Disney is known for its captivating stories that leave us wanting more. The magical wonders. The forever-afters. The raunchy sex scenes—wait. That doesn’t happen in Disney.
But what if it could?
Enter the world of Cinderella where her dress “magically disappears” by a much different means.
Where Aladdin takes Jasmine on more than a carpet ride.
Where Beauty and the Beast is a story best told from between the sheets.
Adults love a good Disney story as much as the next person and what’s more, we also love when things get real and, you know, adult-y. So if you’re someone who wants to relive your favorite Disney stories with some retellings made for your current age, look no more! We’ve got a bunch that, as always, come highly reader ranked.
Disney Retellings for Adults
Not every Disney story can be retold with a kick of heat. But many of them can. While there are droves of Beauty and the Beast retellings with spice, you’ll also fine Alice in Wonderland, Captain Hook, and Cinderella among the popular ones.
We’ve got our top 11 recommended books and series of Disney adaptations for adults:
1. Wicked Villains Series by Katee Robert
Time and time again, Katee Robert is the author recommended when one calls for “smut” and “disney” in the same sentence, with reader rankers making claims like “I love Katee Robert as an author, she definitely knows how to write her spice lol 
“.
This is a Jafar and Jasmine retelling in which a deal is made. Jasmine loses everything attempting to win against Jafar, without knowing exactly what she’d “win” in the late nights that followed what she considers to be a capture.
Still, she believes “a gilded cage is still a prison” and maintains her desire for freedom…even if that means betraying the once-enemy she’s growing to love. This book is written in first person point of view, a win for making the spice feel all the more real. But it also flips into a different perspective, so you get more than just one head to venture into (hehe). With 7 books in the whole series, you’ll have plenty to enjoy for quite a while.
Buy book 1 or the whole series here.
2. Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister by Gregory McGuire
Cinderella isn’t the only one with a story. While Cinderella’s step mother was cast as an evil, neglecting woman who did nothing but make her step daughters life miserable, her other two daughters were forced to learn from her and often, to please her. Then, they were all cast out when Cinderella stole the show.
What happens to the step sisters who didn’t inherit such outer beauty? This book is set in seventeenth-century holland and follows Iris, who once from lowly streets, is suddenly finding herself amongst those of wealth and status when she meets Clara, a beautiful girl destined to become Iris’s sister.
You’ll get to travel between these two perspectives once again in a fairytale setting.
3. Kingdom Series by Marie Hall
If the covers alone don’t convince you to pick this up, maybe this will: Alice is grown. She keeps busy running the Mad Hatter’s Cupcakery but a certain fairy godmother has other plans for her, some of which including a bad boy Alice can’t seem to resist.
If you love a good story with a resistance romance in which one or both try not to fall for each other, this is the story for you.
It’s not erotica, it’s a true romance that includes all the necessary components of falling in love in a world where free will is up for question and fairy godmother’s run the show.
Buy book 1 or the entire 11-book collection here.
4. Sons of Wonderland by Kendra Moreno
Alice in Wonderland seems to be quite a popular Disney retelling out there. We’re even curious to know which is best. This one follows Clara, a woman spending her life in courtrooms defending the less fortunate. Until, that is, a man with rabbit ears on his head pays her a visit…and drags her into Wonderland.
This isn’t the world I’ve read about, she thinks. Instead, it’s dark and twisted. Poisoned and mad.
Even the Hatter is mad but Clara can’t seem to let that stop her from falling for his sex appeal. Clara’s on a mission to fulfill her destiny and stop the Red Queen…but she’ll certainly have her fun while she’s at it.
Buy book 1 or the whole collection here.
5. Captain Hook and the Pirates of Neverland by Melissa Snark
Peter Pan isn’t who you think he is. And the Lost Boys didn’t garner than name for no reason. Except they’re not just lost to their homes, they’re lost to life. Hook is one of the children who managed to escape Pan’s abduction and she’s made it her mission to put an end to the murder and even grimmer fate’s the abducted children often face.
Read this first person point of view of an old tale we’ve heard many times over, except with a much darker twist that takes turns down paths we wouldn’t expect.
Buy book 1 or the whole series here.
6. The Never King by Nikki St. Crowe
Even the cover works to make you understand that this is not for children. This Disney retelling of Peter Pan takes a different angle.
Wendy is trying her hardest not to disappear on her 18th birthday like every other Darling woman has, only to return at unpredictable intervals, utterly broken. But it’s no use. He comes for her anyway, just as she knew he would.
Will the Never King let her leave? Will the Lost Boys allow her to return safely to her home? After Wendy gets to know the Never King more…will she even want to leave? This story is for adults, and all the characters have been aged-up appropriately.
Buy book 1 or the whole 3-book series here.
7. Malice Duology by Heather Walter
Sleeping Beauty gets a different kind of story in this Disney retelling of an old favorite. In this story, Aurora is the last of her line and heir to Briar’s entire throne. She’s good and kind and not at all like others in the upper class, who care nothing of princesses and only of their material possessions.
Even though the realm desperately needs Aurora as their queen, her family has been cursed for centuries, and she will die in a year because of it.
Unless, that is, the dark sorceress she’s taken to can use her power for good—not something anyone has ever thought likely. But this sorceress has to save Aurora. If not from the curse, then from the line of princes waiting to kiss her.
Click here to buy the 2-book set.
8. Once Upon a Spell by Vivienne Savage
Quite cleverly, Vivienne Savage has managed to write both standalone novels that meet in an overarching, connected series. So if you only want to read a few books for the single spicy Disney retelling story, go for it! Just know that the entire set will offer a broader story intertwined.
But hey, you do you boo-boo.
9. Deliciously Dark Fairytales by K.F. Breene
Who doesn’t love a good Beauty and the Beast Disney retelling but for adults? Maybe it’s the enemies-to-lovers trope we can’t get enough of. Or maybe it’s the “I can fix him” desire played out in story. Either way, forget Emma Watson and her CGI-beast. It’s time for your imagination to put together the saucy realities depicted in Breene’s world of Deliciously Dark Fairytales.
In this one, the Mad King has put a curse on everyone that has everyone locked in time.
The kingdom’s only hope? Nyfain, the last dragon shifter. And our main character’s biggest nightmare, and her captor. He wants to use her. She has the capability of saving the kingdom now, but doing so could mean ruin for herself.
Buy book 1 or get the whole 4-book series.
10. Harem of Hearts by C.M. Stunich
What would happen in Alice in Wonderland took place in a world that was a little darker, where the men were much hotter and found their newest visitor too appealing to let her go? This author answers all of these questions, and then some, in a Wonderland retelling that instead takes place in Underland.
The question is not whether or not you’ll need to excuse yourself to a private room for a while after reading, but rather…
Will Allison make it home…will she want to?
Buy book 1 or the full trilogy here.
Disney retellings are the perfect way to relive your dirty teen fantasies about Prince Charming. Except with these recommendations, the princes might not be so charming.
Happy reading, ranker 🙂
