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3.48 AVERAGE
3.48 AVERAGE
4.25 stars - Perfect for fans of the Princess Bride!
What a fun, action-packed fantasy with a strong heroine! This was the kind of story that had me smiling--and gasping--throughout, with some genuinely stressful scenes where I was sure the characters would never get out of trouble. The reason I didn't rate it higher is I found the handful of plot twists at the end too convenient (and too many), and journey-style books aren't my preferred taste in plotlines.
That being said, I found the character work excellent and the book extremely well-written. If you enjoy fast plots, political intrigue, or love the idea of a Princess Bride retelling, this will be perfect for you!
What a fun, action-packed fantasy with a strong heroine! This was the kind of story that had me smiling--and gasping--throughout, with some genuinely stressful scenes where I was sure the characters would never get out of trouble. The reason I didn't rate it higher is I found the handful of plot twists at the end too convenient (and too many), and journey-style books aren't my preferred taste in plotlines.
That being said, I found the character work excellent and the book extremely well-written. If you enjoy fast plots, political intrigue, or love the idea of a Princess Bride retelling, this will be perfect for you!
Had a lot of typos & sentence fragments. Didn't actually work as a gender-swapped Princess Bride. I'm tired of stories that suggest that political marriages should be turned down if you have a crush on someone else. Couldn't pronounce the names. Sixteen-year-old girl kept beating trained male assassins in fights. Plot twists predictable. Lots of lazy one-sentence dramatic paragraphs. Contrived conversation about consent mid-kissing scene. Distances/geography didn't make sense. Changing allegiances without explanation.
At least it gave me descriptions like
- the moonless dark of memory
- feeling something to be a fact just like the rising sun's pledge of heat in the new day
- sunset hair
At least it gave me descriptions like
- the moonless dark of memory
- feeling something to be a fact just like the rising sun's pledge of heat in the new day
- sunset hair
YA --based loosely on the Princess Bride --gender flipped --After her father's death, Amarande's love, Luca is kidnapped to force her into marriage. She runs off to save while others connive to steal her kingdom. Secrets and shifting alliances round out the story. To be continued...
"The princess will save you. Yes, yes, that's right. That's how all the storybooks go."
Even though the princess pretty much never saves the prince, this Princess Bride retelling is all about it. After being pressured by her council to marry in order to retain the throne, Princess Amarande's stable-boy love is kidnapped to force her hand into marriage with one of the surrounding kingdoms. Of course, this book provides us with a strong female lead who takes no shit, so she rides off after him. This unfolds into a complex story of true love, sacrifice, political ambition, and plot twists so intense readers will need a few minutes to recover as Amarande comes to blows with the obstacles surrounding her in order to save her stable-boy and her kingdom.
Going into this book, I knew it was a retelling of The Princess Bride but it wasn't until I reached the end that I pulled myself away from the story and noticed the similarities between the two. I really appreciate how this wasn't a cut-and-dry retelling that made everything super obvious to the reader. Instead, Henning snuck in elements and characters that were brilliantly placed upon my eventual recognition. The creative license Henning took with the story is superb; she crafts an entirely new world upon which to tell The Princess Bride story that is vibrant and exciting. I especially love how Amarande is the heroine of the story and is almost the complete opposite of Buttercup while still holding the story true to it's inspiration. I did think the romance between Luca and Amarande started out a little slow, but it definitely picked up pace the further we went in the story as the barriers built up by the two of them for the castle's benefit were torn down in the face of danger.
Regardless of how you feel about a Princess Bride retelling, this story has something for us all, and I recommend this book for readers who are ready for a little spice in their lives anywhere from the age of middle school and on!
**I received an eARC through Netgalley in exchange for my honest review of The Princess Will Save You.
Even though the princess pretty much never saves the prince, this Princess Bride retelling is all about it. After being pressured by her council to marry in order to retain the throne, Princess Amarande's stable-boy love is kidnapped to force her hand into marriage with one of the surrounding kingdoms. Of course, this book provides us with a strong female lead who takes no shit, so she rides off after him. This unfolds into a complex story of true love, sacrifice, political ambition, and plot twists so intense readers will need a few minutes to recover as Amarande comes to blows with the obstacles surrounding her in order to save her stable-boy and her kingdom.
Going into this book, I knew it was a retelling of The Princess Bride but it wasn't until I reached the end that I pulled myself away from the story and noticed the similarities between the two. I really appreciate how this wasn't a cut-and-dry retelling that made everything super obvious to the reader. Instead, Henning snuck in elements and characters that were brilliantly placed upon my eventual recognition. The creative license Henning took with the story is superb; she crafts an entirely new world upon which to tell The Princess Bride story that is vibrant and exciting. I especially love how Amarande is the heroine of the story and is almost the complete opposite of Buttercup while still holding the story true to it's inspiration. I did think the romance between Luca and Amarande started out a little slow, but it definitely picked up pace the further we went in the story as the barriers built up by the two of them for the castle's benefit were torn down in the face of danger.
