Writing duo Elizabeth Helen on Bonded by Thorns, Beauty and the Beast retelling

The Beasts of the Briar series by Elizabeth Helen has been trending on BookTok and it’s clear why — the spicy romantasy series is a fun retelling of the Beauty and the Beast with the most wonderful combination of tropes. To celebrate HarperVoyager UK’s Magpie imprint publishing the series in the UK, we are honoured to have Elizabeth Helen here to chat about writing their retelling.

This guest post is written by Elizabeth Helen, authors of Bonded by Thorns.

Beauty and the Beast is truly the tale as old as time. Although fairytale retellings are a common staple across genres and media, none seem to truly have so many variations as Beauty and the Beast. What is it about this story that speaks to so many people?

That was the main question we asked ourselves while writing our own variation of the fairytale, Bonded by Thorns. We wanted to honor the beloved keystones of the classic tale, while adding our own spin. In our retelling, our Beauty is a modern-day, down-on-her-luck woman who finds herself in the fae realm. She becomes imprisoned in an enchanted castle that belongs to not one, but four, cursed princes.

As young girls, we immediately fell in love with fairytales of all sorts, but Beauty and the Beast always had a special place in our hearts. The 1991 Disney animation is renowned as being loved by children and adults alike, and for good reason. With a vibrant cast of supporting characters, a powerful redemption story, a strong and relatable main character, and—of course—it’s beautiful love story, it’s no wonder this movie in particular sticks in peoples’ minds. As authors, we felt challenged to try to capture some of the magic and enchantment we felt as children watching the movie in a novel with adult themes, increased romance, and set in an elaborate fantasy world.

Of course, we had to seek out the original tale by Gabrielle-Suzanne Barbot de Villeneuve. In a very Belle-like experience, I recall vividly walking into a small bookstore in Edinburgh and coming across a translation of the original works, beautifully illustrated by MinaLima. Across each page was a reminder of why this story continues to captivate audiences:  as the reader journeys with Beauty to explore the Beast’s world, there is the distinct feeling of leaving the ordinary behind and entering a realm where anything could happen. This is an essence we strove to capture in our own retelling: an almost-childlike nostalgic feeling of whimsy.

Just as our Beauty, Rosalina, steps through a portal into the fae realm, literature often serves as the portal to take us to different worlds. Beauty and the Beast is the epitome of ‘into the unknown’ and we never tire of reading about heroines bravely facing uncharted territory, especially when they have to go toe-to-toe with an abrasive hero. We both fell in love with Uprooted by Naomi Novik, a fantasy that takes a pinch of the original for inspiration but combines it with other fairytales and Eastern European folklore. We were also inspired by authors who truly made the story their own, like the dark, spicy, and hilarious fantasy retelling A Ruin of Roses by K.F. Breene.

It’s been said that Beauty and the Beast is the ultimate enemies-to-lovers story, and we can’t deny that. In each iteration, that seems to be the common thread: two very different people who do not like each other, but they’re forced together. While they’re dealing with their own struggles, they find common ground and make a connection that surpasses their differences. Isn’t there a little bit of Beauty and Beast in such iconic couples as Rey and Kylo Ren, Daphne Bridgerton and Simon Basset, and Buffy and Angel?

Beauty and the Beast is truly a fairytale that transcends genres, and we’ve been lucky enough to have so many different iterations to fall in love with. We’re honored to follow in the footsteps of so many artists who have put a piece of themselves into this story’s legacy.

Bonded by Thorns by Elizabeth Helen is out now (HarperVoyager UK).