Monday Moods is a weekly bookish meme created and hosted by Unwrapping Words (aka, me!). The premise is simple: every week, there’s a new ‘mood’, ranging from tropes to genres or actual moods (happy, sad, etc). On a Monday, feel free to post about books on your TBR, books you’d recommend, or a mix – whatever you like – that fits the ‘mood’ prompt. And of course, you can use your own if you’re not fussed on a particular one!
I love retellings. And there are so many different ones out there! Fairy tales are ever popular, especially Cinderella and Beauty & the Beast, and of course there’s Greek Mythology retellings, but I love seeing the different trends. Not long ago I noticed there were a lot of Pride & Prejudice retellings coming out, and now it seems Dorian Grey is a particular focus, especially for queer authors! Are there any retelling trends you’ve noticed? Any you’re particularly pleased to see or hope to see in the future?
This Week, I’m in the Mood For…
Retellings
Midsummer
Jena Doyle
Genre: Fantasy Romance
Age: Adult
Published: 18th June, 2024
Retelling Of: Shakespeare’s Midsummer Night’s Dream
I Want to Read This Because It’s my favourite Shakespeare play, adapted into an enemies to lovers dark fantasy romance and it’s queer! It’s got lesbians! I am already giggling and kicking my feet just thinking about it!
Thornhedge
T. Kingfisher
Genre: Fantasy Horror
Age: Adult
Published: 15th August, 2023
Retelling Of: Fairy Tale – Sleeping Beauty
I Want to Read This Because I like Kingfisher’s work and am very much keen to read more, and I love the premise of this – it’s told from the point of view of the fairy who curses the princess, and sounds like the princess is very much the villain.
A Look Behind the Mask
Tiffany Thomas
Genre: Historical Romance
Age: Adult
Published: 1st October, 2021
Retelling Of: Jane Austen – Pride & Prejudice
I Want to Read This Because I am always a little intrigued by P&P retellings, or variations as this one may be. It’s interesting to see different writers with different takes on the characters, and what they change or keep the same.
The Death I Gave Him
Em X. Liu
Genre: Sci-Fi Mystery
Age: Adult
Published: 12th September, 2023
Retelling Of: Shakespeare’s Hamlet
I Want to Read This Because Hamlet as a locked-room, sci-fi, queer thriller? Yes, please! I love this premise, and I love that it feels natural for Hamlet to inspire this kind of story. I’m excited to see how Liu handles the various characters!
Dracula’s Bride
Rebekah R. Ganiere
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Age: Adult
Published: 3rd April, 2019
Retelling Of: Bram Stoker – Dracula
I Want to Read This Because of course there had to be one Dracula book here! This one I’m intrigued by because of the changes made to the characters – with Mina being a younger sibling to Arthur, Quincey and Lucy, and Dracula himself having the nickname Blue and fleeing his home in Transylvania, seeking refuge in England.
What are your favourite kinds of retellings? As always, I’d love to hear from you, especially if you’ve read any of the above, have any retellings on your own TBR or want to share recommendations!
Unwrapping Words 