2

I'm searching for a fairy tale, or a fairy tale retelling, that I've read in English. The story is about a Princess who turns into a monster or a beast at night and so is locked away. If a man can stay in the room with her for three nights without showing fear it will break her curse and he will receive her hand in marriage.

It goes something along the lines of: an ordinary man (not a prince) stays, slowly winning her trust and getting closer each night, but he realises that the situation isn't fair to her, so in the end he waits until the king comes to see for himself on the third night how 'the monster' trusts him, and he choses to show fear, so that she lashes out against the king and sets herself free.

Improve this question
2
  • 1
    The closest thing I've found is folktale type ATU 307 (The Princess in the Coffin, see a retelling and some variations here) - though the only read similarity is the princess turning into a monster and three nights being required to break the curse; everything else is different.
    – bobble
    Aug 28, 2021 at 22:19
  • 1
    Having said that, uh, this is late but Welcome to Literature Stack Exchange, take our tour! Please look at the identification-request wiki for more kinds of useful information to edit into your question. For example, was this fairy tale part of a collection? Was it a physical book, e-book, audiobook, etc.? Were there illustrations?
    – bobble
    Aug 29, 2021 at 17:33

1 Answer 1

Reset to default
2

This story is featured in the Holly Black book How the King of Elfhame Learned to Hate Stories.

Once upon a time, there was a boy with a wicked tongue.

Before he was a cruel prince or a wicked king, he was a faerie child with a heart of stone . Revealing a deeper look into the dramatic life of Elfhame’s enigmatic high king, Cardan, his tale includes delicious details of life before The Cruel Prince, an adventure beyond The Queen of Nothing, and familiar moments from The Folk of the Air trilogy, told wholly from Cardan’s perspective.

Improve this answer
1

Your Answer

By clicking “Post Your Answer”, you agree to our terms of service and acknowledge that you have read and understand our privacy policy and code of conduct.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.