek mythology in it!! im currently reading the red pyramid which is also by rick riordan but based on egyptian mythology

gods behaving badly. the greek gods living in modern london. it was so fantastic.

I really liked The Alchemyst. You see a lot of different characters from mythology and legend.

I really liked Virgil's The Aeneid, which was basically a continuation of Homer's The Iliad. For a more modern book based on greco-roman myths I would suggest Cold Mountain (A Civil War adaptation of The Odyssey).

Lost in the Labyrinth by Patrice Kindl (Theseus and the Minotaur). Ulysses by James Joyce. And Percy Jackson was already mentioned.

Here's a little Scottish Mythology for you to consider. It's based of the old selkie legends or seal people. The men were notorious for luring women to their deaths beneath the sea.The Lure of Shapinsay

The Iron Druid Chronicles by Kevin Hearne. He's all over the place with mythology but it's really fun. (There's a talking dog!) But they can be really graphic (blood, guts, gore and a small amount of sex). There is quite a bit of humor in them, which is great because too many times authors try to make the stories very serious.

Brilliant. I agree that a bit of humor is needed in some of these books, if for no other reason than to allow me to catch my breath.

If you're into Celtic mythology, you might enjoy Trial by Song which is a retelling of several fairy tales, particularly Jack and the Beanstalk.

Cruel Beauty and is a great mix of Beauty and the Beast and Greek myth

I cannot recommend enough "Till We Have Faces" by C.S. Lewis. He retells the myth of Cupid and Psyche from the point of view of the beautiful Psyche's ugly sister Orual. No one could accuse Lewis of being a postmodernist, but his last novel anticipates later 20th century meta-fictional works that retell a classic focusing instead on the villain or a marginalized character from the original ("Grendel," "Wicked," etc.). Long before "Frozen," "Till We Have Faces" was a story of two princesses that focused on a different kind of love besides the romantic, and it is so much richer in its exploration of this theme.

Micah wrote: "I cannot recommend enough "Till We Have Faces" by C.S. Lewis. He retells the myth of Cupid and Psyche from the point of view of the beautiful Psyche's ugly sister Orual. No one could accuse Lewis o..."

This is a solid recommendation! I love the Cupid and Psyche myth, but I didn’t know of this one. Thanks!

Danielle, please let me know what you think. This book is indeed a beautiful, life-enriching work that keeps giving, and such a different take on the myth. I suspect you're going to love it!

Micah wrote: "I cannot recommend enough "Till We Have Faces" by C.S. Lewis. He retells the myth of Cupid and Psyche from the point of view of the beautiful Psyche's ugly sister Orual. No one could accuse Lewis o..."


This is an amazing book!

Laura, I think it's Lewis' crowning achievement as a fiction writer. He'd had the idea in his youth, but it seems it took his late in life marriage to Joy Davidman (whom he counted as his co-author on the book) to bring it together so wonderfully. It was his last work of fiction and he certainly went out on, not just a high note, but a crescendo.

Blood in the Water: The Lost Tale of Captain Hook

I have found my new favorite fairy tale retelling! Its dark! Its enchanting! And it is covered in supernatural lore! I will never look at Peter Pan and Captain Hook the same again. I truly feel like I have discovered the truth of an unknown history. Pan has all the markings of a perfect villain. I already read the sequel to this haunting tale and it is as dangerous as falling down the rabbit hole! This series finds like a hidden treasure, but I will definitely be keeping an eye out for this author's works!