Regardless of how you feel about a Princess Bride retelling, this story has something for us all, and I recommend this book for readers who are ready for a little spice in their lives anywhere from the age of middle school and on!
**I received an eARC through Netgalley in exchange for my honest review of The Princess Will Save You.
1.5 stars
I was soooo looking forward to reading this book last year and was so happy when it was available at the library a few days ago. However, I found this quite 1-dimensional; much like it’s title. The characters weren’t interesting, the plot was just okay, and there was no real depth to the story.
I’m sad because the cover is gorgeous...but everything else is lacking, sadly.
I was soooo looking forward to reading this book last year and was so happy when it was available at the library a few days ago. However, I found this quite 1-dimensional; much like it’s title. The characters weren’t interesting, the plot was just okay, and there was no real depth to the story.
I’m sad because the cover is gorgeous...but everything else is lacking, sadly.
This series gives the Princess Bride meets Merida vibes and I loved it
Things you will find in this series:
- friends to lovers
- found family
- kidnapping, pirates, backstabbing and twisted plots
- a protagonist female lead that would easily decided to stab first ask questions later
Amarande is not your typical Princess…she knows how to strategize, track, and fight as well as any trained solider if not better. With the sudden death of her father the King, she is thrown into a tailspin of events. All that begin with Luca being kidnapped. Luca the boy who loves horses, is a gentle soul and the love of Amarande’s life. She sets off the get him back but little did she and Luca know that they would make new friends, find out life changing news, and be in the center of events that will change the Sand and Sky kingdom forever
Things you will find in this series:
- friends to lovers
- found family
- kidnapping, pirates, backstabbing and twisted plots
- a protagonist female lead that would easily decided to stab first ask questions later
Amarande is not your typical Princess…she knows how to strategize, track, and fight as well as any trained solider if not better. With the sudden death of her father the King, she is thrown into a tailspin of events. All that begin with Luca being kidnapped. Luca the boy who loves horses, is a gentle soul and the love of Amarande’s life. She sets off the get him back but little did she and Luca know that they would make new friends, find out life changing news, and be in the center of events that will change the Sand and Sky kingdom forever
Considering that this is a YA novel, I can understand the importance of having a book like this for young girls to read. It gives them the opportunity to see themselves as this main character and the whole "you don't need a man to accomplish your dreams" idea and that idea is SOMEWHAT evident. Forgive my yelling of "somewhat" bc I can't italicize on here, but throughout this book, the main character, Amarande, is supposed to be conveying the idea that "I shouldn't need a man to rule my father's kingdom, we need to change the law" which is a great idea in theory...however, Amarande blatantly goes against this original idea to "Oh I love my commoner stable boy Luca, we can rule together" Okay...but didn't you just say that you should be able to rule WITHOUT a man ???
Don't get me wrong the princess marrying the commoner trope is a fine trope within itself, but I feel like it's extremely contradictory for this character to go from "I don't need a man!" to "But Luca!" I'm sorry to say, but Henning needed to pick a lane and stick with it. I think the concept for a story like this is important, but the execution for this particular book fell flat.
Not to mention that the entire book is merely Amarande chasing after Luca to save him from his captors, I don't feel as though there was truly any character progression from either of the main characters. The closest thing to character development that I encountered was the measly pirate side characters that originally captured Luca and then decided to help him instead.
Overall, again, I understand that this is YA a novel, however I still feel as though it could have been executed in a better way. There are plenty of YA novels that still manage to show character development AND convey a positive message to their readers. I'm sorry to say that I will not be continuing through this series, and I would not recommend it to anyone I know either.
Don't get me wrong the princess marrying the commoner trope is a fine trope within itself, but I feel like it's extremely contradictory for this character to go from "I don't need a man!" to "But Luca!" I'm sorry to say, but Henning needed to pick a lane and stick with it. I think the concept for a story like this is important, but the execution for this particular book fell flat.
Not to mention that the entire book is merely Amarande chasing after Luca to save him from his captors, I don't feel as though there was truly any character progression from either of the main characters. The closest thing to character development that I encountered was the measly pirate side characters that originally captured Luca and then decided to help him instead.
Overall, again, I understand that this is YA a novel, however I still feel as though it could have been executed in a better way. There are plenty of YA novels that still manage to show character development AND convey a positive message to their readers. I'm sorry to say that I will not be continuing through this series, and I would not recommend it to anyone I know either.
Are you fxcking kidding me?
These characters were so bland I won’t remember a single one by the time the sequel comes out.
These characters were so bland I won’t remember a single one by the time the sequel comes out.
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No