Liesl Shurtliff is beloved for middle grade fantasy that takes familiar fairy tales and flips them inside out. In books such as Rump: The True Story of Rumpelstiltskin, Jack: The True Story of Jack and the Beanstalk, and Red: The True Story of Red Riding Hood, she blends humor, fast-paced adventure, clever worldbuilding, and emotionally satisfying twists on classic stories.
If you enjoy fractured fairy tales, brave young heroes, talking animals, magical quests, and stories that make old legends feel new again, these authors are excellent next reads:
Adam Gidwitz is one of the strongest recommendations for readers who like Liesl Shurtliff’s witty, inventive approach to folklore. His books draw heavily from traditional tales, but he tells them with a modern voice, sharp humor, and a willingness to let fairy tales stay a little strange, dangerous, and wild.
His breakthrough novel, A Tale Dark and Grimm, weaves together multiple Grimm stories into one larger adventure centered on Hansel and Gretel. Gidwitz keeps the bones of old tales intact while adding a playful narrator, surprising connections between stories, and plenty of momentum.
The result is a book that feels both classic and fresh: full of forests, monsters, curses, and impossible choices, yet also highly readable for contemporary middle grade audiences.
If what you love about Shurtliff is the sense that a familiar fairy tale can still surprise you, Gidwitz is an especially strong match.
Shannon Hale is a wonderful choice for readers who want fairy-tale retellings with richer character development and lyrical worldbuilding. Her stories tend to be a bit more emotionally layered than Shurtliff’s, but they share that same love of transforming a known tale into something vivid and personal.
In The Goose Girl, Hale expands a brief fairy tale into a full fantasy novel about Princess Ani, a young royal with an unusual ability to speak with animals and a difficult path toward confidence and self-determination.
After betrayal leaves her stripped of her title, Ani must survive in hiding, build unexpected friendships, and reclaim her place through courage rather than privilege.
Readers who appreciate Shurtliff’s focus on reimagining familiar stories from a new perspective will likely enjoy Hale’s graceful prose, strong heroines, and deeply immersive fairy-tale atmosphere.
Jessica Day George writes cheerful, imaginative fantasy that often feels tailor-made for readers who love magical settings, capable children, and cozy adventure. While not all of her books are direct retellings, they capture the same sense of wonder and accessible fantasy that makes Liesl Shurtliff so appealing.
Tuesdays at the Castle is a great place to start. It follows Princess Celie, who knows her family’s enchanted castle better than anyone else—especially because it adds new rooms, stairways, and secrets every Tuesday.
When danger threatens the kingdom, Celie’s understanding of the castle’s shifting magic becomes unexpectedly important. The book combines a fun premise with a likable heroine, lively pacing, and plenty of charm.
For readers who enjoy fantasy that is whimsical without losing its sense of stakes, George is an easy recommendation.
Gail Carson Levine is a classic pick for anyone who loves clever fairy-tale retellings. Like Shurtliff, she has a gift for taking a familiar setup and asking one irresistible question that changes everything.
Her best-known novel, Ella Enchanted, begins with a brilliant twist on Cinderella: Ella has been cursed with obedience, meaning she must follow any direct command given to her. That single magical condition turns an old story into a smart, funny, and often suspenseful adventure.
As Ella tries to protect herself and those she cares about, the novel balances humor, romance, magic, and genuine emotional stakes. Levine’s heroine is lively, resourceful, and memorable.
If you like Shurtliff because her books are playful but still anchored by strong storytelling, Levine is essential reading.
Chris Colfer’s books will appeal to readers who enjoy seeing many well-known fairy-tale characters gathered into one expansive magical world. His style is broader and more cinematic than Shurtliff’s, but the sense of fun and reinvention is very similar.
In The Land of Stories: The Wishing Spell, twins Alex and Conner Bailey are transported into a fairy-tale realm where stories they thought they knew are very much alive. Their quest to return home leads them across a world populated by witches, queens, trolls, goblins, and legendary heroes.
Colfer keeps the plot moving quickly, and he enjoys revisiting familiar figures like Cinderella, Red Riding Hood, and Snow White from new angles.
Readers who liked the adventurous, story-aware quality of Shurtliff’s novels will likely have a lot of fun with this series.
E. D. Baker writes light, magical fantasy with humor, warmth, and a strong fairy-tale sensibility. Her books are especially good for readers who want something accessible, imaginative, and full of enchanted complications.
In The Frog Princess, Princess Emeralda kisses a frog expecting the usual fairy-tale outcome—but instead of breaking his curse, she becomes a frog too. It is exactly the kind of twist that Shurtliff fans tend to enjoy.
From there, the story becomes a quest packed with witches, swamp creatures, magical misunderstandings, and a growing friendship between Emma and Prince Eadric.
Baker’s books are breezy, funny, and inventive, making them a natural next step for younger readers who like fairy tales turned sideways.
Diane Zahler often writes fantasy that feels rooted in fairy-tale traditions while still delivering strong plots and distinctive protagonists. Her stories are approachable for middle grade readers and tend to mix magic, danger, and warmth in a satisfying way.
Baker’s Magic is a particularly good recommendation for Liesl Shurtliff fans. The novel follows Bee, a young orphan with a gift for baking pastries that have magical effects. Set in the kingdom of Aradyn, the story combines court intrigue, adventure, and a touch of culinary magic.
As Bee becomes entangled with Princess Anika and a threat to the kingdom, the book broadens into a lively journey involving pirates, secrets, and questions of loyalty and identity.
If you enjoy imaginative premises and spirited young characters, Zahler is well worth exploring.
Jen Calonita is an excellent choice for readers who like fairy tales mixed with a more contemporary, fast-moving style. Her books often ask what happens after the “happily ever after,” or what the story looks like from the point of view of characters on the edges of the classic narrative.
