- Nov 19
- 3 min read
Ahh, the classic tale where girl falls in love with boy, girl gives up her entire life for the boy, boy falls in love with someone else, and the girl... turns into a daughter of the air?!?
The original story by Hans Christian Andersen had some weird stuff going on (click here to read my sarcastic summary of it if you aren't familiar with his version). But it is a classic story that has captured our hears for generations and there are plenty of beautiful adaptations of it for you to read!
I will first point out that I have written a retelling of this story, but because of my grievances with the original tale I changed the main heroine of my version from a mermaid to a selkie:
The Little Selkie - by K. M. Shea - In my version the heroine is a selkie and is forced to give up her voice for reasons not related to the hero, but most of the same elements of the story remain. This is also one of the most popular heroines I've ever written because even though she can't speak for most of the book she manages to take down the bullies in some inspiring ways. :)
Now for the full list of 70+ books all of which were suggested by my reader community (I asked for no spice and low language but check reviews if you have questions about the book's content). Since these are coming directly from readers you can think of them as a book rec from a friend.
List of The Little Mermaid Retellings:
The Little Selkie by K. M. Shea
The Silent Songbird by Melanie Dickerson
Silent Mermaid by Brittany Fichter
The Silent Prince by C. J. Brightley
A Princess of Wind and Wave by Melanie Cellier
A Cascading Hope by Yakira Goldsberry
Sea’s Secret by Kayla Eshbaugh
Filia and the Fall Festival by Leialoha Humpherys
The Prince and the Sea Witch by A. G. Marshall
Princess of Mermaids by A. G. Marshall
A Sea of Golden Chains by Callie Thomas
The Siren and the Scholar by J. M. Stengl
The Net That Holds Me by Scarlett Luna Strange
Maiden of the Sea by Sarah Beran
Song of the Sea by Deborah Grace White
Vazula Chronicles by Deborah Grace White
Beacon by Camille Peters
A Little Mermaid by Aya Ling
To Break A Silence by Lydia Mae
Part of Your World by Liz Braswell
Poor Unfortunate Soul by Serena Valentino
Prince of Song & Sea by Linsey Miller
The Mermaid’s Tale by L.E. Richmond
Selkie’s Song by Kimberly A. Rogers
Siren's Treasure by Suzanna Fowers
Lake Locked by S. R. Nulton
The Siren by Kiera Cass
The Mermaid and the Cursed Prince by E.J. Kitchens
Elodie of the Sea by Shari Tapscott
Finding Mera by Elizabeth D. Marie
The Little Mermaid by Jenni James
Mermaid Exile by Rebecca Fittery
The Wicked Prince by Rachel Rowlands
Song of Seas by Laura Greenwood
Hunting Sirens by Mary Mecham
Brine and Bone by Kate Stradling
Mermaid on Heels by Karen Daliath
Balanced Scales by Laura Greenwood
Of Tridents and Strife by Nicole Zoltack
Her Forgotten Sea by Eliza Prokopovits
Once Upon a Cake by Gabrielle Landi
The Stone Mermaid by Aisha Urooj
A Spark of Seas by Susannah Welch
Voice of a Siren by Kassidy Kameron
Bookworms Can’t Date Mermaids by Lucy Winton
Pearl of Magic by Emily Deady
Song of the Sea by Meredith Leigh Burton
Song of the Selkies by Sarah Pennington
Of Sea and Song by Chanda Hahn
Forever by Chanda Hahn
Head Over Tails by Brianna Tibbetts
Mazarine by CeCe Louise
Golden Lotus by Meagan Myhren-Bennett
The Storm Dancer by Valia Lind
Sirens and Blades by Amanda Kaye
The Little Mermaid's Voice by Shonna Slayton
Hightower Little Mermaid series by Jaque Stevens
Shattered Resistance by Madisyn Carlin
A Mermaid's Secret by Amy Horikami
Sea of Sirens by Amberlyn Holland
Parting Worlds by Kaitlyn Davis
Mermaid's Loss by Dee J. Stone
The Tomb of the Sea Witch by Kyle Robert Shultz
The Little Cyborg by J.M. Page
A Little Persuaded by Kendra E. Ardnek
When on Land by Kendra E. Ardnek
Of Song and Darkness by Jessica Spruill
Skin of the Sea by Natasha Bowen
The Mermaid's Madness by Jim C. Hines
To Kill a Kingdom by Alexandra Christo
Did you know I have a whole series of these blog posts featuring book recommendations, popular retellings, and lists of books vetted by readers? Click here to start reading or use the Book Lists category to filter them.
