Jerry Cooke
3.5⭐️ - A Celtic fantasy with a storyline based on the movie Legally Blonde, the plot of which it sticks to a little too hard!
Having been planned to be betrothed to Prince Domhnall for many years, Princess Clia is more than a little offended when the prince tells her that she's not strong enough of a leader to be his wife. Hearing that he's going to the prestigious Caisleán Cósta, where the fiercest warriors of their land are trained, she decides to follow him, prove that he's wrong about her, and win back this marriage that will appease the gods. Rather unfortunately, she's barely any experience with the sword, but what she lacks in martial skill, she more than makes up for with determination.
I've got to preface this by saying that I think this book is marketed totally wrong - looking at it, you'd think it was in a similar fun vein as Lady's Knight, but you'd be so far off base you'd be in a different stadium. What I thought was going to be light and fluffy was in fact pretty dark, with a lot of combat, betrayal, and loss. Think of the vibe as more 'Celtic Princess goes to Basigath with less dragons' and you'll be prepared for the reality.
It tries really hard to stick to the same precise story beats of Legally Blonde (this book originally being called 'Medievally Blonde', but wisely getting a name change) and I feel like this is detrimental at points and doesn't give the book freedom to go where it will. That said, it was a perfectly enjoyable fantasy story and I enjoyed the little found family and the murderous otter-like pet Clia gets. I also appreciated that it was a really queer normative world - with good trans and non-binary representation.
3.5⭐️ - A Celtic fantasy with a storyline based on the movie Legally Blonde, the plot of which it sticks to a little too hard!
Having been planned to be betrothed to Prince Domhnall for many years, Princess Clia is more than a little offended when the prince tells her that she's not strong enough of a leader to be his wife. Hearing that he's going to the prestigious Caisleán Cósta, where the fiercest warriors of their land are trained, she decides to follow him, prove that he's wrong about her, and win back this marriage that will appease the gods. Rather unfortunately, she's barely any experience with the sword, but what she lacks in martial skill, she more than makes up for with determination.
I've got to preface this by saying that I think this book is marketed totally wrong - looking at it, you'd think it was in a similar fun vein as Lady's Knight, but you'd be so far off base you'd be in a different stadium. What I thought was going to be light and fluffy was in fact pretty dark, with a lot of combat, betrayal, and loss. Think of the vibe as more 'Celtic Princess goes to Basigath with less dragons' and you'll be prepared for the reality.
It tries really hard to stick to the same precise story beats of Legally Blonde (this book originally being called 'Medievally Blonde', but wisely getting a name change) and I feel like this is detrimental at points and doesn't give the book freedom to go where it will. That said, it was a perfectly enjoyable fantasy story and I enjoyed the little found family and the murderous otter-like pet Clia gets. I also appreciated that it was a really queer normative world - with good trans and non-binary representation.