Book picks similar to
Lurking in the Woods by Anne Stryker


fantasy
romance
beauty-and-the-beast-theme
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An Enchantment Of Thorns


Helena Rookwood - 2021
    An enchanted forest. A beauty destined to break the curse upon them...As town greenwitch, Aster’s spent her whole life defending her people from the nightmarish fae of the forest. Yet despite her best efforts, each year a girl is taken by the fae Beast who rules the Folkwood, sacrificed to the ancient faerie magic of the Tithe.And this year, the Beast claims Aster.When he whisks her away to his lavish woodland Court, Aster finds herself prisoner in a cursed mansion laced with enchantments and filled with hordes of wicked faerie servants. Not to mention there’s the Beast himself, whose savage beauty and dark magic never fail to remind Aster of his predatory fae nature.But when the Beast realizes Aster is more powerful than she ever could have guessed, he offers her a deal. Her freedom in exchange for her help breaking the curse on his Court.As feelings blossom between the two of them, their faerie bargain will force Aster to choose: her people or her heart.A retelling of Beauty and the Beast, An Enchantment of Thorns is the first in a new series of interconnected fairy tale retellings that feature strong heroines, swoon-worthy heroes, clean romance, and magical happy ever afters. Readers are comparing this new fae romance to A Court of Thorns and Roses, Uprooted, and The Cruel Prince.

Into the Heartless Wood


Joanna Ruth Meyer - 2021
    For centuries, a witch has harvested souls to feed the heartless tree, using its power to grow her domain.When Owen Merrick is lured into the witch’s wood, one of her tree-siren daughters, Seren, saves his life instead of ending it. Every night, he climbs over the garden wall to see her, and every night her longing to become human deepens. But a shift in the stars foretells a dangerous curse, and Seren’s quest to become human will lead them into an ancient war raging between the witch and the king who is trying to stop her.

A Whole New World


Liz Braswell - 2015
    Agrabah lives in fear, waiting for his third and final wish.To stop the power-mad ruler, Aladdin and the deposed Princess Jasmine must unite the people of Agrabah in rebellion. But soon their fight for freedom threatens to tear the kingdom apart in a costly civil war. What happens next? A Street Rat becomes a leader. A princess becomes a revolutionary. And readers will never look at the story of Aladdin in the same way again.

Before Beauty


Brittany Fichter - 2015
    Prince Everard’s father spent the boy's youth forging the prince into a warrior. Upon the king’s death, however, Everard realizes he’s lost himself somewhere along the way, and in his pain, makes a decision that brings a dark curse upon both him and the great Fortress that has so long guarded the people of Destin. The prince's sin doesn’t simply affect those of his citadel, however. Isa, the daughter of a local merchant, has suffered the prince’s hasty temper before, and it changed her life forever. When Everard’s final outburst cuts off his people’s source of protection with the curse, he demands that she, a crippled commoner, come to help him break it. All the while, Destin’s northern enemy crouches at the foot of the Fortress’s mountain, waiting for the right moment to capture the stronghold that has stood for a thousand years. With the freedom of Destin at stake, can both Everard and Isa find ways to move beyond their brokenness and hatred for one another, not only to break the curse, but to find love as well? Or will they and their beloved kingdom remain under darkness forever?

Of Beasts and Beauties


Miranda Honfleur - 2018
     Five novels retell the classic story of Beauty and the Beast, each with its own twist. Meet a dark-elf prince, a dragonian princess, a brooding vigilante, mighty superheroes, and futuristic guards, and watch as Beast meets Beauty, falling in love across fantasy, science fiction, and romantic suspense. Each of these novels is only available as part of this set, so don't miss them: enter the enchanted castle and break the spell today!

The Barnyard Princess


Katherine Macdonald - 2021
    Blessed by fairies at birth, Princess Elodie can speak to animals, and is now the only one who can help Bastien break the curse before his father declares war on her kingdom. With the help of their servants, Henry and Matilde, and her equally-blessed sisters, they set off on a quest to restore Bastien to his former self, but it is her feelings towards him that begin to reverse. A charming, lighthearted fairy tale retelling, full of romance and delightful witty banter.

Of Beast and Beauty


Chanda Hahn - 2019
    I am nothing more than a pawn in my adoptive mother's diabolical plot against the seven kingdoms.I was the chosen tool, her sharpened blade that would cut the deepest into the heart of the Kingdom of Baist. But like all deadly weapons, my wedding is two-edged sword that could cost me my soul.For I am Rosalie, one of the adopted daughters of Lady Eville, and it is my duty to enter into a loveless and hate-filled marriage with the narcissistic Crown Prince of Baist. My choices and heart are not my own to give. Yet even in the thick of dire situations, beastly vengeance can give way to beautiful attraction.

