Can’t get enough of faerie stories? Curious about the inspirations behind Rusted Moss? Check out these stories depicting the fae, from the capricious to the malevolent!
In no particular order:
1) 50 Ways to Leave Your Fairy Lover by Aimee Picchi (Read here)
Sweet and humorous, this short story gives some pointers on how to break up with an immortal fairy lover in a tactful way. A must-read if you ever find yourself in this situation and would like to not be horribly cursed as a result.
2) Emily Wilde series by Heather Fawcett
If you’re a fan of a female protagonist that is dour, irascible, and doesn’t quite get along with other humans (more out of discomfort of social situations rather than spite), you might enjoy this book! Emily is a brilliant academic who collects faerie stories (and the faeries are suitably dangerous).
I loved the cool, clever voice that the book is written in. There is a romance with a similar dynamic to the novel Howl’s Moving Castle — though important, it’s light and fun enough that, as readers who are not into romance, we loved this series. It’s cosy but isn’t afraid to have stakes.
The sequel was released this year, and it only improves on the first!
3) The Wee Free Men by Terry Pratchett
Tiffany Aching is a nine-year-old girl who journeys into faerie land to save her kidnapped brother, wielding nothing but an iron frying pan.
Brilliant story that subverts a lot of fairy tale tropes. If you’re tired of witches being wicked, this is a great novel to read.
This might be the first novel I read that depicted faeries as dangerous and strange. I ended up becoming a huge fan of Terry Prachett because of this novel. Expect witty writing and social commentary that’s both hilarious and insightful (something you’ll find in all his works).
4) Lords and Ladies by Terry Pratchett
Okay, so this is another Terry Pratchett novel but his work is incredible. This novel directly inspired Rusted Moss — in particular, the idea that faeries need only bide their time to enter the mortal world, when iron rusts and humans die. That section inspired the cycles of the Ages of man and fae in Rusted Moss.
This novel isn’t afraid of showing just how nasty faeries can be, especially compared to modern sanitised fairy tales. Faeries invade the land and witches are there to stop them even as other humans fall to the deceptive faerie glamour.
There’s also a lot of fun references to Shakespeare’s Midsummer Night’s Dream.
5) Cuckoo Song by Frances Hardinge
We read this novel during Rusted Moss’ development. Sunnydaze had suggested it to me and I went in not knowing anything about it.
It’s very well done and feels like a classic children’s novel written in the modern age. I’m not sure if I should go into too much detail because it’s best enjoyed without knowing much about it.
However, I think the title gives a hint as to what it is about…
6) Lud-in-the-Mist by Hope Mirlees
Neil Gaiman put it best: “elegant, supple, effective and haunting: the author demands a great deal from her readers, which she repays many times over.” Lud-in-the-Mist is in his top 10 favourite books. It has some of the most beautiful prose I have ever read. It was published in 1926 and is an absolute, criminally underrated classic.
Faeries and the supernatural do not make the most direct appearances but they feel ever-present, just in the corner of your eye. The story deals with the relationship between a human town and the ephemeral Fairyland that is both near and far from the townsfolk’s lives. The town of Lud-in-the-Mist has rejected the fantastical and resolved to mark everything fairy as taboo, but conflict arises when fairy fruit is smuggled into town.
Lud-in-the-Mist is a lush, complex read that deals with societal norms and the clash between art and the sensible.
7) An Enchantment of Ravens by Margaret Rogerson
An artist who paints the fair folk (who cannot themselves partake in human crafts without crumbling into dust) makes a terrible mistake: she paints mortal sorrow into the eyes of the fairy prince, a weakness that could cost him his throne.
Cool premise, right? Most of this short book depicts the artist and the prince travelling through the beautiful, eerie fairy lands. Fair warning — it is a romance novel. Sunnydaze did not tell me this when she recommended it, and I was confused as to why the author spent so much time describing the love interest’s bronze curls and dimples. It was incredible how much I read without realising it was a romance (basically when the inevitable kiss scenes started). Nothing against the romance genre, but I just think some forewarning would have been nice so I could have read the book in a different headspace.
Even if romance isn’t your thing, An Enchantment of Ravens has some delightfully wicked portrayals of faeries. If you enjoy reading about strange faerie curses on humans that have somehow offended one of the fae or about the inner workings of a strange and cruel faerieland, this book has that. The characters were okay overall but I think it was the world building happening around them that was the most enjoyable part for me.
8) Stardust by Neil Gaiman
A modern fairytale in which a boy, living in an English village on the border of Faerie, crosses the wall to retrieve a fallen star for the town beauty. Short, sweet and enchanting. You may have seen the movie, but the book is amazing!
That said, while Tristan ventures into Faerie, it’s more of a land of magic with witches and kings, than an exploration of faeries (though there are faeries in it).
I can so see the influence of Lud-in-the-Mist on this book. The mundane, mortal village on the border of a fairyland and the dreamy son who is drawn to it…
9) Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell by Susanna Clarke
Full disclosure — we haven’t read this one, but it comes recommended by our brother. He described it as “if a Jane Austen novel had magic in it”. The TV miniseries is excellent.
Set in an alternate 19th century England, Strange and Norrell are trying to bring magic back to England. Magic is understated and serious work, and in true English fashion, there is much fuss about what kind of magic is proper and gentlemanly. It’s a rich droll work that explores the intricacies of the role of magic in society and its historical context. The novel has a delicious amount of footnotes for those that appreciate it.
Fairies in the book are portrayed as insane, powerful, and amoral children.
10) Reader’s choice
You tell us! We love our fae mean and weird, so let us know if you have any recommendations yourself!
Note: It is incredible how many different spellings of fairy there are. I feel each book uses its own.
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Fennel for Fern and Maya
