Bonded by Thorns reimagines the classic Beauty and the Beast fairy tale popularized by Gabrielle-Suzanne Bardot de Gallon de Villeneuve, whose version, La Belle et la Bête—the oldest known modern variant of the tale—was published in 1740. Smithsonian Magazine notes that the story of Beauty and the Beast “has the advantage of deep roots in both folklore and popular culture. Traditional tales of a bride and her animal groom have circulated orally for centuries in Africa, Asia, Europe and India—stories that may have underscored the vital connection between human beings and the natural world” (Deutsch, James. “The Storied, International Folk History of Beauty and the Beast.” Smithsonian, 15 Mar. 2017). Since the 18th century, the Beauty and the Beast fairy tale has been adapted and reimagined countless times in literature, film, television, and theater, including the 1946 Jean Cocteau film, the 1991 Disney animated feature, and its subsequent stage musical.

The term romantasy—a portmanteau of romance and fantasy—is used to describe novels, such as A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas, Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros, and The Mortal Instruments series by Cassandra Clare, that blend elements of both fantasy and romance genres. Like Bonded by Thorns, romantasy novels often employ a popular convention of adapting a classic fairy tale in a new context. Journalist Jenny Hamilton notes, “Fantasy with its magics and monarchies, and romance with its mandatory happily-ever-afters are particularly unable to let sleeping fairy tales lie, so it’s perhaps not surprising that smushing the two genres together has produced a truly awe-inspiring level of fairy tale [retellings]” Hamilton, Jenny. “How to Fight a Fairy Tale: Retellings in the Age of Romantasy.” Reactor, 15 May 2024). Fairy tale retellings offer a blend of the familiar and the reimagined that allows authors to use established tropes, characters, and settings to explore contemporary themes.

Helen’s novel follows the foundational structure of the classic Beauty and the Beast fairy tale. In this retelling, a young woman named Rosalina trades her freedom for her father’s after he is imprisoned for stealing a rose from a beast’s domain. In the novel, Rosalina’s father, George, takes the last rose from Castletree, prompting the beastly prince Keldarion to declare him a “trespasser and a thief” (27). Rosalina’s subsequent sacrifice mirrors Belle’s in the fairy tale, establishing a familiar framework of burgeoning love between captive and captor. However, Helen subverts key elements to incorporate contemporary genre trends. Most significantly, the singular beast is replaced by four cursed fae princes, transforming the narrative into a reverse-harem romance and exploring themes of power, desire, polyamory, and identity. Each prince—the icy Keldarion, the guarded Ezryn, the flirtatious Dayton, and the gentle Farron—represents a different facet of the “beast” archetype, allowing Rosalina to form distinct emotional, intellectual, and physical connections.