Beauty and the Beast


Sarah Winter - 2016
    On his eighteenth birthday, the old crone returns to find the same ignorant boy in the body of a beautiful young man. In a night shrouded in mystery, his parents King Alaric and Queen Adele died and Leopold himself disappeared. For years, villagers are frozen in fear of a mysterious and terrifying creature that haunts the town at night.Armand Babineaux, once the wealthiest merchant in the village of Fontainbleu, must secure his daughter Jolie to the unpleasant but enormously wealthy Quentin Garamonde, or condemn her to a life of servitude and poverty. His eldest daughter, Mireille, has already married well, but Jolie will be left all alone in the world if he does nothing to safeguard her future. Once the task is done, he must travel to Port Lucerne to recover his last ship or face the same fate in his old age. On his return trip, he is caught in a winter storm and finds himself far from the beaten path, at the foot of Villeneuve Castle.Armand seeks shelter in the castle, and once inside, he is forced to confront the reality of what happened to the royal family so many years ago. The next morning, when he picks a beautiful rose for Jolie, he is brought face to face with the creature of local legend and must make a decision that will change all of their lives forever.

Thief of Cahraman


Lucy Tempest - 2018
    FIFTY CONTESTANTS. ONE PRINCE. AN IMPOSSIBLE HEIST. You have been summoned to Sunstone Palace to compete in our search for the future Queen of Cahraman. After years on the run, Adelaide thinks her lonely and dangerous life as a thief is finally over. But her world is upended when a witch steals her away to a faraway kingdom, to perform an impossible heist. If Adelaide fails, her newfound family would be sacrificed to a beast. To complete her mission, she’s forced to assume the role of a noblewoman and enter a royal competition. The prize is the hand of the elusive Crown Prince. Elimination means certain death. As the witch’s literal deadline approaches, Adelaide has one last gamble to save the day, and to escape to a new life with Cyrus, the handsome and mysterious fellow thief who stole her heart. But everything falls apart when the prince finally reveals himself… Fairytales of Folkshore is a series of interconnected fairytale retellings that starts with the Cahraman Trilogy. Ada’s story continues in PRINCE OF CAHRAMAN.

Rose and the Monster: A Modern Retelling of Beauty and the Beast


M. Lowry - 2014
    Upon meeting the secretive inhabitants, she must face the realization that something unnatural is happening. But why? In this modern retelling of Beauty and the Beast, Rose must ask herself, “Who is the real monster?"

Of Thorns and Beauty


Elle Madison - 2020
    But she carries secrets of her own, and the scars of her haunted past.Handed off from one monster to another, she has no choice but to do her best to survive and protect her sisters.Even if it costs her everything.A Beauty and the Beast retelling you won’t want to miss, where nothing is what it seems and time is running out.

Little Thieves


Margaret Owen - 2021
    Vanja, the adopted goddaughter of Death and Fortune, was Princess Gisele's dutiful servant up until a year ago. That was when Vanja's otherworldly mothers demanded a terrible price for their care, and Vanja decided to steal her future back... by stealing Gisele's life for herself.The real Gisele is left a penniless nobody while Vanja uses an enchanted string of pearls to take her place. Now, Vanja leads a lonely but lucrative double life as princess and jewel thief, charming nobility while emptying their coffers to fund her great escape. Then, one heist away from freedom, Vanja crosses the wrong god and is cursed to an untimely end: turning into jewels, stone by stone, for her greed.Vanja has just two weeks to figure out how to break her curse and make her getaway. And with a feral guardian half-god, Gisele's sinister fiancé, and an overeager junior detective on Vanja's tail, she'll have to pull the biggest grift yet to save her own life.Margaret Owen, author of The Merciful Crow series, crafts a delightfully irreverent retelling of "The Goose Girl" about stolen lives, thorny truths, and the wicked girls at the heart of both.

Rite to Reign


Heather Marie AdkinsSabrina Ramoth - 2018
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Hood


Jenny Elder Moke - 2020
    Let it rise to meet the call. Isabelle of Kirklees has only ever known a quiet life inside the sheltered walls of the convent, where she lives with her mother, Marien. But after she is arrested by royal soldiers for defending innocent villagers, Isabelle becomes the target of the Wolf, King John's ruthless right hand. Desperate to keep her daughter safe, Marien helps Isabelle escape and sends her on a mission to find the one person who can help: Isabelle's father, Robin Hood.As Isabelle races to stay out of the Wolf's clutches and find the father she's never known, she is thrust into a world of thieves and mercenaries, handsome young outlaws, new enemies with old grudges, and a king who wants her entire family dead. As she joins forces with Robin and his Merry Men in a final battle against the Wolf, will Isabelle find the strength to defy the crown and save the lives of everyone she holds dear?

Supernatural Slayer


Devyn Jayse - 2018
    Their first official request was to locate a vampire I thought I killed years ago.  My ex-boyfriend. Now I'm ordered to deliver him to them without harming a hair on his gorgeous head.That was going to be a problem. By the time I found him, he was going to wish he had stayed dead. Supernatural Slayer is an action-packed urban fantasy romp through Barcelona with an assorted cast of witches, vampires, and shifters. It may also feature a snarky troll or two. "No human beings were harmed in the writing of this book -- only supernaturals."