The Princess Blog

A Fable of Riddles and Redemption  by Sara Farnsworth was the third ARC I received from the upcoming Dungeons and Legends series , and it quickly became a new favorite. As someone who thoroughly enjoyed her Realms of Caelia series , I was thrilled to see Odile from   Lake of the Wild Swans  return as the main character. Her brief appearance in that book stood out to me, and I was eager to learn more about her story. A Fable of Riddles and Redemption  combines the musical and book versions of Phantom of the Opera with the fairy tale, "The Pied Piper," making for a fun combination that perfectly balances darker and lighter elements, complete with a surprise RPG-style dungeon at the end. The story begins with Odile, a victim of circumstance from the author's previous book, Lake of the Wild Swans , changing her name to Zorina and hoping to start a new life without harming others through her magic. She gets a modest job in the village when the shop is invaded by thievi...

I eagerly received an ARC of Dancing with Gold  by Sara Farnsworth , the latest book in the Realms of Caelia series . Each book in the series combines two different fairy tales to create a new original story, a concept that has inspired me in some of my own writing . This book, which combines "The Twelve Dancing Princesses" with "Rumpelstiltskin,"  is different from the other Realms of Caelia books in that it does not have the protagonists take on the roles of both stories. Instead, the book is split between the story of Princess Jadia, who lives out the popular curse version of "The Twelve Dancing Princesses,"  and her mother, Queen Amythest, who lived out the story of the miller's daughter in "Rumpelstiltskin" before Jadia was born. I personally preferred it when the characters in this series took on multiple fairy tale roles to add more depth to their stories, but that makes this book a unique entry. The premise of this book is one that m...

Realms of Caelia by Sara Farnsworth  is my favorite new series. Each book combines two well-known fairy tales to create a story filled with magic, adventure, and romance. I was thrilled to receive an ARC of her latest book, The Arrow and the Sword . Instead of fairy tales, this book combines two well-known British legends, King Arthur  and Robin Hood . It follows the popular trend of turning Robin Hood into a woman . I think I've read more books about female Robin Hoods at this point than male ones. What makes this book unique is that it combines the character of Robin Hood with Lady Guinevere, or Gwynn, as she is referred to here. As a child, I was a huge fan of Princess Gwenevere and the Jewel Riders , which loosely combined the King Arthur legends with the magical girl genre  and made Princess Gwenevere a strong leader . This book brought back many of the feelings I got from watching that show. Lady Gwynn is a master archer who can't seem to stay out of trouble. As sh...

Sara Farnsworth's Realms of Caelia series is probably my favorite series that I've read this year. I love how each book seamlessly combines two fairy tales and is packed with magic and romance. In fact, she just may have inspired me to write a dual retelling this summer as well.  Lake of the Wild Swans  is the second book in the series and fills the gap between Beauty in the Tower  and Ella and the Seven Dwarfs . Although these books work okay as standalones, there are so many recurring characters and scenes amongst them that it's best to read the whole series in order. I read an ARC of Ella and the Seven Dwarfs  before this one and felt like it was missing some key scenes until I realized they were all in Lake of the Wild Swans . This book is a combined retelling of "Swan Lake" and "The Wild Swans,"  which both fit together very well due to the overarching swan transformation theme . Princess Odette is a teenager with social anxiety who is intimidate...

I was completely enamored by Beauty in the Tower , the first book I read in the Realms of Caelia series by Sara Farnsworth , so I jumped at the chance to read an ARC of her newest book, Ella & the Seven Dwarves ,  which comes out on April 4th. This book is a combined retelling of "Cinderella" and "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs"  with elements of "Swan Lake" and "The Wild Swans"  that are incorporated from the previous Realms of Caelia book, Lake of the Wild Swans . This breathtakingly magical series combines the lore of many fairy tales and myths to create a world of enchantment and wonder. Sara Farnsworth also does a great job building up love stories that feel organic and heartwarming. Princess Ella seems to have it all--a loving father, a royal lineage, and a handsome prince who cares about her dearly. Everything goes wrong when her father marries a greedy woman with two vain daughters and falls ill shortly after. When Ella's love,...

In case you haven't heard the terrific news, there is a fairy tale advent calendar  you can access all month for free books from some of the best fairy tale authors! With so many books to choose from, it's no wonder princess stories have migrated back to the page . Among the books offered that I hadn't read, Beauty in the Tower  by Sara Farnsworth  stood out because it combines "Rapunzel" and "Sleeping Beauty."  This seemed like such an interesting and fun combination that I've never seen before. I read a book that combines "Beauty and the Beast" with "Sleeping Beauty," but not "Rapunzel." Beauty in the Tower , the first book in the Realms of Caelia series, exceeded my expectations with its unique combination of romance, magic, and suspense. I also appreciate that the author put a trigger warning at the beginning of the book for anyone who might be uncomfortable by its darker elements, but thankfully, it did not go int...