The Princess Blog

"The Prince's Servant" Once upon a time, there was a peasant maiden named Lana whose family was struggling to survive. When she heard an announcement that the prince was going to hold a ball to find his future queen, she thought there might be some openings for work in the palace. Lana walked the short distance from her humble cottage to the opulent silver turrets of the beautiful palace that she would gaze upon in the moonlight when she had trouble sleeping. The intimidating guard at the gate sneered at her humble appearance and sent her to a side entrance for servants, where no one important would have to lay eyes on her. When she walked through the narrow path surrounded by neatly trimmed hedges, she saw a bustling crowd of servants frantically preparing orders for food, performers, and decorations for the upcoming ball. She tried to ask them who was in charge of tasks, but most of them were too busy to even notice her. As she dodged several servants carrying large box...

This is not a typical discussion about an upcoming princess story, but it's still an important topic for those of us who desire to live the princess lifestyle . Princesses are generally known to be upbeat and spread happiness to those around them . While this is a wonderful trait, it can create some misconceptions about people who love princesses or want to portray them . Similar to the misconception that princesses never get angry , they are not happy all the time, nor are they unwilling to admit when something is wrong. In fact, this is a big reason why their "happily ever after" is so impactful. Pretending that everything is perfect all the time and denying the bad in any given situation can lead to toxic positivity. A great example of toxic positivity is Mother Gothel. By constantly reminding Rapunzel how lucky she is to be safely locked away from the world in a tower, she uses gaslighting to make Rapunzel think that there is nothing wrong with her situation. This ca...

Thirty years ago, it would have been considered a crime to twist the sweet, gentle princess archetype  into a cold-blooded murderer. Times have changed . Today, the type of violent nature required for horror movie leads is not so far off from how modern princesses act . That's why it's not too surprising that the niche fairy tale horror genre has increased in popularity over the past couple of years. In 2024 alone, there have been three gruesome, twisted princess films, two of which were based on the same fairy tale .  Cinderella's Revenge , Cinderella's Curse , and The Little Mermaid  all take a beloved protagonist known for her kind-hearted nature and turn her into a killer. Is there an audience for this growing trend, or is it merely a passing fad? The concept of combining the traditionally family-friendly fairy tale genre with the darker, more adult horror genre is not entirely novel. Original versions of fairy tales had many dark elements before they were Disney...

One of my favorite things about Valia Lind  is how well she develops romance in her fairy tale books . The  Skazka Fairy Tales  take place in a unique fantasy world built on Russian folklore that's split between the magical realm and the human realm. The Golden Slipper  is a "Cinderella" retelling from this series that provides a slow-burn romance where a prince and a hard-working peasant girl fall in love over time. It does a great job of providing both perspectives and building them into realistic, fleshed-out characters. There are also a lot of great supporting characters that give the protagonist someone to turn to when she feels overwhelmed by her stepfamily. The story is brimming with magic and romance. Mira is a hard worker who is skilled in many areas. She runs a flower shop and also helps her best friend, Oksana, with her bakery. Her least favorite duty is tending to her stepmother and stepsisters, who seem to be out to get her. When a clumsy young man show...

Four years ago, I shared a review of a cozy strategy game called Yes, Your Grace , in which players take on the role of a king who must wisely distribute resources to protect his family and his kingdom. Now, the game has released a sequel called Yes, Your Grace: Snowfall, in which the stakes have been raised exponentially. Snowfall features similar graphics and gameplay to the original, albeit with some small updates, along with a significantly darker tone. Players begin as King Eryk, the protagonist from the first game, but things quickly take a turn for the worse with his circumstances and health, and Queen Aurelea must step in to protect what's most dear to them. The game begins by allowing players to input over their story decisions from the first Yes, Your Grace. For those of us who played it almost five years ago, it might be hard to remember what those decisions were. This task can be bypassed by asking the advisor to make the best decisions, or just give it your best guess....

If you subscribe to my author newsletter , you saw that today is the first day of Fairy Tale Summer . This is a great annual event that takes place in the Clean Fairytales Facebook group . Readers can share reviews of fairy tale-inspired books with the hashtag #2025 all summer long to earn points for fun book-related prizes. I am one of over 40 featured authors in the event, along with all three books from  The Stolen Trilogy . My "author takeover" night in the group will be Monday, July 21st. I hope you join me.  Golden Goose  by Lea Doue  marks my first official review for this year's Fairy Tale Summer. This is the fourth ARC I have received from the multi-author All That Glitters series of fairy tale retellings . The book incorporated a lot of creativity to add depth to a relatively simple fairy tale . The first thing that stood out to me about Golden Goose  is that it takes place in an unapologetic fantasy world. Although the main character, Elowen, is poo...

Disney hasn't always been the sole distributor of fairy tale film adaptations. There was a 30-year gap between 1959's  Sleeping Beauty , which  marked the end of their Golden Age, and 1989's  The Little Mermaid , which heralded the start of  the Disney Renaissance. During this "dark" era, a large portion of the world was experiencing a tense political climate due to the growing emergence of the Cold War. However, cinema was not completely devoid of new fairy tales at this time. The biggest provider of fairy tale retellings during the '60s and '70s was happening overseas in Czechoslovakia, where a large quantity of low-budget live-action musical films based on and inspired by popular fairy tales were being produced. Movies like The Princess with the Golden Star  in 1959, The Terribly Sad Princess  in 1968, and Princess Goldilocks  in 1973 ushered in a market for relatively obscure fairy tales that still remain untouched by Disney. This trend started ...

