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A review by justagirlwithabook
Once More Upon a Time by Roshani Chokshi
adventurous
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
5.0
Once upon a time … there was a prince and princess who fell in love. Shortly after, the princess ate a bad tomato, but a witch arrived in the nick of time and offered a deal to the prince: give up their love in exchange for the princess’s life. So he said yes.
A year and a day later, the prince and princess can no longer keep up appearances in their kingdom of Love’s Keep (because it runs on love, and without love, it just can’t sustain itself). Before they part ways for forever, the witch appears again with a new bargain: travel to a kingdom on the day of a new king and queen’s wedding and steal a potion vial from the new queen for the witch. Then, in exchange, she’ll give them what they most want.
But what DO the prince and princess most want? Will they reclaim their lost love or do they value their freedoms even more?
What I Loved:
- There were a handful of funny and quirky characters (a cloak that can talk and thinks itself a horse, a honey badger in the midst of an identity crisis, and more!).
- There was a lot of wit and humor throughout this novella and I found myself smiling and chuckling at regular intervals.
- The witch herself is the main narrator and has a handful of little asides as she tells the story. This added an extra level of humor and fun.
- It gave me old school Shelley Duval Fairy Tale Theater or even Enchanted (Disney movie) vibes, and I loved that!
What I Didn’t Love:
- As other reviewers have said before, this book is a novella, so it’s under 200 pages, but it easily could’ve been drawn out (with more little adventures and challenges for our leading couple to overcome) to become a full length novel. That said, I don’t know if I would have loved it more if it were to have been longer or not. I think it was the perfect read for me when I needed it!
Overall:
Overall, I really enjoyed this book! It incorporated plenty of wit and humor, quirky and silly characters, ridiculous scenarios, and characters the reader could root for. I highly recommend this read for high school readers and above (and I think adults would especially appreciate it!). I think younger YAs or junior high schoolers might not quite be able to follow the story as well or fully get the humor, but maybe some could? It was definitely a fun read, though, and with the right audience, I think it would really land!
A year and a day later, the prince and princess can no longer keep up appearances in their kingdom of Love’s Keep (because it runs on love, and without love, it just can’t sustain itself). Before they part ways for forever, the witch appears again with a new bargain: travel to a kingdom on the day of a new king and queen’s wedding and steal a potion vial from the new queen for the witch. Then, in exchange, she’ll give them what they most want.
But what DO the prince and princess most want? Will they reclaim their lost love or do they value their freedoms even more?
What I Loved:
- There were a handful of funny and quirky characters (a cloak that can talk and thinks itself a horse, a honey badger in the midst of an identity crisis, and more!).
- There was a lot of wit and humor throughout this novella and I found myself smiling and chuckling at regular intervals.
- The witch herself is the main narrator and has a handful of little asides as she tells the story. This added an extra level of humor and fun.
- It gave me old school Shelley Duval Fairy Tale Theater or even Enchanted (Disney movie) vibes, and I loved that!
What I Didn’t Love:
- As other reviewers have said before, this book is a novella, so it’s under 200 pages, but it easily could’ve been drawn out (with more little adventures and challenges for our leading couple to overcome) to become a full length novel. That said, I don’t know if I would have loved it more if it were to have been longer or not. I think it was the perfect read for me when I needed it!
Overall:
Overall, I really enjoyed this book! It incorporated plenty of wit and humor, quirky and silly characters, ridiculous scenarios, and characters the reader could root for. I highly recommend this read for high school readers and above (and I think adults would especially appreciate it!). I think younger YAs or junior high schoolers might not quite be able to follow the story as well or fully get the humor, but maybe some could? It was definitely a fun read, though, and with the right audience, I think it would really land!