In Flunked, the first book in the Fairy Tale Reform School series, Gilly Cobbler is sent to a school where reformed villains are supposed to teach troubled children how to become good. It’s a smart premise that lets Calonita play with fairy-tale expectations in all sorts of fun ways.
As Gilly uncovers suspicious secrets at the school, the story mixes mystery, humor, rebellion, and magical worldbuilding. Familiar fairy-tale figures appear, but not always in the roles readers expect.
Fans of Shurtliff’s playful reworking of old stories will probably appreciate Calonita’s energetic voice and clever setups.
Sarah Mlynowski’s Whatever After series is a natural fit for young readers who enjoy fairy tales made funny, unpredictable, and interactive. Her style is lighter and more contemporary than Shurtliff’s, but the appeal is similar: familiar stories get scrambled, and the fun comes from seeing how everything changes.
In Fairest of All, siblings Abby and Jonah travel through a magic mirror into the story of Snow White. Almost immediately, they throw the tale off course and have to figure out how to repair it.
Mlynowski gets a lot of mileage out of the contrast between what readers think should happen in a fairy tale and what actually happens once new characters interfere. The books are brisk, funny, and full of recognizable story elements used in fresh ways.
For readers who love “what if?” versions of classic tales, this series is an easy recommendation.
Lauren Myracle may not focus as directly on traditional fairy-tale retellings as some of the other authors on this list, but she writes magical stories with an emotional core that can still appeal to Liesl Shurtliff fans—especially those who enjoy wonder mixed with family secrets and coming-of-age themes.
In Wishing Day, Natasha lives in Willow Hill, a town where girls receive three wishes on their thirteenth birthday. What begins as a whimsical premise gradually opens into a more layered story about consequences, identity, and the truths families keep from one another.
The novel blends small-town magic with heartfelt character work, giving the fantasy a grounded emotional center. It feels a little more reflective than Shurtliff’s books, but still offers the pleasure of rules, wishes, and unexpected turns.
Readers who want magic with both charm and substance may find Myracle a rewarding pick.
Megan Morrison is a strong recommendation for readers who like the idea of a fairy tale retold from an unusual angle. Her books take familiar material and build it into fuller, more adventurous fantasy novels with humor and personality.
In Grounded: The Adventures of Rapunzel, Rapunzel has spent her life in a tower, taught to fear the outside world and trust the witch who raised her. When an unexpected visitor named Jack arrives, everything she believes begins to unravel.
Morrison uses the story’s familiar framework, then expands it with richer motivations, a broader world, and a heroine whose growth feels central to the adventure. Rapunzel is not just a figure in a tale here—she becomes an active, funny, and curious protagonist.
Readers who enjoy Shurtliff’s character-centered reimaginings should definitely take a look.
Jackson Pearce writes fairy-tale retellings with a darker, more YA-leaning tone, so she may be a better fit for older readers who have outgrown middle grade but still love twisted versions of classic stories. What connects her to Shurtliff is the pleasure of recognizing a familiar tale and then watching it transform.
In Sisters Red, Pearce reimagines Little Red Riding Hood as a story about two sisters, Scarlett and Rosie March, who hunt the werewolf-like creatures that shattered their family. The setup takes the original fairy tale in a much more action-heavy and dangerous direction.
The novel emphasizes sisterhood, trauma, survival, and identity while still retaining the mythic feel of folklore. It is more intense than Shurtliff’s work, but many readers enjoy moving from playful retellings to darker ones as they grow.
If you want fairy tales with sharper edges, Pearce is worth considering.
Sage Blackwood is a great choice for readers who love magical forests, oddball humor, and fantasy worlds that feel both whimsical and slightly uncanny. Her books are not straightforward fairy-tale retellings, but they share Shurtliff’s gift for inventive magic and memorable adventure.
In Jinx, a boy raised in the mysterious Urwald forest discovers that he has unusual magical sensitivities and may be connected to larger dangers threatening his world. The novel gradually unfolds from a character story into a richer fantasy quest.
Blackwood’s writing is clever and atmospheric, with a strong sense of place and a cast of characters who feel eccentric in the best way. There is plenty of enchantment, but also mystery and a deeper mythology beneath the surface.
For readers who enjoy playful fantasy with substance, Jinx is a rewarding read.
M. A. Larson writes fairy-tale-inspired fantasy with big stakes and a touch of satire. His work should appeal to readers who like seeing classic fantasy archetypes—princesses, witches, dragons, heroes—reshuffled into something new.
In Pennyroyal Academy, Evie arrives at a school that trains princesses and knights to defend the kingdom against witches. It begins with a fun premise, but the story develops into something more complex as Evie uncovers startling truths about herself and the world around her.
The novel balances adventure, training-school intrigue, humor, and darker revelations. It has the kind of fairy-tale DNA that Shurtliff fans often look for, even though the tone is a bit broader and more dramatic.
If you enjoy magical institutions and stories that remix fantasy traditions, Larson is a strong option.
Ingrid Law is a slightly different but excellent recommendation for readers who love Shurtliff’s sense of wonder. Rather than retelling fairy tales, Law writes contemporary fantasy with quirky magic, heartfelt family relationships, and unforgettable young protagonists.
Her novel Savvy follows Mibs Beaumont, who is about to turn thirteen and receive her family’s hereditary magical power, known as a savvy. But when her father is injured, Mibs sets off on an unexpected journey before she fully understands her own gift.
The book combines road-trip energy, magical realism, humor, and emotional depth. What makes it especially appealing is the way magic feels woven into character and family rather than existing only as spectacle.
Readers who love adventurous middle grade fantasy with heart will likely find Ingrid Law a terrific next author to try.