I will always have a soft spot in my heart for anything related to "The Little Mermaid."  For as long as I can remember, Disney's Hollywood Studios  had a short stage show dedicated to their animated adaptation called "Voyage of The Little Mermaid."  The show, which I refer to as "watching the movie on fast forward," got shut down during the COVID lockdowns of 2020 . During this time the theater grew a mold infestation , which forced them to do renovations and give the show a much-needed update. Today is the official premiere date of "The Little Mermaid: A Musical Adventure,"  a new stage show located in the same theater as "Voyage of The Little Mermaid." I am so pleased that they took this opportunity to update their "Little Mermaid" show at Walt Disney World instead of replacing it with something entirely different, like they did with Ariel's Grotto restaurant in Disney's California Adventure . "The Little M...

Based on an Italian folktale called "Fanta-Ghiro the Beautiful,"   Fantaghirò,  or Cave of the Golden Rose  in the egregiously titled English version, is an iconic and beloved European franchise of movies and animation  from the '90s that perfectly embodies the shift from femininity to feminism that took place that decade. The series, which is practically unheard of outside of Europe, is essentially a Western version of Mulan  without the ambiguity of the main character's royal status . It follows a traditional "chosen hero's journey" archetype, with the twist being that the chosen hero is a woman born to a king who was desperately seeking a male heir. Fantaghriro disguises herself as a man to fight for her kingdom , falls in love with an enemy king, and ends the centuries-long war between their two kingdoms. Although elements of these films are hokey and don't always make sense, they take place in a high fantasy setting that provides many fairy t...

I was in the mood for something hopeful recently, so I took a dive back into the Hope Ever After  multi-author series of fairy tale retellings. A Crowned Hope  by Kayla Eshbaugh is the sixth book I've read from this series, and I don't even think I've covered half of them yet. This book is a sweet retelling of The Prince(ss) and the Pauper  with cozy romantic vibes. Although the book has a villain, he is a minor part of the story and only appears in a few scenes. Overall, it is a pleasant escape from reality with a humble protagonist who is loved by many people. Keira is a peasant girl who owes money on her cottage to a greedy noble named Lord Roth, who threatens to force her to marry him if she can't pay it off. She just happens to be good friends with Princess Anna and shares a strong enough resemblance to her. Because of Anna's trauma over a recent lost love, she asks Keira to impersonate her to deter the affections of a foreign prince who has come to court her....

The Proud Princess  (or  Pysná princezna ) is a 2024 animated remake of a 1952 live-action Czech movie  based on the Czech fairy tale "Potrestaná pýcha" or "Punished Pride." The story is similar to "King Thrushbeard"  with a prideful princess and a king in disguise. However, it also has unique elements, including a kingdom-wide ban on music and a magical singing flower. The fact that this animated remake came out at a time when live-action remakes are at their peak demonstrates that Disney is missing out on a great opportunity that the Czech market has cashed in on. The 1952 live-action movie is incredibly entertaining despite its dated black and white palette, and its animated counterpart is a faithful adaptation with updated characters and effects that bring the story to life for a new generation. Princess Carolina is a beautiful but spoiled princess from the Midnight Kingdom who grew up with a father whose actions were guided by three corrupt officials...

After my last Ren Faire review , one of my readers suggested I check out the Scarborough Renaissance Festival  in Waxahachie, Texas. This is a much bigger and more popular festival than the Sherwood Forest Faire, but does that make it better? Though this faire offers some unique experiences that Sherwood didn't, the trip reminded me more of a stressful visit to a Disney Park  than a relaxing jaunt back in time. It was a three-hour drive to arrive at an enormous parking lot on a hilly field with a long walk to the front gate. While the castle tower entrances and dividers between the grounds were impressive, there were long lines for everything. Renaissance Faires are always fun experiences, so I understand why this one was so popular, but I prefer a more intimate and relaxing setting. For me, the biggest appeal of the Scarborough Renaissance Festival is the Mermaid Lagoon, a small walk-around area that costs an extra dollar per person to speak to two live mermaids and one merma...

The latest ARC I received from the new All That Glitters  multi-author series of fairy tale retellings is Siren's Treasure  by Suzanna Fowers . This action-packed retelling of "The Little Mermaid" comes out tomorrow! Since "The Little Mermaid" is one of my favorite fairy tales, I was particularly excited to read this entry in the series. This is the third book I've read from All That Glitters. Each one has been drastically different in terms of theming, characters, and tone. This story focuses heavily on the lore behind the original fairy tale while packing it with fantasy and Greek mythology elements. Although most people are at least a little familiar with fairy tales when they read adaptations, this book requires readers to know the original story inside and out before diving in. This wasn't a problem for me, but I think new books should explain as much of the story they're telling as possible to help the reader along. Siren's Treasure  is a ...