You need to sign in or sign up before continuing.
Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.55 AVERAGE
3.55 AVERAGE
adventurous
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
relaxing
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I really enjoyed reading How to Find a Princess. It was a fun, light-hearted read for the weekend, that was sometimes funny and sometimes filled with enough longing (and denial) for me to press my face into the pages and scream a little internally. Also, it's so refreshing to read a book so completely free of homophobia. Honestly.
I found the pacing a little odd, with a drawn-out middleseriously, they were on that boat for so long, I was a little concerned when I had 40 pages left and they still hadn't arrived haha! and an ending that only lasted a few pages, but I acknowledge that this book is more about the characters and their growth as individuals and as a couple than the plot. Although I say that with a grain of salt, noting that this is a paperback romance with a secretly-a-princess plot.
It kept me engaged though, the crew of characters were really diverse and I loved that characters outside of Makeda and Beznaria were given actual personalities and interactions.
I found the pacing a little odd, with a drawn-out middle
It kept me engaged though, the crew of characters were really diverse and I loved that characters outside of Makeda and Beznaria were given actual personalities and interactions.
emotional
funny
hopeful
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
emotional
funny
lighthearted
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Alyssa Cole is hit or miss for me, and unfortunately her first full length sapphic romance was more of a miss. I was interested in the characters and their backstories. I was livid that competent and dedicated Makeda was laid off at the beginning of the book and felt so bad for her when her girlfriend dumped her for being too "helpy." Bez's protective nature and outside the box neurodivergent thinking made her a unique love interest. I also loved that she self identified as pan!
I just felt like the middle chunk of the novel didn't do enough, with either character growth, the romantic plot, or the royal plot. Then the end felt rushed. On the individual sentence level I usually really like Cole's writing and find it fun. But this isn't the first book of hers where I found the pacing super off.
I listened to the audiobook version and while the performance of Karen Chilton is very good for an African American woman's voice like Makeda, it's disappointing they couldn't get an actor who could also do the book's other accents. Bez, who is from a fictional kingdom called Ibarania, is supposed to have an accent in English between Italian and Arabic. Various other characters are explicitly described as having types of British accents. It's jarring to hear a character's dialogue narrated in a decidedly not BBC accent and then have their voice literally described as such by the author immediately after.
I just felt like the middle chunk of the novel didn't do enough, with either character growth, the romantic plot, or the royal plot. Then the end felt rushed. On the individual sentence level I usually really like Cole's writing and find it fun. But this isn't the first book of hers where I found the pacing super off.
I listened to the audiobook version and while the performance of Karen Chilton is very good for an African American woman's voice like Makeda, it's disappointing they couldn't get an actor who could also do the book's other accents. Bez, who is from a fictional kingdom called Ibarania, is supposed to have an accent in English between Italian and Arabic. Various other characters are explicitly described as having types of British accents. It's jarring to hear a character's dialogue narrated in a decidedly not BBC accent and then have their voice literally described as such by the author immediately after.
emotional
lighthearted
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Not awful, but soooo sloooow!
funny
hopeful
relaxing
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
funny
lighthearted
relaxing
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
funny
lighthearted
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Wanted to like this more than I did. Truly, nothing really happened in this book. A slow burn I guess? There was a twist at the end that should've shocked me but truly I almost missed it I was doing whatever the auditory version of skimming is. I don't know what was missing. I liked the characters? I like the premise? And then nothing happened. I think I'll give Alyssa Cole another chance - my first book of hers. Maybe the next will shine brighter.