Beauty and the Beast Retellings Romance Fans Will Adore

Imagine if the Beast was a sullen Welsh Earl with a disability who may or may not have been inspired by Dr. House! Here, our Beast is Piers Yelverton, Earl of Marchant, a bad-tempered nobleman who does everything in his power to keep others at bay. Linnet Thrynne, having been runed by a cad of a prince, needs to marry quickly. So, she sets her eyes on the supposedly cursed Earl. It's purely a business arrangement. Or at least, it is at first...

Robin McKinley is probably best known to readers for her many folk- and fairytale retellings, and she has a big soft spot for Beauty and the Beast. Rose Daughter is her second reimagining of the story. It's a pretty traditional telling, focusing on the youngest daughter of a wealthy merchant and what happens when she encounters a monster in an enchanted palace deep in the forest. There's a curse concerning both herself and this beast, but for Beauty, the real power lies within the act of love.

This Regency romance is often cited as one of the all-time greats in the genre, and with good reason. If you love enemies-to-lovers, a tortured hero, a sparky heroine, and all manner of yearning, this is the book for you! Jessica is determined to free her dumb brother from the influence of the notorious Marquis of Dain, a cad who has embraced his reputation as a callous playboy. She doesn't expect to find herself drawn to the man, or to see the pain beneath his tough exterior.

The fairytale action is moved to modern-day India and its glitzy movie industry. Rakhee “Rocky” Varma is a rising talent but viewed as a Bollywood outsider due to her American-born status and outspoken nature. She ends up banished to a crumbling mansion on the outskirts of Delhi. There resides Taj Ali Khan, a former action star left injured by a stunt gone wrong. He hides his pain under a facade of cynicism and snark, but Rocky refuses to be intimidated by him. Cue the ultimate forbidden love.

Alix Miller is an artist who has been hired to paint the portrait of Leland Crompton, a reclusive aristocrat who lives in lavish home in New Hampshire. He has been left disfigured by a rare genetic condition that has turned his heart cold. As Alix works over a long Winter to bring her artwork to life, she wonders if there is more to Lee than what he has hidden from the world and even himself. There's no curse to be broken but perhaps she can still break Lee free from his own confines.

This M/M historical fantasy transports the fairy-tale action to England during the Second World War. As the Blitz engulfs England, a young country parson takes refuge in a strange country house. It seems to be deserted but in reality it's populated by a furious dragon man who has been trapped for decades within its walls. The parson offers to stay at the mansion as penance for a stolen rose, and soon he and the bitter creature who dominates this house grow close. Soon, a man of God and a cursed figure of perpetual darkness rewrite the rules of love.