Reign of Magic Reading List

With Reign of Magic’s launch just a few days away, I thought now would be an ideal time to stir the pot with a recommended reading list to look at before it’s officially out. Reign isn’t going to get us all the way caught up on the current timeline (there are way too many other things happening for that–cough, Acri, cough) but it does hustle us through most of the remaining fairy tales. If you want to be truly in the know, I suggest, however, that you familiarize yourself with the following books…

Rumpelstiltskin

The Frog Prince

Swan Lake

Sleeping Beauty

Whew, that is quite the list! Now remember, Reign is stuffed with Easter Eggs, so keep an eye out for hints and clues–even in scenes that you’ve seen before in other books! (And sometimes especially in those scenes.)

Until next time, Champions, thanks for reading!

Reign of Magic Available for Pre-Order!

Extra, extra, read all about it! Reign of Magic–the behemoth of a book–is FINALLY available for pre-order!

Store links: Amazon.com | All other Amazon stores

Angelique’s spirit is almost broken.

She has sacrificed, she has trained, and she has driven herself to exhaustion while battling her way across the continent. But all her efforts have led to nothing. She still hasn’t uncovered Evariste’s location, or the identity of his captors.

Yet the occurrences of evil magic across the continent show no sign of slowing. Wyverns, goblins, trolls, and other evil creatures have become almost commonplace. And the attacks on the royal families and her fellow mages have continued to escalate.

When Angelique is ambushed by one of those who kidnapped Evariste, she is forced to face the truth: her core magic—which she despises—may be the only thing standing between her world and the coming darkness.

For those who have captured Evariste aren’t finished.

And their plans are far older and more devastating than anyone could have guessed.

Reign of Magic launches October 10th, so it’s only a short wait away!

As I’ve mentioned before, this book is long. It’s longer than both of the Snow Queen books put together, so considered yourself warned! Reign is also stuffed with Easter Eggs. I have never written a book with as many hints, foreshadowing, secret nudges, and clues as this book, so if you’re ripping through it and not seeing many, you might want to re-read it to make sure you catch everything. (Or you can join in the conversation on our discord servers to get some hints from fellow readers!)

Stay tuned for teasers, updates, and more! My website has been acting a bit wonky lately–it seems like the most recent blog post hasn’t been showing to everyone–but I’m working with my webdesigner to get that fixed.

Until next time, thanks for reading, Champions! I can’t wait to share this story with you! 🙂

Rumpelstiltskin Fairy Tale Retellings

Long overshadowed by much more popular fairy tales the story of Rumpelstiltskin was not graced with a Disney adaptation. To add insult to injury, most retellings paint Rumpelstiltskin as a villain and the king (who threatens to kill the miller's daughter if she can't spin straw into gold, which is an impossible task btw) as the hero.

Yeah, I don't like that part.

When writing my version of the retelling it allowed me to make some pretty major differences to the original – most notably I made Rumpelstiltskin the hero. But enough about that, here's a giant list of fairy tale retellings for you to find your next read! (Some of them even switched Rumpelstiltskin to the role of hero like I did!)

Rumpelstiltskin by K.M. Shea – Yes, here’s my version! Gemma is a quiet seamstress who is imprisoned in the castle dungeons when her drunken father makes false claims about her ability to spin straw into gold. Luckily, there just happens to be a mage, Rumpelstiltskin, in town who can help her. (Stil (the hero in this book) would be proud to tell you that he consistently ranks near the top in my hero polls.)

The Rumpelstiltskin Problem by Vivian Vande Velde – I love this author so it’s no surprise she made this list! This book is actually a collection of 6 short stories all related to the fairy tale of Rumpelstiltskin. You might be tempted to skip this one since it’s short stories but it is really, really good! There is a bit of something for everyone in these stories and the way she describes the original story is what first inspired me to do my series of blog posts where I review the original fairy tale with my own humor inserted everywhere!

That’s not the whole list! I took this to my reader community, and they came up with a bunch more recommendations for you! (I asked them for no spice and low language but check reviews if that is a concern for you.)

A Curse Dark as Gold by Elizabeth C. Bunce

Queen of Gold and Straw by Shari L. Tapscott

Forged Gold by Abigail Manning

Goldheart by Kenley Davidson

The Princess Pact by Melanie Cellier

Repaying the Wrongs by Nellie Peters

Rump: The (Fairly) True Tale of Rumpelstiltskin by Liesl Shurtliff

The Crimson Thread by Suzanne Weyn

The Wish Granter by C.J. Redwine

Pathways by Camille Peters

The Spinner and the Slipper by Camryn Lockhart

Spinning Silver by Naomi Novik

Granny Rumple by Jane Yolen (in How to Fracture a Fairy Tale)

Straw Into Gold by Gary Schmidt

The Miller’s Girl by Nina Clare

My Unfair Godmother by Jannette Rallison

Lies of Golden Straw by E.L.Tenenbaum

Threads of Gold by Christine Pope

Twisted by Bonnie Hennessy

Rumpelstiltskin’s Daughter by Breeana Puttroff

Rumplestiltskin by Jenni James

Thread and Spool by Holly Hook

The Curse of Gold by A. G. Marshall

Charlotte and the Cozy Cottage by Abigail Manning

Songs and Spun Gold by Erin Halbmaier

Spun of Gold by Jen Geigle Johnson

Hopefully that will bolster your “To Be Read” list for this year! (And please allow me to again plug The Rumpelstiltskin Problem–it’s so, so, so good!)

If you're looking for more fairy tale retellings I have a whole series of these blog posts featuring book recommendations, lists of books vetted by readers, and popular fairy tale retellings. Click here to start reading or use the Book Lists category to filter them.